Go! And Wait With Purpose: Bridging Ascension And Pentecost - Acts 1:4-14 Series

Go! And Wait with Purpose: Bridging Ascension and Pentecost – Waiting in Prayer and Expectation

Introduction

Today, we stand in the gap between two monumental events in the life of Jesus and His Church.

The Ascension of our Lord, the moment when Jesus physically ascended into heaven, leaving His disciples with the promise of the Holy Spirit. And Pentecost, when the Holy Spirit was poured out upon the early Church, empowering believers to be witnesses to the ends of the earth.

But what do we do in between?

How do we bridge the gap from Ascension to Pentecost?

The answer is: we wait.

We wait with purpose—waiting in prayer and expectation, just as the early disciples did.

Today, I invite you to open your Bibles to Acts 1:4-14, where we will find our instruction and our encouragement.

Acts 1:4-14 (NLT): “Once when he was eating with them, he commanded them, ‘Do not leave Jerusalem until the Father sends you the gift he promised, as I told you before. John baptized with water, but in just a few days you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit.’

So when the apostles were with Jesus, they kept asking him, ‘Lord, has the time come for you to free Israel and restore our kingdom?’

He replied, ‘The Father alone has the authority to set those dates and times, and they are not for you to know. But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon you. And you will be my witnesses, telling people about me everywhere—in Jerusalem, throughout Judea, in Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.’

After saying this, he was taken up into a cloud while they were watching, and they could no longer see him. As they strained to see him rising into heaven, two white-robed men suddenly stood among them. ‘Men of Galilee,’ they said, ‘why are you standing here staring into heaven? Jesus has been taken from you into heaven, but someday he will return from heaven in the same way you saw him go!’

Then the apostles returned to Jerusalem from the Mount of Olives, a distance of half a mile. When they arrived, they went to the upstairs room of the house where they were staying. Here are the names of those who were present: Peter, John, James, Andrew, Philip, Thomas, Bartholomew, Matthew, James son of Alphaeus, Simon the Zealot, and Judas son of James. They all met together and were constantly united in prayer, along with Mary the mother of Jesus, several other women, and the brothers of Jesus.”

Waiting in Prayer and Expectation

In this passage, we find the disciples in a moment of profound transition. Jesus, their risen Lord, is about to ascend into heaven, leaving them with a command—to wait in Jerusalem for the promised Holy Spirit. This waiting is not passive; it is an active waiting in prayer and expectation.

1. The Command to Wait (Acts 1:4-5)

Jesus tells the disciples, “Do not leave Jerusalem until the Father sends you the gift he promised” (v. 4). The word "wait" (from the Greek prosdechomai) is not a mere idleness; it carries the sense of eager anticipation, of looking forward with expectation. This is not waiting for the sake of waiting, but waiting for the fulfillment of God's promise.

Theologically, this moment marks the culmination of God's redemptive plan, where the Spirit of God, promised from the Old Testament, would come upon believers to empower them for the mission of spreading the Gospel. Jesus’ ascension was necessary for the Spirit to come (John 16:7), and the disciples’ waiting became the bridge between the past work of Jesus and the future work of the Spirit.

In our lives, there are times when we, too, must wait for God’s leading, for His timing. But this waiting should be filled with purpose. We are waiting for God to move, for Him to send His Spirit in fresh ways. Are you waiting on the Lord with expectation, or have you allowed discouragement or doubt to cloud your vision?

Luke 24:49 (NLT): "And now I will send the Holy Spirit, just as my Father promised. But stay here in the city until the Holy Spirit comes and fills you with power from heaven."

Jesus' command in Acts 1:4 to wait in Jerusalem until the Father sends the promised Holy Spirit mirrors His earlier instruction in Luke 24:49.

Waiting in the city was not merely a matter of standing still but of anticipating the fulfillment of God's promise. This wasn't idle waiting; it was a posture of faith, trusting that God would act. The disciples had seen Jesus' miracles and heard His promises, yet they were now called to trust God's timing for the coming of the Holy Spirit. For us today, this calls us to be still and trust in God's timing, knowing that His plans unfold according to His perfect will.