I’ve just finished reading The Acts of the Apostles. It was quite good to read it quite quickly so as to catch the sense of rapid activity which purveys Luke’s narrative. An eventful book, the Acts describes the remarkable spread of Christ’s gospel in the known world. Even though there were relatively few primary personalities that are at the heart of the action – Peter, Paul, Philip, and others – the extent of their respective ministries is remarkable, and of course, supernatural.

This glorious account of the Early Church is very useful for the church in all ages. I’d like to just share one striking insight that benefited me during my recent reread of Acts. Luke’s use of the word ‘boldly’ really grabbed me. The Greek words παῤησιάζομαι refer to speech that is both frank and confident, e.g. Acts 9:27, where Paul spoke boldly in the name of Jesus. This apostolic boldness is a characteristic of times of particular outpourings of God’s Spirit. This is not to deny that is always available with God’s blessing. But the point is that this is not a natural boldness, but an imparted one. God fortifies His servants with that proper confidence and courage to fulfil His calling. In Paul’s case, it was surely a gift of God since he was but a young Christian, yet he could preach boldly, in the face of violent persecution in which he had but recently been involved.

Such boldness, it is sad to say, is all too scarce. May God graciously grant such vocally bold and courageous ministries in this age.