Ekklesia: The Ascension and The Empowered Movement Acts 1: 4-14
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I have watched over my lifetime different movements that have been started by men and women with purpose who dared to stand against racism, injustices
and the mistreatment of people who have been treated like second class citizens. I can say today that I am able to do a lot of things as an African American because of the civil rights movement and those who stood up, fought and died for the right to be equal and have a voice in this country. I thank God for Dr. Martin Luther King Jr and many others who started a movement of which many other movements were initiated. Groups like the SNCC - STUDENT NON VIOLENCE COORDINATING COMMITTEE, CORE - CONGRESS OF RACIAL EQUALITY, NAACP - NATIONAL ASSOCIATION FOR THE ADVANCEMENT OF COLORED PEOPLE, SCLC - SOUTHERN CHRISTIAN LEADERSHIP COUNCIL. While many of them are gone...the Movements started by these individuals still continues to this day.
As we look at our text Jesus has ascended into heaven. After his death, burial and resurrection Jesus showed himself to hundreds of people. After He had promised to build “the church” I can imagine in my mind the alienation, the heartache, the lonesomeness that the Apostles must have been feeling because the Leader of this movement has left them. Like many who have endured the loss of a Leader. I’m sure that there were questions that arose like. What do we do now? What would Jesus want us to do? Like many successors they are fine as long as they are part of the Kingdom, but not have to lead the Kingdom! I can imagine that fear filled their hearts.
However like the Apostles we should thank God for the words that were spoken to us and spoken over our lives, that were meditated upon as we listened over the years. The reason I say that is because the final words of Jesus to His Apostles would become the scope of His call on their lives. Here they are in the Upper Room doing all that they know to do in difficult times - praying.
Jesus had commanded them in Luke 24:49
“And, behold, I send the promise of my Father upon you: but tarry ye in the city of Jerusalem, until ye be endued with power from on high.”
Jesus also promised them in Acts 1:8
“But ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you: and ye shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judaea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth.”
As we can see from the Day of Pentecost even to the great Azusa Street Revival that no movement of God has power without Gods presence. The Holy Ghost Power was and still is the motivating factor in the Ekklesia Movement.
In Acts 1:4-5 Jesus is speaking here and He says,
And, being assembled together with them, commanded them that they should not depart from Jerusalem, but wait for the promise of the Father, which, saith he, ye have heard of me. For John truly baptized with water; but ye shall be baptized with the Holy Ghost not many days hence.
The words that they hung on and meditated on from their Leader were promises that described what they were to do, where they were to go and how their obedience would impact and change the world forever.
Let’s read some of those scriptures:
John 14:16
And I will pray the Father, and he shall give you another Comforter, that he may abide with you for ever.
John 14:26
But the Comforter, which is the Holy Ghost, whom the Father will send in my name, he shall teach you all things, and bring all things to your remembrance, whatsoever I have said unto you.
After 40 days of appearances Jesus now shows up to them and tells them. The promised Holy Spirit would come to them “ in a few days. “
John the Baptist had prophesied to them at Jesus’ baptism in Mark 1:8
“I indeed have baptized you with water: but he shall baptize you with the Holy Ghost.”
A few days after Jesus’ ascension in the Upper Room in Acts 2 during the Feast of Pentecost Johns prophecy and Jesus’ promise was fulfilled.
Jesus had come to bring the Kingdom of God “on the earth just as it is in heaven.”
Like many who staked their lives and livelihoods on the words of Dr. King and others, the Apostles staked their lives and livelihoods on Jesus and the hope of such a King and Kingdom. When Jesus was crucified I’m sure that their hopes had surely failed and they were probably ready to return to their former lives as faithful Jews waiting for the Christos - the Anointed One, so when Jesus showed Himself as the Resurrected Lord, their hope for the Kingdom on earth soared.
So the question now becomes when will this take place?
Look at verses 6 and 7 in Acts 1 it says
When they therefore were come together, they asked of him, saying, Lord, wilt thou at this time restore again the kingdom to Israel? And he said unto them, It is not for you to know the times or the seasons, which the Father hath put in his own power.
The disciples had the chance to ask Jesus a lot of questions, but their focus was on when was Jesus “going to restore the Kingdom to Israel.” Jesus says the Father had set the “times and dates “ by His own power or authority. He didn’t ignore their question....He simply redirected their perspectives away from an earthly Kingdom to a Spiritual Kingdom.
Now that their perspective has changed so has their mission changed. They didn’t understand the power they would need to carry out His calling on their lives. He told them that He would “empower them after that the Holy Ghost has come upon you.”
What this command did was commission the Apostles under the Authority of His name to not only be empowered with the Holy Ghost but to be dynamic in every way because He was going to enable them with strength and ability to do supernaturally what they could not do in their own strength.
Now that they have been empowered by the Holy Ghost they can now become effective “witnesses.”
A witness is someone who can bear witness to; testify to; give or afford evidence of..... they can affirm in this case that you are practicing what you preach.
The power for effective witnessing (see Evangelism) that shakes the world comes from the Pentecostal outpouring of the Spirit in Acts 2. Jesus would never have assigned the church a task it could not do if it were not possible.
In Matthew 28:19,20 Jesus said,
Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost:Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world.
Look at Acts 1:9 it says
And when he had spoken these things, while they beheld, he was taken up; and a cloud received him out of their sight.
Now that Jesus had given them their mission. His work on earth was done. When He had finished talking to the disciples the Bible said “He was taken up before their eyes.”
In order for them to be effective witnesses of the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus Christ they need to see His exaltation and glorification because His exaltation and glorification were given to Him for His humiliation of suffering and “ obedience to death on the cross.” Phil 2:8-11
God the Father affirmed all that Jesus had done and said by His glorious exaltation in His ascension.
Look at Acts 1:10,11 it says,
And while they looked stedfastly toward heaven as he went up, behold, two men stood by them in white apparel; Which also said, Ye men of Galilee, why stand ye gazing up into heaven? this same Jesus, which is taken up from you into heaven, shall so come in like manner as ye have seen him go into heaven.
Frozen between the past and the future, the disciples only stared into the clouds. They had received their marching orders but nobody said, “March!”
The disciples must have been still staring into the sky while Jesus ascended until He was gone. So the angels reminded them that “This Jesus you see which is taken up from you will come back in the same way you seen Him go into heaven.” In essence they were saying stop looking for Jesus in the sky. He will return just like He said He would. Now carry on with what He told you to do.
Story has it that there was a preacher in a country church who asked one of the deacons to dismiss the service in prayer. As the deacon prayed, in the midst of his prayer, he said, "Lord, unctionize our pastor. Unctionize our pastor!" Trying to understand the man’s prayer, the pastor met the old deacon at the church door, and he asked, "Deacon, that was a good prayer you prayed, but why did you ask God to unctionize me? What does that word unctionize mean?" The deacon said, "Reverend, I ain't sure what it means; but whatever it means, you ain't got it."
Turn to your neighbor and say I don’t know about the preacher in that story...... but I got it, I got it, oh yes I got it, there's something about the Holy Ghost I can't explain it but i got it!
If we say we are followers of Jesus we cannot afford to stand around. We have received our marching orders.....Jesus said ” we must work the works of him that sent us, while it is day: the night cometh, when no man can work.” John 9:4
God calls for each of us to work in some way in His “vineyard.” He has given us gifts, talents, abilities and life-experiences that will make our work enjoyable and fruitful.
Isaiah 43:10
Ye are my witnesses, saith the Lord,and my servant whom I have chosen:that ye may know and believe me,
and understand that I am he:before me there was no God formed,neither shall there be after me.
Acts 1:8
But ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you: and ye shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judaea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth.
1 Peter 2:9
But ye are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, an holy nation, a peculiar people; that ye should shew forth the praises of him who hath called you out of darkness into his marvellous light.
1 Corinthians 15:58
Therefore, my beloved brethren, be ye stedfast, unmoveable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, forasmuch as ye know that your labour is not in vain in the Lord.
Psalms 126:6
He that goeth forth and weepeth, bearing precious seed,
shall doubtless come again with rejoicing, bringing his sheaves with him.
It’s time to bring in the sheaves - the bundles of harvest!
12/02/2018 Dr Charles C Jones D.D.
