“From The Blessing Of Bethany, to The Promise Of Pentecost"
Luke 24:44-53
44 And he said unto them, These are the words which I spake unto you, while I was yet with you, that all things must be fulfilled, which were written in the law of Moses, and in the prophets, and in the psalms, concerning me.
45 Then opened he their understanding, that they might understand the scriptures,
46 And said unto them, Thus it is written, and thus it behoved Christ to suffer, and to rise from the dead the third day:
47 And that repentance and remission of sins should be preached in his name among all nations, beginning at Jerusalem.
48 And ye are witnesses of these things.
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.
50 And he led them out as far as to Bethany, and he lifted up his hands, and blessed them.
51 And it came to pass, while he blessed them, he was parted from them, and carried up into heaven.
52 And they worshipped him, and returned to Jerusalem with great joy:
53 And were continually in the temple, praising and blessing God. Amen.
At the time of our text, the disciples had been on quite an emotional roller coaster ride.
They had within the past few weeks witnessed their leader Jesus Christ open the blind eyes, and perform other miracles.
They were then with Him when He went to the garden of Gethsemane to pray with a fervency and heaviness.
They were there when the soldiers came to take Him away.
They were watching in the distance as the angry crowd cried “crucify Him.”
They were near as He was beaten, and eventually placed upon a cross to die.
No doubt they were dealing with mixed emotions and even somewhat confused by all the events that were taking place at such a hectic pace.
Jesus had died, and was resurrected and now he revealed Himself to the disciples.
Let’s look at the emotional contrasts of the scripture.
Luke 24:38-41 NIV
38 He said to them, "Why are you troubled, and why do doubts rise in your minds?
39 Look at my hands and my feet. It is I myself! Touch me and see; a ghost does not have flesh and bones, as you see I have."
40 When he had said this, he showed them his hands and feet.
41 And while they still did not believe it because of joy and amazement, he asked them, "Do you have anything here to eat?"
Notice the disciples went from being troubled and doubtful to having joy and amazement!
Luke 24:44-49 NIV
44 He said to them, "This is what I told you while I was still with you: Everything must be fulfilled that is written about me in the Law of Moses, the Prophets and the Psalms."
45 Then he opened their minds so they could understand the Scriptures.
46 He told them, "This is what is written: The Christ will suffer and rise from the dead on the third day,
47 and repentance and forgiveness of sins will be preached in his name to all nations, beginning at Jerusalem.
48 You are witnesses of these things.
49 I am going to send you what my Father has promised; but stay in the city until you have been clothed with power from on high."
Jesus opened their understanding to the scriptures concerning His purpose for coming.
He had performed many miracles, and healed many sicknesses and diseases.
But that was not His purpose for coming.
He said this about His true purpose for coming…
"This is what is written: The Christ will suffer and rise from the dead on the third day, and repentance and forgiveness of sins will be preached in his name to all nations, beginning at Jerusalem.”
His mission was to “seek and save” lost mankind.
This is what the disciples saw him do during His 3 ½ years of ministry…
But His purpose was the fulfilling the promise…and the promise was Pentecost!
Jesus said,
“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.”
“And he led them out as far as to Bethany, and he lifted up his hands, and blessed them.”
What an awesome experience!
Jesus blessed the disciples.
eulogeo (yoo-log-eh’-o); from Greek eulogia praise to speak well of, i.e. (religiously) to bless (to thank or invoke a benediction upon, prosper):
This blessing was important because it was here that Jesus imparted unto His disciples the instruction to go beyond the current blessing at Bethany, to the PROMISE that awaited them at Jerusalem!
It was here that Jesus ascended up into glory and not be seen again by the disciples…
It was also here at Bethany, that we are told by theologians that some built memorials and considered the spot that Jesus went away a very hallowed and sacred place.
But the disciples understood the importance of leaving Bethany and going to Jerusalem!
At this point the disciples realized that there was more for them than what preceded Bethany.
There was more for humanity than the miraculous birth of Jesus Christ…
There was more for mankind than the incredible life that Jesus lived.
There was even more for humanity than Christ death, burial, and resurrection!
THERE WAS MORE FOR THE HUMANITY THAN CHRIST ASCENSION!
There was more for the disciples than a blessing at Bethany.
So the disciples made the journey from…
“The Blessing Of Bethany,
To The Promise Of Pentecost”
Listen the rest of the story.
52 And they worshipped him, and returned to Jerusalem with great joy:
53 And were continually in the temple, praising and blessing God. Amen.
Luke then goes on and pens this in the book of Acts.
Acts 1:1-5 NIV
1 In my former book, Theophilus, I wrote about all that Jesus began to do and to teach
2 until the day he was taken up to heaven, after giving instructions through the Holy Spirit to the apostles he had chosen.
3 After his suffering, he showed himself to these men and gave many convincing proofs that he was alive. He appeared to them over a period of forty days and spoke about the kingdom of God.
4 On one occasion, while he was eating with them, he gave them this command: "Do not leave Jerusalem, but wait for the gift my Father promised, which you have heard me speak about.
5 For John baptized with water, but in a few days you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit."
Acts 1:12-14 NIV
12 Then they returned to Jerusalem from the hill called the Mount of Olives, a Sabbath day’s walk from the city.
13 When they arrived, they went upstairs to the room where they were staying. Those present were Peter, John, James and Andrew; Philip and Thomas, Bartholomew and Matthew; James son of Alphaeus and Simon the Zealot, and Judas son of James.
14 They all joined together constantly in prayer, along with the women and Mary the mother of Jesus, and with his brothers.
Luke continued…
Acts 2:1-4 NIV
1 When the day of Pentecost came, they were all together in one place.
2 Suddenly a sound like the blowing of a violent wind came from heaven and filled the whole house where they were sitting.
3 They saw what seemed to be tongues of fire that separated and came to rest on each of them.
4 All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit enabled them.
Today, too many good churchgoers are doing nothing more than dwelling at Bethany.
God is moving and blessing in every denomination across America!
But too many people are satisfied and content with a Bethany blessing!
Too many followers of Jesus live off of PAST EXPERIENCES!
Many stop following Jesus at a certain point in their lives and simply live off of past blessings!
Some people are satisfied with their current spiritual status and have no desire to draw nearer to God… They are dwelling at Bethany.
I ask this question today,
“Are you satisfied with your current status with the Lord?”
“Do you believe that there is more for you?”
The truth is…
God has more for everyone!
Why not move from your “Bethany blessing” to your own personal PENTECOST?
