The Book of Acts begins with a promise...the promise of the Holy Spirit. Over the next several months I will be working through and demonstrating the practical application of the book of Acts and how this application will empower us in our Christian walk.
During his introduction Luke states that Jesus presented Himself alive by many "infallible proofs" (Acts 1:3). We should get excited about the word "proofs." Christianity is not about blind faith, it's faith reinforced by evidence, eye witness testimony, and archaeological discoveries. In fact no other religion in the world has any "infallible proofs" nor can any other religion be defended. This should give us a tremendous amount of confidence. The "infallible proofs" spoken about by Luke in Acts 1:3 are written about in 1 Corinthians 15:5-7. But before I briefly describe what those proofs are, lets understand the word "proofs." The Greek word for "proofs" is a technical term from logic, meaning "demonstrative proof, evidence." So we can trust in the "proofs" of Jesus Christ. Jesus appeared on the road to Emmaus (Luke 24:13-32), to Peter (Acts 24:34), and then to the disciples (Luke 24:36-43). The post-resurrection appearances occurred over a period of 40 days. Ultimately, Jesus was seen by over 500 brethren at once (1 Corinthians 15:6), who needs more proof than that!
Here is the application: When you follow a Savior like Jesus, who has overcome death and sin, this instills confidence, because we place confidence in what Jesus did on the cross and not in something we are going to do. But here is the bottom line, the disciples became bold and courageous! After they saw their risen Lord and received the Holy Spirit, they were on fire! Once they experienced the "infallible proofs" of Christ, they went from being fearful to fearless, they were willing to risk everything for Christ. In fact, they were imprisoned, beaten, rejected, and eventually faced martyrdom (except John). Jesus became alive physically, but He also came alive inside of them.
Allow the power of Christ and His "infallible proofs" to come alive inside of you. This is my source of confidence, the resurrected incarnation of God, Jesus Christ. He was no ordinary man!
Jesus is who empowers me to speak up when no one else will, who empowers me to stand for what is right when no one else does, Jesus lives inside of me and the same Holy Spirit allows me to risk everything for Him! My life belongs to Him, thus a piece of Him controls my life.
Embrace His "infallible proofs" and come alive!
During his introduction Luke states that Jesus presented Himself alive by many "infallible proofs" (Acts 1:3). We should get excited about the word "proofs." Christianity is not about blind faith, it's faith reinforced by evidence, eye witness testimony, and archaeological discoveries. In fact no other religion in the world has any "infallible proofs" nor can any other religion be defended. This should give us a tremendous amount of confidence. The "infallible proofs" spoken about by Luke in Acts 1:3 are written about in 1 Corinthians 15:5-7. But before I briefly describe what those proofs are, lets understand the word "proofs." The Greek word for "proofs" is a technical term from logic, meaning "demonstrative proof, evidence." So we can trust in the "proofs" of Jesus Christ. Jesus appeared on the road to Emmaus (Luke 24:13-32), to Peter (Acts 24:34), and then to the disciples (Luke 24:36-43). The post-resurrection appearances occurred over a period of 40 days. Ultimately, Jesus was seen by over 500 brethren at once (1 Corinthians 15:6), who needs more proof than that!
Here is the application: When you follow a Savior like Jesus, who has overcome death and sin, this instills confidence, because we place confidence in what Jesus did on the cross and not in something we are going to do. But here is the bottom line, the disciples became bold and courageous! After they saw their risen Lord and received the Holy Spirit, they were on fire! Once they experienced the "infallible proofs" of Christ, they went from being fearful to fearless, they were willing to risk everything for Christ. In fact, they were imprisoned, beaten, rejected, and eventually faced martyrdom (except John). Jesus became alive physically, but He also came alive inside of them.
Allow the power of Christ and His "infallible proofs" to come alive inside of you. This is my source of confidence, the resurrected incarnation of God, Jesus Christ. He was no ordinary man!
Jesus is who empowers me to speak up when no one else will, who empowers me to stand for what is right when no one else does, Jesus lives inside of me and the same Holy Spirit allows me to risk everything for Him! My life belongs to Him, thus a piece of Him controls my life.
Embrace His "infallible proofs" and come alive!
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