Altars & Upper Rooms // Making Room for the Holy Spirit's Outpouring // Rev. LaRon Gordon

Jul 20, 2026

Devotional

Day 1: Altars First, Fire Later

The altar is where we lay down every ambition, fear, and control to say, "All I am is Yours." Surrender isn’t passive resignation but active trust—placing our Isaac-sized dreams on the stone before God’s knife even moves. Like Abraham, we obey not because we’ve resolved every question, but because we’ve resolved to trust the One asking. Spiritual power flows from surrendered hearts, not strategic plans. Pentecost’s fire only falls where altars have burned first. [00:33]

"By faith Abraham, when he was tested, offered up Isaac... He considered that God was able even to raise him from the dead." (Hebrews 11:17, 19 ESV)

Reflection: What “Isaac” have you been clutching that God is asking you to place on the altar today? How might surrendering it create space for His Spirit to move?

Day 2: Waiting in the Upper Room Before the Wind Rushes In

The disciples’ 10-day wait felt like wasted time—until tongues of fire proved otherwise. Waiting isn’t God’s oversight but His invitation to trade self-sufficiency for Spirit-dependence. Like Amazon Prime conditioning us for immediacy, our flesh resists divine delays. Yet in the upper room’s quiet, God reshapes hurried hearts into vessels ready to carry uncontainable power. True readiness begins when we stop counting days. [02:20]

"While staying with them, he ordered them not to depart from Jerusalem, but to wait for the promise of the Father." (Acts 1:4 ESV)

Reflection: Where are you tempted to rush ahead of God’s timing? What practical step can you take this week to “wait actively” in prayer instead of striving?

Day 3: Obedience When the Map Has No Legend

Abraham walked toward Moriah without a divine flowchart. The altar call often comes with unclear instructions and unanswered “why’s.” Obedience thrives not in certainty but in covenant—trusting the Planner more than the plan. Like disciples ordered to stay put in Jerusalem, we’re called to plant our feet where He says “wait,” even when everything in us screams “go.” Faith’s boldest move is standing still. [01:52]

"He went out, not knowing where he was going." (Hebrews 11:8 ESV)

Reflection: What unclear obedience is God requiring of you right now? How can you shift focus from demanding explanations to embracing His presence?

Day 4: Unity Where Opposites Kneel Together

The upper room held tax collectors and anti-tax zealots, doubters and deniers—all praying as one. Unity isn’t uniformity but diverse hearts tethered to Christ’s supremacy. Matthew and Simon didn’t debate tax policies; they sought the Tax-Collector of souls. When our differences divide, we’ve forgotten the cross that leveled every wall. Revival breathes where surrendered people choose shared purpose over personal preferences. [21:15]

"All these with one accord were devoting themselves to prayer." (Acts 1:14 ESV)

Reflection: Who have you allowed differences with to create distance? What step will you take to pursue Christ-centered unity this week?

Day 5: Prayer That Outlasts the Clock

The disciples didn’t schedule prayer meetings—they lived in them. Persistent prayer isn’t about twisting God’s arm but aligning our heartbeat with His. Like the friend dependent on her wheelchair, we’re called to lean into prayer as our non-negotiable lifeline. The upper room’s 120 didn’t know the Spirit’s arrival time, but they kept showing up. Breakthrough begins when we stop watching the clock and start watching the throne. [25:10]

"They all joined together constantly in prayer." (Acts 1:14 ESV)

Reflection: Where has your prayer life become transactional rather than relational? How can you create space this week for “constant” communion with God?

Sermon Summary

Acts one stands before Acts two and says the mighty rushing wind does not come before surrender, waiting, obedience, unity, and prayer. The altar is the place where everything belongs to God, and the upper room is the place where God’s people gather with one heart, waiting for only what God can do. God pours out his Spirit on people who have first been laid down on the altar. Abraham’s altar shows that obedience still matters even when feelings and questions are real.

Jesus orders the disciples not to leave Jerusalem, but to wait for the promise of the Father. Acts one makes that waiting feel mandatory, not optional, because a spiritual mission cannot be carried out with human strength. Waiting exposes whether confidence is really in God’s timing or in personal ability to make stuff happen. God does not waste waiting, because waiting seasons are preparation seasons.

Obedience in the upper room is not “stay if it is convenient.” The command is simple, stay and wait. Jesus knows the disciples are not ready, even though they have walked with him, seen miracles, and received the Great Commission. God is not delaying because he forgot; God is forming hearts before he pours out power.

The upper room also becomes the place where unity is cultivated. Peter is there with failure in his story, Thomas is there with doubt in his story, Matthew is there with a despised past, and Simon the zealot is there with politics completely opposite from Matthew. The room is not filled with perfect people; it is filled with surrendered people. The gospel creates unity that the world cannot create or destroy.

Unity is not uniformity. Different stories, backgrounds, struggles, and prayers can still be gathered under one commitment to Jesus. The enemy loves offense, grudges, and the need to be right, because a divided church cannot carry a unified mission. God fills the room with his presence, but first he fills the room with reconciliation and healing.

Persistent prayer marks the upper room. The disciples are not praying once in a while; they are constantly depending on God. Dependence can feel like weakness, but the image of needing God like a wheelchair shows the truth: every breath, every choice, every step needs the Holy Spirit first. The upper room is preparation time, and the promise is enough, even when the healing, the breakthrough, or the family restoration has not yet shown up.

Key Takeaways

1. Waiting reveals misplaced confidence. Waiting shows whether trust is resting in God’s timing or in the ability to force something open. God often does deep work in the quiet place where nothing seems to be moving. The delay may feel like absence, but Acts one says preparation is not wasted time. [05:24]
2. Obedience is mandatory, not convenient. Jesus does not give the disciples a suggestion when he tells them to stay in Jerusalem. The command to wait becomes part of the mission itself, because power without dependence would ruin the vessel carrying it. Obedience means doing what God asked, when God asked, and how God asked. [08:02]
3. Surrendered people fill the upper room. Peter’s failure, Thomas’s doubt, Matthew’s past, and Simon’s politics do not keep them outside the room. God does not require perfect people before he pours out his Spirit; God receives surrendered hearts. Failure does not get the final word when it is laid before Jesus. [18:36]
4. Unity makes room for presence. The upper room is not a place where everyone agrees on every opinion. It is a place where Jesus becomes more important than preference, offense, and the need to be right. The world sees Christ when people who should be divided learn to love, pray, and serve together. [21:40]
5. Dependence keeps prayer alive. Prayer becomes constant when God is not treated like the last option. True dependence says every breath, decision, and step needs the Holy Spirit first. The upper room trains the heart to pray before the storm gets loud.

## [26:30]

Youtube Chapters

[00:00] - Welcome
[00:33] - The Altar And The Upper Room
[02:20] - Acts One Comes Before Acts Two
[04:27] - God Never Wastes Waiting
[07:42] - Obedience Is Mandatory
[09:41] - Spiritual Mission Needs Holy Spirit Power
[11:22] - Waiting For God Is Active
[12:43] - Faith Trusts God’s Timing
[17:47] - Power Comes After Obedience
[18:07] - Unity Is Cultivated In The Room
[23:17] - Reconciliation Before Revival
[24:50] - Persistent Prayer And Dependence
[28:36] - Holding On To The Promise

Bible Study Guide

Bible Reading

Acts 1:4-5
“And while staying with them he ordered them not to depart from Jerusalem, but to wait for the promise of the Father, which, he said, ‘you heard from me; for John baptized with water, but you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit not many days from now.’” [02:50]

Acts 1:12-14
“Then they returned to Jerusalem from the mount called Olivet, which is near Jerusalem, a Sabbath day's journey away. And when they had entered, they went up to the upper room, where they were staying, Peter and John and James and Andrew, Philip and Thomas, Bartholomew and Matthew, James the son of Alphaeus and Simon the Zealot and Judas the son of James. All these with one accord were devoting themselves to prayer, together with the women and Mary the mother of Jesus, and his brothers.” [18:07]

Luke 24:49
“And behold, I am sending the promise of my Father upon you. But stay in the city until you are clothed with power from on high.”

John 17:20-21
“I do not ask for these only, but also for those who will believe in me through their word, that they may all be one, just as you, Father, are in me, and I in you, that they also may be in us, so that the world may believe that you have sent me.”

Observation questions

In Acts 1:4-5, what exactly were the disciples ordered not to do, and what were they told to wait for? [07:42]
In Acts 1:12-14, what repeated actions and attitudes marked the people in the upper room, and who is specifically named as being there?
What kinds of differences were present among the people in the upper room, and what are some examples of those differences? [18:36]
According to John 17:20-21, what visible result is connected to believers being one?

Interpretation questions

Jesus gave the disciples a command to stay and wait before sending them out. What does that reveal about the difference between having a calling and being ready to carry it out? [09:33]
Waiting can expose whether confidence is in God’s timing or in personal ability. Why does waiting uncover that so clearly in a person’s heart? [05:24]
Acts 1:12-14 shows people with failure, doubt, painful history, and strong differences praying together. What does that suggest about the kind of unity Jesus is after in his people? [21:40]
The disciples were constantly devoting themselves to prayer. What does persistent prayer reveal about dependence on the Holy Spirit, and why is that so important before any spiritual work begins? [26:30]

Application questions

Where does waiting feel hardest right now—in healing, family, direction, provision, or something else? What would it look like to treat this season as preparation instead of wasted time? [04:27]
Obedience is not “when convenient.” Is there any area where there has been partial obedience, delayed obedience, or a plan to do things in a different order than God asked? What would simple obedience look like this week? [08:02]
The upper room had surrendered people, not perfect people. Is there a failure, regret, doubt, or old label that still makes someone feel disqualified? What would it mean to bring that honestly before Jesus instead of hiding it? [18:36]
Unity makes room for God’s presence. Is there any offense, grudge, tension, or need to be right that may be quietly harming unity in relationships, at home, or in the church? What would reconciliation begin to look like? [23:17]
Different stories and strong differences can still gather under one commitment to Jesus. Who is difficult to stay soft-hearted toward because of personality, background, or politics? What helps keep Jesus more central than those differences? [21:40]
Prayer stays alive when God is the first option, not the last. In daily life, when is there a tendency to make plans first and ask for help later? What practical change could help put prayer first this week? [27:22]
Sometimes all a person has is the promise, and that is enough. What promise of God needs to be held onto right now, especially if the answer has not shown up yet? How can the group help one another keep waiting, praying, and trusting? [28:36]

Sermon Clips

48s

#TrustGodsTiming

“``Jesus tells them to wait not because he had forgotten, but because they weren't ready. I wonder how many times, church, we have mistaken God's preparation for delay. Sometimes I think if God doesn't say yes immediately, we take that as a no. I hope you understand when God says yes, he's being good to us. And when he says not yet, he is still being good to us. And when he says no, I say thank you because he is being still good to us. Sometimes we think he is forgotten when he's actually forming us and shaping us. God pours out his power when he prepares our hearts. That's the lesson of the upper room.”

32s

#HolySpiritPower

“One simple command is wait. I imagine if I was a disciple and the Lord Jesus gives me the great commission. I can imagine the lives that I'm going to touch, and I'm such in a hurry to get there, but Jesus knew they needed the power of the holy spirit first before they were able to accomplish his will. You cannot accomplish a spiritual mission with human strength. doesn't take your personality, your talent, your education, or determination. You need the power of the holy spirit.”

46s

#SurrenderInWaiting

“The disciples misunderstood the calling. thought they were going to do it in their own power. God needed to humble them. They spent so much time arguing about who was the greatest, who was going to sit next to Jesus at dinnertime, and god said, I need you to be humble. See, something happens when you're in the upper room. These same men who once argued who was going to sit closer to Jesus now just prayed together. Something changes in the waiting. He was removing pride, building unity, teaching dependence because the holy spirit doesn't fill just talents in people. He fills surrendered people. Are you willing to be obedient in the waiting?”

40s

#UnityNotUniformity

“Unity is not uniformity. We're going to be different. We have different backgrounds. We have different stories. We have different challenges. We have different prayers, but can we be united under our commitment under Jesus? Or do we prefer our own preference first? The disciples were different. They had different struggles. They had different stories, but one focus, and that was Jesus Christ. See, the enemy understands something. A divided church cannot carry a unified mission. A divided family can't display the love of God effectively, and a divided heart struggles to experience peace.”

48s

#ForgiveFirst

“The enemy loves when we get offended over stuff that don't matter. We hold grudges. The enemy will whisper, now you know you're right and they're wrong. Why don't you go in and tell them how wrong they are? What that does is create distance from what God wants to do. Sometimes we play we pray, God, send revival, But God says, will you first forgive your neighbor? God, send that fire. He says, will you lay down your need to be right first? God fills the room with his presence, but first, he must fill the room with reconciliation and healing. The upper room is not a place where everyone agrees on everything. It is a place where we agree on the most important thing that Jesus is worth surrendering for.”

41s

#SurrenderedFaith

“The same Peter who failed would soon stand with boldness and proclaim Jesus before thousands. The upper room is a place where he turns brokenness and doubts into boldness. Thomas was there. Thomas said, I won't believe unless I see your hands and your feet. I love that. Because sometimes we believe God only uses people that don't doubt and don't question. But Thomas was there. Jesus invited Thomas because in the upper room, he was restored. He was transformed. The upper room reminds us that God does not require perfect faith. He requires surrender faith.”

44s

#WaitingRevealsCharacter

“In teaching bible for over twenty six years, people ask me what is the hardest part of what God has called you to do, and it's not loving your neighbor. For some of us, that's easy. That's easy to do. Forgiving 70 times seven, for some of us, that's easy. But for me, when God has equipped me and given me what to do, and then he says, wait, I struggle with that. Because waiting reveals something about your character. Do you really trust God, or do you trust your own ability to make stuff happen? Waiting exposes whether our confidence is in God's timing or our own plans. Waiting strips away the illusion of control that we think we have.”

38s

#GodNeverWastesWaiting

“We live in a culture that says, I need it now. And if I gotta wait, it's not worth waiting for. But the kingdom of God doesn't work that way. God is saying sometimes I just need you to wait. I hope you understand that God never waste your waiting. Some of his deepest work will take place while we are waiting. See, when God says go, some of us it's easier for us to go. Some of us feel equipped in our own power. And when God says, I need to go do it, we're like, I'm ready to go. But what if God says, I need you to go do it, but I need you to wait first?”

41s

#WaitForGodsDirection

“Sometimes the greatest demonstration of faith is not what we do is what we refuse to do. I refuse to go ahead of God again. I refuse to have my own way. I refuse not to wait. Wait until God gives you direction. Maybe you're in your upper room season today. You're praying for something and it seems like heaven is distant and is quiet. Maybe you're waiting for healing and restoration and forgiveness and breakthrough. Don't assume that God's silence means absence. The Holy Spirit is coming, and the power is coming. Your breakthrough is coming. Yeah. Just trust the process. Yeah.”

43s

#UnityCreatesPresence

“They didn't just occupy the same room. They had the same heart. They were united spiritually, and that matters because unity is the environment where the holy spirit will move. I wonder, we the body of Christ that is united, or are we just occupying the same space? I don't wanna just occupy space. When I come into this building, I wanna look at my brother, and I know Memo was praying, and we're of the same heart. I wanna come in, and Mike is trying to have fellowship at his house. I wanna come unified in fellowship. Are we united in the body? Unity creates space for God's presence.”

55s

#GospelUnitesOpposites

“But God says, even when people despise you in my name, I still welcome you in the upper room. I need you in the upper room. Simon the zealot was there. Simon was a political revolutionary. He had total different opposite end of the spectrum political views from Matthew. Think about that. Two opposite ends of the spectrum and their political views came together in unity. One person worked for Rome. The other person hated Rome. Two men apart, but Jesus brought them together. you willing to be brought together when your neighbor doesn't agree who you voted for? When you find out what their political views are and what their stands are, can you still come together and pray and be unified? The gospel creates unity that the world cannot create or destroy.”

41s

#LetThemSeeJesus

“See, our unity is not just about us. It's a witness. When the world is looking for hope, are they looking to the church, or are they looking to outside sources? Church, I wanna be a church where people coming off the streets saying, I'm looking for hope, and I know it's here. I'm looking for someone to pray with, and I know that people are united hard here. I know that Jesus lives here. When the world sees people who should be divided loving one another, serving one another, they see a picture of Christ. When people look at me, I don't want them to see me. I want them to see Jesus. Every word that comes out of my mouth, I want them to hear Jesus. The way I deal with conflict and challenges, I want them to hear the word of Christ.”

32s

#ChooseGodFirst

“Say, I don't know about you, but I have plans. And then sometimes we write out the plans and then we add God at the end of those plans. And when trouble comes, we try to figure it out. And when it's messed up, we rearrange it and mess it up more, and then we say, God, I guess you're my last option. God is saying, can I be your first option and your only option? I'll send you the resources that you need, but just trust me first. God, I wanna be one that trust you first.”

65s

#WaitingIsPreparation

“The upper room is not wasted time. This is a time of preparation. I believe the trick of enemy that he uses against us is if we're not active in doing something that we're not valuable. of us just fill our lives with activity, and we're not doing anything. We fill ourselves with noise and doing stuff. The appearance of doing something is what we want people to see in us. think people in our lives need to see us waiting on the Lord. People need to see us in our prayer closet waiting on the lord. The kingdom of god has always been built by people who have learned to wait. Moses waited forty years in the wilderness. David waited being a shepherd for all that time before he fulfilled God's purpose. Joseph was in jail for thirteen years for a crime he didn't commit waiting on the Lord. See, god is not afraid of our waiting seasons because waiting seasons are preparation seasons.”

46s

#NameOfJesusIsEnough

“Learn to wait in the upper room. Cause the promise comes if we will spend that time, the mighty rushing winds will come. An outpouring of his spirit will come. And people will come to the altar and they will get saved and go out and share the good news. But some of us, we've been in that waiting room for so long, and we're asking God when? God, don't you know I'm tired? God, I'm hurting. God, I don't have anything else to say. That's okay. Sometimes all that we need is the name of Jesus. Sometimes I've been in my prayer closet. Don't have any words, but the name of Jesus is more than enough. Will you trust that today?”

49s

#HoldToGodsPromise

“The upper room is preparation time. I don't know about you, but I'm okay with being in this preparation season because I know what God has for me. What I know about his word is if he has promised it, it is going to come to pass. Maybe it's healing that you need. I've been praying for this pain in my back for over thirty years, and today, it is worse than ever. Sometimes all I have is the promise, but that's enough. Sometimes you've been praying for your family members to come back, and it's been a lifetime when God says, if I promised it to you, hold on to that promise. Sometimes that's all we have, but that's more than enough for me. Because I know if your word go forth, it cannot come back void.”

40s

#PraiseThroughTheProcess

“Are we still anticipating God to do something? Or have we given up on that dream and that miracle to happen? I'm telling people that my back is gonna be healed. It may not be today, and it may not be tomorrow, but I know it's coming. Sometimes people need to see your struggle. Sometimes we don't wanna proclaim God's goodness until the miracle happens. But God is saying proclaim me every single step of the way. When it's one step forward and two steps back, God, you are still good. Because there are people behind you in the journey. They're just trying to get to where you are. I need to say God is good back there, and he's good here, and he's good here.”

61s

#TotalDependenceOnGod

“I learned about independence as a young man. When I was in high school, one of my best friends was at the wrong place at the wrong time and took a stray bullet and was paralyzed from the chest down. After this happened, she ended up giving her heart to the Lord, and I would ask her as we became adults, what's been the hardest part of this journey? And she said, I have learned dependence on God because I am 100% dependent on this wheelchair. I can't do anything without it. I can't go anywhere. I can't get out of this bed. I can't drive. I can't do anything without this wheelchair. The holy spirit convicted me and said, do you depend on me like that? That you can't breathe without me? That every day that you wake up is not on your own because I have allowed it? I think that's the kind of dependence that the holy spirit is calling upon us. God, I need you for everything. I don't wanna make any choices and decisions without you first.”

41s

#ObeyWithoutUnderstanding

“The disciples didn't know what the future was going to look like. The questions were real. I hope we understand that obedience is not based on whether we understand everything first. Faith says, I may not see the whole picture, but I trust the one who does. Faith says, god, I don't understand the timing, but I trust your heart. Faith says, god, if you said it, I will wait for it. Sadly, know about you, but I grew up in a household that taught that faith only moves in one direction, never shaken by delays or circumstance. And god's word must go forth and cannot return void, that it will accomplish what he pleases and where he sends it.”

55s

#FailureDoesntDisqualify

“I noticed about these names in the upper room. They were not filled with perfect people. They were filled with surrendered people. Peter was there. I look at Peter's life, and Peter said, Lord, no matter what, if anybody everybody leave you, I'm a be there. No matter what, I'll die. The first sign of trouble, Peter denied that he was not only the disciple, he denied that he even knew Jesus. And then Jesus looks at him as the rooster crows. I imagine the shame, the memory of his fear and the failure. But Peter was there in the upper room. Why? Because failure does not disqualify us. Amen. God says, I will use you even in your failure when you surrender it to me. See, the enemy will always try to convince us that the our failure has the final word. But God says, when you surrender, I will still use your life.”

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