Resurrection Week - Saturday

With unmasked joy, hope and assurance, we have been brought to the ultimate day in this year’s Resurrection Week. There is resurrection in the works and words of God, the Holy Spirit, who has been there all the time, working throughout the Old Testament as He has been in the New Testament and as He is working today. He is our present Holy Spirit.

Peter’s Resurrection Words and Works

Silver or gold I do not have, but what I have I give you. In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, walk. Act 3: 6b.

Were such words easy for Peter to speak? Easy or not, I do not know, but what I do know is that he was bold enough to speak them, witnessing to the living presence and power of the Holy Spirit in him. As Spirit-baptized people, are such words easy for us to speak? Are we witnessing to the working presence of the Holy Spirit in us?

We are told that Peter did not just speak these nice, good, hopeful words, but he announced three facts to the asking one.

Fact # 1. He did not have what the person was asking for.

Fact #2. He did have what the person was not asking for.

Fact #3. He did have something to offer, which was superior by far to what was asked for. He gave that lame beggar, the Holy Spirit’s works of raising dead feet to life, in the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth.

Ahimelech’s Resurrection Words and Works

I don’t have any ordinary bread on hand; however, there is some consecrated bread here – providing the men have kept themselves from women. 1 Samuel 21: 4b.

Were such words easy for Ahimelech to speak? Easy or not, I do not know, but what I do know is that he was bold and confident enough to speak them, witnessing to the living presence and power of the same Holy Spirit present in the temple. Has not even Jesus Himself, God the Son, lifted the words and works of this priest of God as a banner high? Jesus, Son of God, is responding to spiritually blind and arrogantly haughty Pharisees, who are holding law as superior to Him – God, the Son, in their presence. Haven’t you read what David did when he and his companions were hungry? He entered the house of God, and he and his companions ate the consecrated bread – which was not lawful for them to do, but only for the priests. Matthew 12: 3 – 4.

As priests of our Lord, are we law-controlled, or Spirit-controlled? Are we witnessing to the law of God or the freedom of the Spirit of God? We are told that Ahimelech did not just speak boldly, but he also made three facts clear to the one in need.

Fact # 1. He did not have what the one in need was asking for.

Fact #2. He did have what the needy one was not asking for.

Fact #3. He did have something to offer, which was superior by far to what was asked for. He gave the hungry, the Holy Spirit’s works of raising, refreshing, reenergizing and restoring weak, weary bodies to life, in the name of Jehovah, Israel’s God, with Jehovah’s sacred bread.

As we close this Resurrection Week, we too, now clad in resurrection material – faith and trust – have consciously lost all who we are, to be all of who He is in us, our Risen Lord and King.

AMEN!