Acts 2:42 “They continued steadfastly…”
The man who continues steadfastly quietly and faithfully goes about his business and gets the job done; he is the type of employee you want to hire because you know you can count on him. Acts 2:42 states the early believers continued steadfastly in the apostles’ doctrine, in fellowship, in breaking bread and in prayer. In verse 46 it states the church enjoyed perpetual growth.
In Acts 2:1-4, we read of the initial outpouring of the Holy Spirit on a group of people who were steadfast in their commitment to prayer. The rest of the book of Acts shows that the Holy Spirit continued to be outpoured upon the Church. The outpouring of the Holy Spirit was not a one-time event, but rather became a characteristic of the early church. In fact, it became a focal point of the Church. As the apostles continued steadfastly in their spiritual disciplines the Holy Spirit continued steadfastly convicting sinners and empowering believers.
Someone one asked me why Christians tend to receive more from a revival or church conference than a typical Sunday service. My response: “expectation”. Many in our congregation spent weeks fasting and praying for the revival services with evangelist Randy Ruiz last weekend. As the days drew closer to the weekend a sense of expectation began to grow. In our Saturday evening and Sunday services, we were blessed by the ministry of the Holy Spirit in the altars because we prepared our hearts and expected to receive.
Let me encourage you to continue steadfastly in prayer and cultivating a spirit of expectation to receive from the Lord. Remember, what the Lord has done before, He is doing again!