May 3, 2007

“’For John baptized with water, but in a few days you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit.’” Acts 1:5.
Jesus, in His resurrected body, was making some final comments before He was to return to His Father. He reminded them about His cousin, John, who baptized God-seekers in the waters of the Jordan River, and stated, in similar fashion, God was going to do a special thing in each of their lives. Just as John baptized with water, God was going to, in just a few days, pour out His Holy Spirit on them.
How significant was this? Jesus had been preparing His disciples for this moment, so apparently it was very important to Him. Yet, from their point of view, His disciples most likely wondered what this “baptism with the Holy Spirit” was going to be like. Their only point of reference on this had been some comments that Jesus made about the Spirit before He had been crucified, and now, just before His departure, He was speaking about this Spirit once again. In John’s water baptism, people came – they stepped forward of their own volition – as an act of repentance. Was this baptism in the Spirit going to be similar? What were they to expect? They might have had some ideas of what was going to happen, but there was no way that they could have possibly, accurately, pictured or anticipated it.
And this seems to be the way of a disciple. This is a picture of the adventure that was opened up to them when they were called out to follow Jesus, and continued to open up for them, as He prepared to leave. And this is the picture that is presented to each of us, as we anticipate His activity in our lives. One of the basic principles of being a follow of Jesus is that we follow. Isn’t that just an amazing “revelation”? You probably marvel at my astuteness! But seriously, as a disciple of Jesus, it was vital for them to learn how to follow His lead, and the same is just as true for us in today’s world. And this is precisely one of the fundamental challenges for me – to wait and to follow His lead. I find it difficult to not busy myself with activities, which are usually good but are not necessarily what He has steered me towards. I remember times when I busied myself only to realize that I needed to wait and be patient. How do you respond to waiting on God and following His lead? Is this something that comes naturally to you, or do you, like me, have to work on that discipline? Jesus spoke directly to His disciples, telling them what was to happen in a few days. Sometimes I wish that He would do that for us today. Don’t you wish that were true for you, too? Take some time today to reflect on waiting for His timing and following His lead.