“They were told that their messages were not for themselves, but for you. And now this Good News has been announced to you by those who preached in the power of the Holy Spirit sent from heaven. It is all so wonderful that even the angels are eagerly watching these things happen.”
1 Peter 1:12 NLT
Peter knew all about the Good News. He lived with its Author for over three years learning all about it and even getting the opportunity to practise it. After a “wobbly” at Jesus’ trial, and his subsequent restoration over a breakfast of fried fish, he stayed largely below the radar until that momentous day, the Day of Pentecost. And then he came forward with the other Apostles, and announced the Good News. He provided a foretaste of what happens when a preacher dispenses his or her message of Good News “in the power of the Holy Spirit”. Not for Peter, or any of the other Apostles, was the preaching going to be a message full of flummery. It was the raw truth of the Good News.
Peter commenced his preaching by quoting the prophecy of Joel 2, which ends, “But everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved” (Acts 2:21). His accurate quotation of an Old Testament Scripture, was the first evidence of the work of the Holy Spirit, bringing to his remembrance just the right verses at the right time. Jesus of course said this would happen, as we read in John 16:13, “When the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all truth. He will not speak on his own but will tell you what he has heard. He will tell you about the future.” But Jesus also warned His disciples that when faced with a stressful situation in front of the rulers and authorities of the day, the Holy Spirit would help them with what they should say. We read in Matthew 10:19-20, “When you are arrested, don’t worry about how to respond or what to say. God will give you the right words at the right time. For it is not you who will be speaking—it will be the Spirit of your Father speaking through you”. So Peter probably amazed himself with the words that came from his mouth – it wasn’t him but the Holy Spirit bringing words of power and conviction.
There is no shortage of opportunities to find out what the “Good News” actually is. The internet is a source of such information of course. And we have the wayside pulpits outside traditional church buildings and more besides. The sincere seekers after the truth of the “Good News” will find it. But for everyone else there is a lethargy, a fatigue, when it comes to things of God. We pilgrims of course look for opportunities ourselves to share what God has done for us, testimonies that are real and relevant. But we pilgrims are not all preachers. Or so we think. We may think of a preacher being someone dressed in a white gown and delivering a formal message from a piece of church furniture we call a pulpit. An ornately carved wooden construction usually elevated in a corner of the building and accessed via a number of stairs hidden behind a wooden façade. And a message is delivered but is it “Good News”? That of course depends on Peter’s assertion that the “Good News” must be “preached in the power of the Holy Spirit sent from heaven”. Without the Holy Spirit’s presence the announcement will usually fall flat and will be largely ineffective.
Before He left this world, Jesus gave His disciples an instruction. “And then he told them, “Go into all the world and preach the Good News to everyone” (Mark 16:15). There is a different dynamic if the preaching includes the Holy Spirit’s power, however. We read in Acts 4:31, “After this prayer, the meeting place shook, and they were all filled with the Holy Spirit. Then they preached the word of God with boldness”. Something called conviction ensures that the message is powerful. There has been many a preacher without a personal relationship with Jesus who nevertheless has preached the Gospel. But those who know that Jesus is their personal Saviour have an even more powerful message.
We pilgrims of course may not grace a pulpit with our presence. But we do have a message to share about what Jesus has done for us. In the pulpit of life we have the words that can make a difference to where someone will spend eternity. Romans 10:14, “But how can they call on him to save them unless they believe in him? And how can they believe in him if they have never heard about him? And how can they hear about him unless someone tells them”? We are “someone tells them” pilgrims. Let’s not miss any opportunity that comes our way.
Dear God. Please forgive us for when we make simple things like sharing what Jesus has done for us, so complicated. Your words of eternal life will reach any receptive hearts and we pray for the same boldness that the early disciples had. In Jesus’ name. Amen.
Being a Pilgrim 