PLUGGING INTO HIS POWER

Acts 4:31–33 AV

31 And when they had prayed, the place was shaken where they were assembled together; and they were all filled with the Holy Ghost, and they spake the word of God with boldness. 32 And the multitude of them that believed were of one heart and of one soul: neither said any of them that ought of the things which he possessed was his own; but they had all things common. 33 And with great power gave the apostles witness of the resurrection of the Lord Jesus: and great grace was upon them all.

Intro: I don’t know about you, but I marvel at the power of the early church. It amazes me to look at the ways God used them for His glory. When you consider that 3,000 souls were saved on one day and 5,000 were saved on another day; that the Lord added to the church daily, Acts 2:47 “ Praising God, and having favour with all the people. And the Lord added to the church daily such as should be saved.”

Listen, the church was marked by powerful miracles and larger than life personalities; that they experienced amazing growth; and that they were all filled with the Holy Ghost, it lets us know that there was something difference about the early church.

Most believers long for that same kind of power today. We know that we do not have what they had, but we want it. We know that we must have the same kind of power if we are going to be effective in reaching our world like they reached their world.

In some ways, we possess far more than they did. We have nice buildings, enough money to do the things we want to do, amazing technology, and the freedom to worship God as we please. While we have many things in our favor, we lack the one thing that made the early church a mighty weapon in the hand of God. We lack the power of God!

I want to point out what I believe was the source of their power. I want you to see that the early church was plugged in to a tremendous source of power. I believe that the source of power they found is exactly what we need in our lives today.

The early church was plugged into three specific sources of power that enabled them to “turn the world upside down” for the glory of God. The power that rested on the early church is available to the modern church. We merely need to plug into the same sources of power they used in that day.

Let me show you, from the text, the sources that empowered the early church. If we want to reach our world for Jesus, and if we want to be all the Lord would have us to be, then we are going to have to plug into those same power sources today. I want to look into these verses for a few moments today and preach about Plugging Into His Power.

I. v. 31 WE NEED TO PLUG IN TO THE POWER OF PRAYER

When the disciples came back from their meeting with the Sanhedrin, the whole assembly came together in prayer, Acts 4:23–31

Acts 4:23–31 AV

23 And being let go, they went to their own company, and reported all that the chief priests and elders had said unto them. 24 And when they heard that, they lifted up their voice to God with one accord, and said, Lord, thou art God, which hast made heaven, and earth, and the sea, and all that in them is: 25 Who by the mouth of thy servant David hast said, Why did the heathen rage, and the people imagine vain things? 26 The kings of the earth stood up, and the rulers were gathered together against the Lord, and against his Christ. 27 For of a truth against thy holy child Jesus, whom thou hast anointed, both Herod, and Pontius Pilate, with the Gentiles, and the people of Israel, were gathered together, 28 For to do whatsoever thy hand and thy counsel determined before to be done. 29 And now, Lord, behold their threatenings: and grant unto thy servants, that with all boldness they may speak thy word, 30 By stretching forth thine hand to heal; and that signs and wonders may be done by the name of thy holy child Jesus. 31 And when they had prayed, the place was shaken where they were assembled together; and they were all filled with the Holy Ghost, and they spake the word of God with boldness.

As they prayed together, in one mind, the Spirit of God moved upon them and filled them with His presence and power. God honored the prayers of His people when they came together as one, praying for the common good.

• I am certain that most of us understand the importance of prayer. I hope that each of us takes time daily to pray for our families, our communities, our church and ourselves. Probably nothing we do in our Christian walk is as important as prayer. Prayer is the secret to the power of God!

⮚ We have been given great promises in prayer:

Matt. 7:7–8 “7 Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you:

8 For every one that asketh receiveth; and he that seeketh findeth; and to him that knocketh it shall be opened.”

Jer. 33:3 “ Call unto me, and I will answer thee, and shew thee great and mighty things, which thou knowest not.”

John 14:13–14 “13 And whatsoever ye shall ask in my name, that will I do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son.

14 If ye shall ask any thing in my name, I will do it.”

James 5:16 “ Confess your faults one to another, and pray one for another, that ye may be healed. The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much.”

1 John 5:13–15 “13 These things have I written unto you that believe on the name of the Son of God; that ye may know that ye have eternal life, and that ye may believe on the name of the Son of God.

14 And this is the confidence that we have in him, that, if we ask any thing according to his will, he heareth us:

15 And if we know that he hear us, whatsoever we ask, we know that we have the petitions that we desired of him.”

⮚ We have been given clear instruction in prayer: Luke 11:1–5 “1 And it came to pass, that, as he was praying in a certain place, when he ceased, one of his disciples said unto him, Lord, teach us to pray, as John also taught his disciples.

2 And he said unto them, When ye pray, say, Our Father which art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done, as in heaven, so in earth.

3 Give us day by day our daily bread.

4 And forgive us our sins; for we also forgive every one that is indebted to us. And lead us not into temptation; but deliver us from evil.

5 And he said unto them, Which of you shall have a friend, and shall go unto him at midnight, and say unto him, Friend, lend me three loaves;”

Matt. 6:5–8 “5 And when thou prayest, thou shalt not be as the hypocrites are: for they love to pray standing in the synagogues and in the corners of the streets, that they may be seen of men. Verily I say unto you, They have their reward.

6 But thou, when thou prayest, enter into thy closet, and when thou hast shut thy door, pray to thy Father which is in secret; and thy Father which seeth in secret shall reward thee openly.

7 But when ye pray, use not vain repetitions, as the heathen do: for they think that they shall be heard for their much speaking.

8 Be not ye therefore like unto them: for your Father knoweth what things ye have need of, before ye ask him.”

⮚ We have even been commanded to pray:

1 Thes. 5:17 “ Pray without ceasing.”

Luke 18:1 “ And he spake a parable unto them to this end, that men ought always to pray, and not to faint;”

Eph. 6:18 “ Praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, and watching thereunto with all perseverance and supplication for all saints;”

We do pray, but we do not often pray like the early church prayed. We usually resort to prayer when we are shaken; however they prayed to be shaken. We pray, but not fervently. We pray, but not specifically. We pray, but not in one accord. We pray, but not as a group.

We are well taught in our theology, in our doctrine and in our organization. But, we are illiterates in the school of prayer. If we would have the power of God resting on us in these days, we must learn to make use of the resource of prayer. Not just as individuals, locked away from one another, but we need to learn to pray corporately.

We must learn to pray together at prayer meetings, in altar calls, and at other times. When someone comes to this altar to pray, others should willingly gather around them to help them with their petitions. When a need faces our church, the church should bow as a body and wage war together.

• We learn to pray by praying. We learn to pray by asking God for the impossible and believing that He will send it to us. We learn to pray by reading the Word of God and praying it back to Him in faith.

• The early church had the power of God on them because they prayed together. When they called, God heard and answered. Acts 4:31 “ And when they had prayed, the place was shaken where they were assembled together; and they were all filled with the Holy Ghost, and they spake the word of God with boldness.”

Acts 12:5 “Peter therefore was kept in prison: but prayer was made without ceasing of the church unto God for him.”

• God still hears and answers the prayers of His people! Many answers I have read about and experienced! Plugging into the power of prayer would do more for this church than 10,000 revival meetings!

II. v. 32 WE NEED TO PLUG IN TO THE POWER OF PASSION

• We are told that this congregation was of “one heart and one soul”. That is, they did not live for themselves, but they lived for those around them. These people were lost in the needs of other believers, v. 32, 34–37. And, they were consumed by the needs of the lost around them, v. 33. The early church possessed a servant’s heart that was just like that of the Lord Jesus, Phil. 2:3–8

“3 Let nothing be done through strife or vainglory; but in lowliness of mind let each esteem other better than themselves.

4 Look not every man on his own things, but every man also on the things of others.

5 Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus:

6 Who, being in the form of God, thought it not robbery to be equal with God:

7 But made himself of no reputation, and took upon him the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of men:

8 And being found in fashion as a man, he humbled himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross.”

• These people lived out the will of the Savior. While Jesus was here, He said this: “By this shall all men know that ye are my disciples, if ye have love one to another,” John 13:35. Jesus said that His people would be known for the love they possessed for the other believers around them.

He went on to tell us what His will is for the church, “That they all may be one; as thou, Father, art in me, and I in thee, that they also may be one in us: that the world may believe that thou hast sent me,” John 17:21.

So, when we love one another as we should, and when we walk in unity as we should, it lets the world around us know that our profession of faith is real and that we truly belong to Christ. No other testimony we give preaches so loud and so clear as our love one for another.

• We need to plug into the power of love! Not just love that talks. Not just love that says, “I love you.” We need to plug into a love that acts, 1 John 3:18 “ My little children, let us not love in word, neither in tongue; but in deed and in truth.”

We must plug into a love that puts others ahead of self. We must plug into His kind of love; without that kind of love, everything we do is in vain, 1 Cor. 13:1–3

“1 Though I speak with the tongues of men and of angels, and have not charity, I am become as sounding brass, or a tinkling cymbal.

2 And though I have the gift of prophecy, and understand all mysteries, and all knowledge; and though I have all faith, so that I could remove mountains, and have not charity, I am nothing.

3 And though I bestow all my goods to feed the poor, and though I give my body to be burned, and have not charity, it profiteth me nothing.”

• When I love you like I should, I will forgive you for the times you hurt me, Eph. 4:32 “ And be ye kind one to another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God for Christ’s sake hath forgiven you.”

When I love you as I should, I will seek your best interests ahead of my own. When I love you like I should, I will treat you like I should, 1 Cor. 13:4–8a.

• A revival of love in the church would produce among us the same kind of attitudes and power that existed in the early church.

⮚ Love makes us considerate of others—v. 32.

⮚ Love makes people more important than possessions, v. 32.

⮚ Love enables Christians to put away their differences. The early church was made up of people from all over the world. They were of different cultures and different backgrounds.

⮚ Love produces a passion for the lost who live around us, v. 33.

• Love gives us power. Without love, we will lack the power of God we need to be effective in this age. We need to plug into the power of a genuine, all-consuming passion for others.

III. v. 33 WE NEED TO PLUG IN TO THE POWER OF PROCLAMATION

• While the early church was marked by prayer and love, they were also marked by the proclamation of the Gospel. They were a preaching people. They carried the message of the Gospel to a world that desperately needed that message.

Verse 33 tells us that “great power” rested on the apostles. Their preaching and their witness was effective because God empowered their preaching and He blessed the proclamation of the Gospel.

• The modern church must be marked by prayer and by love, but we must also be marked by the proclamation of the Gospel of grace.

We have been given the greatest message the world has ever known, 1 Cor. 15:3–4

“3 For I delivered unto you first of all that which I also received, how that Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures;

4 And that he was buried, and that he rose again the third day according to the scriptures:”

We have been sent out to preach that message everywhere there are sinners, Mark 16:15 “ And he said unto them, Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature.”

Matt. 28:19–20

“19 Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost:

20 Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world. Amen.”

We have been promised His help in sharing that message with the lost around us, Acts 1:8 “ But ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you: and ye shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judaea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth.”

There is a whole world around us that needs to hear about Jesus. Every day, in every place, there are lost people who need to hear the message of salvation. Our duty is to tell them about Jesus and what He can do for them. Saving them is God’s business!

• If our message is to be empowered like that of the early church, we must understand a few things.

⮚ The proclamation of the message is essential—1 Cor. 1:21

“ For after that in the wisdom of God the world by wisdom knew not God, it pleased God by the foolishness of preaching to save them that believe.”

Romans 10:13–17 AV

13 For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved. 14 How then shall they call on him in whom they have not believed? and how shall they believe in him of whom they have not heard? and how shall they hear without a preacher? 15 And how shall they preach, except they be sent? as it is written, How beautiful are the feet of them that preach the gospel of peace, and bring glad tidings of good things! 16 But they have not all obeyed the gospel. For Esaias saith, Lord, who hath believed our report? 17 So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.

⮚ The power of God is paramount. We can preach; we can witness; we can tell, but if He doesn’t empower the message, no one will be saved, John 6:44. The message must be empowered or no one will be saved.

⮚ When God’s people plug in to prayer and a passion for others, we can count on His empowering His message to the salvation of souls.

Conc: We have many advantages over the early church, but they put us to shame in their accomplishments. Why? They stuck to the basics and God blessed them, working through them in a demonstration of divine power. That same power is available to us today. Like the early church, we need to return to the basics of Christianity. We need to plug into the power of Prayer, the power of Passion and the power of Proclamation. Doing that will allow us to shake our world for Jesus!