Don’t Stand There

Read This Week: Acts 1

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.” After he said this, he was taken up before their very eyes, and a cloud hid him from their sight. They were looking intently up into the sky as he was going when suddenly two men dressed in white stood beside them. “Men of Galilee,” they said, “why do you stand here looking into the sky? This same Jesus, who has been taken from you into heaven, will come back in the same way you have seen him go into heaven.” – Acts 1:8-11 NIV

God is all-powerful and ever-present. Jesus is alive, and as we just learned in Romans, at the right hand of God interceding for us (Rom. 8:34). The Holy Spirit is empowering and active in the lives of those who believe (1:8). All of these things point to the fact that life with God is not meant to be inactive, dormant, or just talked about. It is a living, vital movement of people bearing witness to the life-changing power of the gospel and accomplishing God’s purposes now and throughout eternity. 

In the book of Acts, Luke builds a bridge between his gospel account and what happened after the believers left the temple praising God. He does so by taking us to this scene where they are gathered around Jesus after the resurrection. He is teaching them about the kingdom of God and their mission to advance the gospel around the world. Jesus then tells them how they will accomplish this; how the movement will not only begin but how it will keep going through the ages. Verse 8 says:

“But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.”

After saying this about the Holy Spirit’s transcendent power on their lives and what is to come, Jesus ascends into heaven in a display of majesty and might. Then something curious happens. The people, who had been sent to change the world and promised supernatural ability to do so, just stood there gazing up into heaven. Jesus gave them the ultimate assignment and assured them of the capacity to accomplish it, and they got caught standing around looking. Verses 10-11 tells us what takes place next:

Suddenly two men dressed in white stood beside them. “Men of Galilee,” they said, “why do you stand here looking into the sky? This same Jesus, who has been taken from you into heaven, will come back in the same way you have seen him go into heaven.” 

This is a key moment because it communicates what Christians should be about in our lives. We have a commission from God to live for Him, share His gospel, banner His truth, and love and serve others. But we often get caught standing around looking. It is fine to talk about what the Holy Spirit can do, yet we must not fail to engage the very mission that the He has equipped us for in the first place. 

Like the early Christians, we need encouragement to not stand there looking, but to be an active part of God’s movement in our community and the world every day. The message of Acts is that the power of the church comes from God, and we experience repeated fillings of His Spirit as we face new opportunities, challenges, and obstacles. Ordinary people are able to do extraordinary things because of the Spirit’s work in us and in every environment we find ourselves.

Every Christian can be a faithful and powerful witness to the Savior if we don’t just stand there. Doing church or going through the Christian motions is not very effective. Being the church, building the kingdom of God, and seeing the world change for his glory is not only successful, but eternal, and worth it all.

4 Comments

  1. Heidi on October 4, 2020 at 9:51 am

    It is so important for us to desire to be like Luke. To desire to not only want to know about Jesus, why He came here, all that He did while He was here, but to care for the lost and to learn and share the Good news that Jesus is alive. He died for you so you can be with them forever and ever.

    It’s important to learn and grow in the ways of the Lord so you can now share with others that are lost how much God loves them too. It’s important to be like Luke, to care for others just like someone took the time to teach you. We are to learn to teach others and share what we are learning. That’s what community is all about, people who desire to learn and share the good news.

    • Jason on October 5, 2020 at 12:45 pm

      Heidi, I love how you pointed to the importance of spiritual formation and devotion as the catalyst for an effective witness for Christ. This line really captured this idea:

      It’s important to learn and grow in the ways of the Lord so you can now share with others that are lost how much God loves them too.

      It is very difficult to share the love of God and the wonderful news of the gospel message if we are not familiar with or have not experienced it ourselves. As we grow in God’s grace and in His ways, we are equipped and empowered by His Spirit to share and express that with others.

  2. almaschmidt on October 9, 2020 at 11:11 pm

    God gave me a song from Acts 1 called “Walking”:

    Walking, walking, I am walking with you
    Singing, praising, it’s a beautiful day

    Walking towards the water with you
    Thoughts of being renewed
    I am ready, ready, I am ready to be baptized

    Letting go of the sins, being cleansed
    Starting a new life with our father God
    Being full of his Holy Spirit, full of his Holy Spirit
    Helping us walk and live his way, the right way

    We are walking, walking, walking with God, Jesus,
    and the Holy Spirit. Amen.

    It is an honor to walk with our Lord and minister to his people. I am so blessed to have the best pastors, Ken and Heidi Allison. Thank you both for all you do for Jesus and his people.

    • Jason on October 12, 2020 at 11:49 am

      Beautiful stuff, Alma! It is truly a joy and pleasure to walk with God and be with His people. It is a gift that we could have never imagined or gained on our own. Be blessed!

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