“Wait For It…” A SOAP Journal Based on Acts 1

S = Acts 1:4-5, 8 On one occasion, while he was eating with them, he gave them this command: “Do not leave Jerusalem, but wait for the gift my Father promised, which you have heard me speak about. For John baptized with water, but in a few days you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit…But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.”

O = After the resurrection, during the forty days when Jesus appeared physically to the disciples, there was one meal where Jesus told them to wait…not for their food but for the coming of the Holy Spirit which would happen about a week after his ascension into heaven. They were specifically instructed to stay in Jerusalem until they had received the Holy Spirit in power.

Ironically, it was Pentecost, the feast celebrating the firstfruits (beginning of the early grain harvest), that God gave them the Holy Spirit as they became the firstfruits (Romans 8:23; 2 Thess. 2:13-14) of the Kingdom of God.

A = This passage forces me to consider how many times I go about my business, or even attempt to do the Lord’s work, in my own knowledge and power instead of that of the Holy Spirit. It can be very frustrating! However, God has not called us to frustration, but empowers us (Acts 1:8, Ch. 2), equips us (John 14:26; Eph. 3:16), and encourages us (Acts 9:31; Romans 8:6 & 16) in the promised Holy Spirit. However, I must “wait for it” but not in the same way they did. The Holy Spirit has been given, but I must “wait” in the sense of seeking the baptism and filling of the Holy Spirit in prayer and in humble confession of my need to the Lord each day. I can too easily be deceived into thinking I can do what I need to do on my own and miss out on the blessing of participating in God’s plan and power for the day.

P = O Lord, thank you for giving me your Spirit to me as a guarantee, a sign that you are in me as 1 John 4:13 reminds me. Thank you that you have provided the power I need to do the work and live the life to which you call me. I confess I can’t live up to it. In myself I have not the strength, the patience, nor the love I need and my family needs from me. I desperately need your mercies to be new every morning and for your Spirit to lead and empower me to follow in faith today that I might wait on you! Let me walk with you today in the Spirit! Amen.