Wanting to be in a Gospel Choir right about now... can you feel the Holy Spirit in this place?

Gosh, the book of Acts is just so good. I fall more in love with it everytime I read it, which hopefully means I fall more in love with Jesus everytime I read it, because the book is all about HIM. Jesus left earth to return to the Father with this message: "...you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth" (Acts 1:8) and then Jesus made His command of evangelism possible by sending the Holy Spirit. Seriously, within weeks the Holy Spirit arrives at Pentecost and the believers (about 120 of them at the time) begin preaching the Gospel all around Jerusalem. Soon their numbers total 3,000 and then 5,000 believers. Peter, John and others are persecuted by the same jealous Jewish rulers who killed Jesus, and yet they continue preaching boldly. When they are whipped for sharing the Gospel, they rejoice that "they were counted worthy to suffer dishonor for the name" (Acts 5:41). Jerusalem, check.

Then Stephen is stoned to death for proclaiming the Gospel and many of these new Christians flee Jerusalem for safety, since the church is being persecuted so badly in the city. Where do they flee to? All of Judea and Samaria, of course, and they share the Gospel there. Judea and Samaria, check.

During this time, Saul, who at first is one of the leaders instigating this persecution against the Christians, encounters Christ while on his way to arrest Christians in another city (yes, Jesus is in heaven at this time, but he appears to Saul because He has big plans for Saul's role in the spreading of the Gospel). Quick change of plans. Saul, who eventually is called Paul, converts to Christianity and become the most productive missionary in all of history. Over the course of three long missionary journeys, he is able to carry the Gospel all over the Roman Empire, eventually winding up in Rome itself. During the time period, the Roman Empire covered all of what we now consider Europe and the Middle East and even parts of Northern Africa. Ends of the earth, check.

But I only recap all of this, because I never ceased to be amazed at God's plan to share his Word with all the earth and the way He made it possible through mere men in such a relatively short amount of time. But the truth of it is, it really didn't matter who the men were or where they lived or what they said...they were able to share the Gospel so boldly and effectively because of the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit was the one causing the apostles to speak in other languages (Acts 2), causing people to be healed simply by standing in Peter's shadow (Acts 5), and creating encounters that lead to repentance and baptism, such as Phillip and the Eunuch (Acts 8).

Evangelism can be tough. People's hearts are hardened. There is so much blindness, ignorance, pride, and selfishness out there, including my own. I am a Christian, and yet I am often blind to who needs the Gospel, ignorant of how to share God's word, prideful and embarrassed to talk about God if it might be awkward or unsuccessful, and selfish because I allow so many other things to fill my time when I could be talking about Christ with people who do not know Him. And yet Christ sent the Holy Spirit to overcome all that. The Holy Spirit sees the hearts of all and knows who will be receptive to the Gospel. The Spirit gives us the words to say. The Spirit can work in spite of our sinfulness and selfishness. He can create encounters, soften hearts, open mouths and ears to the goodness of God in Jesus Christ. Sure, it might not happen the same way it did for the apostles. I might not end up speaking fluently in another language I do not know in order to share Christ, but then again, ANYTHING is possible. The book of Acts gets me excited and prayerful about God's heart for the world and the work of His Spirit on this earth. Who does He want me to talk to today? Who does He want you to to talk to?