“Prayed, Filled, Power, Grace"
Acts 4:5-37
“And when they had prayed, the place where they were assembled together was shaken; and they were all filled with the Holy Spirit, and they spoke the word of God with boldness.” [Acts 4:31]
Two verses later, “And with great power the apostles gave witness to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus. And great grace was upon them all.” [Acts 4:33]
Notice the order: Prayed, filled, power, grace. It began with prayer; “And when they had prayed,” the place “was shaken.” Then the filling, “and they were all filled with the Holy Spirit.” Then boldness, great power, and great grace. These were reactions of the Spirit. The Spirit-filled overflow made all the difference.
Boldness, great power, and great grace were the testimony of the early church; they were the acts of the Holy Spirit. A great harvest was rendered in Acts
3. Peter healed a man crippled from birth at the Temple. It was a miracle for all to see, and then he followed boldly preaching Christ. Five thousand responded and thus the ministry of Christ was alive and well through Spirit-filled disciples.
We pick up our reading now at Acts 4:5, where the elders of Israel reject [again] the message. They witnessed another healing; Annas, Caiaphas, and as many as were the family of the high priest [ref. v.4:6], and yet they rejected [again] the name of Jesus. This set the stage for the Gospel going out to Samaritans [Acts 8] and Gentiles [Acts 10].
Would Jesus have come again to set up His Kingdom had they repented and responded to Peter’s preaching? Quite possible. But they rejected [a final time] and the Gospel was pushed out beyond Jerusalem.
But notice the catalyst of prayer in Acts 4. After Peter and John were released by the chief priests they went back to the fellowship and prayed. They prayed for boldness to speak God’s word and that healings and signs and wonders be done through the name of Jesus [ref. Acts 4:29-20].
Their prayer was to follow their Savior’s pattern of ministry: preaching, teaching, and healing every disease and sickness. They prayed for boldness amid persecution, and “the place where they were assembled together was shaken; and they were all filled with the Holy Spirit, and they spoke the word of God with boldness.” [Acts 4:31]
More Spirit means more boldness and power for ministry, and it starts with prayer. “When man works man works; when man prays, God works.” These timeless words point to a Spirit-filled life immersed in prayer. May we, especially in these latter days, be first and foremost a house of prayer.
