In a vision I had a couple of months ago, I saw the sun rise up over darkness on the earth, I expected the darkness to vanish but instead it just stared in amazement at the sun.  I felt this was showing the awe, reverence and fear of God returning to the world.  This will happen as believers understand who they are in Christ, rise up in boldness and demonstrate the power of God.  One of my favorite stories in the bible is found in Acts 8:5-13.

Philip went down to a city in Samaria and proclaimed the Messiah there. 6 When the crowds heard Philip and saw the signs he performed, they all paid close attention to what he said. 7 For with shrieks, impure spirits came out of many, and many who were paralyzed or lame were healed. 8 So there was great joy in that city.

9 Now for some time a man named Simon had practiced sorcery in the city and amazed all the people of Samaria. He boasted that he was someone great, 10 and all the people, both high and low, gave him their attention and exclaimed, “This man is rightly called the Great Power of God.” 11 They followed him because he had amazed them for a long time with his sorcery. 12 But when they believed Philip as he proclaimed the good news of the kingdom of God and the name of Jesus Christ, they were baptized, both men and women. 13 Simon himself believed and was baptized. And he followed Philip everywhere, astonished by the great signs and miracles he saw.

I love this story because it shows how the demonstrated power of God can transform an entire city in a day.  It also shows that the greatest sorcerer in the city recognised true power when it was demonstrated and turned from his ways to follow Jesus.  But my favorite line of the entire verse is found in verse 13 And he followed Philip everywhere, ASTONISHED by the great signs and miracles he saw.  (Emphasis added)  Philip knew who he was, he had the revelation that God was with Him and proclaimed the gospel boldly demonstrating it’s reality through powerful signs, wonders and miracles.  We see this again in Acts 5:12-16

12 The apostles performed many signs and wonders among the people. And all the believers used to meet together in Solomon’s Colonnade.13 No one else dared join them, even though they were highly regarded by the people. 14 Nevertheless, more and more men and women believed in the Lord and were added to their number. 15 As a result, people brought the sick into the streets and laid them on beds and mats so that at least Peter’s shadow might fall on some of them as he passed by.16 Crowds gathered also from the towns around Jerusalem, bringing their sick and those tormented by impure spirits, and all of them were healed.

We see in the book of acts that the world knew the reality of God because his power was demonstrated so openly for everyone to see.  They were astonished, they were in awe, reverence of God, because they knew that he was real and that he had true power.

They also knew that the apostles were ambassadors of God and had his backing, his authority and power.  The apostles knew that God was with them because they had close personal relationships with the Holy Spirit and I believe this was the key to their boldness.

In verse 13 no one else dared join them although they were highly regarded, this was due to the fear of the lord.  I believe this fear will return back to the world as the body of Christ step into their destiny and have a full revelation that God is with them.

How do we walk in this same power, by believing that Jesus is the son of God, believing he died for us and rose again, believing that his spirit now lives in us to carry on his mission and developing a personal relationship with Him.

Over the next few posts, we will be examining a number of different individuals who understood this revelation and how it impacted their lives.

Next Post: Source of Boldness