And more than ever, believers were added to the Lord, multitudes of both men and women.
– Acts 5:14
Oh, that is a great and encouraging, inspiring emboldening verse. This picture of the Gospel spreading in the book of Acts in such a way that it says, more than ever, Acts 5:14 believers were added to the Lord. Don’t you hear that phrase and think, I want that to be true today more than ever. More than ever, I want to see believers added to the Lord, which is a whole other part of this phrase that is mind-boggling and encouraging and inspiring and emboldening like who is adding them to the Lord? Well, the Lord was adding them to himself. That’s the whole picture, this passive voice here. It’s awesome. We see that same thing in Acts 2. The Lord added to their number daily, those who were being saved.
Acts 5:14 Narrates How the Lord Added Believers to the Church
That’s the picture in Acts 2, and here more than ever, believers were added to the Lord, multitudes of both men and women. God is drawing people to himself as his people are proclaiming his word. As we prayed about in Acts 4:29–31, what a picture and I think about today.
You and I have opportunities to proclaim the gospel, to share the gospel in so many different places today with faith, with trust and power of the name of Jesus like we were praying about according to Acts 3, to save people. So don’t you just want to pray, God do it today and in our day around the world, we pray all the time on this podcast for unreached people in the world. Do we realize the day we’re living in and we have more opportunities today to spread the gospel in the world than ever before?
Just think about the travel we’re able to do. Paul and Peter that could have never imagined getting on a machine. They’ll pick you up and fly you anywhere in the world in 24 hours. This is amazing. The travel opportunities we have to get the gospel to the world more than ever before technology, it would take Peter, Paul, John, like how long to write out a letter to get it sent. It is weeks, months for it to be delivered somewhere else.
Acts 5:14 Encourages Us to Use Our Resources to Take the Gospel to the Lost
You and I have a device in our pockets with which we can communicate with people around the world in real time in multiple languages. This is amazing. You and I have more opportunities to reach people with the gospel than ever before in history. So what are we doing? Are we stewarding these opportunities? Are we giving our lives and using our resources to spread the gospel to more people than ever before?
Oh God, we want to see Acts 5:14. We want to see more than ever, believers added to you. You drawing people to your salvation, multitudes of both men and women. God, we pray this verse over the communities and cities where we live. God, we pray. Pray for the church I’m pastoring, church, I’m a part of. We want to see more than ever believers added to you, more than ever in the history of our church.
God, we pray for that. We’re asking for that. Pray for that over all of our churches, more than ever, more than ever, God, and in our cities more than ever, we pray for spiritual awakening. We pray for spiritual revival. We pray for multitudes of people turning to you. God, please, please do that, we pray. Use us today toward that end. Help us to share the Gospel toward that end today.
Praying for the Spread of the Gospel to the Nations
God, we pray this for the nations, for the unreached peoples of the world, for the Karmali people of Bangladesh, the Karmali people of India, 160,000 of them total. No known followers of Jesus. God, we pray. We pray. Please more than ever, would the Karmali be reached? More than ever, would the Pashtuns be reached?
Lord, more than ever, would the Baloch be reached? More than ever, would Somalis be reached with the good news of your love? More than ever would the nations be reached with the gospel? God, please help us to live, to lead our families, to be a part of churches that are spreading the gospel in the world more than ever, trusting that when that’s happening more than ever, the power of your name, Jesus, believers will be added to you. May it be so we pray. In Jesus name, according to Acts 5:14. Amen.
David Platt serves as a Lead Pastor for McLean Bible Church. He is also the Founder and Chairman of Radical, an organization that helps people follow Jesus and make him known in their neighborhood and all nations.
David received his B.A. from the University of Georgia and M.Div., Th.M., and Ph.D. from New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary. Some of his published works include Radical, Radical Together, Follow Me, Counter Culture, Something Needs to Change, and Don’t Hold Back.
He lives in the Washington, D.C. metro area with his wife and children.
