Living In The Power of God

And He said to them, “It is not for you

to know times or seasons which the Father

has put in His own authority. But you shall

receive power when the Holy Spirit has come

upon you and you shall be witnesses to Me

in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria,

and to the end of the earth.”

Acts 1:7–8

            How we chase the wind! How we seek that which Jesus Christ has told us not to seek! The Seventh Day Adventist relish in teaching and speaking about the “End Times” and many follow after them seeking some secrete hidden from all others except those who want to know the future.  Well, we know the future: Jesus Christ is coming on the LAST DAY. When is the last day? Who knows for we are not told, but we are told that it is not for us to know the times or seasons: so quit looking. I am not saying we are to be ignorant of the times and all the changes that come with time, rather we are to acknowledge the sin and corruption that may occur. And then we do what Jesus said for us to do: Be HIS WITNESSES. Some chase after some supernatural spiritual awakening so that they see miracles, i.e., healings, even speaking of raising the dead, etc., but that is not the power of the Holy Spirit.  The Holy Spirit did not give us power to heal (I am not saying that we don’t pray for those who need healing, and other needs, financial, and other problems). The Holy Spirit gives us power to be His witnesses. We are His ambassadors are we not. We have been reconciled to God by the death, resurrection and ascension of Jesus Christ; have we not. We serve a holy God and God is angry with sin, both in the world of unbelievers and the sin that remains and at times resides in His children. Yet God is loving and gives common grace to all, both believers and unbelievers, and gives saving grace to those whom He chose: His children, the bride of Christ which you are so why are we chasing after the wind. If God acted on His anger instantly and execute His justice then this execution of perfect patience, that which is part of His goodness, we would never have the opportunity to discover His glory. That is why He created the world in the first place: to demonstrate His glory, not that He needed that to be demonstrated, rather that by His love He extends who He is so that we can revel in this fact: God loves, God is Just, and God is longsuffering, and God is God who saves. If God was not this loving patient, longsuffering, and Savior then the world would never know Him and in this obscurity God would be stripped of this knowledge of Him. What would the world be like if not for the restraining hand of God? We have examples of this almost every day: Islam killing infidels, even in the past those who claimed to be Christians killing others who claimed to be Christian albeit not of the faith of the ruling Church (Roman Catholicism: but don’t think that the Protestants did not kill as well; they did). In all the seasons that come and go, those times that pass are all times and seasons whereby God is manifested by the truth which He inspired men to write so that we have revealed to God, His love, His willingness to aid His children while they pass through those times and seasons facing all sorts of trials and tribulations. There are so many hurdles that we must cross, those things which are so abnormal, i.e., a train going to fast leaving the track and killing many people, or such as the shooting at schools killing many children and adults, or the bombing at events, and we may wonder: where is God? Why is God waiting? Why is He delaying His justice? In the light of eternity this is only a short period, a short time and the day is coming when all of God’s children will know in full why God was so patient, with us, and with the world in general. Justice is not wronged by patience, rather it is made more illustrious and is fuller in its scope. The day is coming when the dam of restraint will burst, this dam of long–suffering will be removed, and the floods of justice will rush down with tremendous force and violence. Justice will be fully recompensed for the delay. The authority of God will no longer be questioned. Peter gives us great insight as to the long–suffering and patience of God and our part as Christians: “The Lord is not slack concerning His promise, as some count slackness, but is longsuffering toward us, not willing that any should perish but that all should come to repentance. But the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night, in which the heavens will pass away with a great noise, and the elements will melt with fervent heat; both the earth and the works that are in it will be burned up. Therefore, since all these things will be dissolved, what manner of persons ought you to be in holy conduct and godliness, looking for and hastening the coming of the day of God, because of which the heavens will be dissolved, being on fire, and the elements will melt with fervent heat? Nevertheless we, according to His promise, look for new heavens and a new earth in which righteousness dwells” (2Peter 3:9–14).

            We all once lived in sin and were far away from God, His Savior, and followed after doctrines of men, and our own prejudices and beliefs. Then God spoke to you, by His word, by other men and women who they themselves became transformed by the power of the Holy Spirit, they changed from the inside out and began to live according to Scripture. We they now perfect? NO! but they are forgiven and when they approach our Holy God in repentance for our failures, God is forgiving. We learn, we change, and we live so that we are what Jesus Christ says we are: WITNESSES for Him. God has all the power in regards to times and seasons, we have  been given the power to be ambassadors for Him.  The question: Are you plugged into that power or not?

            Sunday is coming, are you now preparing for the Sabbath, a day in which we give to God? Or is it just a weekend? My prayer is that it is a day to fellowship with other believers and a day for God.

Lt us hear the conclusion of the whole matter:

            Fear God and keep His commandments.

For this is man’s all. for God will bring every

            Word into judgment, including every

Secret thing, whether good or evil.

                                    Ecclesiastes 12:14–14

Live Today In The Power of God

Richard L. Crumb