Acts 2:14
"But Peter, standing up with the eleven, lifted up his voice, and said unto them, Ye men of Judaea, and all ye that dwell at Jerusalem, be this known unto you, and hearken to my words:"
There was something very different about the Apostle Peter in the verse above. Something changed in the life of Peter from this verse compared to previous verses. You find that Peter was previously dressed indecently while fishing. You can hear Peter cursing as he sat at the heathen's fire. You can see him sleeping when he should have been praying at the Garden of Gethsemane. You can hear Jesus rebuking Peter and telling Satan to get behind Him in a previous conversation. You can see Jesus rebuking Peter and the rest of the disciples for squabbling about who was the greatest.
So what changed? What was it that caused Peter to boldly stand up and preach to the crowd when he previously denied Christ? The change in Peter's life was so evident that even the multitudes who had seen him before noticed the change. Whatever caused this change caused people to get saved. Whatever caused this change caused the multitudes to stop and listen. Whatever caused this change brought boldness where fear once abode. According to the Scriptures, there were two things that caused the change.
First, a different power working through them caused the change. Verse 17 shows us the difference when it says, "And it shall come to pass in the last days, saith God, I will pour out of my Spirit upon all flesh: and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, and your young men shall see visions, and your old men shall dream dreams:" That different power that was working through them was the power of the Holy Spirit. They were no longer working through their power, but they were working through the power of the Holy Spirit. It was the Holy Spirit power that turned an ordinary man into a bold preacher. It was the Holy Spirit power that turned a powerless sermon into a life changing sermon.
The second thing that caused the change was that he had spent time with Jesus. Acts 4:13 says, "Now when they saw the boldness of Peter and John, and perceived that they were unlearned and ignorant men, they marvelled; and they took knowledge of them, that they had been with Jesus." Spending time with Jesus turned a worldly man into a spiritual man. Spending time with Jesus turned a cursing tongue into a Gospel proclaiming tongue. Spending time with Jesus caused a man who feared what people thought about him into a man who was bold and not afraid of the repercussions. Spending time with Jesus caused him to act like Jesus.
If we are going to change ourselves and our society, then we are going to have to spend time with Jesus and be filled with the Holy Spirit. I'm afraid too many Christians are spending their time on things that will not make a difference on people or their society. You will never change who you are until you start spending time with Jesus in the Word and prayer. One of the reasons churches are so worldly is because most Christians never spend time with Jesus on a regular basis.
Moreover, you will never have the boldness and power you need to change your surroundings until you are filled with the Holy Spirit. Friend, you can try to do God's work in the flesh, but you will fail. The greatest difference in the life of Peter was the Holy Spirit power working through him.
Are you changed? Can people look at you and ask, "What has changed?" Until you spend much time with Jesus in His Word and prayer, and until you are filled with the Holy Spirit, you will not be changed. Let this devotional kindle a fire in your heart to spend more time with Jesus and do what you must do to be filled with the Holy Spirit.