Don’t Just Stand There Lookin! Acts 1:6-14
Act 1:6-14
(6) So when they had come together, they asked him, "Lord, will you at this time restore the kingdom to Israel?"
(7) He said to them, "It is not for you to know times or seasons that the Father has fixed by his own authority.
(8) But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth."
(9) And when he had said these things, as they were looking on, he was lifted up, and a cloud took him out of their sight.
(10) And while they were gazing into heaven as he went, behold, two men stood by them in white robes,
(11) and said, "Men of Galilee, why do you stand looking into heaven? This Jesus, who was taken up from you into heaven, will come in the same way as you saw him go into heaven."
(12) Then they returned to Jerusalem from the mount called Olivet, which is near Jerusalem, a Sabbath day's journey away.
(13) 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.
(14) All these with one accord were devoting themselves to prayer, together with the women and Mary the mother of Jesus, and his brothers.
Today is called “ascension” Sunday. Not long ago we celebrated Easter, and about forty days out from the Resurrection, we find in the Scriptures that Jesus left the Earth and ascended to Heaven in plain view of his disciples, who were eye-witnesses.
What do the words “finished” and “done” mean to you? Have you ever come to the end of perhaps a long and drawn out process or period of time where you had many tasks, many obstacles to overcome. Everything is wrapped up and it’s time to go home. It’s done, it’s over, you survived it and you can leave it and either forget it, or if you choose to think about it, know that you did everything you could and now you leave it in good hands.
Last night I woke up practically in a cold sweat thinking about things I need to do at work. I have a stack of paper on my desk that never gets depleted. I tell people who work for me that I don’t want to hear anyone say “I’m done “ because no one is done until we’re all done. And if we’re all done, then we’ll need to look for jobs!
I’m looking forward to one day being able to truly be “done” with my current job. I’ll be able to retire and walk out that door and know that the stack is as low as it can go and also that it’s now another person’s problem to solve. I can know that I ‘m truly done, yet I’ll immediately proceed to some other stack of issues that will never be done. It feels wonderful to wrap up a task, especially one that has been long and drawn out.
When Jesus died on the cross he uttered the words “It is finished. “ The words have great significance in that the work of redemption was completed, one hundred percent. He had accomplished what He came to do, the price had been paid. But there was still to come the Resurrection, and for some reason Jesus appeared to his Disciples and others for yet another forty days. He appeared bodily, in the flesh yet with a glorified body capable of what we consider supernatural movement.
The “tag” on Jesus’ work has been something of a mystery to me. Today, as we consider the Ascension of Christ I have some thoughts on this period of forty days that Jesus spent on earth past the Resurrection, along with the very act of his ascension to Heaven.
The Ascension means:
1) Jesus’ work on earth was finished
Jesus had accomplished everything he had come to do, to the letter. There was nothing more that He could accomplish. As a matter of fact, had he not ascended to the Father, it would have severely limited and thwarted the Gospel. Jesus took upon himself a flesh-and blood body. Following the Resurrection his body was glorified, yet it was not a spirit. He was limited to a dimensional existence and could only be in one place at one time.
His work was completed, yet he left in place an empowered, faith-driven people, His Church.
For forty days he taught his disciples and followers to walk by faith, and not by sight. Paul, one of his later followers said it this way:
2Corinthians 5:4-7
(4) For while we are still in this tent, we groan, being burdened--not that we would be unclothed, but that we would be further clothed, so that what is mortal may be swallowed up by life.
(5) He who has prepared us for this very thing is God, who has given us the Spirit as a guarantee.
(6) So we are always of good courage. We know that while we are at home in the body we are away from the Lord,
(7) for we walk by faith, not by sight.
At the time Jesus was taken, crucified and buried in a whirl wind of events that culminated one of the strangest weeks on record, the disciples were completely dazed and confused by it all. They were scared to death and very unsure about what had happened. Was it all real? Did we misunderstand. Most of them thought up to the very end that Jesus was waiting till the right time to incite a revolution. They still didn’t quite understand the nature of his spiritual kingdom and just what He was saying.
So Jesus rose from the grave. He didn’t appear just once to his followers. He appeared multiple times in varying lengths over a forty day period. He went from brief appearances to actually spending time talking, cooking and eating with them as he continued to teach them and build their faith.
All in all, Jesus appeared to about five hundred people following his Resurrection. This is quite significant in that there were five-hundred eye-witnesses, many of whom were alive and quite able to speak of it when the Gospels were being written and publicized. Jesus’ appearances over the forty days solidified the earthly testimony to his power over death and the grave.
The Resurrection and its attendant witness and testimony is the very heart and the power of the Gospel.
Php 3:10-11
(10) that I may know him and the power of his resurrection, and may share his sufferings, becoming like him in his death,
(11) that by any means possible I may attain the resurrection from the dead.
If Jesus had appeared once or twice, for a fleeting moment or two, the disciples would have never been empowered the way they were. They would have come to believe that it was a delusion or some sort of ethereal ghost story. But for forty days, they saw him, they touched him, they ate with him and they listened to him. Today they watched as he ascended into the clouds.
And over the next fifty years every one of them would lay their lives on the line for what they had seen. Ten of them died grisly, horrific public executions because of their witness. Paul, the apostle “born out of season” lost his head to Nero’s axe.
These men were absolutely convinced of what they had seen; the risen Christ had become their sold passion and reason for living.
Jesus’ ministry on earth was limited by his choice of a flesh and blood existence. He was able to minister on a deep level to about five hundred people over three and a half years. The last forty days sealed what the three and a half years had built, and empowered leaders who could not be stopped or thwarted.
You could say that up to the Resurrection, Jesus had trained followers. For forty days following, he trained leaders-
It’s called leadership math. The Apostles by the power of the Holy Spirit chose to train leaders, rather than followers.
To add, I can lead followers. To multiply, I can lead leaders. (John Maxwell)
Two thousand years later, the multiplication continues. The power of the Resurrection is alive and well, those forty days were well-spent! The witness has been passed to us, and we will pass it to the next generation.
Secondly, Christ’s ascension means that:
2) You have a friend in high (and low) places
The Holy Spirit of God dwells in us and among us, empowering us and driving our faith. As long as Jesus was on the earth, He was the one who empowered his followers and their faith. He was limited by a physical constitution. The Helper, the Paracletos is not limited and indwells every believer, everywhere, in every age.
HE empowers God’s people for service and life.
(8) But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth."
John 14:25-26
(25) "These things I have spoken to you while I am still 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 that I have said to you.
Jesus is the head of the Church, and is seated at the right hand of the Father
Ephesians 1:20-23
(20) that he worked in Christ when he raised him from the dead and seated him at his right hand in the heavenly places,
(21) far above all rule and authority and power and dominion, and above every name that is named, not only in this age but also in the one to come.
(22) And he put all things under his feet and gave him as head over all things to the church,
(23) which is his body, the fullness of him who fills all in all.
3) Jesus will come again
This Jesus, who was taken up from you into heaven, will come in the same way as you saw him go into heaven."
Joh 14:1-3
(1) "Let not your hearts be troubled. Believe in God; believe also in me.
(2) In my Father's house are many rooms. If it were not so, would I have told you that I go to prepare a place for you?
(3) And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and will take you to myself, that where I am you may be also.
The Ascension opens up some larger questions:
When will God fix things?
It’s not for us to know, His timetable is generational. We will only see a small piece of it in our day. We are at ground level, and his plan is dimensional, generational, spanning the universe. Just know that this is a futile question. We couldn’t grasp it even if the plan were laid out before us.
All we need to know is that things are broken, but not for good. Even now He is in process of bringing in His Kingdom and we are part of His plan. Every day we have opportunity to use our influence, our strength, our physical ability and our mind to impact His plan-to touch someone’s life.
The power in “Wait”
How long, Lord?
We live in an “instant” generation where we demand results immediately. We know that waiting is difficult and an exercise in patience. Yet there is a purpose and a plan in “wait.”
Isa 40:29-31
(29) He gives power to the faint, and to him who has no might he increases strength.
(30) Even youths shall faint and be weary, and young men shall fall exhausted;
(31) but they who wait for the LORD shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings like eagles; they shall run and not be weary; they shall walk and not faint.
The waiting isn’t simply a distraction or a nuisance. It’s part of the plan. It causes us to fall into His arms of Grace and be enveloped by His mercy, knowing that He holds the seasons in his hand, and that He holds my life.
No wait, no power. No wait, no wings. No wait, no endurance.
While you are waiting..
Don’t just stand there lookin…
Get to the Upper Room, get your orders, be filled with the Spirit and then get busy. We got work to do!
Take it on Monday morning- you have a friend, you have a Comforter and Guide, you know what to do and you have the power to do it!
