Here to There

Context of the conversation

I did this And then I got started

If you follow Jesus, have a relationship with him, consider yourself a christian then what should your life be like after the ressurection? what does life look like after easter?

Acts 1:1–3 NIV

In my former book, Theophilus, I wrote about all that Jesus began to do and to teach until the day he was taken up to heaven, after giving instructions through the Holy Spirit to the apostles he had chosen. 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.

The book of Acts starts by 1. referencing back to the author Lukes first writing and that is the book of Luke.

But 2. Luke writes to someone named Theophilus and he does this in Luke 1:3. But why is it so important that Luke is writing to someone named Theophilus?

Well there is a good chance that Theophilus was a real person but I wanna leave the idea about who the real person was on the side because there is a double meaning here.

Theophilus means “dear to God” and so Luke starts this book with “dear to God”, I tell you this to hopefully change how you read and see this text as well as the rest of the book of Acts.

I want you to know this becuase the book of acts is more then a history book. The book of acts is a call to action, this is to equip you to live your faith.

The way Luke writes in his gospel to Theophilus is more about discovery of Christ, while he writes this its a invitation into Christian living.

So lets start by seeing this through the lens that this is for more then just knowledge but this is about growing in faith for Jesus.

Now the other important part is the time frame where Luke states that it has been forty days since the ressurection. So lets keep reading

Acts 1:4–5 NIV

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. For John baptized with water, but in a few days you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit.”

Jesus meets with the disciples and he eats with the disciples. He eats with them to be presence in their company and Luke specifically notes this to tell us, this is Jesus. This is not the ghost of Jesus but the living breathing Jesus.

It is a Jesus who is with them, who knows them personally and gives them this command to not leave Jerusalem until they receive the gift that the Father promised and Jesus had spoken about.

Which Jesus told them in length about this promised gift in John 14-16. If you go and read even from John 14:26

John 14:26 NIV

But the Advocate, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you all things and will remind you of everything I have said to you.

Jesus told in length of John 14-16 about how the Father would send the disciples the Holy Spirit. This was a promised gift for the disciples and I am sure they had been waiting for the Holy Spirit.

So Jesus gives them the instruction; do not leave Jerusalem until you receive the Holy Spirit.

Then he tells them about John’s baptism and the baptism of the Holy Spirit

See John the baptists baptism was about repentance, but now there is a baptism of the Holy Spirit. That the Holy Spirit would come onto those who are repentant and receive the Holy Spirit.

So here is where we also learn our system.

Repentance - We need to get right with God.

Take the gospels as the deliverance from Sin and then look at Acts as the continued movement forward. One is how I get right with God and then I live for God.

So if you want to receive Holy Spirit in your life the first step will always be to get right with God. Holy Spirit is apart of the Trinity so how can you expect him to be with you if you are not right with God.

If that is not clear here in Acts 1 we can turn to acts 5:32 where Peter and the other apostles are giving the gospels message and then the last thing they say to the Sanhedrin which was the council they stood before is Acts 5:32

Acts 5:29–32 NIV

Peter and the other apostles replied: “We must obey God rather than human beings! The God of our ancestors raised Jesus from the dead—whom you killed by hanging him on a cross. God exalted him to his own right hand as Prince and Savior that he might bring Israel to repentance and forgive their sins. We are witnesses of these things, and so is the Holy Spirit, whom God has given to those who obey him.”

The last verse which is a direct reference to Acts 1:8 as we will build up to it. However we must pay attention. The Holy Spirit is given by God to those who obey Him. But it also comes back to verse 29 which invites us that we must obey God rather than human beings.

God is gifting us the Holy Spirit but there is a condition of obedience in following God.

And this is even show in the text for today where Jesus gives the disciples a command before they receive the Holy Spirit. What was their command? Well verse 4 says “do not leave Jerusalem, but wait for the gift my father promised”.

So is Holy spirit in the believers life a gift or something earned?

Think about it like this:

I love to spend time with my parents. When I was young I figured out how to spend more time with my father. I would help him out when he was working at the church.

I remember one specific weekend we took a trip to another town and my sisters went and had a fun weekend with my mom and I had spent the weekend helping my dad with whatever work he was doing.

After the weekend ended we stopped somewhere and my dad got back in the car with this gift. Pac-man. It was pretty awesome.

Now I was just spending time with my dad, listening and doing what he asked becuase I love him. I was not doing it to earn something, but because I wanted to spend time with him.

He gave me this gift to acknowledge that, and that’s it. It was a gift but my sisters were jealous that I got something and they didn’t.

So when Jesus tells the disciples to wait, and we look to that moment in acts 2 that they are together waiting, praying and the Holy Spirit comes upon them.

They obey and they are given the Holy spirit.

The disciple hear their command and then the final promise of receiving the Holy Spirit and their inital response is focused on the world.

Acts 1:6–8 NIV

Then they gathered around him and asked him, “Lord, are you at this time going to restore the kingdom to Israel?” He said to them: “It is not for you to know the times or dates the Father has set by his own authority. 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.”

They want to know about what will happen in the world today and what Jesus is going to do in the world to make it right.

Asking if Jesus will restore the kingdom of Israel? Now why ask this?

Well the disciples are wondering if Jesus is now going to bring freedom to Israel from the romans and other nations. The Disciples are wondering of what would

So Jesus says that the time that Jesus will make the world right has only been set by God the Father and that time has not been made known to us.

So the time where Jesus makes all things right has not been given to us. thats Verse 7 but then we enter into verse 8 with two very important words to bring what Jesus was saying and what he is about to say.

“But you”

Jesus takes the question and states the unknown. but he changes the direction from himself towards his disciples.