‘Why did the nations rage
and the peoples devise useless plans?
26 The kings of the earth took their stand;
and the rulers assembled together
against Adonai
and against his Messiah.’[b]
27 “This has come true in this city, since Herod and Pontius Pilate, with Goyim and the peoples of Isra’el, all assembled against your holy servant Yeshua, whom you made Messiah, 28 to do what your power and plan had already determined beforehand should happen.
29 “So now, Lord, take note of their threats; and enable your slaves to speak your message with boldness! 30 Stretch out your hand to heal and to do signs and miracles through the name of your holy servant Yeshua!”
31 While they were still praying, the place where they were gathered was shaken. They were all filled with the Ruach HaKodesh, and they spoke God’s message with boldness.[Footnotes:
Acts 4:24 Psalm 146:6
Acts 4:26 Psalm 2:1–2]
Saint Martin I, Pope and MartyrThey were all filled with the Holy Spirit. (Acts 4:31)
Imagine that you had just finished the best vacation of your life. You ate really well; you tried a few new activities; you thoroughly enjoyed being with your friends or family. It was perfect in every way. You came back refreshed, peaceful, and full of energy—ready to tackle whatever was waiting for you at home. You probably also began thinking and planning another refreshing vacation just like it!
In today’s first reading, the disciples, who had been so excited and overjoyed on the day of Pentecost, are in need of some spiritual refreshment. They keep getting thrown in prison for sharing the gospel, and the threats seem to be increasing rather than decreasing. You can imagine how worn out they must have been feeling! So in need of God’s help, they pray to the Spirit, who they know will show them how to move forward. And he answers their prayers powerfully! The place where they are gathered shakes, and they are filled with the Spirit once more.
Wait a minute. Didn’t the disciples already receive the Holy Spirit? Weren’t they filled with the Spirit at Pentecost? Why do they need another filling?
Being filled with the Spirit is not the same thing as a glass being filled with water. We don’t “contain” the Spirit. We can’t control him or keep him locked up in our hearts. He is always flowing, always moving, always pouring out of us. And so, as life hands us challenges, we find times when we need our own spiritual “vacation,” times when we need to be filled anew. Then, once we have been refreshed, we are able to go back out into the world with new energy, peace, and conviction.
It’s possible to live from “strength to strength”, but only as we keep asking the Spirit to fill us again and again. He is our one reliable source of strength, love, and encouragement(Psalm 84:8).
So make it a point to turn to the Spirit in every challenging situation, big or small, that you face. He doesn’t mind filling you over and over again, as long as you keep pouring yourself out for the people around you. Remember, his goal is to make each of us into vessels for his grace.
“Holy Spirit, thank you for filling me every time I need refreshment!” Amen!
Psalm 2:1 Why are the nations in an uproar,
the peoples grumbling in vain?
2 The earth’s kings are taking positions,
leaders conspiring together,
against Adonai
and his anointed.
3 They cry, “Let’s break their fetters!
Let’s throw off their chains!”
4 He who sits in heaven laughs;
Adonai looks at them in derision.
5 Then in his anger he rebukes them,
terrifies them in his fury.
6 “I myself have installed my king
on Tziyon, my holy mountain.”
7 “I will proclaim the decree:
Adonai said to me,
‘You are my son;
today I became your father.
8 Ask of me, and I will make
the nations your inheritance;
the whole wide world
will be your possession.
9 You will break them with an iron rod,
shatter them like a clay pot.’”
John 3:1 There was a man among the P’rushim, named Nakdimon, who was a ruler of the Judeans. 2 This man came to Yeshua by night and said to him, “Rabbi, we know it is from God that you have come as a teacher; for no one can do these miracles you perform unless God is with him.” 3 “Yes, indeed,” Yeshua answered him, “I tell you that unless a person is born again from above, he cannot see the Kingdom of God.”
4 Nakdimon said to him, “How can a grown man be ‘born’? Can he go back into his mother’s womb and be born a second time?” 5 Yeshua answered, “Yes, indeed, I tell you that unless a person is born from water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the Kingdom of God. 6 What is born from the flesh is flesh, and what is born from the Spirit is spirit. 7 Stop being amazed at my telling you that you must be born again from above! 8 The wind blows where it wants to, and you hear its sound, but you don’t know where it comes from or where it’s going. That’s how it is with everyone who has been born from the Spirit.”
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