A TRANSITION OF POWER
(Part 1)
Acts 1:1-4
(Antioch Baptist Church: Sunday morning - January 26th, 2025)
This week for the 46th time in our nation’s history we transitioned from one presidential administration to another with the inauguration of our 47th president. Many significant changes have already been made and there are certainly many more on the horizon. Though our leadership has switched from one political party to another, many of the opportunities and responsibilities remain the same. The important work of the United States government continues and many of us are interested in the process and consequences of this period of transition.
The book of Acts records the most important transition of power in the history of the world. Jesus Christ had lived here on earth for some 33 years. During the last 3 years of His life our Savior was actively involved in His amazing public ministry. He traveled the region teaching, performing miracles, demonstrating His awesome power, and changing countless lives. Now, His work on earth was complete; He had gone to the cross, laid down His life, and victoriously risen from the grave. Very soon He would ascend to Heaven, but before He departed Jesus promised His followers that He would not leave them alone. He promised that they would be “endued with power from on high” (Luke 24:49) This was a reference to the arrival of the Holy Spirit.
The Gospels record several of His references concerning the arrival of the Holy Spirit. The Lord said in John 14:16-18: “I will pray the Father, and He will give you another Helper, that He may abide with you forever, the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees Him nor knows Him; but you know Him, for He dwells with you and will be in you. I will not leave you orphans; I will come to you.” Jesus went on to say in John 14:25-26: "These things I have spoken to you while being present with you. But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in My name, He will teach you all things and bring to your remembrance all things that I said to you.” Then in John 16:7-11 the Savior said: “nevertheless I tell you the truth. It is to your advantage that I go away; for if I do not go away, the Helper will not come to you; but if I depart, I will send Him to you. 8 And when He has come, He will convict the world of sin, and of righteousness, and of judgment: 9 of sin, because they do not believe in Me; 10 of righteousness, because I go to My Father and you see Me no more; 11 of judgment, because the ruler of this world is judged.”
The Disciples of Christ had the amazing privilege of walking, talking, and living with Jesus for some time, but soon they would experience His power like never before. The Book of Acts shows us what can happen when Spirit filled servants of Jesus are obedient to Him. Our Lord was about to use this faithful group of followers to turn the world upside down in His name. Amazingly He chooses to use people like you and me to advance His Kingdom today.
Many of the amazing things that God did through the Apostles are recorded in the Book of Acts. However, it is important for us to remember that these men were simply human vessels under the control of the Holy Spirit of God. We have the same opportunity that they had, for the Holy Spirit indwells all genuine followers of Christ.
Though Jesus ascended to His rightful place in Heaven, it is clear that His work continued after His departure (and it continues today). Jesus is and always will be the ultimate source of power but He has chosen to fill His followers with the Holy Spirit and use them to accomplish His purposes. In a sense, (beginning with the Apostles) Jesus has transferred His power to His people. I would like to survey the first 4 verses of this chapter and examine “A Transition Of Power”.
Before we get to our selected text, I would like to examine some important facts about the Book of Acts. This Book is a sequel to the Gospel of Luke. In fact there is a seamless transition from one book to the other. Let’s take a moment and consider:
THE AUTHOR OF THE BOOK OF ACTS
As is the case with every book in the Bible, there is a human author and there is a divine author. The human author, the man that the Holy Spirit used to put pen to paper was Luke. Luke was Paul’s close friend, traveling companion, and co-laborer in the Gospel ministry. Luke was a medical doctor; he is described as “the beloved physician” in Colossians 4:14. Luke was also a historian who spent much time researching the information that is contained within his writings. Some of the information Luke records came from things that he saw with his own eyes as he traveled with the Apostle Paul. Some of the other content came from interviewing eyewitnesses such as Peter, John, and others in the Jerusalem church.
Though Luke is the human author of this book there is also (and more importantly) a divine Author. The divine Author is the Holy Spirit; this is the case for all 66 books in the Bible. Paul said in 2 Timothy 3:16 that “All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness.”
Christians throughout the ages are indebted to Luke for his faithful research and obedience to the Holy Spirit in writing this letter to Theophilus. The Holy Spirit used Luke to give us a history of the establishment and growth of the Christian Church. This book is the bridge that takes us from the life of Christ to the Epistles. Without the Book of Acts, we would not be able to understand the information that is contained within the Epistles that follow.
Without this Book we would not know about the power and mighty works of the Holy Spirit. Without Acts, we would not know the process by which the Gospel spread from Jerusalem to Judea to Samaria and ultimately across the world. We would not know the purpose (and profit) of Christian persecution or how to endure it. Without the Book of Acts we would not know how the Church of Christ is to operate. The Church is truly blessed to possess this account of the works of the Holy Spirit and we were given it by the Holy Spirit Himself.
- This leads us to:
THE RECIPIENTS OF THE BOOK OF ACTS
Originally, this Book was a letter written by Luke to a man named Theophilus. Luke opens this letter with the phrase “The former account I made, O Theophilus” (v1) Theophilus is a name that means “lover of God”. Nothing is known about Theophilus other than Luke’s mention of him here in Acts and in his Gospel account. He may have been a believer that Luke was teaching, or an unbeliever that he was seeking to reach with the Gospel. The fact that he is referred to as “most excellent Theophilus” indicates that He may have held some position of prominence within the Roman government. Regardless, he was a man who was special to Luke and he was blessed to receive an in-depth record of the greatest work in the history of the world. In the opening lines of this letter, Luke provides Theophilus with a dynamic and succinct overview of the life of Jesus Christ.
Verses 1-4 contain an informative review concerning what Jesus had done in the past and an intriguing preview of the things that Jesus would do in the future. Let’s begin by examining:
I. AN INFORMATIVE REVIEW
At the close of his Gospel account, Luke told Theophilus that immediately prior to His Ascension; Jesus had promised His disciples that they would be baptized with the Holy Spirit. (Luke 24:49 “Behold, I send the Promise of My Father upon you; but tarry in the city of Jerusalem until you are endued with power from on high.")
At the outset of the Book of Acts, Luke picks up right where he left off; in doing so, he gives a brief review of the life and works of Jesus Christ. In verse 3:
A. THERE IS A REVIEW CONCERNING JESUS’ RESURRECTION
v3 He (Jesus) also presented Himself alive after His suffering by many infallible proofs, being seen by them during forty days
By this time, Jesus had suffered, been crucified, died, was buried, and after three days He rose from the grave. He presented Himself to the Apostles and others. These people were eyewitnesses of the reality of Jesus’ resurrection. During the time period between His resurrection and Ascension, Jesus appeared several times to the Disciples. The scriptures provide us with ample proof of Christ’s resurrection.
John 20:19 Then, the same day at evening, being the first day of the week, when the doors were shut where the disciples were assembled, for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood in the midst, and said to them, "Peace be with you."
John 20:26 And after eight days His disciples were again inside, and Thomas with them. Jesus came, the doors being shut, and stood in the midst, and said, "Peace to you!" 27 Then He said to Thomas, "Reach your finger here, and look at My hands; and reach your hand here, and put it into My side. Do not be unbelieving, but believing." 28 And Thomas answered and said to Him, "My Lord and my God!" 29 Jesus said to him, "Thomas, because you have seen Me, you have believed. Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed." 30 And truly Jesus did many other signs in the presence of His disciples, which are not written in this book;
John 21:1 After these things Jesus showed Himself again to the disciples at the Sea of Tiberias…
John 21:13 Jesus then came and took the bread and gave it to them, and likewise the fish. 14 This is now the third time Jesus showed Himself to His disciples after He was raised from the dead.
The Disciples didn’t just see Jesus after He arose, He remained on earth for some forty days and He taught them about their mission and the Kingdom of God. This leads us to the fact that:
B. THERE IS A REVIEW CONCERNING JESUS’ INSTRUCTIONS
Luke references “all that Jesus began both to do and teach”. During the time that Jesus spent with the Disciples after His resurrection, He taught them many things, especially concerning their future ministry and the Kingdom of God. Jesus took this time to teach His men and to prepare them for the task at hand. He said in Acts 1:8: “you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be witnesses to Me in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth."
Christ’s chosen men had been in training for a few years, now it was time for them to get to work. They were told what to do and where to do it, furthermore they were assured that they would be empowered to accomplish this task.
- There is a review concerning Jesus’ resurrection and His instructions; and we also see that:
C. THERE IS A REVIEW CONCERNING JESUS’ ASCENSION
v2 until the day in which He was taken up, after He through the Holy Spirit had given commandments to the apostles whom He had chosen”
Undoubtedly Theophilus remembered that Luke’s previous letter ended with the account of the Savior’s Ascension. After this period of time teaching and instructing the Disciples, Jesus was taken up into Heaven. His work on earth was complete and He took His rightful place at the right hand of the Father. Though Jesus’ earthly ministry was complete, His work would continue and this work is still active today.
After providing Theophilus with an informative review of the things that had taken place, Luke goes on to share in intriguing preview of some things that Jesus said would take place after His Ascension. This preview involved information concerning the coming Kingdom and the imminent arrival of the Holy Spirit. (Lord willing we will examine these subjects in great detail next week).
Here in the USA our presidents are elected in early November but they are not sworn in until mid-January. However, almost immediately after the election the President Elect assembles his transition team and entrusts them with the responsibility of setting things in order before the beginning of his term. Though the President is the one with the power and authority, his subordinates possess the great privilege and responsibility of acting on the President’s behalf.
Without question, Jesus Christ is the supreme authority in history. John tells us that He is the King of kings and the Lord of Lords. In His infinite wisdom, Jesus chose to entrust His Apostles with the responsibility of being His representatives on earth after His ascension. Furthermore, our Lord empowered His men to accomplish His will by filling them with the Holy Spirit. It is exciting to know that the power of the Holy Spirit was not just reserved for the 12 Apostles; in Acts 2:39 Peter declared that the gift of the Holy Spirit is a promise to “as many as the Lord our God will call”.
Luke was not an Apostle, but he was indwelt with and used by the Holy Spirit of God. In the same way, we have the privilege, the opportunity, and the responsibility to be used of God to assist in this “transfer of power”. If we seek to be involved in this process it will require faith, boldness, obedience, and consistency.
We are not given the details of Luke’s conversion but there is ample evidence that he was a faithful follower of the Lord Jesus Christ. He was a child of God, he had been saved by Jesus, and he was indwelt with and led by the Holy Spirit. In obedience to the leading of the Holy Spirt Luke dipped his quill into a jar of ink and wrote this detailed account of the continuing work of the Resurrected Savior and sent it to Theophilus. It was not just Theophilus who benefitted from the work of Luke, Saints throughout the ages have benefited as well.
Those of us who belong to Jesus can and should be used in the same way. We are indwelt with the power from on high; The holy Spirit of God dwells within each and every follower of Jesus. Like Luke, God should be able to use us to minister to others. We can assist in this continuing transition of power; we can be used of God to point lost people to the Savior. When we present ourselves as willing vessels who are filled with the Holy Spirit of God we will be able to witness people who are “dead in trespasses and sins” be made “alive in Christ”. We will have the opportunity to see people who are immersed in “the kingdom of darkness” “transferred into the Kingdom of God’s dear Son”.
Some may think that being a part of such an awesome process is something reserved for an elite group of “super Saints”. Luke shows us that this is not the case at all. Luke was clearly a good man and a faithful Christian, but he was just a common man. He possessed no power to save anyone; he was not able to fill a single person with the Holy Spirit. People were saved and filled with the Spirit as a result of his Christian service but the power belonged to God. Luke was just a humble servant of the all-powerful God!
Luke was able to be used in such a way because he heard the Gospel, personally experienced the power of the Gospel, and spent the rest of his life walking with Jesus and sharing the Gospel. Each of us has the opportunity to do the same!
As Christians we not only have the opportunity to live in such a way, we have a responsibility to do so! If you are a Christian it is because you have heard and believed the good news of salvation through Jesus Christ. You have experienced the saving power of our Lord and as a result you are now walking with the Savior. The natural response of what you have experienced should be to share Jesus with others. You can’t save them, but you can point them to the One who can! If you will be submissive, faithful, and obedient then you will have the opportunity to be used in this amazing transition of power. I hope and pray that this is your desire!
If you have never been saved, a great opportunity is available for you today as well. If you believe what the Bible says about the life, death, burial, resurrection, ascension and promised return of Jesus Christ, then I encourage you to repent and put your trust in Jesus as Savior and Lord. If you will surrender to Him, you will be saved and then you can experience the gift of the Holy Spirit that the Savior promised to all who would believe in Him. Truly, you can experience “A Transition Of Power”.
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