Acts 1:1-11

Reading and reading and reading. Yeah, I did a lot of reading for the Song of Solomon That was a really that was a really big blessing for me. Did you know that? Yeah for me reading the Song of Solomon that deeply was a huge blessing But we're gonna wait until everybody's online because we are starting something brand new today You wonder what it is, did you just see it did you just see it? Oh No? Okay, so you want to know what we're doing?
We are doing from the book of Acts through the book of Philemon this year. So we were in the Old Testament and so this year we're going to turn to the New Testament. We're going to go to the book of Acts. Yeah, so we'll go to the book of Acts here and we will do from the book of Acts all the way to the book of Philemon this year.
So good morning. Good morning. I got to look over here. Good morning. Good morning. Good morning. Welcome to Coffee and Devotions. Welcome to the first day of Coffee and Devotions in 2022. And we are at the Book of Acts. We're going to do the Book of Acts from Acts chapter 1 through the Book of Philemon. It's only one chapter book, but it's going to be fun. I'm going to have my first sip of coffee on coffee and devotions for the new year.
I'm so excited. Are you excited to be in the New Testament this year? Yeah, there's a whole bunch of fun stuff, isn't there? Yep. All right, so let's go ahead and have some coffee. We'll pray and we'll get into God's Word. Let's pray. Oh, Father, we thank you so much. You've given us a new year. You've given us the blessing of being in your word. And we pray, God, that you would teach us, care for us, and guide us. Lord, we pray that we would know your love and walk in your ways. In Jesus's name. Amen.
All right. Do you know what the book of Acts is? No, this isn't Jesus saying stuff. It's going to start with Jesus going to heaven and it's going to talk about all the missionary journeys and how the gospel spread all throughout the land. So it's kind of like he says a few words and then he's done. It's all done.
Yeah, actually in my Greek Bible here, let me pull out my Greek Bible. And if I look at my Greek Bible, It says that the title of the Book of Acts, so Kata Yohannin is according to John and here the title that is in the Greek is Proxies Apostolon, which is Acts of the Apostles. The things that the apostles did and taught. Yeah, so we move from Jesus, you know, earning his crown to now talking about how Jesus spread the good news.
All right. So why don't we go ahead? We're going to be in Acts chapter 1 verses 1 through 11. So here to here. So which paragraph do you want to take? First, second or third? I'll take second and I'll take fourth. We're not doing a fourth. First paragraph, second paragraph or third paragraph. Second paragraph, okay. Here we go.
The former account I made, O Theophilus, of all that Jesus began both to do and to teach until the day in which he was taken up after he, through the Holy Spirit, had given commandments to the apostles whom he had chosen, to whom he also presented himself alive after his suffering by many infallible proofs being seen by them during forty days and speaking of the things pertaining to the kingdom of God." So, interestingly here, it starts off in verse 1, "...the former account I made, O Theophilus..."
Do you know what he's talking about, the former things? Um, the past things? Yeah, but he wrote them before. Where do you think he wrote them down before? Um, in Jerusalem. No, this isn't John's writing. You want to know whose it is? That was a good guess. It's Luke's. Yeah.
So the inscription here is O Theophilus. So the Theophilus is a word meaning lover of God. And if we went to the book of Luke, Matthew, Mark, Luke, we could turn to Luke chapter one and... Here he also writes, Inasmuch as many have taken the hand and to set in order the narrative of those things which have been fulfilled among us, just as those who from the beginning were eyewitnesses and ministers of the Word delivered them to us, it seemed good to me also, having had perfect understanding of all things, from the very first to write to you an orderly account, O excellent Theophilus. So it's like the book of Luke is volume 1 and the book of Acts is volume 2. But there's a book in between. Nope, just volume 1 and volume 2. Oh yeah, the book of John is in between. You're right. Yeah, but this is like volume 2 of Luke.
Okay, so he's writing it to Theophilus and now he's talking about of all that Jesus began to both do and teach until the day in which he was taken up. Where did Jesus go? Yeah, Jesus went to heaven that's right and after he through the Holy Spirit Oh interestingly here He being Jesus Through the Holy Spirit.
What did he give them? What did he give the Apostles? Commandments, do you know what the word Apostle means? Oh Yeah, so Apostolos is someone who is sent, a sent one. So Apostello means to send. And so this is to the sent ones. Right. So he chose his sent ones to whom he also presented himself what? Alive. Alive. After what? Suffering by many Yeah, right. So infallible, meaning unfailing, like they don't have an opportunity to fail. So Jesus gave perfect proofs showing that he was risen from the dead. And so interestingly here, it keeps going, it says, being seen by them during how many days? 40 days. 40 days and doing what? Speaking. Speaking what? Good job pertaining.
Yep That's right. So how long was Jesus with the Apostles after he rose again from the dead 40 days So it wasn't just like they saw him one time They saw him over and over and over again so much so that all these people saw him and they knew that Jesus truly was What? I just got by life. Yeah. Yeah. All right. So here we go. Let's these are some of the only words in the book of Acts that are from Jesus. You get a big blessing here. All right, here we go. You can read verses four through eight.
And being assembled together with them, he commanded them not to depart from Jerusalem, but wait for the promise of the Father, which he said, You have heard me, for John truly baptized with water, but you shall be baptized with the Holy Spirit. Not many days from now they are full when they had come together, they asked him, saying, Lord, will you at this time restore the kingdom of Israel? And he said to them, It is not for you to know of times or seasons which the Father has put in his own authority, but you shall receive Power and the Holy Spirit has come upon you and you shall be witnesses to to Me and Jerusalem and in all Judah Judea Judea Judea Samaria and to the end of the earth All right, great. So the apostles are all gathered together, right? And he commanded them to not depart from Jerusalem. Right? So they're still in the capital city. They're still in Jerusalem. And he says, don't leave. Don't leave Jerusalem.
Why? Because you're going to be baptized with the Holy Spirit. Yeah, you're going to be baptized with the Holy Spirit, that's right. John baptized with what? Water. Water. But what were they going to be baptized with? The Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit, that's right. And is it going to be like a long time away? Not many days from now, right? Not too long.
Therefore, when they had come together, they asked him, saying, Lord, will you at this time restore the kingdom of Israel? What do you think they're asking when they ask that? Will you, like, will you, like, will you, like, stop raising people from the dead? Like, stop this sinful kingdom? But what they're not getting at here is they're gonna be baptized so they can spread the news. Yeah, are they still thinking of the kingdom as like Old Testament Israel with King David on the throne and a physical army and a physical king and a physical kingdom? But is that what Jesus is talking about? Is his kingdom of this world?
No. Right. And so they're not quite getting it. Right. They're not quite getting it, but they're going to get it. That's why he has to give them the Holy Spirit, because the Holy Spirit is going to be their teacher. He says, it's not for you to know the times or the seasons which the Father has put in his own authority, but you shall receive what? Power. That's right. You shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come Upon you. What are they gonna have power to do? Are they gonna have power to pick up the sword and a little bit tired? Are they gonna have power to pick up the sword and fight huge battles? Preach they're gonna have the power of having God's word the real sword That's right, they're gonna be able to preach in languages they don't even know That's right.
And you shall be witnesses to me, both here in the capital city in Jerusalem, but in the surrounding area around that, Judea. But then the shocker comes, Samaria. Because Samaria isn't friends with Jerusalem. Yeah, that's right. They don't like each other at all. The Jews actually burnt down the temple that was in Samaria only like 150 years before this. But is it going to just stay in Samaria? Is it just going to be kind of a Near Eastern religion? That's right, to the ends of the earth. And every culture that you see in China just goes through little cracks. That's right. It makes it through the cracks. That's right. Well, let's go ahead and finish up the passage for today.
Now, when he had spoken these things while they watched, he was taken up, and a cloud received him out of their sight. And while they looked steadfastly toward heaven, as he went up, behold, two men stood by them in white apparel, who also said, Men of Galilee, why do you stand gazing up into heaven? This same Jesus, who has taken up from you into heaven, will so come in like manner as you saw him go into heaven.
All right, so they're standing there. Jesus has just told them. He's given them this commission, right, to go preach the gospel in Jerusalem, Judea, Samaria, to the ends of the earth. And then what happens? It goes up. Were they expecting that? No. No. Jesus goes up into heaven. And what happens behind him? Two men just appear. Yeah, two men just appear. And what do they say to the apostles? Why are you staring up in heaven? You're gonna get the Holy Spirit. He's gonna come right back down, but just in the Holy Spirit.
You think that's what it's talking about? I don't think that that's what this is talking about. I think that these men who are all clothed in white, by the way, I think that they're most likely angels, right? So here they're called Anthropoi, but they're most likely they're men, but they're most likely angels because they appear out of nowhere and then they're just gone.
It says, will also come in like manner as you saw him go into heaven. That's not the way we're going to see the Holy Spirit come, but that's the way John later talks about Jesus returning, and how Paul in 1 Thessalonians talks about Jesus returning. Did you know that Jesus is going to come back again? Physically. Like Jesus is actually going to return again. He went up to heaven, but is he going to stay there? Some days he's going to return. Sure is. Sure is. Well, why don't we go ahead and pray?
Father, we thank you so much that our Savior lives. We thank you so much that you have given us a King who sits upon a throne, not on the earth, but in heaven above. Lord, we wait for our King of Kings, our Prince of Peace, our Lord of Lords to come back once again to judge the living and the dead. We pray that your gospel would go out to the ends of the earth. In Jesus' name, Amen. Well, may the Lord bless you today. May you walk with joy and peace as you wait for Jesus Christ, knowing that he indeed has ascended into heaven and he's given us a job to do. Go send the gospel. Well, why don't we go? No, we're not brave. We're going to say goodbye. Bye. See you tomorrow.