The Lord Jesus did not only come to the world to pay the ransom for the salvation of sinners – He also made provision for our needs after repentance. There are certain clear commands which He gave to all of His disciples, as well as promises which will enable us to execute them. There are five basic commands which all of us should obey. If we fail to comply with these instructions we will deprive other people of the opportunity of clearly and unambiguously taking notice of Jesus Christ and His gospel of salvation:
The filling of the Holy Spirit is not an optional extra but an extremely important part of our spiritual enduement: “For this is the will of God, your sanctification. … He who rejects this does not reject man, but God, who has also given us His Holy Spirit” (1 Thess. 4:3, 8).
The very first command which the disciples received before they started evangelising the world was to be filled with the Holy Spirit. At that stage the Holy Spirit was already in their lives and they experienced the peace of the forgiveness of sins. The Sunday when the Lord Jesus rose from the dead He met with His disciples, breathed on them and said: “Receive the Holy Spirit” (John 20:22). But they were not yet endued with the power of the Holy Spirit, which was imperative for spiritual growth and working for the Lord.
After the ascension of the Lord Jesus the disciples humbled themselves for ten days and waited for the outpouring of the Holy Spirit. This event made a tremendous difference in the lives of these young believers as they were then spiritually equipped for the service of the Lord. They had a clear promise to this effect: “You shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be witnesses to Me in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth” (Acts 1:8).
This spiritual empowerment was extremely important to the disciples and made them as people of God complete, thoroughly equipped for every good work (2 Tim. 3:17). The fullness of the Holy Spirit enabled them to grow up to spiritual maturity, to have enlightened eyes of the mind to fully comprehend the Word of the Lord, to proclaim the gospel message to the world with boldness, and to prevail against all the attacks and temptations of the Evil One.
What happens if a Christian is not filled with the Holy Spirit? The uncrucified flesh will block the work of the Holy Spirit in his life: “For the flesh lusts against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh; and these are contrary to one another, so that you do not do the things that you wish” (Gal. 5:17). Such people do not properly understand the Word of the Lord and do not have a strong commitment to Bible study. They are followers of other people because they are not guided by the Holy Spirit into all truth. The one says, “I am of Paul” and the other, “I am of Apollos”, because they are not dedicated followers of Christ through the Holy Spirit.
Because the power of the Holy Spirit is lacking in their lives they cannot remain standing against the temptations of the world and its riches, they do not have the boldness to correctly proclaim the gospel, and their hearts are not filled with the love of Christ. Consequently, they are repeated victims of envy, strife and divisions, and they do not have a clear expectation of Christ’s second coming. Carnal believers are not an asset to the church of Christ.
The Holy Spirit guides us into the whole truth of God’s Word and also teaches us on the things to come (John 16:13). He is busy gathering a bride for the Lord Jesus on earth, and also sanctifies her to be able to appear before the heavenly Bridegroom without spot or blemish. The Spirit is the oil in the lamp of her testimony, and enables her to shine as a light in the midst of a dark world that does not know Christ. She must guard against the possibility of discovering, when it is too late, that she does not have enough of the oil of the Holy Spirit in her life, as her lamp will then be extinguished like those of the foolish virgins (cf. Matt. 25:8).
The Lord Jesus commanded us to have a Christian perspective on life. The point of departure of our new life is the cross of Christ, and its final objective our union with Him when He comes for us. The two important points of reference in our earthly life are, therefore, the first and second comings of Christ. In the light of these two events our life should find its deepest significance.
Whenever we celebrate communion this perspective is renewed: “For as often as you eat this bread and drink this cup, you proclaim the Lord’s death till He comes” (1 Cor. 11:26). The cross of Christ is always the point of departure for our lives, and for that reason we keep on proclaiming Him as the crucified One, and daily identify with the cross of Jesus, by whom the world has been crucified to us and we to the world (Gal. 6:14).
We should also continuously look ahead and expect the second coming of the Lord Jesus. He went to prepare a place for us in heaven, and promised to return and receive us to Himself. With a view to our eternal life we should lay up treasures in heaven and also prepare to give account of our lives before the judgement seat of Christ. Many Christians do not have a clear expectation of the second coming, they predominantly live for the things of this world, and consequently render themselves failed disciples of Christ.
But if you entertain the correct Christian perspective and future expectation, you will live for the Lord Jesus and actively proclaim His coming. You will be in conflict with the depraved principles of the world and continuously contend against them while preparing for the Lord’s kingdom.
Christians who do not have a clear expectation of the second coming, determine secular objectives and pursue them. Some of them completely miss the purpose to which Christ has called and equipped them because they do not have a clear consciousness of their final destination. They are building an earthly kingdom, they pursue wealth, and find their joy in the transient delights of this life. Because of this, very little of what they do have value for eternity. They are the ones who will appear before Christ empty-handed.
Those who are committed to maintain the correct biblical perspective are always mindful of their goal. They “run with endurance the race that is set before us, looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith” (Heb. 12:1-2). They also realise the expediency of leading a holy life before God, while engaging in peaceful relations with all people in order to more effectively witness to them: “Pursue peace with all men, and holiness, without which no one will see the Lord” (Heb. 12:14).
The Great Commission to the church of Christ is to evangelise the entire world (Acts 1:8). One of the most important reasons for the outpouring of the Holy Spirit is to equip Christians for this great task. The Lord Jesus said to all His disciples: “As the Father has sent Me, I also send you” (John 20:21). We have all been commissioned to execute this important command. The only difference between a pastor and an ordinary church member of a congregation is that a pastor performs his task on a fulltime basis and the ordinary members on a part-time basis.
We should all bear fruit which is worthy of repentance, and the Lord will indeed ask us before His judgement seat what we had done with our talents, our time and our money. Did we promote the cause of His kingdom on earth or not? When we are busy doing this we will experience the presence of the Lord Jesus in a special way in our lives. Together with the Great Commission He also gave the assurance of His uninterrupted presence to His disciples: “Lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age” (Matt. 28:20).
There are two matters in connection with evangelisation which are very important. The first one is that all of us should be involved with it, regardless of whether we proclaim the gospel ourselves or whether we render financial or other support services to the ministries of fellow believers. Our second responsibility is to follow up this work. The Lord Jesus said with reference to the converts: “Go … and make disciples … teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you” (Matt. 28:20).
Do you associate with young converts and assist them to get going with Bible study? They must become disciples themselves, who can also testify of the filling of the Holy Spirit, and of growing up in grace and knowledge (2 Pet. 3:18). Only then will they be able to make disciples of other people. It is a disturbing fact that most converts in big evangelisation rallies backslide due to a lack of proper follow-up actions.
There were two important reasons why the disciples needed the power of the Holy Spirit. The first one was to have boldness to proclaim the gospel (Acts 1:8). The second reason is in connection with spiritual warfare: “Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord and in the power of His might. Put on the whole armour of God, that you may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil” (Eph. 6:10-11).
Christians who are not yet filled with the Holy Spirit do not have the power to successfully defend themselves and are consequently easy targets for temptation and deception. The command to the Ephesians to become strong in the Lord refers to a specific experience which they should seek, and for which they should earnestly pray (Eph. 5:18). It didn’t happen by chance – they had to make a complete surrender so the Holy Spirit could fill and empower them to be conquerors in the struggle. Christians who have failed to take this step are leading lives of falling and rising again, and move from one defeat to another, rather than from victory to victory.
We have a clear command in this regard, which we would do well to heed: “Be strong in the Lord ... . Put on the whole armour of God ... . Stand therefore, having girded your waist with truth, having put on the breastplate of righteousness, ... taking the shield of faith with which you will be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked one. ... Take the ... sword of the Spirit, which is the Word of God; praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit” (Eph. 6:10-18).
Peter also emphasises the tremendous struggle which we are involved with: “Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil walks about like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour. Resist him, steadfast in the faith” (1 Pet. 5:8-9). The resistance that we offer must always be solely in the power of the Holy Spirit: “Therefore submit to God. Resist the devil and he will flee from you” (James 4:7).
Paul highlights the fact that our spiritual defence is linked to the use of specific weapons: “For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal but mighty in God for pulling down strongholds, casting down arguments and every high thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of God, bringing every thought into captivity to the obedience of Christ” (2 Cor. 10:4-5). We should become skilled in the use of these weapons, and that demands a sustained process of spiritual growth in our lives. The Bible mentions the following weapons:
First, the weapon of faith. My relationship of faith in the Lord should be so strong and unshakeable that I will fully trust Him, under all circumstances, to make me more than a conqueror in Jesus Christ. I must know and believe that He who is in me is greater and stronger than he who is in the world (1 John 4:4). Without a strong faith in the Conqueror I will have a doubting disposition and consequently become defenceless in the struggle against sin and unrighteousness. John says: “For whatever is born of God overcomes the world. And this is the victory that has overcome the world – our faith. Who is he who overcomes the world, but he who believes that Jesus is the Son of God?” (1 John 5:4-5).
Secondly, there is the weapon of the blood of the Lamb. He has shed His blood and laid down His life on the cross, “that through death He might destroy him who had the power of death, that is, the devil” (Heb. 2:14). “In Him we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of His grace” (Eph. 1:7). During the great tribulation, when the devil will come down to earth with great wrath and fury (Rev. 12:12), Christians of that time will all physically die as martyrs but spiritually they will overcome the Antichrist “by the blood of the Lamb” (Rev. 12:11).
Thirdly, there is the word of our testimony, which plays an extremely important part in the life of a Christian. We have a standing order to be witnesses of the Lord Jesus in a spiritually dark and apostate world. In so doing, many victories have been achieved for the cross while expanding the kingdom of heaven to many parts of the world. Without Christian witnessing and preaching millions of people would have remained in spiritual darkness, their senses still being blinded by the devil, who is the god of this age (2 Cor. 4:4).
Fourthly, there is prayer as a mighty spiritual weapon which the Lord has given us: “The effective, fervent prayer of a righteous man avails much” (Jas. 5:16). Prayer is sustained by faith: “But let him ask in faith, with no doubting, for he who doubts is like a wave of the sea driven and tossed by the wind. For let not that man suppose that he will receive anything from the Lord” (Jas. 1:6-7). To be able to pray prevailing payers we should “draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled from an evil conscience” (Heb. 10:22). Our lives should be pure and holy. We must also search the Bible to determine the will of God, and pray accordingly: “Now this is the confidence that we have in Him, that if we ask anything according to His will, He hears us” (1 John 5:14).
Fifthly, there is the Bible which is an important part of the Christian’s spiritual armour. Paul calls it “the sword of the Spirit” (Eph. 6:17). It is a living and dynamic word which enters deep into our hearts to do its work of conviction there: “For the word of God is living and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the division of soul and spirit, and of joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart” (Heb. 4:12). It discerns all thoughts as good or evil and works through our conscience to show us what is right and wrong. When we proclaim the Word, the gospel of Jesus Christ is “the power of God to salvation for anyone who believes” (Rom. 1:16). To all unsaved persons who put their trust in the Word it has the ability to save them from the power of Satan (Jas. 1:21).
Are you busy achieving victories with the Lord Jesus for His kingdom, or do you forfeit the power of the Holy Spirit in your life? If that is the case, your life will be characterised by defeat, despondency and failed efforts. Come to the Lord Jesus and trust Him for full spiritual restoration.
We are clearly admonished to persevere on the way of the Lord. He does not want us to underestimate the assault against Christianity as such believers may become discouraged, backslide, and ultimately accept defeat. It is with the purpose of prevailing over evil that He gave us the power of the Holy Spirit, as well as spiritual armour. We should consider the lives of great heroes of faith, but more specifically the life of Jesus Himself, and single-mindedly persevere to the end:
“Therefore, since we also are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which so easily ensnares us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith, who for the joy that was set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. For consider Him who endured such hostility from sinners against Himself, lest you become weary and discouraged in your souls. You have not yet resisted to bloodshed, striving against sin” (Heb. 12:1-4).
There are unfortunately many people who think that we need not persevere on the way of the Lord as, according to John 10:28, we cannot be snatched from His hand. But they forget that every promise of the Lord is conditional. The promise of eternal security in John 10:28 is tied to the conditions mentioned in the previous verse: “My sheep hear my voice, ... and they follow Me.” These verbs are written in the continuous present tense, which means that the disciples of the Lord Jesus must keep on obeying and following Him. Only they are assured of an unbroken relationship with the Lord.
What happens to those who do not persevere in following and serving the Lord? This question is answered in John 15: “Abide in Me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in Me. I am the vine, you are the branches. He who abides in Me, and I in him, bears much fruit; for without Me you can do nothing. If anyone does not abide in Me, he is cast out as a branch and is withered; and they gather them and throw them into the fire, and they are burned” (John 15:4-6). We should, therefore, commit ourselves to abiding in Christ. He will not forsake us, but we can forsake Him and, like the lost son, leave the Father’s house to walk in the wicked ways of the world.
In the Book of Revelation, John refers to those who persevere on the way of the Lord as overcomers. Those who will inherit everything are not merely described as believers but they who persevered to the end. Jesus says: “But hold fast what you have till I come. And he who overcomes, and keeps my works until the end, to him I will give power over the nations” (Rev. 2:25-26). Only the overcomers will rule with Him.
To believers in another congregation Christ says: “Behold, I come quickly! Hold fast what you have, that no one may take your crown” (Rev. 3:11). Believers who backslide can lose the rewards which they could have received because of their earlier commitment to the cause of the Lord. John says in his second Epistle, verse 8: “Look to yourselves, that we do not lose those things we worked for, but that we may receive a full reward.”
Paul said to the apostate Hebrews, of whom many had again indulged in sinful lives: “For we have become partakers of Christ if we hold the beginning of our confidence steadfast to the end” (Heb. 3:12-14). The apostle said to the Colossians that they would be presented to Christ blameless and irreproachable if they continued in the faith, grounded and steadfast, and were not moved away from the hope of the gospel (Col. 1:22-23).
We can, with great boldness, walk on the narrow way and do the work which the Lord Jesus has commanded us to do, because every command is accompanied by promises of provision. We have the command to evangelise the world, but together with that also the promise that the Holy Spirit will empower us, guide us into all truth, remind us of the words of Christ, teach us on the things to come, and give us enlightened eyes of the mind to understand the mysteries of the gospel.
We are also commanded to resist and overcome the attacks of the Evil One, fleshly lusts, temptations, as well as spiritual deception by the enemy and his collaborators. To this end we have the promises of spiritual empowerment, the use of the unsurpassable weapons of the light, and also the firm assurance that the Lord will never leave or forsake us if we abide in Him and persevere on the right way. If we seek His kingdom and His righteousness, He will supply all our needs according to the riches of His grace.
The hope on the coming of Christ is “an anchor of the soul, both sure and steadfast, which enters the inner part behind the veil” (Heb. 6:19). Let us proceed steadfastly on the new and living way which starts at the cross and leads uncompromisingly to the second coming of Christ – then we will be co-workers and heirs of a kingdom of righteousness which will endure forever.