Ascension--So What?

 Finally, Billy finished seminary. The next (& last) step toward a job as pastor? Presbytery's candidate exam. There, an old pastor asked, "Billy, where is Jesus?" Billy smiled. "In our hearts." The old pastor retorted, "No! Where's Jesus, now?" Billy hesitated. "Whenever we pray, He's in our midst." "No! Where is Jesus now?" Billy was flustered. "I wish He was here, now!" Old pastor responded, "What are they teaching you in seminary? Jesus ascended into heaven. He sits on the right hand of God the Father!" Let's look at Acts 1:1-11, the story of when He ascended to that position. 1In my gospel, Theophilus, I wrote about all Jesus began to do & to teach. All? A lot, anyway. No one could've written it all. For 3 years, 2bthrough the Holy Spirit He instructed the apostles He'd chosen. After His resurrection, the apostles beat feet to Galilee. In Mt 28:10, Jesus had old them to. But they were also afraid of being arrested. Jesus kept teaching them 2auntil the day He was taken up to heaven. They needed to know so much! Why the Messiah had to die. What His mission really was (saving the world). All they needed to complete their mission. 3aAfter his suffering, he kept on showing himself to the 12. And others. Up in Galilee 500, at once saw him. (That many? Can't be imagination. To be legal needed only 2+ witnesses. Many more than that saw Jesus after His resurrection.) 3bHe gave many convincing proofs that he was alive. Such as? For one, the sheer number of appearances to so many. Also, Jesus invited the 12 to touch His wounds. (Can't touch a ghost.) And He ate with them. (Ghosts can't eat.) 3cHe appeared to them over a period of 40 days & spoke about the KoG. They needed to understand God's view of the KoG. Not Israel's. Peter's & John's books show that they learned well. 40 days in Galilee passed quickly. They came back to Jerusalem for the Feast of Weeks (Pentecost). 4aWhile eating with them, Jesus commanded: "Don't leave Jerusalem. Why? 4bWait for the gift my Father promised. 4cYou've heard me speak about it. What gift? 5aJohn the Baptist baptized with water. In Lk 3:16, John told you I'd 16baptize you with the Holy Spirit & with fire. 5bIn a few days you'll be baptized with the Holy Spirit." That's the gift. The pearl beyond price. Baptized with God's own Spirit. Baptism with Fire? When Jesus returns. All through the 40 days, 6Whenever they met together, they kept asking him, "Lord, are you at this time going to restore the kingdom to Israel?" They do get it. Jesus' KoG has started. It's already here. Will Jesus also restore Israel, now? The Scriptures foretell it. They want to know, when? 7Jesus mildly rebuked them. "It isn't for you to know the times or dates the Father has set by his own authority. His point? "You're in sales, not management. Only the Father is Management. Dates & times are His." As for you? 8aYou'll receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you. Power? Yes! The catch? None. But there's purpose: a mission. 8bYou'll be my witnesses in Jerusalem. Start where you are. Work outward to those nearby, those like you in 8cJudea. Then go to 8cSamaria, nearby areas where people aren't like you. Keep witnessing. Go 8dto the ends of the earth." Make disciples everywhere. Baptize them into Christ as you go. 9aAfter Jesus said this, He was taken up before their very eyes. As the Father took Him up, they were mesmerized. Soon, 9bThe shekinah glory cloud hid him from their sight. Still spellbound, 10athey gazed intently into the sky as he was going. Who could take their eyes away from a sight like that? 10bSuddenly 2 men dressed in white stood beside them. Not just any white. Blinding white. Angels. 11a"Galileans," they said, "why do you stand here gawking into the sky? You're amazed over a 50¢ truth. Why marvel at that? Marvel instead at this. The King of kings made you His ambassadors! Besides, He'll come back. 11bThis same Jesus, who's been taken from you into heaven, will come back the same way you've seen him go into heaven." Coming back on a cloud? Jesus isn't just a son of man. He's The Son of Man from Dan 7:9, 13-14! For now, didn't He give you a mission? Why are you still standing here? Get on with it! Jesus gave His disciples a mission. Keep making disciples. Start where we are. And keep going the ends of the earth. The 12 didn't finish. Neither did Paul. Their mission is ours. What's keeping us from getting on with our mission? Not sure we have anything to say? Think again. A Buddhist in Africa converted to Christianity. People asked, "Why'd you change your faith?" His answer? "It's like this: You're walking along. You come to a fork in the road. Two men are there. One is dead. The other is alive. Which man's directions will you follow?" You're the living person in someone's road. What do you have to share? Directions to life eternal. Why aren't we sharing? Do we even know someone who needs to hear the message? If not, why not? Are we cloistered? Hanging out only with other Christians? We'll never spread the message if that's all we do. Everywhere we go, we see people who desperately need the gospel message. If we ask the Lord, He'll give us divine appointments to plant seeds, or to fertilize & water where someone else has planted. But 1st we have to offer ourselves. Then, ask the Holy Spirit to guide us, give us the words, & put His power into the message. Why don't we use the Spirit's power more often? Are we a bit like a family in remote, hillbilly Tennessee? They spent $1,000's to have electric power brought to their cabin. Months later, the utility contacted them. "We can't tell if you are really using the electricity you paid to put in. The meter hardly moves!" They answered, "We use it. We turn it on every night to see how to light the kerosene lamps. Then we switch it off." The Holy Spirit is the power we need for ministry. The only power God approves. Are we just as miserly in using the Holy Spirit's power? Use just enough until we can say, "OK, Lord, I've got it from here." Jesus paid the price to give us the Spirit. He died & ascended. And only in Him are we strong. Our very weakness forces us to rely on Him. When we do, our weakness is greater strength than we could've ever had on our own. Won't we turn to Him? 'Turn Him on' & 'leave Him on' in our lives? Keep relying on Him & not us? Or has the way we do ministry & mission become rote? Mayor noticed 2 city workers on Elm Street. One was digging holes in the ground. The other followed, shoveling the dirt back into the holes. Confused, Mayor asked why. One replied, "We plant trees for the city. There are usually 3 of us. One digs, one plants, & one covers it up. The guy who plants called in sick." Proudly, he continued, "We're here & doing our jobs anyway." Too often, that's how we do Christianity. Habits are so strong, we lose sight of our mission. What are we supposed to be doing? Planting seeds. Watering them. Fertilizing them. We aren't all called to be evangelists. But Jesus gave us all a mission. Start where we are. Plant seeds with everyone. Be intentional about it. Remind ourselves of our mission when we get up in the morning. Ask for opportunities to witness. Maybe even to share the gospel. But ask. Ask for the words. And ask the Holy Spirit to bring those seeds to life. As a church, for our witness to be effective, we can't do like those 3 men. All of us need to do our part, or our effort will be just as comically useless. But if we rely on His Spirit, even the gates of hell can't prevail. Ascension-So What? - Acts 1:1-11 Page 1 of 1