Onward!
“But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.”
Acts 1:8 NIV
The words above that Jesus spoke to His disciples before He ascended into heaven still apply to us today. As Christians, we receive power from the Holy Spirit to be Christ’s witnesses throughout the world. We are called to share the Gospel and be a light that draws others to Him. It isn’t always easy, but this is our mission. And we must keep marching on!
“God created a community through the nation of Israel to reveal his plan and point all people to the first coming of Jesus. Now God is creating a new community called ‘the church’ to reveal his plan and to point all people to the second coming of Christ. Our job is to spread the good news all over the world that Christ has prepared the way back into relationship with God. All believers form the body of Christ, and collectively, we extend the presence and purpose of Jesus on earth.”
Randy Frazee, The Heart of the Story
“When the day of Pentecost came, they were all together in one place. Suddenly a sound like the blowing of a violent wind came from heaven and filled the whole house where they were sitting. They saw what seemed to be tongues of fire that separated and came to rest on each of them. All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit enabled them.”
Acts 2:1-4 NIV
Jesus promised that “anyone who believes in me will do the same works I have done, and even greater works, because I am going to be with the Father” (John 14:12 NLT). How is this possible? Well, if you look up this verse, you will see that the next thing Jesus promised was the coming of the Holy Spirit. Like the apostles and early disciples who received the Holy Spirit at Pentecost, as believers in Christ, we too have the power of God’s Spirit living in us. And this power enables us to accomplish far more for God’s kingdom than we could on our own.
“This is where we find our role in the grand epic. The instructions in this part of God’s Word provide us with our road map and marching orders. God promises to use the community of believers to accomplish this part of his plan, just as he promised to use Israel to accomplish an earlier part. He has given us everything we need to be successful — his Word and his Spirit. The Holy Spirit gives us the power, not to do our will, but God’s will…. Align your life to God’s will and experience his unlimited power.”
Randy Frazee, The Heart of the Story
Speaking of marching orders, my original plan for this week’s post was to do a hymn story in honor of Veterans Day. I figured I would just save the next chapter in The Story until after Thanksgiving. The hymn I had in mind was “Onward, Christian Soldiers,” but when I looked up the story of how — or, more specifically, when — it was written, I decided I needed to do both:
“This particular hymn, ‘Onward Christian Soldiers,’ was written on a Whitsunday’s evening in the mid-1860s. Whitsunday is better known as Pentecost Sunday.”
Robert J. Morgan
“Onward, Christian Soldiers” was written on Pentecost Sunday — that seems like a sign to me! It turns out that the text was written in the 1860s by Sabine Baring-Gould, a minister for the Church of England, as a song for children to sing while marching from one village to another on “Whitmonday,” the Monday after Pentecost Sunday. After being unsuccessful in coming up with anything for the children to sing, Baring-Gould quickly wrote out his own lyrics the night before the march. He had no idea the song would become so popular. And the words still resonate with us today. Sometimes it does feel like we’re marching into battle as we go about trying to do God’s work. But as the song reminds us, we must continue marching onward!
“The Christian life is often compared in Scripture to a warfare — the struggle of sin against righteousness and of the flesh versus the spirit…. This hymn text reminds us that the church universal, the ‘called out’ body of believers from every age, race, and culture, is to be an aggressive, unified body. It must always be moving forward in its mission.”
Kenneth W. Osbeck
The message of this hymn is the same as the message of this chapter in The Story: The Church has a mission to spread the Gospel all over the world, and we must carry on. We are Christ’s witnesses. As Randy Frazee explains, this doesn’t just mean proclaiming Christ’s message through our words, but also through how we live:
“During his ministry on earth, Jesus had taught the gospel of ‘good news,’ which essentially described the way to return to an authentic and personal relationship with God. But his teaching ministry is now about to end, so it is up to his followers to take over by being a ‘witness’ to this wonderful news. In the early years of my own ministry, ‘witnessing’ was an active verb — a major one. It was something you got out there and did…. But Jesus said we would be witnesses, not do witnessing. Being a witness is all-encompassing. It’s what we do 24/7; it’s who we are. Certainly it includes telling others about Jesus. But it is also expressed in how we live — in how we treat others…. The force of our message will be our changed lives — the people we are becoming in our new relationship with God. This news, both heard with ears and seen with eyes, will draw people to Jesus Christ, and the Holy Spirit is right there with us every step of the way.“
Randy Frazee, The Heart of the Story
This week’s Scripture passages focus on our marching orders. We have a great commision to make disciples of all nations and shine Jesus’ light to the world. We must always be ready to explain the hope we have in Christ. We will face opposition as we battle evil forces, so we must put on the full armor of God and persevere in the fight, knowing that nothing can stop God’s plan!
“Everything these early followers experienced is available to us today. This new beginning that started with a handful of ordinary people continues to this day. Nothing can stop it. Not even the gates of hell will prevail against the church!”
Randy Frazee, The Heart of the Story
“As you go throughout the world, proclaim the Good News to all creation.”
Mark 16:15 CJB
References:
- Frazee, Randy. The Heart of the Story: Discover Your Life Within the Grand Epic of God’s Story. Zondervan, 2017.
- Morgan, Robert J. Then Sings My Soul: 150 of the World’s Greatest Hymn Stories. Thomas Nelson, 2003.
- “Onward Christian Soldiers.” YouTube, uploaded by Ridgeway Community Church, 1 September 2021, https://youtu.be/QMCpKcytwrI?si=MU3_3UQrXY1owc1L.
- Osbeck, Kenneth W. Amazing Grace: 366 Inspiring Hymn Stories for Daily Devotions. 2nd ed., Kregel Publications, 2002.
- The Story: Read the Bible as One Seamless Story from Beginning to End. Rev. ed., Zondervan, 2008.
Images:
- Christian Flag featured image taken from “The Christian Flag – Religious flag waving in the wind.” YouTube, uploaded by Flag Footage, 26 June 2022, https://youtu.be/OHIu3-US20E?si=XwjxSCcMS7SBcOYE.
- Earth and Sun image by LoganArt from Pixabay
- Dove image by Gerd Altmann from Pixabay
- “Onward, Christian Soldiers” Hymn image taken from “Onward, Christian Soldiers (St Gertrude).” YouTube, uploaded by Andrew Remillard, 11 April 2015, https://youtu.be/0BUkMPTD9LU?si=AakHkqMIhDqMV2FN.
- Dog Tags image by Clker-Free-Vector-Images from Pixabay (edited)
- Stained Glass Cross image by bnewman0604 from Pixabay
About The Author
Christa
My vision for Wondertakings was to create a devotional blog for "nerdy" Christians like me. I do believe, as Socrates said, that wisdom begins in wonder. So I love to read or watch anything that inspires wonder and figure out what I can learn from it. I view it all through a Christian lens. I believe that God can and does speak through many sources in many ways, even if those speaking are not aware of it. I am not an expert in theology or religious studies. My goal with this blog is simply to share what I've learned as a fellow student and sinner in the Christian walk. My hope and my prayer is that by doing so I may be able to help someone else. In Deuteronomy 5:33 (NLT), we are told: "Stay on the path that the Lord your God has commanded you to follow. Then you will live long and prosperous lives. . . ." So in the words of Moses (and Spock), live long and prosper, my friends!