Above Only Daily Devotional http://cgmglobal.org/aboveonly Sunday, APRIL 8 Powerful Witnesses of the Resurrected Christ Acts 1:8, Acts 4:33

Above Only Daily Devotional
http://cgmglobal.org/aboveonly

Sunday, APRIL 8

Powerful Witnesses of the Resurrected Christ

Acts 1:8, Acts 4:33
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. *And with great power gave the apostles witness of the resurrection of the Lord Jesus: and great grace was upon them all.

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The resurrection of Christ has brought us into a completely new era. By His death, Christ ended what Adam did and by His resurrection, He began an entire new race on the earth. That is why He is called the Last Adam (1Cor.15:45) and the Second Man (1Cor.15:47). Jesus began a new creation, which is His own generation. We are that new creation and Christ's own generation. We are one with Him (1Cor.6:17) and we have been raised up and are seated with Him in heavenly places, Eph.2:6. The same life in Him is in us, 1John 5:11.

After Jesus was raised from the dead, His disciples expected that He would continue with them and continue to manifest His power (Acts 1:6). However, Jesus made it clear that He would be ascending to Heaven and that it would be their role to serve as His witnesses to His death and resurrection. They were to let people know that Jesus has paid the price for their salvation from sin and deliverance from all powers and bondages of the devil. The way they were to do this was by preaching the gospel, manifesting God's power and living the life of Christ. To do this, they needed the power of the Spirit. And just as they received this mandate from Jesus and the power of the Spirit to accomplish it, we too have been given this mandate and the power of the Spirit.

Great grace was upon them all, as our last text above says, because when the gospel of Christ and what He did on the Cross is preached and the hearts of men are fixed on the things that Christ has done for them, the power and the grace of God is stirred up in their lives.

PRAYER FOCUS: Thank God for the privilege and power of the Spirit to preach the gospel, manifest His power and lead the life of Christ.

BIBLE IN A YEAR READING PLAN: 1 SAM 10-12; LUKE 9:37-62

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