Throughout the history of the church, or, even more, the history of the world, God's intent was that His power and presence would be increased here in the earth. We can see this in the vision that the prophet Ezekiel had in chapter 47 of Ezekiel.

Then brought he me out of the way of the gate northward, and led me about the way without unto the utter gate by the way that looketh eastward; and, behold, there ran out waters on the right side. ³ And when the man that had the line in his hand went forth eastward, he measured a thousand cubits, and he brought me through the waters; the waters were to the ankles. ⁴ Again he measured a thousand, and brought me through the waters; the waters were to the knees. Again he measured a thousand, and brought me through; the waters were to the loins. ⁵ Afterward he measured a thousand; and it was a river that I could not pass over: for the waters were risen, waters to swim in, a river that could not be passed over.

Ezek 47:2-5

This water is the river of life. It flows from God's throne because God created and sustains all life Himself. Water also symbolizes the Word of God. The Word of God causes the move of God. As the Word is manifested in our lives, the move of the Holy Spirit can increase in the earth.

This river is very unique. Not only does it flow out of the throne of God, but it increases in size as it flows. Now, on earth, we see rivers increase also, but that's because off tributaries bringing in more water. The further a great river flows, the more other rivers add their water to it, until it becomes vast. This river has no other tributaries. It only receives its water from the throne, but it continues to increase anyway.

The increase that we see in this river is that same increase in the power and presence of God here upon the earth. God has worked behind the scenes throughout history to bring this about. Unfortunately, many times, we have worked against Him, instead of working with Him.

If this vision of increase is true, than we should be seeing a greater move of the anointing power of God here on the earth than any other time in history. Although we have historical records of the church, they don't speak in detail about the manifestations of the anointing of the Holy Spirit as much as we would need in order to verify that we are increasing in that anointing.

However, there is one place in church history that the anointing power of the Holy Spirit, and the works of the Holy Spirit are accurately recorded. That's in the book of Acts. So, we should be able to compare the church today with the church in the book of Acts. If the church has been cooperating with the work of God, then we should be able to see that we have far surpassed the manifestations of the Holy Spirit in the early church.

Before Jesus was taken up to heaven, after His resurrection, He commissioned His disciples, the representatives of the early church to continue the work He had started. This is recorded in what we call the "great commission."

"But ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you: and ye shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judaea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth."

Acts:1:8

Not only did He give the great commission, but He also gave them authority and power, in His name, to accomplish supernatural acts as directed by the Holy Spirit.

"And he said unto them, Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature… ¹⁷ And these signs shall follow them that believe; In my name shall they cast out devils; they shall speak with new tongues; ¹⁸ They shall take up serpents; and if they drink any deadly thing, it shall not hurt them; they shall lay hands on the sick, and they shall recover."

Mk 16:15-18

Notice that Jesus said that we, that is, the Body of Christ, would do these things "in His name." Not in our own name, nor our church's name, or even our denomination's name, but His name. If we are expecting to manifest the power of the Holy Spirit to bring glory to anyone else but Jesus, we are sadly mistaken; His power is given for His glory, not ours.

Many believers try and use the words "in the name of Jesus" almost like they are magic words. They pray some of the most ridiculous things, "in Jesus' name" and expect them to happen. Prayers like, "Lord, I ask you to give me a Cadillac, because I'm one of your children, and I deserve a Cadillac, in Jesus name, Amen."

Then, when their Cadillac, or whatever they prayed for, doesn't come, they wonder why not. "Was it because I didn't have enough faith?" "Was it because I didn't pray it sincerely enough? Was it because I didn't pray loud, or long, or elegantly enough?"

We need to understand that the words "In Jesus name" aren't magic words. Nor are they a formula to receive anything we want. Literally they mean that we are praying in accordance with Jesus' will and desire.

Look at it this way for a moment. If you hire a lawyer to go into court for you, you give that lawyer authority to do things "in your name." He doesn't have any authority on his own, only the authority you've given him. That means that he can only do what you have instructed him to do, or what you desire him to do. He is operating in accordance with your will. If he steps outside of that limited authority, you don't keep him working for you.

It's the same with doing things "in Jesus name." We, acting as His ambassadors here upon the earth only have the authority to do what He has instructed us to do in His Word, and in accordance with His will. He has promised that as long as we stay within the limits of that authority, His Holy Spirit will manifest His power on our behalf.

Throughout the book of Acts, we find the power of the Holy Spirit manifest through the early Christians, most specifically this book of the Bible is a record of the Holy Spirit working through the apostles. However, by no means is it limited to the apostles, it also shows deacons, and others being used as instruments of the Holy Spirit.

God's intent was that the last days would begin in the book of Acts. Peter even proclaimed that in the first message he preached on the day of Pentecost.

"And it shall come to pass in the last days, saith God, I will pour out of my Spirit upon all flesh: and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, and your young men shall see visions, and your old men shall dream dreams"

Acts 2:17

If the Body of Christ had continued in God's perfect will, then the move of God we saw in the book of Acts would have been only a starting point. From there, it would have grown and increased until the day of Jesus' return.

Unfortunately, it is too easy for man to fall into tradition and structure instead of following the full leading of the Holy Spirit. So, instead of the move of God growing from that point, it fell back, reaching low levels that God never intended. Throughout church history, God has been working through the various revivals to bring us back up to the level they were at in the early church.

Some people would say this isn't true because that would mess up God's timetable. These people are forgetting the power and intelligence of God. He is so far above our understanding that He is able to know how man would fall short of His ideal, and made His plans take that into account.

Before the end can come, God must bring us into the fullness of His power and glory. That means that we must first catch up with what was happening in the book of Acts, and then surpass it. So, let's take a look at some of the things that happened in those times and see where we are in comparison.

People Saw Jesus

"To whom also he shewed himself alive after his passion by many infallible proofs, being seen of them forty days"

Acts 1:3

"And as he journeyed, he came near Damascus: and suddenly there shined round about him a light from heaven: 4 And he fell to the earth, and heard a voice saying unto him, Saul, Saul, why persecutest thou me? 5 And he said, Who art thou, Lord? And the Lord said, I am Jesus whom thou persecutest…"

Acts 9:3-5

In the book of Acts, there were times that Jesus showed himself to people. Of course, after the resurrection, 500 people saw him over a period of 40 days, but that's not all.

In chapter nine, we find that God called a certain Pharisee named Saul to become an Apostle. In the process, his name was changed to Paul, and he wrote two thirds of the New Testament. To make the message clear to Paul, Jesus himself came and spoke to him.

Are we seeing this today? Yes, in fact, this manifestation of the Spirit is happening, and has been happening for about the last 30 years. Many ministers and other believers have given testimony of seeing Jesus come and speak to them.

The Believer's Asked for God's Direction in Making Decisions

"And they prayed, and said, Thou, Lord, which knowest the hearts of all men, shew whether of these two thou hast chosen, ²⁵ That he may take part of this ministry and apostleship…"

Acts 1:24-25

So often, we try and do things on our own. Yet, we see that the early church was so close to God that they went to Him with their questions. They realized that God was concerned with what happened in their day to day lives, and was ready to give them the input they needed in order to accomplish His will.

God still desires to be a part of every step we take. Instead of going to God and saying "here's my plan, please bless it," we should be doing as Jesus did, and asking God for His plan. If we want a blessed plan, He has it for us. I don't just mean asking for God's help with the big stuff either. Our Father is interested in every area of our lives. When we let Him take full control, then we can become more effective for Him.

Most of us are still trying to run things ourselves. We need to "let go, and let God." There is no way that God's plan will unfold through any other than those who are willing to let Him take charge.

One of the ways that the Holy Spirit gave direction in the book of Acts was through visions and dreams.

And there was a certain disciple at Damascus, named Ananias; and to him said the Lord in a vision, Ananias. And he said, Behold, I am here, Lord. ¹¹ And the Lord said unto him, Arise, and go into the street which is called Straight, and enquire in the house of Judas for one called Saul, of Tarsus: for, behold, he prayeth,

Acts 9:10-11

And a vision appeared to Paul in the night; There stood a man of Macedonia, and prayed him, saying, Come over into Macedonia, and help us. ¹⁰ And after he had seen the vision, immediately we endeavoured to go into Macedonia, assuredly gathering that the Lord had called us for to preach the gospel unto them.

Acts 16:9-10

The believers were sensitive to this method of communication, and would accept these things as God speaking to them. God hasn't changed, He is still speaking to us through visions and dreams, but we are so "sophisticated" that we don't credit these to God. We might talk about having a dream, but we don't accept it as God speaking to us.

3,000 Were Saved From One Message

"But Peter, standing up with the eleven, lifted up his voice, and said unto them, Ye men of Judaea, and all ye that dwell at Jerusalem, be this known unto you, and hearken to my words… ³⁷ Now when they heard this, they were pricked in their heart, and said unto Peter and to the rest of the apostles, Men and brethren, what shall we do? ⁴¹ Then they that gladly received his word were baptized: and the same day there were added unto them about three thousand souls."

Acts 2:14, 37, 41

The first message preached by the New Testament church was preached by Peter. This is the same disciple who denied Jesus three times. He was a loud-mouthed, opinionated, aggressive, uneducated fisherman who had an encounter with the living God.

Peter's message didn't touch people's hearts because of his eloquence; he didn't know how to be eloquent. He didn't move their emotions by jumping up and down, yelling and spitting. I'm sure he didn't convince them by his unerring logic, he wasn't educated enough to argue the fine points of theology. It wasn't his charismatic personality that convinced people to join his church, after all, who would want to have a fisherman, especially one with Peter's personality, as their pastor. It surely wasn't the children's program, youth program, or family fellowship times that made them sign up. Peter had nothing to offer except the truth of God's Word.

Why did so many come to know the Lord from this one message? Because Peter spoke under the anointing and direction of the Holy Spirit. I'm not talking about a fake anointing like many people do, where they shake and jump and tremble, and run. No, I'm talking about an anointing that took control of his mouth and allowed the Holy Spirit to speak through him.

That anointing brings forth the greatest messages. That anointing touches hearts. That anointing changes lives. That's the kind of anointing we need in our pulpits today.

By the way, these weren't the kind of people that make a decision for the Lord one day, and changed their mind the next either. Later on, we see that these same believers were persecuted for their faith, some of them to the point of being killed, and they didn't turn away from the Lord.

Holy Spirit was Given by Laying On of Hands

Then laid they their hands on them, and they received the Holy Ghost.

Acts 8:17

And when Simon (a former sorcerer who accepted the Lord) saw that through laying on of the apostles' hands the Holy Ghost was given, he offered them money,

Acts 8:18 (parenthesis mine)

It seems that in many Pentecostal churches receiving the Holy Spirit is difficult. I've been in churches where they've prayed over someone for hours to receive the Holy Spirit. Then there have been those who have been prayed for time and time again, yet never seem to receive.

Why is that? It doesn't appear that the early church had any problem laying hands on people to receive the baptism of the Holy Spirit. Every time it is mentioned in the book of Acts, the believers prayed, and the people received. It wasn't just the apostles praying either. Ananias, an otherwise unknown believer, laid hands on Paul to receive his sight and be baptized in the Holy Spirit (Acts 9:17).

I think part of the problem we are dealing with in the laying on of hands is shown by the actions and attitudes of Simeon in Acts, chapter eight. Simeon had been a sorcerer but received the Lord. However, he missed his position and importance in the town. To regain spiritual power and position, he offered money in order to receive the power to lay his hands on people and have them receive the Holy Spirit (Acts 8:18).

Like Simeon, many ministers and believers today want to have a "flashy" ministry. They aren't as interested in the results that show up in people's hearts as they are in the results that show up in the offering basket. They are more interested in having their name appear in a magazine article than in the book of life. They want to stand before the television camera, instead of stand before the throne of God. Instead of glorifying the Lord, they are stealing the Lord's glory for themselves.

God has always desired that His people be holy. How can we expect Him to bless the work we are doing, when we aren't really doing it in His name, but rather in our own name? If we want to see his power, we must humble ourselves and give him the glory.

Many Were Healed

Of all the manifestations of the Holy Spirit we see in the book of Acts, healings were probably the most prevalent. There are a number of specific spectacular healings mentioned, along with several places where it talked about many people being healed. Here's a sampling:

And a certain man lame from his mother's womb was carried, whom they laid daily at the gate of the temple which is called Beautiful, to ask alms of them that entered into the temple. 4 And Peter, fastening his eyes upon him with John, said, Look on us… 6 Then Peter said, Silver and gold have I none; but such as I have give I thee: In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth rise up and walk. 7 And he took him by the right hand, and lifted him up: and immediately his feet and ankle bones received strength.

Acts 3:3-7

Insomuch that they brought forth the sick into the streets, and laid them on beds and couches, that at the least the shadow of Peter passing by might overshadow some of them.

Acts 5:15

There came also a multitude out of the cities round about unto Jerusalem, bringing sick folks, and them which were vexed with unclean spirits: and they were healed every one.

Acts 5:16

The same heard Paul speak: who steadfastly beholding him, and perceiving that he had faith to be healed, 10 Said with a loud voice, Stand upright on thy feet. And he leaped and walked.

Acts 14:9-10

And God wrought special miracles by the hands of Paul 12 So that from his body were brought unto the sick handkerchiefs or aprons, and the diseases departed from them, and the evil spirits went out of them.

Acts 19:11-12

Why is it that so many were healed in the gospels and the book of Acts, yet we don't see many healings today? There are at least eight different places in the gospels where it says, "Jesus healed all who came to Him." My Bible says that He is "The same yesterday, today and forever" (Heb 13:8). So, if He is the same, and He healed them all when He walked upon the earth, why aren't we seeing everyone we pray for receive healing today.

We can't say it was just Jesus either. You can see from the sampling of verses I listed from the book of Acts, that the Holy Spirit was busy healing back then too. Nor can you say that healing was just for the early church, because there are still people being healed today. But, we aren't seeing it often enough.

It wasn't just limited to the apostles either. I mentioned earlier that Ananias laid hands on Paul for him to receive healing (Acts 9:17). We also see in Acts that the Lord used deacons to perform healings.

And Stephen (one of the deacons), full of faith and power, did great wonders and miracles among the people.

Acts 6:8 (parenthesis mine)

And the people with one accord gave heed unto those things which Philip (another one of the deacons) spake, hearing and seeing the miracles which he did. ⁷ For unclean spirits, crying with loud voice, came out of many that were possessed with them: and many taken with palsies, and that were lame, were healed.

Acts 8:6-7 (parenthesis mine)

God's favorite method of evangelism is a demonstration of His power. When people are healed, both emotionally and physically and set free they are ready to receive the Lord. The church of today, and the world of today, needs the demonstration of the power of the Holy Spirit.

Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that believeth on me, the works that I do shall he do also; and greater works than these shall he do; because I go unto my Father.

Jn 14:12

The Word of God Was Spoken Boldly

Now when they (the Sanhedrin, or Jewish ruling council) saw the boldness of Peter and John, and perceived that they were unlearned and ignorant men, they marveled; and they took knowledge of them, that they had been with Jesus.

Acts 4:13 (parenthesis mine)

The believers of the early church were bold in their declaration about the Lord. They testified and preached openly, in public about who Jesus was, and what He had done for them.

I like what is says at the end of the verse above, "they took knowledge of them, that they had been with Jesus." They didn't take notice of Peter and John's theological degrees, because they didn't have any. The overriding motivation for their ministry was that they had been with Jesus.

Intimacy with the Lord brings boldness. It is not only hard, but almost impossible to make a bold declaration for someone you don't' know very well. But, when we spend much time with the Lord, people can look at us and see the effect of His presence on our lives. His influence upon us comes out of every pore of our being; in our actions, our words, and our attitude.

If we truly love the Lord, we cannot keep it a secret. If He is the most important thing in our lives, we want others to know that. But, if He's not, then we won't say anything about Him.

But whosoever shall deny me before men, him will I also deny before my Father which is in heaven.

Mt 10:33

To deny the Lord isn't only to say that He isn't Lord. It isn't just failure to accept Him as Savior in our lives. Denying the Lord is failure to declare His kingdom and glory. It is to be ashamed, or embarrassed about Him. It is to keep our relationship with Him a secret.

… And They Were Persecuted For Their Faith

In China, today, believers are put in jail for their faith. Yet, this doesn't stop them from preaching Jesus. In fact. A pastor isn't truly considered to have a ministry for the Lord until he has spent time in prison for his faith and ministry. They willingly go to prison for Jesus, and preach and worship Him there.

And Jesus answered and said, Verily I say unto you, There is no man that hath left house, or brethren, or sisters, or father, or mother, or wife, or children, or lands, for my sake, and the gospel ³⁰ But he shall receive an hundredfold now in this time, houses, and brethren, and sisters, and mothers, and children, and lands, with persecutions; and in the world to come eternal life.

Mk 10:29-30

Jesus promised that along with the blessings we would receive from Him, there would be persecution. In the Western church today, we think that we're being persecuted when somebody says something bad about us, our church, or our Lord. But, throughout the history of the church, there have been people who have died for their faith, declaring he majesty of Jesus even up to the moment of their deaths.

Real persecution included beatings, unlawful imprisonment, and even death. It started when they nailed Jesus to the cross, and won't end until the millennium. Herod declared the first "official" persecution in Acts, chapter 12. The last is recorded in Revelations.

One things interesting about persecution is that the church always grows during times of persecution. Believers become bolder. They preach harder, they live holier lives, and they become more committed to the Lord. Those that don't want to be committed don't say a prayer of salvation, they leave the church.

…And Christians in Jail Were Released by Earthquakes, Angels, and Prayer

And laid their hands on the apostles, and put them in the common prison. ¹⁹ But the angel of the Lord by night opened the prison doors, and brought them forth, and said, ²⁰ Go, stand and speak in the temple to the people all the words of this life.

Acts 5:18-20

Peter therefore was kept in prison: but prayer was made without ceasing of the church unto God for him. ⁶ And when Herod would have brought him forth, the same night Peter was sleeping between two soldiers, bound with two chains: and the keepers before the door kept the prison. ⁷ And, behold, the angel of the Lord came upon him, and a light shined in the prison: and he smote Peter on the side, and raised him up, saying, Arise up quickly. And his chains fell off from his hands… ¹⁰ When they were past the first and the second ward, they came unto the iron gate that leadeth unto the city; which opened to them of his own accord: and they went out, and passed on through one street; and forthwith the angel departed from him.

Acts 12:5-11

And at midnight Paul and Silas prayed, and sang praises unto God: and the prisoners heard them. ²⁶ And suddenly there was a great earthquake, so that the foundations of the prison were shaken: and immediately all the doors were opened, and every one's bands were loosed.

Acts 16:25-26

On three different occasions in the book of Acts, we see believers unjustly thrown into jail. Each of these three times, God set them free. Literally, God demonstrated that His power was greater than the greatest human powers.

Each of these times, the deciding factor in moving the hand of God was prayer and worship. The believers didn't go to God and complain, they didn't wring their hands and cry, they declared the goodness of God. In one of these instances, those who were in prison were singing praises to God, while they were in prison. No wonder God was able to move on their behalf!

The forth time that someone was imprisoned in the book of Acts was when Paul was imprisoned. Although he was eventually set free, this situation was different. Paul saw His imprisonment as an opportunity to preach the Word to the Roman leaders, even to Caesar. He willingly walked into imprisonment for that very purpose; and when he had completed that task, God arranged for him to be set free.

They Were Consumed With the Fire of the Holy Spirit, not Just a Little Flicker.

And there appeared unto them cloven tongues like as of fire, and it sat upon each of them.

Acts 2:3

When most believers read this verse, the image they see in their mind is that of a little flame, more or less the size of a hand, sitting over the head of each person. A nice, little, unobtrusive light. Just enough to show that God is doing something, without being enough to be a bother.

I don't know about you, but I don't serve a little God. When my God does something, He does it big. This wasn't just a little fire sitting over the heads of the disciples… it was a big fire that consumed them (Heb 1:7). This fire of the Holy Spirit wasn't the baptism of the Holy Spirit that's mentioned in the next verse, it's the baptism of fire that came to purify the believers.

When John the Baptist spoke of the Messiah to come (Jesus) he said:

I indeed baptize you with water unto repentance: but he that cometh after me is mightier than I, whose shoes I am not worthy to bear: he shall baptize you with the Holy Ghost, and with fire:

Mt 3:11 & Lk 3:16

Notice that John spoke of two different baptisms; a baptism with the Holy Spirit, and a baptism with fire. We see this happening here in Acts, chapter two at the birth of the church.

Notice also that the baptism with fire (Acts 2:3) came before the baptism with the Holy Spirit (Acts 2:4). Why? Because it is through the purifying fire of the Holy Spirit that we are made into vessels of honor, fit for the master's use (2 Tim 2:20-21). God is looking for those vessels of honor, so that He can entrust them with the anointing power of His Holy Spirit.

The baptism with the Holy Spirit came to the church in order to empower the church. The baptism with fire came to purify the church. We, the church, have concentrated on the baptism with the Holy Spirit and ignored the baptism of fire. However, for the fullness of the power of the Holy Spirit to flow through us, we need to be purified, we need to be baptized in fire.

Of all the things that happened in the early church which aren't happening today, I think that this is the most important. Because we aren't receiving the baptism of fire, we aren't in a condition for the fullness of the power of the Holy Spirit to flow through us.

Nobody Considered What They Had to Be Their Own

Neither was there any among them that lacked: for as many as were possessors of lands or houses sold them, and brought the prices of the things that were sold ³⁵ And laid them down at the apostles' feet: and distribution was made unto every man according as he had need.

Acts 4:34-35

One final point, which I think speaks greatly to the church of today. Nobody had the attitude that what they owned belonged to them. Each held the attitude that whatever they had belonged to the Lord, and they were only stewards over it. When there was need, they were willing to sell it, in order to help those who had need.

Our society today is very materialistic, and this attitude has invaded the church. We don't give to those in need, because we feel that we must keep it for ourselves. In the time of Jesus, a stingy Jew gave about 40 percent of their income; a generous Jew gave about 60 percent. To the Jew, the greatest part of their giving isn't the tithes, it isn't the offerings, it's what they give to the poor. The early church merely continued in that Jewish attitude, and gave to those in need.

In our society today, this would be a great demonstration of the "new commandment" that Jesus gave to His disciples; that they love one another, as He had loved them (Jn 13:34). The world needs to see that love, because they no longer know what true, unselfish love is.

This list is by no means complete. There was much more that the Holy Spirit did through the early church. But I think it is enough to make the point. We're not there yet, and we need to be. God's desire for the church today, is that we not only catch up with the church in the book of Acts, but that we surpass it. So that the latter rain falling upon the earth indeed be greater than the former rain.

So, where's the starting point? What's the first thing we have to do in order to bring about those things which happened in the book of Acts? What does God want us to do?

I'm not sure I can answer that. There's no way that I can claim to know the fullness of God's will. But Jesus did say this before he ascended into heaven:

And these signs shall follow them that believe; In my name shall they cast out devils; they shall speak with new tongues; ¹⁸ They shall take up serpents; and if they drink any deadly thing, it shall not hurt them; they shall lay hands on the sick, and they shall recover.

Mark 16:17-18

Looking at those words, it appears that Jesus expected His disciples to do those things that we see in the book of Acts. Looking back at Ezekiel, chapter 47, where we started this study, God the Father expected an increase in those miracles even after Jesus was here upon the earth. It is up to us to make that happen.

Jesus said, "these signs shall follow them." What's a sign? Don't get super spiritual on me now; in the natural, what's a sign? It's an identifier, right? When we see a sign, it identifies what's there. Those identifiers; those manifestations of God's power, are supposed to follow after the believers and identify them as being God's children.

Once again, Jesus said, "these signs, or identifiers, shall follow them that believe." Believe what? To believe means to have confidence in the Word of God and the God of the Word. It means that when God says something, or has it written in His Word, we have confidence that He will do exactly what He said He would do. That's a believer.

We aren't seeing the identifiers because we don't have the confidence. We see in the Bible where God has healed people and don't have confidence that He will do it for us. We read about the material blessings that God gave to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob and wonder why He isn't giving us those material blessings. We see the miracles the Holy Spirit performed through the believers in the early church and think how nice it would be if He did the same thing for us today. We wish, instead of believe.

We don't come to our church services expecting God to move. We don't pray expecting manifestation. We do it out of duty.

It is time for the church to become the church of the book of Acts. We need to do what they did, so that we can surpass what they did. The world needs to see God move, and they will only be able to see it when He moves through us. It's time.