Have you ever wondered what Jesus said to His eleven disciples when, after His resurrection, “He opened their minds so they could understand the Scriptures” (Luke 24:45)? These men had been with Jesus for more than three years, hearing His teaching, talking with Him privately about the Word, listening to His debates with the religious leaders. But this day was different. Now their minds were opened, and, more than ever before, the Word was unfolded before them.

Surely now they were ready to be His witnesses, declaring the message of repentance and forgiveness of sins, beginning in Jerusalem (Luke 24:46-48). Surely now they were ready to go and make disciples of the nations (Matt 28:18-20). What else did they need? The answer can be given in one word: Power!

Jesus said to them, “You are witnesses of these things. I am going to send you what My Father has promised; but stay in the city until you have been clothed with power from on high” (Luke 24:48-49; see also Acts 1:4-5, 8).

The disciples could not even begin to fulfill the Great Commission without the power of God. In-depth, practical knowledge of the Word alone was not enough. They needed to be baptized in the Holy Spirit. They needed the anointing.

A Necessity, Not an Option

That’s why the Lord had endued them with power before they began their itinerant preaching mission, as recorded in Luke 9:1-2: “When Jesus had called the Twelve together, He gave them power [dunamis] and authority [exousia] to drive out all demons and to cure diseases, and He sent them out to preach the kingdom of God and to heal the sick” (cf. also Matt 10:1-8; Mark 6:7-13).

Words alone — even words of Scripture explained by Jesus Himself — were not enough. The power of the Spirit was essential, too.

Paul understood and taught this as well, writing,

When I came to you, brothers, I did not come with eloquence or superior wisdom as I proclaimed to you the testimony about God. For I resolved to know nothing while I was with you except Jesus Christ and him crucified. I came to you in weakness and fear, and with much trembling. My message and my preaching were not with wise and persuasive words, but with a demonstration of the Spirit’s power, so that your faith might not rest on men’s wisdom, but on God’s power. … For the kingdom of God is not a matter of talk but of power. (1 Corinthians 2:1-5; 4:20)

If anyone could have gotten by without the power, it was Paul. What brilliance he had! What a breadth of biblical knowledge he possessed. What incredible theological penetration this man was given, what an ability to teach and preach and debate. But no, all that was not enough. He needed the power too! (He himself was converted through a divine “power encounter.”)

It was this Holy Spirit power that was so characteristic of the ministry of Jesus and the early Church (see Acts 10:38; 4:33).

Just try reading the Book of Acts without the supernatural elements of the Spirit’s power. There are hardly any “acts” left!

Acts Without Miracles

Picture Pentecost in Acts 2 without the glorious baptism of the Spirit — yes, picture it without the sound of the blowing, violent wind, without the tongues of fire, without the supernaturally uttered foreign languages that stunned the crowd, without the “dynamized” preaching that struck the hearts of thousands. There would be no Acts 2! Or consider Acts 3 sans the miraculous healing of the man born lame. The whole chapter would be nonexistent! Chapter after chapter in Acts, the story is the same. Take away the supernatural work of the Spirit — healing and deliveringfrom demons, speaking and leading, moving and shaking – and you have a few tame accounts of disputes between factions in the Church, some sad accounts of people dying (because they don’t get raised from the dead, of course — sorry Dorcas and Euthycus!), and even Paul getting fatally bitten by a venomous snake (that would have been the end of his story right there).

To consider one example in greater depth, think of Acts 19 minus the miraculous. For two years, Paul “had discussions daily in the lecture hall of Tyrannus” (v. 9), with the result that “all the Jews and Greeks who lived in the province of Asia heard the word of the Lord” (v. 10). This is certainly important, and no doubt, Paul was “anointed” in his daily discussions. But it was the miraculous manifestation of God’s might that shook the city.

First there were the “extraordinary miracles” of healing and deliverance wrought by the Lord through Paul’s clothes (vv.11-12), apparently leading to an interest in the supernatural power of the name of this Jesus whom Paul preached. This connection seems clear based on the fact that, immediately after these verses, Luke records:

Some Jews who went around driving out evil spirits tried to invoke the name of the Lord Jesus over those who were demon-possessed. They would say, “In the name of Jesus, whom Paul preaches, I command you to come out.” Seven sons of Sceva, a Jewish chief priest, were doing this. One day the evil spirit answered them, “Jesus I know, and I know about Paul, but who are you?” Then the man who had the evil spirit jumped on them and overpowered them all. He gave them such a beating that they ran out of the house naked and bleeding. (Acts 19:13-16)

Both And

What happened next was incredible:

When this became known to the Jews and Greeks living in Ephesus, they were all seized with fear, and the name of the Lord Jesus was held in high honor. Many of those who believed now came and openly confessed their evil deeds. A number who had practiced sorcery brought their scrolls together and burned them publicly. When they calculated the value of the scrolls, the total came to fifty thousand drachmas. In this way the word of the Lord spread widely and grew in power. (Acts 19:17-20)

The failed exorcism of a demon who testified to the power of the name of Jesus and the spiritual authority of His servant Paul impacted the whole city, leading to mass repentance and public confession. Teaching the Word was not enough! There had to be power as well. That is the perfect mix: the Word and Spirit working as one.

This helps to explain the Lord’s rebuke of the Sadducees in Matthew 22:29, “You are in error because you do not know the Scriptures or the power of God.” Knowing both God’s Word and God’s power are essential for spiritual soundness and fruitful ministry. Knowing one without the other leads to errors and extremes. Knowing neither is fatal.

Dr. Michael Brown is the host of the nationally syndicated Line of Fire radio program. He is the author of more than 40 books, including Can You be Gay and Christian?; Our Hands Are Stained With Blood; and Seize the Moment: How to Fuel the Fires of Revival. You can connect with him on Facebook, X, or YouTube.