Power to Be a Witness

850 Words2 Pages
bulb-icon

Recommended: Effects of the Holy Spirit in the book of Acts

Why would someone pass up the opportunity of receiving a free gift? Then once accepting the gift, why would someone keep that good news to himself or herself? Most people would want to share and tell others how they too could receive the gift. This must be how the disciples felt waiting for the Lord to fulfill his promise to send the Holy Spirit (Acts 1:5). They had a gift from God to share, which offered everlasting life through His Son Jesus. The Holy Spirit was to be their helper and give them power to be witnesses for His message of salvation. In Acts 2:1-47, Luke tells about the coming of the Holy Spirit on the Day of Pentecost and the Christian mission. The descent of the Holy Spirit upon the apostles and the Virgin Mary gives them the courage to practice their faith. It confirms their responsibility to follow the teachings of Jesus and spread the Gospel “to the ends of the earth” (1:8).

The reaction of the crowd hearing each other in his or her own language (2:5-13) is personally meaningful since it shows how God’s powerful presence will always astonish and amaze people. This multilingual witness symbolizes the universal offer of salvation. It challenges the current understanding about Him and people become curious turning their attention to what other surprises He has to reveal. Some people are confused but open to the idea of understanding the miracle, while others dismiss it as drunkenness. It prepares the heart of those individuals willing to receive the blessing of God’s grace. Peter, empowered by the Holy Spirit, then goes on to tell people that the Jewish leaders were responsible for crucifying Jesus but not by accident. Jesus being put to death and raised from the dead was God’s divine plan all along and that ...

... middle of paper ...

...e of salvation and stand up for the teachings of Jesus. It seems as though some churches are compromising in order to entice people into worship. They have allowed Gnosticism to influence the people with a worldview of Christianity (158). God’s message does not change over time; it remains the same message given to the early church at Pentecost. I understand that the method of presenting the gospel might be different over the centuries, but not the fundamental message itself. The church at any time in history should be filled with the Holy Spirit, able to be a witness to Christ and his gospel.

Works Cited

Mueller, J.J. SJ, et al. Theological Foundations: Concepts and Methods for Understanding Christian Faith. Winona, MN: Saint Mary’s Press. 2007. Print.

Saint Mary's Press College Study Bible: New American Bible. Winona, MN: Saint Mary's Press,

2007. Print.

Show More
Related

  • A Critique of Culture Shift by David W. Henderson

    1358 Words  | 3 Pages

    The church has a problem. The eternally relevant message with which she has been entrusted no longer readily finds a willing ear. According to Henderson, the solution lies in first understanding how our world thinks and then, beginning where people are at, bring them to see "the functional relevance for their lives of the actual relevance of our message". In high school speech classes, we were taught to "know your audience." As a careless high schooler, I didn't really care what she meant, but it eventually made sense (once I actually decided to think about it). You wouldn't use sock puppets to explain math to accountants; you wouldn't use in-depth power-point presentations to explain math to first graders. With this in mind, why do many Americans still try to talk about Jesus using the methods used thirty years ago? Why do we use Christian "jargon" to explain Christianity to those outside the faith? Henderson contends that modern American Christians must change their approach to sharing the faith in order to fit modern America. The pattern of Henderson's book is straightforward: he examines a particular aspect/mindset/value of modern Americans; he then gives ideas about how a Christian might share Words of Eternal Life with such an American. Henderson's writing is both straightforward and enjoyable. He gets right to the heart of the American mindset, then illustrates it with descriptions from scenes from popular movies, personal anecdotes, jokes, etc. In all, Henderson does the modern Christian a great service in writing "Culture Shift." Jesus told Christians to tell others about him ("Go, therefore, and baptize all nations...") and Henderson can help us along the way through this book

    Read More

  • Of Suffering And Evil In Dostoevsky's The Grand Inquisitor

    1265 Words  | 3 Pages

    Christ for the third time refuses. Since Christ refused the power presented to him, the church must now attempt at unifying the christian religion. A goal of mankind is to unite the civilizations into a “universal state” (pg. 31). A universal state brings along security in replacement of free will which humans are more than willing to give up especially if the one who unites them is the one that also provides for them. Humanity has suffered because we have had no unity among all civilizations until the church came around. Since christ has died and did not assume the role of a universal leader the church must assume this power for the sole purpose of benefiting man. Along with assuming this role, the church must also correct errors that Christ has caused. The church now has finally been able to convince mankind to submit their freedom in return for happiness, security, and a sense of unity. The last anguish of man is “the craving for universal unity” (pg 31). Now that the church has provided this to mankind we should not mess with or upset the

    Read More

  • The Gospel of Matthew

    1550 Words  | 4 Pages

    The Gospel of Matthew is an eyewitness story written for an audience of believers, under great stress, and persecution. Matthew develops a theological plot incorporating genealogy, speeches, parables, inter and intra textual references, common vocabulary, and fulfillment quotations, with a tension that builds as we are invited into the story. The crucifixion and resurrection bring us to a Christological climax that symbolically points beyond its conclusion to God’s Kingdom, bringing atonement, salvation and the ushering in the Eschaton. The extraordinary events surrounding the crucifixion act as commentary, adding important details concerning the death of Jesus.1

    Read More

  • 2 Timothy

    837 Words  | 2 Pages

    This paper will discuss five different translations of 2 Timothy. The translations include the New American Standard Bible (NASB), which is a literal translation; the New Living Translation (NLT), which is a dynamic translation that attempts to convey more of a thought for a thought and less word for word; the English Standard Version (ESV), an American literal version; the Douay-Rheims American Edition (DRA), which is a Catholic literal translation of the Latin Vulgate.; and the Message, which is a periphrastic translation. These translations are not drastically different, but may have chosen different wording based on preference, how literal the translation is or preconceived perspective or doctrine. Reading multiple translations can give a better understanding of the meaning of the text.

    Read More

  • Witness for the Prosecution

    883 Words  | 2 Pages

    The mystery, “Witness for the Prosecution”, was produced in 1957 by Arthur Hornblow, Jr. and directed by Billy Wilder. The two lead male actors were Tyrone Power as Leonard Vole and Charles Laughton as Sir Wilfrid Robarts. The lead female actor was Marlene Dietrich as Christine Helm.

    Read More

  • Building A Healthy Multi Ethnic Church Summary

    837 Words  | 2 Pages

    Mark DeYmaz in his book Building a Healthy Multi-ethnic Church asks rhetorically, “Does a homogeneous church unnecessarily confuse the message of God’s love for all people?” and “Will such a church become increasingly cumbersome to the advance and proclamation of the Gospel in this century?” DeYmaz’s has a view that the homogeneous church does not biblically reflect the heart of God for all people.

    Read More

  • Essay On The Book Of Acts

    685 Words  | 2 Pages

    ...ctions. Peter answered with the Spirit. The power by which the crippled man was healed was that of Jesus of Nazareth. Not only that, but Peter accused the Sanhedrin of responsibility for rejecting and killing Christ. He also noted God’s power in raising Jesus from the dead. Peter’s speech to the Sanhedrin summarizes his other two sermons. Although they were unable to deny the apostolic miracle, the Sanhedrin felt compelled to stop the apostolic preaching. Before the power of God that transformed unschooled, ordinary men into powerful proclaim of the gospel, the Sanhedrin was unable to punish the apostles. This chapter ends with a report of the church’s prayer in gratitude for God’s deliverance of the apostles from the Jewish authorities.

    Read More

  • The Beatitudes Research Paper

    1259 Words  | 3 Pages

    The Beatitudes are some of the most loved and familiar teachings of Jesus. They are also some of the most pointed, and as followers of Christ, we must be sure we don’t miss their point! We must consider them in context. The Beatitudes are found in both Matthew and Luke, and we will examine both. Jesus teaches the Beatitudes to people living in Roman-occupied Palestine in the first century AD. The people who heard the Beatitudes experienced great oppression under the Roman Empire, and the Beatitudes reflect their experience of Rome’s cruelty. They also reflect the good news of God’s just and grace-filled response. One of the most exciting aspects of this study is the opportunity to write a group confession— an ancient Christian practice of

    Read More

  • An Analysis Of Jesus Resurrection From The Dead

    1568 Words  | 4 Pages

    In this paper, I will examine Jesus’ resurrection from the dead because, according to many scholars, there is no other event in the life of Jesus that is as significant. In order to better comprehend the magnitude of this event, I will begin by looking at what can be discerned from the Resurrection of Jesus. Then, I will explore the two different kinds of resurrection testimony that there are: the confessional tradition and narrative tradition. For the confessional tradition, I will look at a few examples including St. Paul’s confession in First Corinthians which is composed of four parts: Jesus’ death, the question of the empty tomb, the third day, and the witnesses. For the narrative tradition, I will briefly examine the two sources of information

    Read More

  • The Pros And Cons Of Salvation

    1136 Words  | 3 Pages

    Church attendance is slowly dwindling in all the churches, even in your megachurches and the Word of God is not being sought as it should. Without the basic knowledge of “what is sin”, “who commits sin”, “where does sin come from”, and how to get rid of sin” it is resulting in much dishonor among people and rebellion against God. People are continuing to live secular lives living without basic biblical principles. People are continually seeking those things when that leads them further and further away from a Christian life and they should be seeking spiritual guidance. The Bible can and will educate you on all types of self-helps, psychology, geography, philosophy, love, prosperity, etc. One Book does it all except make you read. Yes, there are things that clergy should set up to attract people to the Word and the Word should be presented accordingly and sought out by all. Times have changed and we should equate the times in the Bible. The Bible was written so many years ago and the Word still applies

    Read More

  • Essentials Of Christian Faith Salvation

    880 Words  | 2 Pages

    It is the beliefs above that has shaped the theology of Christianity, bringing about the writing of many creeds that Christians still value today. It is what distinguishes the many denominations and unites them as well. With each passing generation it seems that Christianity is continually losing its popularity amongst the young people. Christianity is relevant in today’s society. Churches today should greatly value the historical aspect of Christianity as a religion. If certain values and principles of Christianity have withstood the test of time then this should reassure Christians of the validity of their beliefs. Young people today are interested in the theology of the bible they value the message of Jesus Christ. It is the “religious” aspects that many are fed up with. People are frustrate with the church because of the corruption that has occurred over time and its inauthenticity at times. To some it appears that the church is more concerned with appearances then actually fulfilling the work of God. This generation needs church leaders that embrace the historical roots of Christianity. And someone who isn’t afraid to be teach the raw and passionate message that is the gospel. Getting at the core of what it truly means to be a

    Read More

  • The Person of Christ

    961 Words  | 2 Pages

    "We cannot indeed overestimate the importance of the fact that Jesus' redeeming influence on the world-all that has induced men to call Him Lord and Savior-owes to His humanity at once its individual and its social power, and is complete with the com...

    Read More

  • Character Of The Holy Spirit In Acts

    1802 Words  | 4 Pages

    The Holy Spirit is the gift given by God freely to those who repent their sins and believe in Jesus Christ (Acts 1:4-5, 2:38). It is God’s promise for all the people (2:39). The Holy Spirit is available to any believers even if they are the gentiles. Peter was astonished when he saw that the gentiles also received the Holy Spirit (10:24-48). He realized that ‘God does not show favoritism but accepts from every nation the one who fears him and does what is right’ (10:34-35). Since it is the gift from God, it cannot be purchased with money (8:19-20).

    Read More

  • Reflection Of The Book Of Acts

    1039 Words  | 3 Pages

    In addition it is by means of that identical instrumentality that individuals should have their impact upon those they teach. The Holy Spirit’s influence on the early church and apostles conveyed teaching, friendship, the leadership and prayer into fulfillment. I feel that the real-life love revealed shouts to the 21st era Church’s should refocus on these fundamental leaders. To my understanding the book of Act demonstrate the days of the early church. Also, the four frameworks concerning the modern-church can attract knowledge to integrate these heart-felt leadership skills are historical context, learned contexts, interpretation and devotion. 2 Timothy 2:15 states, “Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved, a worker who has no need to be ashamed, rightly handling the word of truth” (NKJV). Believers who overlook the Bible will definitely be humiliated at the

    Read More

  • “Inspiration,” “inerrancy,” and “canon” (as it pertains to the Bible)

    753 Words  | 2 Pages

    This is not to say that the leaders of the Church cannot make new revelations or that the laws of the church cannot be clarified or modified for use in today’s society. New revelations can be made known by God whenever then need arises. These revelations are not new ideas or truths from God; they are me...

    Read More

More about Power to Be a Witness

Open Document