EIF - ENewsletter

God seeks boldness to accomplish His will
By Apostle Frederick K.C. Price

(The following is an excerpt from the book, Dr. Price’s Golden Nuggets.)

I believe the church today can learn some marvelous lessons from Acts 4:29-30:

"Now, Lord, look on their threats, and grant to Your servants that with all boldness they may speak Your word,

"by stretching out Your hand to heal, and that signs and wonders may be done through the name of Your holy Servant Jesus."

The people were saying that if God would stretch forth His hand to heal and do signs and wonders, they would be bold. I wonder if that is why so many Christians, churches, and ministers of the Gospel are not very bold in proclaiming the name of Jesus. Because they have not seen signs, wonders and healings take place in their churches or in their lives, the people in these congregations have not been very bold to proclaim the Gospel of Christ.

These people are like the ones who prayed in Acts. They have the attitude that once God manifests something supernaturally in their midst, they will be motivated to be bold for the Lord. But we as Christians are not supposed to walk by signs and wonders. We are supposed to walk by faith, not by sight (2 Corinthians 5:7). Signs and wonders follow our boldness in the Word (Mark 16:17). We should not be bold because of the signs and wonders.

The people who prayed in Acts 4:29-30 asked, "Now, Lord, look on their threats, and grant to Your servants that with all boldness they may speak Your word, by stretching out Your hand to heal, and that signs and wonders may be done through the name of Your holy Servant Jesus." In other words, they said, "Lord, You make us bold by stretching forth Your hand with signs and wonders." They not only asked God to do what they were supposed to do for themselves, but they went so far as to tell Him how to do it.

God responded by doing what the people asked, but He did it in a manner that they did not expect. In Acts 5:12, we read how the people’s answer to their prayer manifested.

12. And through the hands of the apostles many signs and wonders were done among the people. And they were all with one accord in Solomon's Porch.

God stretched forth His hand to heal, and signs and wonders manifested supernaturally. However, those signs and wonders manifested through the hands of the apostles because the only hand God uses in the earth realm to manifest signs and wonders is the hand that believers allow Him to use.

Being bold for the Lord

We need people who are bold today, who will let the Lord use them to affect people’s lives for the better. For too long we have had the Milquetoast version of Christians. Too long we have had the namby-pamby preacher, the little, quiet, mousy pastor. Everyone likes him, yet he never says anything and never does anything to affect anyone’s life.

God has no hands to stretch forth to heal except those in the Body of Christ. He has no mouth through which to speak and no legs on which to run errands of mercy except ours. God has designed the system so that He needs our involvement to get anything done in the earth. God will not do anything in the earth without us.

God has given us all authority to do what He wants accomplished in the earth (Matthew 28:18-20), and He has provided us with the power to accomplish His will through the person of the Holy Spirit within us. All we need is the will to do what He wants us to do. What an awesome responsibility we have! And, yet, what a thrilling opportunity to fulfill the great commission of Jesus Christ.

Many times people wonder, "Why won’t God do something?" The real question may be, "Why won’t we do something?" Sometimes, we get so caught up in doing things our way that God cannot "get a word in edgewise," as people used to say. We map out the game plan, set up the program, then want the Lord to come down and bless what we are doing. But guess what? The heavenly Father does not work that way. We need to find out how God wants us to proceed on the tasks He gives us. We need to get in line with His program, and then be bold enough to do what He wants us to accomplish in the name of Jesus and in the power of the Holy Spirit.

God has called every person in the Body of Christ to do something. By that, I do not mean that each Christian is supposed to be an apostle, a prophet, an evangelist, a pastor, or a teacher. The Lord may ask us or lead us to do something on His behalf from time to time, and we should make sure we are sensitive to follow that leading, but whatever God may lead us to do for Him is not the primary job He has called us to accomplish in our everyday lives.

The primary task the Lord has given us is to believe, think, talk, walk, and act in line with His Word. If we do not do that, there is no way we can accomplish whatever else God may give us. Once we renew our minds with the Word of God (Romans 12:2), get the Word into our spirits, and act accordingly, there is nothing the devil, demons, or anyone else can throw at us to stop us from prospering and being victorious in our everyday lives. Victory in our everyday lives can, in turn, help bolster our faith and boldness in anything else the Lord calls us to do.

You want to start changing people’s lives for the better? Start by changing your own life. Learn to stand boldly on the Word of God to improve your situation, and it will train you to be bold in reaching out to others. And we are supposed to be reaching out, because that is what Jesus commissioned us to do. It is not God’s will that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance (2 Peter 3:9).

Becoming a winner in life

Learn how to be bold in the Lord. Learn how to let the Holy Spirit work through you, and how to be a winner in life. Your blueprint is found in the Word of God. When you are a winner in life, two things happen: Number one, people want to listen to what you say and, number two, they are even more interested in receiving what you and the Lord have to give them.

You want to reduce the crime rate? Get the criminals saved. You will not stop crime by hiring more police officers, making bigger locks, or giving everyone a submachine gun or an assault rifle. The only way you are going to stop crime is to change the criminal’s heart, and the only one who can change the criminal’s heart is Jesus.

The Gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ will change the hearts and lives of people if it is preached with boldness, backed up with signs and wonders, and followed by the knowledge of how to live in faith and power according to the Word of God. Once you change the heart of an individual and teach that individual how to live, you will change both that person’s actions and his or her position in society. Get all the criminals born again and teach them how to live by faith, and you will not have any problems with someone breaking into your house.

We need to be bold for Jesus, just as bold as the people who are on the dance floor shaking their backsides. Be as bold for the Lord as you are when you go to a football game, a baseball game, or a basketball game. People yell themselves hoarse at such events. Be as bold for Jesus as you are with the things of the world, and you will affect the world for Christ.



*God seeks boldness to accomplish His will* By Apostle Frederick K.C. Price (The following is an excerpt from the book, Dr. Price’s Golden Nuggets.) I believe the church today can learn some marvelous lessons from Acts 4:29-30: "Now, Lord, look on their threats, and grant to Your servants that with all boldness they may speak Your word, "by stretching out Your hand to heal, and that signs and wonders may be done through the name of Your holy Servant Jesus." The people were saying that if God would stretch forth His hand to heal and do signs and wonders, they would be bold. I wonder if that is why so many Christians, churches, and ministers of the Gospel are not very bold in proclaiming the name of Jesus. Because they have not seen signs, wonders and healings take place in their churches or in their lives, the people in these congregations have not been very bold to proclaim the Gospel of Christ. These people are like the ones who prayed in Acts. They have the attitude that once God manifests something supernaturally in their midst, they will be motivated to be bold for the Lord. But we as Christians are not supposed to walk by signs and wonders. We are supposed to walk by faith, not by sight (2 Corinthians 5:7). Signs and wonders follow our boldness in the Word (Mark 16:17). We should not be bold because of the signs and wonders. The people who prayed in Acts 4:29-30 asked, "Now, Lord, look on their threats, and grant to Your servants that with all boldness they may speak Your word, by stretching out Your hand to heal, and that signs and wonders may be done through the name of Your holy Servant Jesus." In other words, they said, "Lord, You make us bold by stretching forth Your hand with signs and wonders." They not only asked God to do what they were supposed to do for themselves, but they went so far as to tell Him how to do it. God responded by doing what the people asked, but He did it in a manner that they did not expect. In Acts 5:12, we read how the people’s answer to their prayer manifested. 12. And through the hands of the apostles many signs and wonders were done among the people. And they were all with one accord in Solomon's Porch. God stretched forth His hand to heal, and signs and wonders manifested supernaturally. However, those signs and wonders manifested through the hands of the apostles because the only hand God uses in the earth realm to manifest signs and wonders is the hand that believers allow Him to use. Being bold for the Lord We need people who are bold today, who will let the Lord use them to affect people’s lives for the better. For too long we have had the Milquetoast version of Christians. Too long we have had the namby-pamby preacher, the little, quiet, mousy pastor. Everyone likes him, yet he never says anything and never does anything to affect anyone’s life. God has no hands to stretch forth to heal except those in the Body of Christ. He has no mouth through which to speak and no legs on which to run errands of mercy except ours. God has designed the system so that He needs our involvement to get anything done in the earth. God will not do anything in the earth without us. God has given us all authority to do what He wants accomplished in the earth (Matthew 28:18-20), and He has provided us with the power to accomplish His will through the person of the Holy Spirit within us. All we need is the will to do what He wants us to do. What an awesome responsibility we have! And, yet, what a thrilling opportunity to fulfill the great commission of Jesus Christ. Many times people wonder, "Why won’t God do something?" The real question may be, "Why won’t we do something?" Sometimes, we get so caught up in doing things our way that God cannot "get a word in edgewise," as people used to say. We map out the game plan, set up the program, then want the Lord to come down and bless what we are doing. But guess what? The heavenly Father does not work that way. We need to find out how God wants us to proceed on the tasks He gives us. We need to get in line with His program, and then be bold enough to do what He wants us to accomplish in the name of Jesus and in the power of the Holy Spirit. God has called every person in the Body of Christ to do something. By that, I do not mean that each Christian is supposed to be an apostle, a prophet, an evangelist, a pastor, or a teacher. The Lord may ask us or lead us to do something on His behalf from time to time, and we should make sure we are sensitive to follow that leading, but whatever God may lead us to do for Him is not the primary job He has called us to accomplish in our everyday lives. The primary task the Lord has given us is to believe, think, talk, walk, and act in line with His Word. If we do not do that, there is no way we can accomplish whatever else God may give us. Once we renew our minds with the Word of God (Romans 12:2), get the Word into our spirits, and act accordingly, there is nothing the devil, demons, or anyone else can throw at us to stop us from prospering and being victorious in our everyday lives. Victory in our everyday lives can, in turn, help bolster our faith and boldness in anything else the Lord calls us to do. You want to start changing people’s lives for the better? Start by changing your own life. Learn to stand boldly on the Word of God to improve your situation, and it will train you to be bold in reaching out to others. And we are supposed to be reaching out, because that is what Jesus commissioned us to do. It is not God’s will that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance (2 Peter 3:9). Becoming a winner in life Learn how to be bold in the Lord. Learn how to let the Holy Spirit work through you, and how to be a winner in life. Your blueprint is found in the Word of God. When you are a winner in life, two things happen: Number one, people want to listen to what you say and, number two, they are even more interested in receiving what you and the Lord have to give them. You want to reduce the crime rate? Get the criminals saved. You will not stop crime by hiring more police officers, making bigger locks, or giving everyone a submachine gun or an assault rifle. The only way you are going to stop crime is to change the criminal’s heart, and the only one who can change the criminal’s heart is Jesus. The Gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ will change the hearts and lives of people if it is preached with boldness, backed up with signs and wonders, and followed by the knowledge of how to live in faith and power according to the Word of God. Once you change the heart of an individual and teach that individual how to live, you will change both that person’s actions and his or her position in society. Get all the criminals born again and teach them how to live by faith, and you will not have any problems with someone breaking into your house. We need to be bold for Jesus, just as bold as the people who are on the dance floor shaking their backsides. Be as bold for the Lord as you are when you go to a football game, a baseball game, or a basketball game. People yell themselves hoarse at such events. Be as bold for Jesus as you are with the things of the world, and you will affect the world for Christ.

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