In the first book, O Theophilus, I have dealt with all that Jesus began to do and teach, 2 until the day when he was taken up, after he had given commands through the Holy Spirit to the apostles whom he had chosen. 3 He presented himself alive to them after his suffering by many proofs, appearing to them during forty days and speaking about the kingdom of God. 4 And while staying with them he ordered them not to depart from Jerusalem, but to wait for the promise of the Father, which, he said, "you heard from me; 5 for John baptized with water, but you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit not many days from now." 6 So when they had come together, they asked him, "Lord, will you at this time restore the kingdom to Israel?" 7 He said to them, "It is not for you to know times or seasons that the Father has fixed by his own authority. 8 But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth."
The Work of Christ at Pentecost (vv.6-8)
The disciples appear to meet together in Jerusalem.
6 So when they had come together, they asked him, "Lord, will you at this time restore the kingdom to Israel?" [Wait, what!? They are still unclear about the relationship of the church to the nation of Israel. It is true that the flourishing of God's people is central to the kingdom. But it is not true that that people exist in the mode of the nation of Israel. They are still thinking in terms of Old Covenant realities. And honestly, it's hard not to blame them. The Old Covenant is all they've ever known.
You and I do the same thing. We slip back into old ways of thinking. Or we presume worldly ways of thinking now in Christ. How often do you do that? How often to you import old values, old desires, into your walk with Christ?
But, the apostles certainly missed all Jesus' points in Matthew 21-25 about the nation of Israel. The nation of Israel is gone as God's people. Sure, the nation as a state still existed, but soon it wouldn’t. By A.D. 70 it would be crushed by the Romans, which Jesus prophesied in Matthew 25. But the church has emanated out from National Israel. It was always there, and now has been brought out. And the church - not the nation - is the fullest expression of Jesus' Bride. We are not waiting for God to fulfill specific promises to modern day Jerusalem. There are not promises just to ethnic or national Israel. The nation that was created in 1948, and who is in the middle of a war right now, is not the object of Yahweh's love. You (the church; the bride of Christ) are. And therefore, any church prayer or message that still treats modern Israel as the special people of God is wrong. Any churches that wave the Israelite flag, any Christian movements that prioritize Israel for theological reasons, are twisting Scripture. It's one thing to be pro-self defense for any nation. It's one thing to be pro-democracy in a nation. It's one thing to support a national ally. Those are all issues for people in all societies to have differences of opinion on. But it's another thing entirely for the church of the Lord Jesus Christ to declare the nation of Israel is still the Beloved of God. That theology within Christianity is called Dispensationalism. Within Judaism its called … Zionism. And Dispensationalism has only been around for about 140 years old. It's a belief, that though Jesus has already come to fulfill the Old Testament, that ultimately God wants to create a greater temple in Jerusalem and go back to the Old Testament ceremonial system. But that would be a denial of Jesus' fulfilling them. It's concluding the same wrong assumption that the apostles have here. And Jesus rebukes them.] 7 He said to them, "It is not for you to know times or seasons [First, their assumption is wrong. Second, there will be a restoration of Israel, but as the prophet Joel showed us in prior sermons it will include the ingathering of the Gentiles. But, what God will do when he sees fit is not for them to know. And it's not for us to know. The secret things belong to the Lord. Only that which has been revealed to us in Scripture is ours (Deuteronomy 29:29). None of us know, when the total restoration of the God's people will occur. And that's why it's silly and sinful for these false teachers to arise every once in a while to declare the timing of Jesus' return. Jesus is applying Deuteronomy 29:29, “The secret things belong to the LORD our God, but the things that are revealed belong to us and to our children forever, that we may do all the words of this law."
We don't live by God's secret will. That's why it's silly to presume to know, or live by, whether or not you're living in "the will of God." If by that you mean, "am I doing what he has commanded"? That's an excellent question! And it may be answered by a basic exposition of God's Word according to the agenda of the gospel. But, if by that you mean, "am I walking with secret knowledge about the providence of God for my life?" The answer to that will always be, “that's not for you know." Stop prying.
We live by the commanded Word alone. The restoration is] that [which] the Father has fixed by his own authority. [So, that's not to be our focus as the church. What then is?] 8 But [instead of living by secret knowledge, or by Old Covenant ideas …] you [the church] will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, [He's talking about the outpouring of the Holy Spirit; the third person of the Trinity. This occurs in the very next chapter. THAT’s what the apostles and the 120 are to be occupied by. They are to be focused on the right power wielded in their hearts and souls by the Spirit. They are to be focused on another wonderful work of Christ: the Spirit’s abiding, tabernacling, and empowering the church to die to its sin, to create a redeemed community, and to share and spread the gospel. It is the Holy Spirit who empowers us to do the Great Commission.
This is why before every worship service, every sermon, every Bible study, every family devotion, we ask God, and ask the Holy Spirit, for equipping to understand the Word, and for power to share the good news with others.
If you're focused on the secret knowledge of God - you're in the wrong. If you're focused on worldly, carnal delight - you're in the wrong. If you're focused on Old Testament ideals - you're missing it. If you're mis-identifying your desires for kingdom desires - there's no power or grace from God for that. If you're focused on building your own little kingdom - that's not why you're indwelt by the Spirit. The outpouring of the Spirit is not for the individuals of the church to become the best version of themselves that they can be. No.
The out-pouring of the Spirit is so that … ] you will be my witnesses [The church now will be the arms and feet of Jesus' kingdom.
I have a question. When was the last time you were a witness for Christ? When was the last time you talked about the theology, ethics, or text of Scripture with someone else? Have you ever discipled anyone? That's not just my job. It's all our jobs. When was the last time you talked about Jesus with an unbeliever? Do you even know people outside the faith? Or are you confusing your self-righteous life with being a witness? Or, how many of you by your clear sin, are compromising your witness? How many of you, if your co-workers were to be asked, if you're a Christian, they'd be shocked that the answer is yes? You are not here for you. You are not here even for your family. You are here, and your family is here, to serve the King of Kings and the Lord of Lords. He lived for your righteousness, died for your sin, resurrected to give you new life, sent his Spirit to indwell you and empower you. Why? To live a West Mobile suburban life; to live comfortably? No. To be his witnesses! Not sharing your testimony, per se, though you may. But sharing Jesus' testimony.
Where?] in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth." [Now in some sense v.8 actually give us the outline of the book of Acts. Chapters 1- 8 are focused solely in Jerusalem. Chapters 8-10 focus on the gospel going to Judea and Samaria. And Chapters 11-28 showcase the gospel going to "the ends of the earth," even before the mighty Caesar. But more than that, this text is oftentimes improperly used today.
Many churches will count themselves metaphorically as "Jerusalem," and their missions will be to Judea, Samaria, and the uttermost parts. And that is how they will minister. Except, it misunderstands one central reality. Our churches are not Jerusalem. We are "the uttermost parts of the world." We are the Gentiles, even though now we are the Israel of God (Galatians 6:16).
But still the basic point is to go: go to your families, your friends, your co-workers, to the park, to your neighbors, share the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ.
Jesus’ great work at Pentecost is to send his Holy Spirit to make you part of the church, equip for ministry, and to make you function as salt and light. But I wonder how many of us are functionally hyper-Calvinists. We don't share the good news because "that's not our personality," "that's not my gifting," "I don't have opportunity." You're sinning against Christ and the Holy Spirit; you're rejecting the purpose of the outpouring of the Spirit; if you're living for yourself, and you're unwilling to pour into others, or talk about the gospel with others. Instead, Christ frees you from such things. He will forgive you, and empower you by his Holy Spirit to live for his Kingdom glory. Hallelujah!]