The Holy Spirit Said

Reading: Leviticus 1-3; Acts 13 1 Among the prophets and teachers of the church at Antioch of Syria were Barnabas, Simeon (called “the black man”), Lucius (from Cyrene), Manaen (the childhood companion of King Herod Antipas), and Saul. 2 One day as these men were worshiping the Lord and fasting, the Holy Spirit said, “Appoint Barnabas and Saul for the special work to which I have called them.” 3 So after more fasting and prayer, the men laid their hands on them and sent them on their way. (Acts 13:1-3 NLT) OK, I guess you may as well know, I love the Antioch church! It was born out of persecution and filled with God’s grace. It was a mixed race, multi-cultural, team-led church. And it was the first church to intentionally send out missionaries.  These verses tell of a defining moment in the life of the Antioch church and in church history. The leadership team of the Antioch church was seeking God’s will about their next steps of ministry. God had brought in Barnabas to lay a solid faith-foundation and Barnabas had invited Saul of Tarsus to the party. For some time they had taught God’s Word to the church and watched leaders emerge among the disciples, and now it was time for a change. The entire leadership team was seeking God’s direction about next steps. This is how they did it: They worshiped God, they fasted, and they waited for guidance. This is how the guidance came: The Holy Spirit spoke! I’m inclined to think that the Holy Spirit spoke through a prophecy given by one or more of the leaders in that circle of intensity and obedience. Some of them were prophets. However the Holy Spirit spoke, they heard clearly and obeyed promptly. Here are two important lessons from this story:
• When we don’t know what God wants us to do next, the proper action is worshiping, seeking, and waiting.
• When we already have God’s clear direction for next steps, the proper course of action is prompt and strategic obedience.

Prayer: Father, I want to be among men and women who seek you in an atmosphere of intensity and obedience. Help me to be clear on when to seek and wait for guidance and when to promptly and strategically obey your commands. It’s time for something to happen, and I don’t want to miss it! Amen.