Acts 1:8 - Witnessing Power

You will receive power
when the Holy Spirit comes on you;
and you will be my witnesses . . .
to the ends of the earth."
Acts 1:8 (NIV)

This is the fifth statement of the Great Commission.  It is also found in
Mat.28:18-20; Mar.16:15; Luk.24:46-49; Joh.20:21.  The mission of the church
is to take the gospel to every creature.  When this is completed, Jesus
Christ will return the second time in power and great glory (Mat.24:14).
[PEOPLES SB]

The gospel commission is the great missionary charter of Christ's kingdom.
The disciples were to work earnestly for souls, giving to all the invitation
of mercy. They were not to wait for the people to come to them; they were to
go to the people with their message. . . .
The Saviour knew that no argument, however logical, would melt hard hearts
or break through the crust of worldliness and selfishness. He knew that His
disciples must receive the heavenly endowment; that the gospel would be
effective only as it was proclaimed by hearts made warm and lips made
eloquent by a living knowledge of Him who is the way, the truth, and the
life. AA27-31

The Spirit's function was to provide power for witness worldwide. The
redeemed believers were being told what their primary function would be
while they waited for Jesus to return. [New Bible Companion]

We cannot use the Holy Spirit; the Spirit is to use us. Through the Spirit,
God works in His people "to will and to do of His good pleasure."  But many
will not submit to be led. They want to manage themselves. This is why they
do not receive the heavenly gift. Only to those who wait humbly upon God,
who watch for His guidance and grace, is the Spirit given. This promised
blessing, claimed by faith, brings all other blessings in its train. It is
given according to the riches of the grace of Christ, and He is ready to
supply every soul according to the capacity to receive. GW284,5

Jesus instructed his disciples to witness to people of all nations about
him. But they were told to wait first for the Holy Spirit. God has hat it is
He who works when we share the Lord with others. [Victor Bible Reader's
Companion]

Never, for fear of feeble man, restrain your witness. Your lips have been
warmed with a coal from off the altar; let them speak as like heaven-touched
lips should do. [Morning and Evening by Charles H. Spurgeon]

Look at the change the resurrection made in the disciples' lives. At Jesus'
death, they scattered - they were disillusioned, and they feared for their
life. After seeing the resurrected Christ, they were fearless and risked
everything to spread the Good News about him around the world. They faced
imprisonment, beatings, rejection, and martyrdom, yet they never compromised
their mission. These men would not have risked their life for something they
knew was a fraud. [Life Application SB]

Jesus Christ is present, in you! And in your loving, caring response to the
people who knock on your door, Jesus continues His loving, saving work in
our world. [The 365-Day Devotional Commentary]