Title: Only the Holy Spirit/Acts 1
Introduction Summary: The book of Acts is the Acts of the Apostles and the Acts of the Holy Spirit. It was an act of evangelism in which the apostles, seven deacons, and numerous believers testified of the cross and resurrection. He preached the gospel from Jerusalem to Samaria, Greece, and Rome. In the face of persecution and hardship, the early church members had the victory to change the world by relying on the Holy Spirit only through prayer, doing good deeds only with love, and preaching the gospel. The history of the book of Acts continues even today.
1. Only the Kingdom of God (1-3)
Jesus' interest was always the kingdom of God. While he only said once to build a church (Matthew 16:18), he said many times to preach the kingdom of God. The first words he spoke were that the kingdom of God was near (Matthew 4:17, Mark 1:15), and the words he spoke during the last 40 days were also “speaking of the things of the kingdom of God” (Acts 1:3). When sending out the twelve disciples and when sending out the seventy, he commanded them to preach the kingdom of God (Matthew 10:7, Luke 10:9). When performing miracles, telling parables, and preaching, he spoke in connection with the kingdom of God (Matthew 12:28, 13:24-50, 18:3, John 3:3). The Acts of the Apostles is the history of the expansion of the gospel and the history of the establishment of the church, but above all, it is the history of the expansion of the kingdom of God. What should we say and what should we pay attention to? Is it the restoration of the nation of Israel? Is it an extension of God's kingdom?
2. Only the Holy Spirit (4-11)
Another concern of Jesus was the Holy Spirit. He said that the Holy Spirit must come, and that all things must be done through the Holy Spirit. “Unless you are born of water and the Spirit, you cannot enter the kingdom of God” (John 3:5). “When I hand you over, do not worry about what to say; at that time he will give you what to say, for the Spirit speaking within you is the Spirit speaking” (Matthew 10:20). “The Counselor, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, he will teach you all things and will remind you of all things” (John 14:26). “It is to your advantage that I go away; if I go, I will send him to you” (John 16:7). The last command here was for the apostles and disciples to be baptized with the Holy Spirit and receive power to become witnesses. In principle, it can be said that the baptism of the Holy Spirit is received at the time of regeneration, but it can also be said that those who have been regenerated by believing in Jesus receive it again in order to receive fullness and power. What we long for throughout our lives is the filling of the Holy Spirit (Ephesians 5:18).
3. Pray only (12-25)