A Bold Witness

If Jesus commanded His followers to be His witnesses, why do so many of us struggle to speak about Him?

It’s a question I’ve been wrestling with lately as I’ve been preaching through the Book of Acts at our church. We recently began Acts 3, and one theme keeps surfacing: boldness.

One of the greatest blessings of preaching through a book of the Bible is that it forces you to slow down. You can’t rush past difficult verses or skim over familiar passages. You have to sit with the text, meditate on it, wrestle with it, and allow it to speak for itself.

In that slowing down, God often highlights truths that might otherwise go unnoticed.

“But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come on you, and you will be My witnesses in Jerusalem, in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.” – Acts 1:8 HCSB (emphasis added)

This Scripture has challenged me in ways I needed to be challenged. What’s the evidence of someone having the power this verse claims will come upon them?

Some would argue that the primary evidence of being filled with the Holy Spirit is speaking in tongues, the fruit of the Spirit, or one of the other spiritual gifts.

While each of those has an important place in the life of the believer, I believe the answer in Acts is found in plain sight and can be summed up in a single word: witness.

More specifically, a bold witness.

I’m not suggesting that boldness is the only evidence of the Holy Spirit’s work in a believer’s life. Scripture clearly teaches that the Spirit produces fruit, distributes gifts, and transforms lives. Yet one of the clearest and most immediate evidences we see in Acts is a supernatural boldness to testify about Jesus.

The evidence is right there in the text.

Before Acts 2, the disciples were fearful, hesitant, and often hidden from public view.

After Jesus’ arrest, they scattered.

After His crucifixion, they gathered behind locked doors.

Even after His resurrection, they still wrestled with fear and uncertainty.

Then Pentecost happened.

When the Holy Spirit was poured out, a dramatic shift took place. The same disciples who once hid behind locked doors now stood before crowds proclaiming Christ without hesitation.

Peter, who had denied Jesus three times, boldly preached the gospel in Jerusalem. The apostles spoke openly about Christ despite threats, opposition, imprisonment, and persecution.

What changed? They had been filled with the Holy Spirit.

This is exactly what Jesus promised. In Acts 1:8, He told His followers, “you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come on you, and you will be My witnesses.” The purpose of the Spirit’s empowering was not merely personal experience but public witness. The Spirit gave ordinary believers extraordinary courage to testify about Jesus.

Throughout the book of Acts, this pattern repeats itself. The Spirit fills God’s people, and God’s people boldly speak God’s Word. One of the clearest evidences of a Spirit-filled life is a growing courage to make Christ known, regardless of the cost. What do you think?

Today, my prayer is that the same Holy Spirit who empowered the disciples in Acts would empower us to be bold witnesses—unafraid to publicly share what Jesus has done for us and eager to point others to Him.

When was the last time your faith led you to speak about Jesus?

Take a few moments to prayerfully reflect on these questions:

1. Who is one person in your life that God may be calling you to share your testimony or the gospel with this week, and what step can you take to do so?

2. What fears or obstacles most often keep you from being a bold witness for Jesus?

3. How does the transformation of the disciples before and after Pentecost challenge your understanding of what it means to be filled with the Holy Spirit?