"God gives the Spirit to those who are obedient to Him"

"And we are his witnesses of these things; and so is also the Holy Ghost, whom God hath given to them that obey him" (Acts 5:31-32).

In spite of the all the threats, persecution and physical violence from the religious leaders of their day, the Apostles ceased not to preach Jesus.  As a result, the gospel spread like wild fire throughout the Roman empire and beyond.

Notice how they responded to the threats and violence from the religious leaders of their day:

"And when they had called the apostles, and beaten them, they commanded that they should not speak in the name of Jesus, and let them go. And they departed from the presence of the council, rejoicing that they were counted worthy to suffer shame for his name. 42 And daily in the temple, and in every house, they ceased not to teach and preach Jesus Christ" (Acts 5:41-42).

Although the apostles suffered severely at times for their faith, the fire of their gospel witness could not be put out. What enabled them to so boldly and courageously advance the gospel under such hostile opposition?  When asked by their persecutors why they would not obey their commands to cease their preaching of Jesus, they responded, "And we are his witnesses of these things; and so is also the Holy Ghost, whom God hath given to them that obey him" (Acts 5:31-32). Notice that the apostles were not alone in their witnessing. They were working in cooperation with the witness of Holy Spirit which is "given to them that obey him."

When believers are obedient to do what God calls all believers to do, namely to be witnesses to the saving power of the gospel, we can trust that He will bear witness along with us, in us and through us. The Spirit is given to those who are obedient--who seek to lives that glorify the name of Jesus with their lips and with their lives.

"It is necessary for evangelicals to acknowledge that the immediacy of the Spirit's presence can, and does, vary. To say it differently, the omnipresence of the Holy Spirit is not synonymous with the effects or influences of the Spirit; what Christians from previous generations have termed 'the manifest presence of the Spirit', 'the sensible presence of the Spirit', or the felt presence of the Spirit'. To be sure, the omnipresence of the Holy Spirit is a fact that Christians can always assume. Being fully divine, He is always present. In contrast, the effects of His presence can never be presupposed. That is to say, they can be graciously given. They can also be judiciously withdrawn" (Arturo Azurdia III, ").

When we are living for our interest, when we are in love with this world, when we are living our lives contrary to the word of God we will grieved the Spirit of God (Eph. 4:29-30).

"What, then, are the concerns pertinent to the subject at hand? Stated simply, the wounding of the Spirit can and often does, lead to a withdrawal of His influences. The well-known plea of David is illustrative at this point: 'do not take Thy Holy Spirit from me' (Ps. 51:11). Some have suggested that this plea is inappropriate for a new covenant believer. But such thinking reveals a failure to distinguish between the Spirit's presence in the Christian and the experience of His gracious effects. John Stott explains: 'For the Holy Spirit is a sensitive Spirit. He hates sin, discord and falsehood, and shrinks away from them.' Hodge adds: 'His indwelling certifies that we are the children of God, and secures our final salvation...To grieve him, therefore, is to wound him whom our salvation depends. Though he will not finally withdraw from those in whom he dwells, yet when grieved he withholds the manifestations of his presence'" (Arturo Azurdia).

What enabled the apostles to be such powerful witnesses in the face of intense persecution? It was their obedience to and dependence upon the Holy Spirit. When they faced persecution, they didn't just ask God to deliver them from it, they asked for supernatural boldness to preach the gospel in spite of it. As a result they were filled with the Spirit of God and shook up the world for Christ (Acts 4:13-31).

May we seek continually to walk in obedience to and in dependence upon the Spirit of God to the glory of Christ.