To the Ends of the Earth

For we who live in a country who fought a war to free ourselves from a king, it might be hard to think about the Christian life as being fundamentally a citizenship in a monarchy, a kingdom. How are we to live and think in that context? What is our primary responsibility as citizens of the Kingdom of God, living in a democratic republic that we love?

The Church is the Kingdom Come

Kingdom is the context of this passage.

Acts 1:6 (ESV)

So when they had come together, they asked him, “Lord, will you at this time restore the kingdom to Israel?”

The disciples are expecting that the post-resurrection Messiah Jesus will now re-establish Jerusalem and the throne of David as the preeminent kingdom on earth, to fulfill all the prophecies.

Jesus doesn’t contradict their expectations. He just says, it’s all about timing.

Acts 1:7 (ESV)

He said to them, “It is not for you to know times or seasons that the Father has fixed by his own authority.

For some reason, we love to put together timelines for projects. That might be fine for a project manager set goals, timelines can keep the rest of us from the task at hand. Out of all the things that are my responsibility to know and do, the timing of God’s plans is not on the list. He will accomplish His work in His time. My responsibility is to follow directions. And even to do that, I need His help.

Acts 1:8 (ESV)

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.”

The disciples did not have to know God’s whole plan. But even to do their part, they would need His power.

When you consider all the things we are capable of, you would think being a witness for Jesus would be on the list. How hard is it to tell other people about something amazing you have witnessed? Especially something as exciting as seeing someone raised from the dead? But this task apparently requires power from the Holy Spirit.

We may need to read the rest of the book to find out exactly why, but just within this passage what we can say is that Jesus is passing on to His disciples a very important principle. They thought the teaching and ministry of Jesus was just a precursor to the physical return of the Davidic kingdom. Jesus is helping them see a bigger reality. The works and words He began to do, and they will now continue, are the kingdom of God coming on earth. This will require the power of God to accomplish.

They are going to take the message of Jesus crucified, risen, and reigning to the nations, beginning in Jerusalem, to their nearest neighbors, ethnic enemies, and nations they had never encountered before. This was a new dimension of gospel ministry even Jesus had not accomplished in His time on earth. They would need the Holy Spirit to comfort them, strengthen them, guide them, empower their words through works of mercy and miracles, and remind them of the things Jesus had told them so they would preach powerfully in His name.

And strangely, they could only receive this gift of the Holy Spirit if Jesus completes His original mission. For the kingdom of God to be established on earth through Jesus Christ, He must receive the kingdom from God the Father, and this is the final task in His mission.

Acts 1:9 (ESV)

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.

Before we assume we know what Luke means, let’s understand the biblical view of clouds. We think of white puffy condensation of water vapor in the sky. Someone taken up into the clouds might be flying to some other destination. And maybe that’s how some people read this account. Jesus is now going somewhere else, upward to heaven through the clouds. But that’s not how the Bible talks about clouds.

According to the Bible, clouds are just a vehicle for God to ride around His kingdom.

Psalm 104:3 (ESV)

He lays the beams of his chambers on the waters;

he makes the clouds his chariot;

he rides on the wings of the wind;

God cannot be contained in one place. Like a cloud is just the condensation of invisible water vapor in a given place, the clouds are a physical representation of the invisible but very real authority and power of God who rules from the heavens.

A cloud filled the tabernacle of Moses. The innermost room, accessible only to the high priest once a year, was the holy of holies, and contained the throne of God, known as the mercy seat.

So clouds in the Bible represent the holiness of God, into whose presence only the high priest may enter to offer sacrifice for sins. So, when people would go to worship God in the temple, they were said to be “ascending” to the LORD. In fact, there are fifteen Psalms of ascent in the Bible for pilgrims to sing as they made that upward journey.

But clouds also represent the rule of God in the heavens as King over all creation. The prophet Daniel uses the imagery of clouds in the heavens to present the authority to rule being handed from God to the Messiah.

Daniel 7:13 (ESV)

“I saw in the night visions,

and behold, with the clouds of heaven

there came one like a son of man,

and he came to the Ancient of Days

and was presented before him.

Daniel 7:14 (ESV)

And to him was given dominion

and glory and a kingdom,

that all peoples, nations, and languages

should serve him;

his dominion is an everlasting dominion,

which shall not pass away,

and his kingdom one

that shall not be destroyed.

So, Luke is telling us that the disciples saw in the risen Jesus the one who has received authority as High Priest to share God’s throne forever. They were going to be witnesses to this ascension to a universal reign “to the ends of the earth”.

So, when we read Acts 1, instead of picturing this as a jet pack through the sky moment, we should picture this as a formal coronation of our High Priest as our new King. Jesus is the one who has offered sacrifice for our sins, once and for all in His body on the cross. God accepted His sacrifice and vindicated Him as High Priest forever in His resurrection. And now, Jesus has ascended to God’s throne to pray for us and use his power to help us.

Paul prays for the church that the Spirit would give us wisdom to see

Ephesians 1:19–23 (ESV)

what is the immeasurable greatness of his power toward us who believe, according to the working of his great might that he worked in Christ

when he raised him from the dead and seated him at his right hand in the heavenly places, 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.

And he put all things under his feet and gave him as head over all things to the church, which is his body, the fullness of him who fills all in all.

Jesus ascended to a leadership position over all things for the sake of the Church, who will represent Jesus in His fullness on earth. In other words, Jesus tells us what to do to continue His mission while we live our life together as His body. And He has all the authority to use the resources in heaven and earth to accomplish His mission.

After Jesus disappears from view in His cloud, some angels (representing Jesus’ partners in the heavens) say to the disciples (Jesus’ partners on earth), “Guys, stop gawking, get busy. Jesus will be back, but in the meantime, He’s in charge and He’s given you work to do.”

Acts 1:11 (ESV)

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.”

Working in Kingdom Hope

This brings us to the last point in this passage. Essential to the fact that Jesus is now in charge as Priest and King over everything is the promise that He will return in glory to reward His faithful friends. As our statement of faith says,

“We believe in the personal, bodily and glorious return of our Lord Jesus Christ. The coming of Christ, at a time known only to God, demands constant expectancy and, as our blessed hope, motivates the believer to godly living, sacrificial service and energetic mission.”

Jesus will complete everything He began to do. He will use His disciples, as He says in a parable, to do His business until He returns (Luke 21:13). The degree to which you engage in His business is the degree to which you will be rewarded when He returns. And that doesn’t mean becoming a full time pastor. That does mean being a missionary in your family, your workplace, your school, and your neighborhood. And being a missionary is nothing more than engaging in the mission Jesus gave you. And that mission is to be His witness. Tell others what you know about Him and what He has done.

You can start right here and now with us. Partaking in the Lord’s Table is a practice that bears witness to the sufferings of Jesus Christ for us. It forms our thoughts and affections to be gospel-oriented.

Communion

Pray with me,

“Lord Jesus Christ, you stretched out your arms of love on the hard wood of the Cross that everyone might come within the reach of your saving embrace: So clothe us in your Spirit that we, reaching forth our hands in love, may bring those who do not know you to the knowledge and love of you; for the honor of your Name. Amen.” (The Book of Common Prayer, © 2019 by the Anglican Church in North America)

Questions for Discussion

What’s the farthest from home you’ve ever traveled? What do you consider “the end of the earth”?

If Portland is our “Jerusalem”, what are our “Judea and Samaria”, and what is our responsibility to bear witness to Jesus in those places? How would we go about it?

Why do you think we get caught up in timelines for the future instead of focused on the tasks at hand, like the mission of Jesus in our mission field?

How does Jesus promise God will keep us on task, in Acts 1:8? How would you describe the power of the Holy Spirit Jesus promises, and what is it for?

What are some ways we bear witness to Jesus? In what place has Jesus called you to be His witness? How can we pray for you there?

In this passage, it is clear that the Father has authority (v. 7), the Holy Spirit has power (v. 8), and Jesus has ascended to a position of authority with the Father (v. 9). Why is Luke focused on the authority and power of God in this passage? What would the first century Christians learn and what should we learn?

How often do you think about the return of Jesus Christ? How does it form your thinking, affections, and behavior as a Christian?