The work of the Holy Spirit (Acts 1:1-14)

[Stephan Choe]

December 9, 2022

Key Verse 1:8: “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.”

During this period, there are two events that draw the world's attention: the war between Ukraine and Russia and the World Cup match in Qatar.

But if one is to name one person who draws the most attention, one can name Jesus Christ.Why does Jesus Christ draw the most attention?

Because he saves us humans from sin and the power of death and gives us eternal blessed life.

If we want to get to know Jesus Christ and his work, we should get to know him and his work through the Bible, especially through four books of the Gospels and the Acts of the Apostles.

We know which of the New Testament writers wrote the most books. This is Apostle Paul. Did Paul also write the most in terms of volume?

No!

Paul's letters have a total of 77 pages according to my Bible. Luke only wrote two books, the Gospel of Luke and the Acts of the Apostles. But he wrote a total of 80 pages: Luke's Gospel 41 pages and Acts 39 pages.

We want to know the first chapter of the second book of Luke, Acts chapter 1.Acts 1:8 briefly tells us the whole story of the entire book:

"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."

In this passage Luke reports that the disciples asked Jesus if he, the risen Jesus, wanted to set up an earthly messianic kingdom of Israel.

Jesus then told them not to be interested in a worldly utopia, but to wait to receive the power of the Holy Spirit, be witnesses of Jesus, and preach the Good News of Jesus to the whole world.

May God help us that you attract the power of the Holy Spirit and proclaim the Good News first in Bochum, then all of Germany and finally the entire world.

1. Introduction (1-5)

Luke, the author of this book, was a general practitioner by profession. He wanted to help sick people with his medical work. But he came to the realization that only the gospel can offer people a truly healthy, eternal life. That's why he wanted to work with Paul to bring the good news of Jesus Christ to people around the world so that they could have happy, eternal life.

He also wrote two thick books, the Gospel of Luke and the Book of Acts, to spread the good news.

In the Acts of the Apostles, Luke mentioned his companionship on Paul's missionary journey in chapter 16:10 for the first time with "we". In this chapter it is reported that in Troas Paul saw in a dream a vision of a man from Macedonia seeking help. Macedonia is now upper Greece. He asked Paul, who was trying to evangelize in northern Asia Minor: "Come over to Macedonia and help us!" (16:9).

Paul began his mission to Greece and Europe based on this vision.

Luke probably also worked together with Paul's mission team from here. Luke then followed Paul on his visit to Jerusalem (“We” in 20:6 and 21:17).

Finally, he accompanied him when he was taken to Rome as a prisoner (27:1-28:16). Luke took care of Paul's health while he was a prisoner in Rome (2 Tim. 4:11; Phil. 24).

Why did Jesus appear to the disciples after his resurrection?

– Because he wanted to show his disciples the risen Christ and testify to the resurrection kingdom of God.

Jesus loves 12 disciples and all the people of the world. That is why the risen Jesus wants to announce the Good News about his death on the cross and his resurrection to all people, so that as many people as possible can believe in this Good News and have happy, eternal life.

Jesus Christ always has a heart for the happiness of all people. Luke has the intention of Jesus.

We are to make Jesus' desire our own. We are to live happily ever after. We should pass on the secret of eternal happiness to other people so that they too can live happily ever after. Although Luke did not explicitly state his intention of the records, the apostle John did state his intention of writing his Gospel of John as follows:

"These are written so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name" (John 20:31).

Luke wrote the Gospel of Luke and the Acts of the Apostles with the same intention as that of John.

Luke ended the account of the Acts of the Apostles with the sentence: “But Paul stayed two full years in his own dwelling, welcoming everyone who came to him, preaching the kingdom of God and teaching about the Lord Jesus Christ with all boldness and without hindrance” (Acts 28:30-31).

This description shows the theme of his two books: The Kingdom of God and Jesus Christ, that is, the Kingdom of God through Jesus Christ.

So we should believe in Jesus as God's Son and Christ the Savior through the account in the Gospels and in the Acts of the Apostles, enjoy the eternal, happy kingdom of God and pass this Gospel on to other people.

Now let us look at the first section of the first chapter.

After showing himself to the 12 disciples as risen, Jesus commanded them not to leave Jerusalem but to wait for the fulfillment of the Father's promise.

By the promise of the Father, Jesus meant the baptism with the Holy Spirit.

Until now, the disciples only knew water baptism. But they were not to be baptized with the Holy Spirit long after those days (verse 5).

In Old Testament times, only certain people received the Holy Spirit, e.g. B. Prophets like Moses (Exodus chapter 3) and Isaiah (Isaiah 6:7) or certain kings like David (1 Samuel 16:13).

But since Pentecost, all people who believe in Jesus Christ can receive the Holy Spirit.

The risen Jesus promised this to his disciples. Therefore, the disciples should wait for it. Today we live after Pentecost.

That is why the baptism of the Spirit applies to us. We can be baptized with water, and that's good too. But the baptism of the Spirit is absolutely necessary so that we can be God's children and live and work in the power of the Spirit.

For without God's Spirit, no one can be God's child.We cannot become children of God with our own effort, prudence, or power, but only with the help of the Holy Spirit.

I'll tell you about my experience. When I was an elementary school student in South Korea, my third sister became a Christian. She was enthusiastic about Christ and wanted to lead me to faith. So she gave me a Bible and told me to read it.

I turned to the beginning of the New Testament and found the genealogy of Jesus. I found it very strange and closed the Bible and didn't read it anymore.

During my middle school years, I debated extensively with a Catholic friend about the possibility of God's existence. Despite this discussion, I still could not believe in God, because I could not be convinced of God with the human mind.

Because my parents' house was poor, and university studies required expensive tuition fees, I wanted to get good grades in the university entrance exam and thus get a scholarship. That's why I studied hard for it.

But some time I thought to myself that I was going to die anyway and that my eager study for the university entrance exam would also be pointless. Then I lost the motivation to study. But I suppressed such thought and kept studying and passed the entrance exam with the best grade among the applicants and got the scholarship.

When I started college, I was invited to a Bible study at a student church. Then we learned the Gospel of John chapters 1:1-18. Amazingly, because of the word from John 1:14, I was able to believe that Jesus is God incarnate. This shows that the Holy Spirit opened my heart and gave me faith in God and Jesus Christ. Since then, I have believed in Jesus Christ and in God without a doubt. I feel so happy walking in paradise. And God is always with me through his Holy Spirit. I told others about Jesus Christ.

I came to Germany and I like to talk about Jesus.My experience is an example of the Holy Spirit helping people come to faith in Jesus Christ, experience the friends of heaven, and share Christ.

People cannot believe in Jesus Christ and try to conquer the power of death with our own cleverness. But with the help of the Holy Spirit, everyone can believe in Jesus Christ and taste the kingdom of God and tell about Jesus. So we are not to rely on our own strength, but on the Holy Spirit.

2. Being witnesses of Jesus throughout the world (6-11)

The disciples of Jesus were with him again together. They asked Jesus,

"Lord, will you restore the kingdom of Israel at this time?"

What did the disciples want from Jesus with this word?

Clearly, they wanted the risen Jesus to immediately end the unjust rule of Israel and set up an earthly messianic kingdom. They didn't enjoy getting in trouble with the unbelieving rulers anymore. Rather, they wanted to rule over other people and other peoples.

From time to time we too today wish that Jesus would come quickly to this unjust world, punish the unjust ruling people and set up his earthly kingdom where there is no war and no injustice. In doing so, we wish that we would become ruling people.

How did Jesus answer them and us?

Jesus replies: "It is not for you to know the time or the hour which the Father has determined in his power" (7).

According to the Elberfeld translation, Jesus says, "It is not your business to know the times or dates which the Father has appointed in his own authority."

Jesus is right about that. We need not speculate about the exact timing of Christ's return and His kingdom. God has made it His own business when He will bring this sinful world to an end and set up His kingdom.

Out of trust in God, we are to leave the timing of the establishment of his kingdom to him. Jesus then says to his apostles and also to us:

“But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit is coming on you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria and to the ends of the earth” (8).

Here we can see two important statements of the word of Jesus:We, Jesus' disciples, are witnesses of Jesus Christ.

What does it mean that we are witnesses of Jesus Christ?

First, being a witness to Jesus means that Jesus Christ is with us.

That is why Paul said, "I live, not I, but Christ lives in me" (Galatians 2:19a).

The risen Christ always accompanies us accompanied by the Holy Spirit and guides us on the right road.

We sometimes forget that the Lord is with us.But we should be aware that Jesus Christ is always with us through the Holy Spirit, as Jesus said in Matthew 28:20b:

"Behold, I am with you always, to the end of the world" (Mt 28:20b).

It is a wonderful grace of God that the risen Jesus Christ is always with us.

That is why we live in the grace of God with Jesus, even though we sometimes face difficulties.

And we are witnesses of Christ, and our life is the witness of Christ.

Second, being Jesus' witnesses means that Jesus wants to use us as His witnesses around the world.

Jesus meant by his word "You will be my witnesses" that he wants to use us as his witnesses and messengers of the gospel.

God not only loves us, but also everyone on this earth. That is why he wishes that as many people on earth as possible be saved and enter the kingdom of heaven.

For this he needs witnesses of his gospel.

That is why he uses us in many ways as witnesses to Jesus and messengers of the gospel.

On Monday, Dec. 5, Brazil played South Korea in the round of 16 of the World Cup.

Neymar is the most famous Brazilian player. He had said:

“I am a child of God for whom nothing is impossible. My faith is infinite.”

Neymar has repeatedly reported in recent years on how important the connection to God is for him.

This has a lot to do with the existential event that happened to him at the 2014 World Cup. When an opponent kicked him in the back, and he narrowly escaped paralysis as a result, Neymar publicly professed his faith for the first time. He publicly thanked Jesus and everyone who prayed for him. He further said:

<Faith is far more than a straw of hope when all is going downhill. Faith in Jesus is the foundation of all joy and the beginning of a happy life.>”

Jesus also uses Neymar as a witness of Christ to spread the gospel worldwide.

So Jesus uses different people in different ways as his witnesses and spreads the Good News of Jesus worldwide because he loves all the people of the world and wants to save them.

The Lord desires that as many people as possible be saved. For this, he wants to use us as his witnesses. We should do something for the spread of the gospel beyond our church and our country.

The Lord will use preciously every contribution to the spread of the gospel.And the power of the Holy Spirit is the driving force of world evangelism.

That is why Jesus said to us:

"But you will receive the power of the Holy Spirit..."

Of course, God uses our language or our various gifts to use us as His witnesses.

But fundamentally, the driving force behind the spread of the gospel is the Holy Spirit.

That is why we should ask God to help people with the Holy Spirit to open their hearts to Jesus and the Gospel and to accept him as Christ and the Son of God.

If we only rely on our human skills, we cannot help people. But the Holy Spirit can open people's hearts and give them faith in Jesus Christ.

That is why the risen Jesus said:

"You will receive power when the Holy Spirit is coming on you, and you will be my witnesses..." (8).

We cannot proclaim the Good News by our own power, but by the power of the Holy Spirit.So we are to count firmly on the power of the Holy Spirit to fulfill our task as witnesses of Christ.

We should pray to God that through the Holy Spirit he will open people's hearts and give them faith.

The Easter miracle is an example of this. After 120 Christians prayed in unison, the Pentecost miracle happened.

The revival in Korea in 1907 also happened after the prayer gathering of Korean Christians.So revival is the grace of God.

The resurrected Jesus Christ has given us the outline of his work through Luke.

The breakdown is first geographical: in 1st-7th chapters the mission in Jerusalem; in 8th-12th Chapters the Samaria and the Coastal Cities Mission of Syria-Palestine and in 13th-28th Chapters the foreign mission, for example to Rome.

Jesus Christ says something like this through the book of Acts:

"The work of preaching the gospel is the work of the Holy Spirit."

It is very important to understand that the salvation of mankind is primarily the work of God. That is why we are to wait for and follow the work of the Holy Spirit.

For this, we should pray and look at the work of the Holy Spirit with an open heart. We are to follow the leading of the Holy Spirit closely. The Holy Spirit wants to preach the gospel to all peoples. That is clear.

How can we obey the will of the Holy Spirit well? - If we accept well the will of the risen Jesus and obey the will of the Holy Spirit, we can actively obey the leading of the Holy Spirit and proclaim the gospel.

Jesus had not complied with the wish of the first disciples to be immediately accepted into the carefree messianic kingdom.

Rather, he gave them the task of leading people in the troubled world to faith in Jesus Christ and forgiveness and resurrection in Jesus Christ.

After Jesus had spoken his words in verses 7-8, he was lifted from their sight and the cloud covered him from their sight, and they saw him no more.

The disciples still looked up to heaven. They had no idea what to do now.

Then two men dressed in white appeared to the disciples and said to them,

"Men of Galilee, why are you standing there looking at heaven? This Jesus, who was taken up from you into heaven, will come again just as you saw him go into heaven.”

3. Disciples in prayer (12-14)

At the gentle rebuke of the two angels, the disciples came to themselves. The disciples now knew that they could not do it on their own. Therefore, they returned from the Mount of Olives to the house in Jerusalem. And they began to pray together.

There were 12 apostles: Peter, John, James, Andrew, Philip and Thomas, Bartholomew and Matthew, James (the son of Alphaeus) and Simon (the zealot) and Judas (the son of James).There were also women, especially Mary, the mother of Jesus, and his natural brothers.

What did Jesus' disciples and his faithful followers do?

They always prayed with one accord and waited for the work of the Holy Spirit.

The 12 disciples and some women such as Mary, Jesus' mother, and his biological brothers were praying together.

Common prayer is always the best preparation for God's work. In prayer, God reveals the solution His church should take to their problems.

And praying together is the best preparation for world missions. We want to pray together so that God fills us with the Holy Spirit and uses us preciously as witnesses to Jesus.