04/03/2014 March 4 Tuesday Ye will receive power, the Holy Spirit having come upon you, and ye shall be My witnesses both in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth. (Acts 1:8) Being built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ Himself being the cornerstone. (Ephesians 2:20) PASSING THE BATON (7) Besides sending the Holy Spirit to carry on the ministry He had begun, the Lord Jesus passed the baton on to His disciples. The baton has been passed on many times since then. The Church has been established on earth through the labors of the apostles and the New Testament prophets. We have their writings to guide us. The disciples were to be the Lord’s witnesses from Jerusalem, where He had been crucified, to the ends of the earth, the Lord told them. This would not be easy. Generation after generation, Christians, empowered by the Holy Spirit, have preached the gospel and taught the truth of God in the entire world. This has cost them much suffering, and has even cost many their lives. One of these followers, the apostle Paul, had the baton placed in his hands by the Lord Himself, for he received his commission directly from Him. Throughout much of Paul’s ministry we find him leading a team of fellow-servants, training and encouraging them in the Lord’s service. When he eventually faced execution at the hand of the Roman emperor Nero, he wrote to his beloved son in the faith, Timothy: “I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith.” He exhorted Timothy to stir up the gift of God which was in him, and urged him to pass on the torch to others, saying, “You therefore, my son, be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus. And the things that you have heard from me among many witnesses, commit these to faithful men who will be able to teach others also.” What are we doing with the baton that has been passed to us? E. P. Vedder, Jr.
Posted on: Tue, 04 Mar 2014 11:36:41 +0000
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