Acts 1:1-8
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GEOFFREY CHAUCER // THE CANTERBURY TALES
GEOFFREY CHAUCER // THE CANTERBURY TALES
GEOFFREY CHAUCER // THE CANTERBURY TALES
GEOFFREY CHAUCER // THE CANTERBURY TALES
Chaucer worked on The Canterbury Tales for 25 years, until his death in 1400. Although it already contains more than 20 tales—supposedly told by pilgrims conducting a story-telling contest while on their way to Canterbury Cathedral—Chaucer originally planned the work to be much longer. The incomplete nature of the tales led other medieval authors to try and finish what Chaucer started, although he undoubtedly would have won any story-telling contest himself.
His w
Apart of the work and works of Christ.
Apart of the work and works of Christ.
Jesus changed everything.
Jesus changed everything.
Luke knew this. He had written about it in the Gospel he wrote. The one named Luke.
This is what he is talking about in verse 1.
The first account I composed, Theophilus, about all that Jesus began to do and teach,
If you go back through and read Luke, you will find His birth, His early life, his calling of the twelve. You’ll find parables, and miracles and sermons.
You’ll find his betrayal. His trial. His crucifixion.
You’ll find his resurrection. You’ll find a conversation between Jesus and two of his followers. You find His ascension, but what you don’t find is everything that Jesus did or has done.
The account is not exhaustive of his life, nor is it a complete journaling of everything that Jesus will do.
The implication in verse 1 is that Jesus is still at work.
Yes he has ascended.
Look at the first part verse 2.
until the day when He was taken up to heaven, after He had by the Holy Spirit given orders to the apostles whom He had chosen.
Jesus has ascended, but he is not done working.
He is going to accomplish his work through those who are united with him.
We are one with Christ. Everything we do for the kingdom, is ultimately the continued work of Christ in this world.
Christ was not done when he ascended and he isn’t done now.
Look, what he says continuing in verse 2
until the day when He was taken up to heaven, after He had by the Holy Spirit given orders to the apostles whom He had chosen.
Christ has appointed a group, mainly consisting of his disciples, and he had given them orders.
Not suggestions. Not good ideas. Orders. Theres a mission to complete.
The mission he gave them we referenced it this morning.
“Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit,
“Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.”
He isn’t vague. He doesn’t go and tell them to take over the world.
He doesn’t tell them to train an army.
He basically tells them: What I have done to you, do to others. Go make disciples.
Could we say that to someone? Can you say that someone?
GO and do what I’ve done with you with others.
Are you reproducible? Better question: Should you be reproduced?
Would people be healthy Christians if they lived like you?
Now I know we aren’t Jesus and thats important to recognize.
We don’t teach people to be our disciple. We teach people to be disciples of Jesus.
I don’t want people looking like me, but thats because I often don’t look like Christ.
However, there is a balance here to this, because in a sense, people do what you do.
Paul was so sure of his own devotion to Christ that he had no problem telling the Corinthian church
Be imitators of me, just as I also am of Christ.
I’d be afraid to tell someone that, but this is the type of life we should strive for.
Make disciples of Christ, by being a disciple of Christ.
Those are the orders he gave them.
Look in verse 3-5
To these He also presented Himself alive after His suffering, by many convincing proofs, appearing to them over a period of forty days and speaking of the things concerning the kingdom of God. Gathering them together, He commanded them not to leave Jerusalem, but to wait for what the Father had promised, “Which,” He said, “you heard of from Me; for John baptized with water, but you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit not many days from now.”
To these He also presented Himself alive after His suffering, by many convincing proofs, appearing to them over a period of forty days and speaking of the things concerning the kingdom of God. Gathering them together, He commanded them not to leave Jerusalem, but to wait for what the Father had promised, “Which,” He said, “you heard of from Me;
To these He also presented Himself alive after His suffering, by many convincing proofs, appearing to them over a period of forty days and speaking of the things concerning the kingdom of God.
He presented himself alive, after his suffering, referring to the crucifixion. And he had done this over the course of 40 days.
I think he did this for many reasons.
I think verse 3-4 tells us a few reasons.
He convinced them.
He taught them.
He gathered them.
He commanded them.
He promised them.
In all of this, He is encouraging them to continue the work. The beauty of Christ’s kingship is that his reign does not end with his death, because his death did not end him.
Because of the resurrection, Jesus’s kingship is established.
He is the King of kings. Every other king has a timetable to their reign. Not Christ.
His work will go on. The disciples jump the gun a little bit.
they think that now is the time when Christ will set up the literal earthly kingdom.
Look what they say in Verse 6
So when they had come together, they were asking Him, saying, “Lord, is it at this time You are restoring the kingdom to Israel?”
Through OT prophecy they thought the the outpouring of the Spirit would lead right in to the establishment of Christ’s reign on the earth.
They are studiers of the Old Testament. They know this.
So it leads them to ask the question.
Are you going to do it now?
It makes sense to them. He is the king. Is he going to establish his kingdom now?
Jesus answers.
Look what he says.
He said to them, “It is not for you to know times or epochs which the Father has fixed by His own authority;
Thats hard to hear.
Essentially Jesus said, you don’t need to know when that going to happen.
He doesn’t deny it will happen. He just tells them they don’t need to know when.
That isn’t and shouldn’t be their concern.
And then he goes on to show them what should be their concern.
What will the Holy Spirit accomplish in their life?
but you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be My witnesses both in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and even to the remotest part of the earth.”
The Holy Spirit will empower them to be his witnesses.
Interestingly enough, witnesses can be translated a different way.
Does anyone know what this word could be translated here?
Martyrs.
You will be my martyrs. You will be my witnesses.
You are going to take my message. This is the main reason why the Holy Spirit will come upon them.
Locally, regionally, nationally, and globally.
That’s what you need to concern yourself with.
Whats most assuring to me about this passage is what happens next.
And after He had said these things, He was lifted up while they were looking on, and a cloud received Him out of their sight. And as they were gazing intently into the sky while He was going, behold, two men in white clothing stood beside them. They also said, “Men of Galilee, why do you stand looking into the sky? This Jesus, who has been taken up from you into heaven, will come in just the same way as you have watched Him go into heaven.”
I get the picture of them look dumfounded at this. What? He’s gone?
They were just asking him if he was ready to assume the earthly throne, and he goes back to heaven?
But then they are assured that their hopes will one day be fulfilled. He is going to return. His kingdom has been inaugurated, and one day he is coming back .
But for now, we wait. But we don’t idly wait.
We BUSILY wait the coming of the Lord.
We prepare and work as if every day he was coming tonight.
I encourage you to work for the kingdom this way.
