Acts 1:1-11, recitation verse Acts 1:8
The praise and honor and glory be to our heavenly Father who seeks true worshipers who worship Him with the Spirit and truth.
According to 1 Thessalonians 1:5, the Gospel was not only proclaimed in words but also with power, the Holy Spirit, and great conviction. However, when we look at the church today, it seems to have become a perilous situation just as General Booth, the founder of the Salvation Army, was concerned that the challenges of the future church will be a faith without the Holy Spirit, Christianity without Christ, atonement without repentance, salvation without regeneration, and a heaven without hell. As the birth of the church was ushered in by the coming of the Holy Spirit, the proclamation of the Gospel began with the power of the Holy Spirit, the church in the first century was a place where the presence and power of the Holy Spirit were manifested. But now, although the church is visible, it becomes a really sad era when the Holy Spirit, His power, and His presence have been lost. Therefore, through today's passage, Acts 1:1-11, Jesus speaks about the kingdom of God during the forty days before His resurrection and gives His disciples the mission to be witnesses and proclaim the kingdom of God, commanding them to wait for the Holy Spirit, whom God had promised, to come, we would like to reflect on the ministry of Jesus and consider what the kingdom of God is and why Jesus said that in order to be witnesses and learn from it together.
1) The Gospel of Luke and the Book of Acts can be considered as two interconnected books forming one comprehensive account divided into two parts. While the Gospel of Luke tells the story of Jesus' earthly ministry, the Book of Acts narrates the birth and ministry of the early church, which began with Jesus' ascension and the coming of the Holy Spirit. Therefore, the Book of Acts, starts with the affirmation of Jesus’ earthly ministry in the Gospel of Luke as an account of what Jesus did and taught and then reminds His death and resurrection and appearances to His disciples, and His commandment in Lk 24:46-47 to proclaim repentance and forgiveness of sins in His name to all nations which was given to His disciples who witnessed His suffering, death, and resurrection, in Luke 24:46, and His command to wait the coming of the Holy Spirit, as mentioned in Luke 24:49, establishing the foundation of the ministry of His disciples to proclaim repentance and forgiveness of sins in Jesus' name, as witnesses of His suffering, death, and resurrection, who received the power of the Holy Spirit who came in the Pentecost.
2) Today's text, Acts 1:1-11, can be divided into two parts. In verses 1-5, it first connects the first book, the Gospel of Luke, and the second book, the Acts of the Apostles, by recounting how Jesus suffered, died on the cross for redemption, and rose again, assuring the fact of His resurrection and teaching about the kingdom of God before His ascension, preparing His disciples for the mission He gave them, which is to proclaim the kingdom of God and after waiting for the coming of the Holy Spirit. In the following verses, 6-11, in response to the question of disciples of when the restoration of the kingdom of Israel will happen, Jesus responded that the restoration of the kingdom is certainly going to occur, but the exact timing is known only by God, not allowed to the disciples. And He emphasizes that the disciples' task is to proclaim the kingdom of God. This mission can only be accomplished when the Holy Spirit comes and empowers them. In other words, between the first coming and the second coming of the Messiah, there is a mission to proclaim the kingdom of God. Furthermore, after the Lord's ascension, while the disciples are looking up at the sky, two men dressed in white appear and question them "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." They urge the disciples to go and do their mission.
3) Today's passage speaks of Jesus’ redemptive ministries - His suffering, death, resurrection, ascension, and second coming. And also Luke summarizes Jesus’ ministries to do and to teach where to do refers to Jesus performing miracles, healing the sick, casting out demons, and proclaiming the gospel of the kingdom of God by the power of the Holy Spirit and to teach refers to Jesus’ instruction of His disciples and people about the kingdom of God. Regarding these ministries of the Lord, there are a few points to consider. First, as Luke recorded Jesus’ doing and teaching in the Gospel of Luke, in the Acts, Luke recorded His disciples’ doing and teaching to follow their teacher. Second, just as Jesus taught by giving an example by doing, His disciples taught disciples by showing an example by doing. As such we, His disciples, have to teach others by setting an example by doing.
4) Furthermore, in verse 3, it says that Jesus spoke about the kingdom of God to His disciples for 40 days from His resurrection to ascension. How should we understand the kingdom of God? The Greek term corresponding to the kingdom of God is "τῆς βασιλείας τοῦ θεοῦ" (tes basileias tou theou), where the word translated as "kingdom" is "βασιλεία" (basileia), carries the meaning of kingdom, rule, or reign. Therefore, we can understand the kingdom of God as "the reign of God." And the way to enter this kingdom of God, as Jesus mentioned in John 3:5, is through water (baptism) and the Spirit, being born again. Those who repent and believe in the gospel, as mentioned in Mark 1:15 and Matthew 21:30-31 will receive the kingdom of God. The blessings of the kingdom of God, as stated in Romans 14:17, are not about eating and drinking, but about righteousness, peace, and joy in the Holy Spirit. Additionally, to enter the kingdom of God, as stated in Acts 14:22, one must also endure tribulations. Jesus spoke to His disciples about this kingdom of God and instructed them to proclaim the mystery of this kingdom. This kingdom of God was the theme of Jesus' earthly ministry (Luke 4:43), the focus of His teaching during the 40 days after His resurrection and before His ascension (Acts 1:3), and the subject of His ongoing heavenly ministry seated at the right hand of God's throne (Ephesians 1:20-22), as well as a topic that the church should continually testify to (Acts 28:31).
5) However, in order to proclaim the mystery of the kingdom of God, we have to receive the empowerment to be witnesses of Jesus, as it involves a spiritual warfare, as Jesus mentioned in Matthew 12:28, where evil spirits are cast out by the power of the Holy Spirit. Therefore, first, as seen in Luke 24:45 and Colossians 1:29-2:2, through the illumination by the Holy Spirit, we can understand the Scriptures and gain insight into the mystery of Christ, which is the kingdom of God. As stated in Acts 28:31, we can boldly speak, as guided by the Holy Spirit, and proclaim the message as the Holy Spirit taught, as mentioned in Luke 12:11-12.
6) Through today's passage, we would like to learn few things. Firstly, in verse 2, Jesus commanded his disciples to be "empowered by the Holy Spirit" and in verses 4 and 8, He emphasizes the need to receive the power of the Holy Spirit. Why did Jesus emphasize the importance of receiving the Holy Spirit and His power? First, the indwelling of the Holy Spirit revives our dead spirits, ignites faith within us when the Gospel is proclaimed and through that faith, we receive justification and the Holy Spirit enables us, as born-again individuals, to grow in Christ and live under His lordship. Additionally, as emphasized in today's passage, the Holy Spirit enables us to boldly proclaim and declare the mystery of the kingdom of God, which we have tasted and experienced through Him. The reason the Holy Spirit takes a leading role in our testimony of the gospel is that all aspects of salvation, such as predestination, calling, the inward work of the Holy Spirit, and the effective calling, regeneration, faith, justification, and sanctification, are under God's sovereign work. Therefore, even as mentioned in Luke 12:11-12, when testifying to the gospel, the witness of the gospel must rely on the Holy Spirit's teachings. Secondly, the passage summarizes Jesus' ministry as His doings and teachings. This refers to Jesus' statement in John 13:15, "I have set you an example that you should do as I have done for you," indicating that the way Jesus taught us was by setting an example. Likewise, as the disciples were to imitate and learn from Paul, as mentioned in 2 Thessalonians 3:9, teaching through example was the method of discipling in the kingdom of God. Therefore, when sharing the gospel with others and teaching what the Lord has taught us, we should do so in the same manner by showing them examples. Lastly, in verse 11, two men dressed in white (angels) appear to the disciples who are gazing up at the sky, following the ascension of Jesus, and says, "Men of Galilee, 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." Here we can see that the claims made by various cult leaders in Korea, who claim to be the second coming of Jesus, are entirely unscriptural. Since Jesus will not return in a manner known only to a few individuals or privately. Secondly, the message conveyed by the angel is not to merely gaze at Jesus, who ascended to heaven, but to go and, as Jesus commanded, wait for the Holy Spirit, receive His power, and engage in the ministry of proclaiming the kingdom of God that Jesus taught. Therefore, as we live in the era between Jesus' ascension and His second coming, we should bear the responsibility of proclaiming the kingdom of God as commanded by Jesus and eagerly await His return. I pray that we may proclaim the kingdom of God with the power of the Holy Spirit, and not only live according to the teachings and examples shown to us by our Lord but also hope for the abundant occurrence of proclaiming the gospel of the kingdom of God among our community, as Jesus will add to us more disciples of His kingdom and empower them to proclaim the gospel to others.
Key Questions as Small Group Activity
Q1 As today's passage says, not only does the Lord give us the mission of testifying to the gospel, but He also promises to send the Holy Spirit to enable us to fulfill that mission and provide us with His power. Therefore after we reflect on whether we have received the Holy Spirit and His power and whether we are living the life of a witness not by our own strength but by the power of the Holy Spirit, it is good to share our experiences and thoughts with others.
Q2 Secondly, in today's passage, it is clear that we are called to testify to the kingdom of God, and in order to do so, we must first taste and experience the kingdom of God ourselves. I believe that we can only effectively proclaim it if we have personally experienced and understood it. I hope that we can share with one another what we can testify about the kingdom of God based on our own experiences and learn from each other.
Love you. Thank you. God bless you.
Prayer Note
Dear ( God’s attribute which you found Today ) God!
Thanks for ( something you received through the sermon or even during the week )
Praise, gratitude and glory be to You, Lord!
Today, I realized my sin (pains) that ( the sin God reminded through the sermon ),
please forgive (or heal) me and help me not to repeat ( the sins you recognized ).
I learned that ( something you learned through the sermon )
Please help me to live in that ( learned way of life )
I pray in ( Jesus’ attribute you find ) Jesus’ name. Amen.
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