Rev. Rob Jones
May 12, 2026
Acts 1:1–14
In the first book, Theophilus, I wrote about all that Jesus began to do and teach 2 until the day when he was taken up to heaven, after giving instructions through the Holy Spirit to the apostles whom he had chosen. 3 After his suffering, he presented himself alive to them by many convincing proofs, appearing to them during forty days and speaking about the kingdom of God. 4 While staying with them, he ordered them not to leave Jerusalem but to wait there for the promise of the Father. “This,” he said, “is what you have 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, is this the time when you will restore the kingdom to Israel?” 7 He replied, “It is not for you to know the times or periods that the Father has set 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, in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.”9 When he had said this, as they were watching, he was lifted up, and a cloud took him out of their sight. 10 While he was going and they were gazing up toward heaven, suddenly two men in white robes stood by them. 11 They said, “Men of Galilee, why do you stand looking up toward heaven? This Jesus, who has been taken up from you into heaven, will come in the same way as you saw him go into heaven.”
12 Then they returned to Jerusalem from the mount called Olivet, which is near Jerusalem, a Sabbath day’s journey away. 13 When they had entered the city, they went to the room upstairs where they were staying: Peter, and John, and James, and Andrew, Philip and Thomas, Bartholomew and Matthew, James son of Alphaeus, and Simon the Zealot, and Judas son of James. 14 All these were constantly devoting themselves to prayer, together with certain women, including Mary the mother of Jesus, as well as his brothers.
Acts 2:29–36
“Fellow Israelites, I may say to you confidently of our ancestor David that he both died and was buried, and his tomb is with us to this day. 30 Since he was a prophet, he knew that God had sworn with an oath to him that he would put one of his descendants on his throne. 31 Foreseeing this, David spoke of the resurrection of the Messiah, saying, ‘He was not abandoned to Hades, nor did his flesh experience corruption.’ 32 “This Jesus God raised up, and of that all of us are witnesses. 33 Being therefore exalted at the right hand of God and having received from the Father the promise of the Holy Spirit, he has poured out this that you see and hear.34 For David did not ascend into the heavens, but he himself says, ‘The Lord said to my Lord, “Sit at my right hand, 35 until I make your enemies your footstool.” ’ 36 “Therefore let the entire house of Israel know with certainty that God has made him both Lord and Messiah, this Jesus whom you crucified.
In our lesson today, we’ve just heard the story from Acts 1 again. Luke tells us that Jesus, after his suffering, “presented himself alive to them by many convincing proofs, appearing to them during forty days and speaking about the kingdom of God” (Acts 1:3). Then, in front of their eyes, he was lifted up, and a cloud took him out of their sight (Acts 1:9). The disciples stand there, necks craned, staring at the sky. Two angels appear and say, in effect, “Stop looking up. He will come again. Now do what he told you.” (Acts 1:10–11). He ascended. Now what?
That’s our question too, isn’t it? Christ has died, Christ is risen, Christ has ascended. Now, what does that mean for Liberty Hill Presbyterian Church on May 17, 2026?
I. The Already and the Not Yet
In Acts 1, Jesus tells the disciples not to run ahead of him:
“He ordered them not to leave Jerusalem, but to wait there for the promise of the Father… [He says] you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit not many days from now.” (Acts 1:4–5)
The disciples want a quick, visible kingdom:
“Lord, is this when you will restore the kingdom to Israel?” (Acts 1:6)
They want what many of us want: power, clarity, and timelines. Jesus gives them something better: a promise.
“You will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.” (Acts 1:8)
In Reformed language, we might say: the kingdom is already here in Christ, but not yet in its fullness. Christ already reigns, yet we still pray: “Thy kingdom come, thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.”
Illustration: The Chair in the Living Room
A family who received news that a beloved grandmother, long away overseas, has sent ahead a beautiful, handcrafted chair. It’s been made just for their home. The shipping notice arrives: “It is already yours. It has left the workshop. It will arrive soon.”
What do they do? They begin to prepare. They don’t say, “Well, until it gets here, nothing has changed.” They start rearranging the living room. They clear a place, maybe give away a worn-out chair. They shape their home around a gift that has not yet arrived but is already theirs.
That is the church between Ascension and Christ’s return. Jesus already reigns at the right hand of the Father (Acts 2:33–36), and yet we still live in a world of griefs, injustices, and uncertainties. But somehow, by the Holy Spirit, we begin rearranging our lives around a kingdom we have not yet fully seen, but which is already ours in Christ.
II. The Ascended Christ and the Spirit’s Promise
In Acts 2, Peter explains what the Ascension means:
“[Jesus is] exalted at the right hand of God—and having received from the Father the promise of the Holy Spirit, he has poured out this [His Spirit] that [we] both see and hear.” (Acts 2:33)
And then:
“Therefore, let the entire house of Israel know with certainty that God has made him both Lord and Messiah, this Jesus whom you crucified.” (Acts 2:36)
Here is Christ-centered theology in seed form:
- Christ is exalted – “He ascended into heaven, and sitteth on the right hand of God the Father Almighty.”
- Christ reigns now – God has made him “both Lord and Messiah.”
- Christ pours out the Spirit – the Spirit is not a vague feeling; He is the gift of the ascended King to his church.
We often speak of the Ascension as if Jesus has “gone away.” In Scripture, the Ascension means the opposite:
- He is now Lord over all: He is not less present, but more present by the Spirit.
- Christ is our prophet, priest, and king: As prophet, through the Spirit, he still speaks by his Word. As priest, he intercedes for us at the Father’s right hand (Romans 8:34; Hebrews 7:25). As king, he governs and protects his church, and subdues all; Both his and our enemies with undeserved forgiveness and grace.
So, we are not an orphaned congregation, trying to keep a memory alive. We are a people ruled and comforted by a living, reigning, praying Savior. AMEN!
III. A Story of Waiting and Witness
Acts 1 ends surprisingly quietly:
“Then they returned to Jerusalem… and when they had entered the city, they went to the room upstairs where they were staying… All these were constantly devoting themselves to prayer.” (Acts 1:12–14)
Jesus has just ascended in glory. The promise of the Spirit has been given. You might expect fireworks. Instead, Now what? A small group in an upstairs room, praying.
Let me tell you a simple story about a small country church. They had good memories of the past—full pews, a bustling Sunday school, music that shook the rafters. But over the years, the numbers declined, the budget got tight, and the future looked uncertain.
But there was a remnant, a few of the elders met in the fellowship hall. They looked at each other and asked, almost like the disciples, “Lord, is this the time when you will restore the kingdom to Israel?” In other words: “Lord, when will you restore our church?”
They realized something: they had been trying to manage the church, but they had not been waiting on the Spirit. So, they made a simple commitment. They began meeting prayerfully, not with new strategies, but with hearts, “constantly devoting themselves to prayer” (Acts 1:14).
Nothing changed overnight. But slowly, they began to sense the Lord’s presence in new ways. A neighbor wandered in on Sunday. A young family came the next month. A longtime member rediscovered joy in serving. The Spirit was not a program they launched; The Spirit was the ONE, Our God, Our Savior, who had been reigning all along—and now they were finally living as if that were true.
This… This is what Acts 1 looks like:
- Not a flashy campaign.
- Not human strength.
- But a community waiting, praying, and trusting that the ascended Christ keeps his promises.
IV. From Spectators to Witnesses
The angels in verse 11 ask the disciples a piercing question:
“Hey yo! Why you standing there all slack-jawed, looking up to heaven?” (Acts 1:11)
That’s a question for us as well. We are not saved to be spectators; we are saved to be witnesses. Salvation is by grace alone, through faith alone, in Christ alone (Ephesians 2:8–9). But the faith that justifies is never alone; it is always accompanied by works of gratitude (James 2:17; Heidelberg Catechism Q&A 86).
Jesus says:
“You will be my witnesses… to the ends of the earth.” (Acts 1:8) A witness doesn’t have all the answers. A witness simply tells the truth about what they have seen and heard.
V. An Invitation to the Spirit’s Work
So, what does Acts 1:1–14 call us to today?
- To trust the ascended Christ. He is not absent; he is reigning. He has not forgotten us here. He “ever lives to make intercession” for us (Hebrews 7:25).
- To wait on the Holy Spirit. Not passively, but prayerfully. Like those first disciples, we devote ourselves to worship and prayer, asking the Spirit to shape us into a people who look like Jesus.
- To live as witnesses.
In our homes, workplaces, and community, we quietly but clearly bear witness: “Jesus Christ is Lord” (Acts 2:36; Philippians 2:11).
Listen! Sometimes you may feel small. You may wonder what difference your life of faith makes. But hear the promise again:
“You will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you will be my witnesses…” (Acts 1:8)
That promise was not only for an upper room in Jerusalem. It is for every congregation, every person, that bows before the ascended Christ and opens their life to the Holy Spirit.
Let us pray.
Ascended Lord Jesus Christ,
You are seated at the right hand of the Father,
you are Lord and Messiah,
and all authority in heaven and on earth belongs to you. We often live as if you were distant,
as if your kingdom were weak,
as if your Spirit were not enough.
Forgive us. Come among us in power.
Open our eyes to see the risen and ascended Christ.
Open our hearts to trust Your Holy Word.
Open our mouths to bear witness in love and humility. Make this congregation a lamp in the window,
so that those who are lost, weary, or afraid
may find in us a living sign of your kingdom,
and, by your grace, may find their way to You. We ask this in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit,
one God, forever blessed.
Amen.
Resources, Inspiration, and Citation:
• New Revised Standard Version, Updated Edition. Copyright © 2021 National Council of Churches of Christ in the United States of America.
• Liu, G.C. (2015). Liturgical Time and Tehching Hsieh. In: Carvalhaes, C. (eds) Liturgy in Postcolonial Perspectives. Postcolonialism and Religions. Palgrave Macmillan, New York. https://doi.org/10.1057/9781137508270_14
• John Calvin, Institutes of the Christian Religion, ed. John T. McNeill, trans. Ford Lewis Battles (Philadelphia: Westminster Press, 1960), I.v.2.
• Heidelberg Catechism, Q. 49, 51, 53, 86, 123, in The Book of Confessions: Study Edition (Louisville: Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.), 2016), 4.001.
• Apostles’ Creed, in The Book of Confessions: Study Edition. (Louisville: Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.), 2016), 2.1–2.3.
