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Scripture Reading: Acts 18:5, 11; 9:11, 22; 13:5; 14:1; 17:1-3
The main thing we need to see in chapter eighteen of Acts is Paul’s way of preaching. According to 18:5, “when both Silas and Timothy came down from Macedonia, Paul was wholly occupied in the word, solemnly testifying to the Jews that Jesus is the Christ.” Acts 18:11 tells us that Paul settled in Corinth “a year and six months, teaching the word of God among them.” In Corinth Paul first went to the synagogue to testify to the Jews that Jesus is the Christ. When they resisted and blasphemed, “he shook out his garments and said to them, Your blood be upon your head; I am clean. From now on I will go to the Gentiles” (v. 6). Paul then remained in Corinth teaching the word of God.
Acts 18:5 indicates that when Paul was in the synagogue, He came directly to the matter of testifying that Jesus is the Christ. However, in our preaching of the gospel to unbelievers, we may think that they will not listen to us if we speak to them concerning the Lord immediately and directly. According to our concept, we may need some kind of opener for our gospel preaching, some way to open the listeners and gain their attention. I do not say that we should never use an opener in preaching the gospel. But we must always remember what our job is. Our job is not to do anything other than to present Christ to sinners and especially to minister Christ to them. Some may say that it is very difficult to present Christ in a direct way to unbelievers. I agree that this is difficult. Therefore we need to learn how to have the power and impact necessary for this.
If we would have power and impact in our gospel preaching, we need to pray. There is no need for us to pray until we speak in tongues in order to have the power. We may have genuine power through prayer without speaking in tongues. Furthermore, I have known a number of tongue-speakers who were not at all powerful in preaching the gospel.
At this point, let me relate to you a conversation I had many years ago with a Christian friend in Chefoo, my hometown. This friend was the leader of a certain Pentecostal group. I had known this brother for years, and the meeting hall for this Pentecostal group was very close to the church meeting hall. One day this brother came to me with the intention of convincing me to take the Pentecostal way. Because we were friends, I encouraged him to speak openly and frankly. I said to him, “Brother, you have come to see me for the purpose of convincing me to practice the Pentecostal things.” When he told me that this was his intention, I indicated to him that I was happy to talk to him concerning this.
I asked this brother why he was so enthusiastic about the Pentecostal things. He said that the reason for his enthusiasm was his belief that through speaking in tongues we may have power. Then I said, “Brother, let us pay attention to the facts. I am not in favor of the Pentecostal things, but you are strongly for them and have been practicing them for years. I would ask you to compare the number in your congregation with the number in ours. You claim to be powerful because you speak in tongues, but you still only have about fifty meeting with you. We do not practice tongue-speaking, but we have hundreds meeting with us, hundreds who have been brought to the Lord through our gospel preaching. Where, then, is your power? You speak in tongues, but you do not have power. We do not speak in tongues, but we have genuine power. Do you know where this power comes from? This power comes from prayer.”
I went on to testify to this brother regarding our practice of preaching the gospel at the time of the Chinese new year. Instead of celebrating the Chinese new year, the saints in the church in Chefoo made preparations to preach the gospel to their relatives, neighbors, and friends. The last night of the year, which was a time of feasting according to Chinese custom, was for us a time of fasting and prayer. Then the next day, the first day of the year, we came together with our relatives, friends, and neighbors for the preaching of the gospel. That gospel preaching was carried on with much prayer. As I was preaching in the meeting hall, many saints were in different rooms praying until the message was over. The power we experienced in our gospel preaching came from such prayer. I told my friend in Chefoo that we trust in prayer, not in tongue-speaking.
In my talk with this brother, I went on to give him two further reasons for our power. I told him that our power is not only through prayer but also in the Word. We do not preach any strange or peculiar things. On the contrary, our preaching is according to the word in the Bible. This word is the truth, and the truth is prevailing. There is power in every word of God.
We preach only the Word, not Chinese ethics or philosophy. Furthermore, instead of using many stories in our speaking, we mainly preach Christ according to the revelation in the Scriptures. Because God’s word is powerful, we have power in our gospel preaching.
I also told this brother that our power is in the Spirit and not in tongue-speaking. We believe that we have the Spirit within us and also upon us. Because we have the Spirit within us and upon us, we have power. Our power, therefore, is in prayer, the Word, and the Spirit.
At this juncture I would like to give you a testimony of what happened one day as I was speaking in Chefoo. I had the sense at a certain point that I was in a certain kind of atmosphere that had come upon me. Then I began to realize that my speaking was altogether out from the genuine power of God.
Whether or not the power in gospel preaching can be sensed by us is not important. What is vital is that in our gospel preaching we have genuine power.
Along with the elders of the church in Chefoo, I had a definite experience of the Lord’s power during a revival that was taking place in the church in 1942. Many of the saints requested the laying on of hands. We laid hands on them one by one and also prayed for each one. In approximately an hour we prayed for more than two hundred saints. The prayer that was uttered during that time was actually one long prayer that continually bubbled forth. What is significant was that the prayer for each saint exactly fit the situation of that saint. Suddenly the prayer ceased, and we did not lay hands on anyone else. All the attendants at that meeting realized that what had taken place was truly a move of the Spirit and that we could not repeat it. I give this as a further illustration of the fact that our trust for power is in prayer, the Word, and the Spirit.
As we seek to have power and impact in our gospel preaching, we should not follow any strange or peculiar way. Let us take the way of prayer, the way of the Word, and the way of the Spirit.
We believe that today the Lord is the processed Spirit who dwells in us and also upon us. It does not matter whether this Spirit is sensed by us. We believe that while we are serving Him and speaking for Him, especially as we are speaking Him forth, He is with us. We have the Lord’s presence within us as the anointing. Through prayer, the Word, and the Spirit, we can have true power and impact.
I practiced tongue-speaking for a year and a half. The more I spoke in tongues, the less power I had. Eventually, I discontinued that practice and came back to the regular way of prayer. Although I did not have much time to kneel down and pray, all day long I had a praying spirit. From experience I can testify that prayer brings in power.
Furthermore, throughout the years my ministry has always been with the Word. During the years I have been preaching and teaching in this country, I have cared only for the Word. The Word is inexhaustible, and the Word is power.
Actually, our power is the Triune God as the Spirit. Do you not believe that the Triune God is with us? I believe that He is with me in my speaking. When I am about to minister, I usually pray, “Lord, vindicate the fact that You are one spirit with me. Lord, I want to practice being one spirit with You. Lord, make it real that in my speaking You are one spirit with me. Lord, speak Your word in my speaking.” This is the way I pray before giving a message. Therefore, I believe that while I am speaking, He is one spirit with me and that He is speaking in my speaking. This is the real power.
We should not trust in anything other than prayer, the Word, and the Spirit. Perhaps a certain professor will be able to give a message concerning science in order to convince students of science to believe in God. Although there is nothing wrong with this, we should not put our trust in it. On the contrary, we should put our trust wholly and absolutely in prayer, in the Word, and in the anointing, which is the Triune God Himself.
In the book of Acts we see that the apostle Paul did not use gimmicks in preaching the gospel. Rather, “he proclaimed Jesus, that this One is the Son of God” (9:20). When Saul was in Damascus, he was “empowered and confounded the Jews dwelling in Damascus, proving that this One is the Christ” (9:22). In a foregoing message we emphasized the fact that in Thessalonica Paul reasoned with those in the synagogue from the Scriptures concerning Christ and saying, “This is the Christ, Jesus, whom I announce to you” (17:2-3). Likewise, we have seen that in Corinth Paul solemnly testified to the Jews that Jesus is the Christ (18:5). Therefore, instead of using gimmicks, Paul always spoke the word directly.
Perhaps you would say, “Brother Lee, you have been in the Word for over fifty years. How can we be powerful in preaching the gospel if we are still young in the Lord?” Let me testify to you that even when I was young my speaking was powerful because of these three matters of prayer, the Word, and the Spirit, the anointing. This indicates that even the young saints can preach the gospel with power and impact if they trust in prayer, the Word, and the Spirit.
Young saints, you can take a portion of the Word and preach it to others. Only do not trust in any eloquence you might have. Those who are eloquent in speaking may not have any power or impact. But those who are not eloquent, and who may even mispronounce words, may have impact and power in their gospel preaching. If we trust in prayer, the Word, and the Spirit, the Lord may even use speaking with the wrong pronunciation of words to save others.
As you may know, D. L. Moody was prevailing in preaching the gospel. He was a young apprentice in his uncle’s shoe store when he became burdened to preach the gospel. One day, after giving a gospel message, Moody was approached by a learned person who was in the congregation. This person told Moody that he often used mistaken grammar in his speaking. Moody’s reply was something like this: “Your grammar is correct. You go to preach and see what the result will be. I may use poor grammar, but through my preaching of the gospel people are saved.”
Whether or not we have power in preaching the gospel depends on our being, on our person. If we would have power, we need to be constituted of the all-inclusive Christ. Because Paul was constituted of Christ in this way, in his messages he always preached Christ. In 18:5 we see that Paul testified that Jesus is the Christ, and in verse 11, that during the year and a half he was in Corinth he taught the Word of God. We all need to learn of Paul to testify of Christ and teach the Word.
There is no shortcut to having power in preaching the gospel. We need to pray, we need to learn the Word, and we need to be one spirit with the Lord. In 1 Corinthians 6:17 Paul says, “He who is joined to the Lord is one spirit.” We need to stand upon this word, claim the fact, and practice it. We should say, “Lord, this is Your word. I stand on Your word, Lord, and claim the fact that I am one spirit with You. Lord, I ask You to vindicate Your word that You are truly one with me. Lord, I intend to speak for You and even to speak You forth. Lord, vindicate the word and show that You are really one with Your followers.” We all need to pray such a prayer. This is the prayer that will be heard in the heavens and by all the demons. If we are one spirit with the Lord in preaching the gospel, we shall have power and impact. Therefore, let us not trust in eloquence. Let us trust in prayer, in the Word, and in the Spirit.
