A Transition Of Power - Part 1
Acts 1:1-4
(an introduction to the book of Acts)
In America, when one president leaves office and another is inaugurated, we go through a period called “The Transition Of Power”. Sometimes this is a smooth transition, (and as we have seen recently) not so much!
The book of Acts records the most important transition of power in the history of the world. For some 33 years Jesus Christ had walked the earth, and for the last 3 years He was involved in His amazing earthly 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 left Jesus promised His followers that He would not leave them alone. This was a reference to the arrival of the Holy Spirit.
John 14:16 I will pray the Father, and He will give you another Helper, that He may abide with you forever, 17 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. 18 I will not leave you orphans; I will come to you.
John 14:25 "These things I have spoken to you while being present with you. 26 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.
John 16:7 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.
It was almost time for this amazing transition of power. No longer would Jesus walk with His followers, soon He would live in them.
We are amazed at the things that God did through men like Noah, Moses, Elijah, David and others. But we are actually in a better positon than they were in; you see, God walked with those men, but He abides within us.
The Disciples of Christ had the amazing privilege of walking, talking and living with Jesus for some time, but soon they would experience power like never before. The remainder of the Book of Acts shows us what can happen when spirit filled servants of Jesus are obedient to Him. This small faithful group followers were about to be used to turn the world upside down in the name of Jesus Christ.
In this study we will see many amazing things that were done at the hands of these men, however, it is important for us to remember that they were just 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.
Most Bibles refer to this book as “The Acts Of The Apostles”, but in reality this book contains a record of the acts of the Holy Spirit. These 28 chapters give us a glimpse into the work of God in establishing and strengthening His Church. As we look at the first few verses of this chapter today, I would like to preach on the subject "A Transition Of Power”.
It is important to note that this book is a sequel to the Gospel of Luke. In fact those two books overlap and there is a seamless transition from one to the other. Let’s take a moment and consider:
I. 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. Notice that:
A. THERE IS A HUMAN 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 in the book of Acts was from his own first-hand, eye witness account as he traveled with Paul. The other information in this book came from interviewing eyewitnesses such as Peter, John, and others in the Jerusalem church.
- Notice his personal introduction at the beginning of his Gospel account:
Luke 1:1 Inasmuch as many have taken in hand to set in order a narrative of those things which have been fulfilled among us, 2 just as those who from the beginning were eyewitnesses and ministers of the word delivered them to us, 3 it seemed good to me also, having had perfect understanding of all things from the very first, to write to you an orderly account, most excellent Theophilus, 4 that you may know the certainty of those things in which you were instructed.
Christians throughout the ages are indebted to Luke for his faithful research and obedience to the Holy Spirit in writing this letter to Theophilus.
- Not only is there a human author of this book:
B. THERE IS A DIVINE AUTHOR
The divine author is the Holy Spirit of God; this is the case for all 66 books in the Bible. (2 Timothy 3:16 All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness.)
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:
II. THE RECIPIENTS OF THE BOOK OF ACTS
Originally, this Book was a letter written by Luke to a man named Theophilus.
“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 and authority in 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.
God had a far greater plan in mind for this information than the instruction (and possible conversion) of one man; for He has used this Book to bless Christians for two millennia.
- As we move further, I would like to examine:
III. THE REVIEW THAT IS GIVEN
As we have already seen, this was not Luke’s first letter to Theophilus, that first letter is what we know as “The Gospel According To Luke”. 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.") In Acts, Luke picks up right where he left off; in doing so, he gives a brief review of the life of Jesus.
- In verse 3:
A. THERE IS A REVIEW CONCERNING JESUS’ RESURRECTION
v3 He 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 that Apostles and others and they were witnesses of His resurrection. During the time period between His resurrection and Ascension, Jesus appeared several times to the Disciples, this was ample proof of His 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.
Not only did the Disciples see Jesus after He arose, He remained on earth for a 40 day period in which 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.
Acts 1:8 but 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."
These 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”
Without a doubt, 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. After referencing Jesus’ ascension, Luke reflects on certain truths that Jesus revealed before His departure. He transitions into the preview that Jesus gave His Disciples concerning the coming Kingdom of God and the arrival of the Holy Spirit.
Jesus commanded His followers to remain in Jerusalem and wait for the arrival of the Holy Spirit. The reason that they were to remain in Jerusalem is because that is where the Holy Spirit would descend. A Transition of Power was on the horizon, Jesus would ascend to Heaven and the Holy Spirit would descend on the people of God in Jerusalem.
The truths that Luke shared with Theophilus back then are important to us today. Jesus did suffer, die, rise again and ascend. The Holy Spirit did arrive and He not only did an amazing work at Pentecost, He is still doing an amazing work in the hearts and lives of God’s people today.
As Christians, we are indwelt with the Holy Spirit. Like the Apostles, we have been commissioned with the responsibility of being Jesus’ witnesses in this world. He expects us to go forth and tell the people of this world the wonderful news that Jesus is the Son of God and the Savior of the World. We do not have the power to save, but we have been empowered to point them to the One who can deliver them from their sins.
As we study the Book of Acts we will see the proper way to go about this task. We will see the amazing things that God can do with surrendered servants who are obedient to the Great Commission. It is also important to note that the only ones who are indwelt with the Holy Spirit of God and are part of God’s Kingdom are those who have repented and believed the Gospel of Jesus Christ.
The Gospel of Jesus Christ is declared in these few verses; it is the good news that proclaims that: Jesus lived, died for our sins and victoriously rose from the grave to live forevermore. If you have not surrendered to Him, I encourage you to repent and believe in Him for salvation today. If you have, then rejoice because Jesus is alive and the Holy Spirit is real, just as Luke has described in these verses that describe “A Transition of Power”.
