Morning Message Text: Acts 1: 3-14
3 After his suffering, he presented himself to them 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.”
6 Then they gathered around him and asked him, “Lord, are you at this time going to restore the kingdom to Israel?”
7 He said to them: “It is not for you to know the times or dates the Father has set by his own authority.
8 But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.”
9 After he said this, he was taken up before their very eyes, and a cloud hid him from their sight.
10 They were looking intently up into the sky as he was going, when suddenly two men dressed in white stood beside them.
11 “Men of Galilee,” they said, “why do you stand here looking into the sky? This same Jesus, who has been taken from you into heaven, will come back in the same way you have seen him go into heaven.”
Matthias Chosen to Replace Judas
12 Then the apostles 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.
Morning Message:
Many times, we pass right by the Ascension of the Lord, but I want to make the case today that this is a very important part of our faith. As a matter of fact, we should spend more time studying and talking about the time between Christ’s resurrection and his ascension. We are not told exactly how many times Jesus appeared to his disciples; we are only told that it was many times over the course of forty days. If you think about it comparatively, this was a significant amount of time. His earthly ministry only lasted three years, so forty days, almost a month and a half, that is significant. These convincing proofs of his resurrection and the time that He spent with them afterwards were critical to the birth of the church. His disciples were about to give their lives in his service. We should give that some thought. Time spent with Jesus gives you strength and courage.
He promises them the gift of the Holy Spirit and their response was typical, “Lord are you at this time going to restore the kingdom to Israel?” We always prefer the easy way, the path of least resistance, but that is not the way to God’s kingdom. There are many reasons why God makes us walk the paths of this world. We would never choose a difficult path because we don’t posses the wisdom of an all-knowing God. His disciples were being selfish. All human beings are by nature selfish, some more than others and some less, but all are selfish especially when it comes to a choice like this one. Heaven right now, or years struggling on earth first. The question that we Christians need to focus on is: What about others, those who have not yet come to Jesus? God could have ushered in the kingdom then, but what about the centuries of people like us. God could end this world right now and take his children home, but what about our children and grandchildren and great grandchildren and beyond? We pray for God’s kingdom, but let us not forget about the lost souls.
Christ’s work in redemption rests primarily on four pillars of truth. When we start speaking about truth the devil gets upset. We are told that he is a liar and he will do everything to keep us from the truth.
The first pillar is the incarnation of Jesus. Think about this. How many times have you heard the virgin birth disputed by worldly people? This was one of the most miraculous things to occur in history, and if we allow the world, they will tear it down with human logic. We, those who believe in and have accepted Jesus, understand this because we have faith in a God that can do anything and everything. This is a pillar of truth that is essential to our faith. Jesus came to earth, He was born of a virgin, He was both man and God. That is the only way that He could take our sins away.
Jesus lived His life on earth without sin. He was tempted just like every other human being, possibly more so. That is hard for us to imagine. If we are honest, we realize how susceptible to sin we are. Jesus lived a sinless life so that He could fulfill the second pillar of truth, His crucifixion. The sinless lamb of God sacrificed for the sins of all mankind. The world says this is illogical; no man would ever willingly go through such torture for others. They are right, no mere man would or could do what Jesus did. He was not just a man; He was also God. The world and the devil will say, “It wasn’t really Jesus; it was someone else pretending to be Him that died on that cross.” Really, who do you know that would have volunteered for that assignment? Christianity does not exist without the crucifixion.
The third pillar is the resurrection. How many times have we heard the claims from the world through their mouthpiece the news media? It happens around Easter almost every year. “We found the bones of Jesus! He was not resurrected; His body was stolen and moved!” I hear this and I just laugh to myself, but then I am saddened, because while my faith is strong enough to dismiss such nonsense, I know that this affects others. And, what about those who have not yet come to Christ? Then I feel what we as Christians should feel, what about others, remember? This is a pillar of truth because without the resurrection our hope is gone. If all there is for us is to live a good Christian life and then be buried, then what’s the point? There was a resurrection, Christ was the firstfruits of the resurrection. When all things are made new, we will be raised with him.
The fourth pillar is important. His ascension was the exclamation point, completely and finally demonstrating that His atonement had forever solved the problem that sin created. This is our assurance that after all the trials and tribulations of this life, when that great trumpet sounds in heaven, on that glorious day when Jesus steps out onto the clouds and calls us home, we will rise in the same way that He did. We will be caught up in the clouds with our Savior. The disciples still had work to do. They had a church to build, and so do we. They focused on constant prayer in order to honor the great commission that Jesus gave them before He assented. That same great commission has been passed down to us like a torch in a great race. I think that it’s time for us to stop waiting for Jesus to come back and start working to build His kingdom and make it ready for His return.
In Christ’s Love and Peace,
Pastor Bob
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