Re: POWER of PRAYER- No Matter Which Faith You Follow=GOD is With You
Cut to the Heart
Those who were headed for the Upper Room loved Jesus dearly. They were compassionate, self-sacrificing and soul-loving. However, they were not yet qualified to be his witnesses. It takes more than a love for Jesus and compassion for souls to qualify you as his witness.
The disciples had been taught in the school of Christ. They healed the sick, cast out demons, and performed miracles. They had been nearby when he sweat drops of blood as he prayed, and then they watched him hanging on the cross. They witnessed his resurrection, viewed the empty tomb, ate and talked with him in his glorified body, and even saw him ascend into heaven. Yet they were still not ready to be witnesses of him.
Why couldn't Peter go to those milling crowds in Jerusalem and immediately testify of Christ's resurrection? Hadn't he witnessed that event firsthand? It seems he could have preached, "Jesus is alive! He ascended into heaven! Repent!"
The answer is in Peter's powerful statement to the chief priests: "And we are his witnesses to these things, and so also is the Holy Spirit whom God has given to those who obey him" (Acts 5:32, NKJV).
Because of the words of the Holy Spirit, speaking through Peter, the priests "were furious and plotted to kill them" (Acts 5:33). The Holy Spirit also had spoken through Peter on the day of Pentecost, and all who heard "were cut to the heart" (Acts 2:37).
Stephen, filled with the Holy Spirit, preached to the religious leaders, "'You stiff-necked and uncircumcised in heart and ears! You always resist the Holy Spirit; as your fathers did, so do you...'. When they heard these things they were cut to the heart, and they gnashed at him with their teeth" (Acts 7:51, 54).
When you emerge from seeking God, full of the Holy Spirit, you will be able to stand boldly before others, and your witness will provoke one of two reactions: People will either cry out, "What must I do to be saved?" or they will want to kill you. You will speak a word that cuts to the heart, but the difference is found in the power of the Holy Spirit.
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I urge, then, first of all, that petitions, prayers, intercession and thanksgiving be made for all people -- for kings and all those in authority, that we may live peaceful and quiet lives in all godliness and holiness. This is good, and pleases God our Savior, who wants all people to be saved and to come to a knowledge of the truth. 1 Timothy 2:1-4
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