The Risen Christ and the Coming of the Spirit (Acts 1:4-8)

This sermon was preached on 8/1/2012

Luke begins his second volume (the Acts) by first summarising what Jesus taught his apostles during the forty days between his resurrection and ascension. During these days Jesus instructed them about various aspects of the kingdom of God. Luke then gives details about the final day that Jesus spent on earth with his disciples and we can see that his main focus was on the coming the Spirit. Jesus distinguishes the coming of the Spirit from two other important religious events: the ministry of John the Baptist and the restoration of the kingdom to Israel. In effect he is saying to his disciples that they are not to look back to the days of John or to look forward to the ingathering of Israel. Instead they are to wait for the coming of the Spirit which was to happen shortly.

1. The coming of the Spirit had been foretold in the past

We know that the coming of the Spirit had been a central theme of the teaching of Jesus, for example, in the upper room on the evening of his betrayal and arrest (John 13—17). Obviously, he gave more detailed instruction than had been previously given, but it is still beneficial to consider what others had said before him.

Who was it foretold by? One obvious answer to this question is John the Baptist. He said in Matthew 3:11: ‘I baptize you with water for repentance, but he who is coming after me is mightier than I, whose sandals I am not worthy to carry. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and with fire.’

Yet we can go back long before John, to the days of the prophet Isaiah. This is the comfort he promised to the exiles in Babylon in Isaiah 44:3: ‘For I will pour water on the thirsty land, and streams on the dry ground; I will pour my Spirit upon your offspring, and my blessing on your descendants.’ No doubt, there were many partial fulfilments prior to the coming of Jesus, but now the great fulfilment is near.

Another prediction of these days is found in Zechariah 12:10: ‘And I will pour upon the house of David, and upon the inhabitants of Jerusalem, the spirit of grace and of supplications: and they shall look upon me whom they have pierced, and they shall mourn for him, as one mourneth for his only son, and shall be in bitterness for him, as one that is in bitterness for his firstborn’ (KJV).

A third prediction of those days is found in Joel 2:28-29: ‘And it shall come to pass afterward, that I will pour out my Spirit on all flesh; your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, your old men shall dream dreams, and your young men shall see visions. Even on the male and female servants in those days I will pour out my Spirit.’ Here the blessing is not limited to Israel, but includes all the nations. Nor is it limited by gender, age or status.

These were great predictions made by God. They were given to stimulate longing for the glorious days of refreshment that were to come, and Zechariah linked them explicitly with the death of the Messiah. In that prophecy, the Messiah is speaking, saying that he will perform the outpouring of the Spirit on Jerusalem.

2. The coming of the Spirit had been promised by the Father

In verse 4, Jesus tells his disciples to wait for the promise of the Father. What did he mean by this statement? One possible answer is that the Father had promised the coming of the Spirit in the Old Testament. In this sense, Jesus would be saying that the Father is about to fulfil the promises he made to his people in the Old Testament.

I also think there is a more profound answer to the question, an answer that takes us back to a pre-creation agreement between the Father and the Son. One term of this agreement was that the Father would give the Holy Spirit to his Son in order to bring about the worldwide blessing describe earlier. But before he would receive the Spirit, the Son was required to pay the penalty for sin and provide a means of salvation for sinners. This Jesus has done, and now he is anticipating the fulfilment of his Father’s promise.

If the predictions of the prophets indicate the details of the purpose of God, the promise of the Father indicates the personal interest that the Trinity has in the plan of salvation. They are not detached from it; rather it was their eternal desire and anticipation.

3. The coming of the Spirit is connected to the preaching of the witnesses

In verse 8, Jesus tells his disciples that they are to be his ‘witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth’. The term ‘witnesses’ does not mean ‘witnessing’ in the way many Christians speak about it today. Often, what they have in mind is a personal testimony of how they came to know the Lord. The apostles were witnesses in the sense that they were to proclaim what they saw when they were with Jesus and also they were to explain what happened to Jesus as well as passing on his teachings. In other words, this is a reference to their declaration of the life, death, resurrection and ascension of Jesus.

It is worth noting in passing that the promise of the coming Spirit was not given as a reason not to pray but as a reason to pray. Promises are to be pleaded, used as arguments with God to fulfil what he has said. We should pray persistently for the Spirit to be given.

4. The coming of the Spirit brought power

The witnesses to Christ’s mission inform listners of what Jesus has done and implore them to repent of their sins and to trust in Jesus. They do this with a sense of urgency. Yet they are preaching to people who see no need of a Saviour. This is where the power of the Spirit comes in. What can we say about this power?

First, it is a gentle power. I mention this because often it seems that people expect the power of the Spirit to overwhelm them. They expect him to come as a gale force wind rather than as a gentle breeze. Sometimes he does come in a manner that is like a storm, but more often he draws near in a gentle manner.

Second, it is a gracious power. By this, I mean that he intends to convey grace to us and not condemnation. Of course, if we resist his work, we will increase our condemnation.

Third, it is a convicting power. Usually, the first display of power by the Spirit is convincing us of our sins. He does this by using tools found in the Bible, mainly the law of God and the cross of Christ. He uses the law to show our failure to meet God’s standards and he takes us to the cross in order to see the heinousness of sin as well as to see the remedy for sin. This is what conviction of sin is.

Fourth, it is a regenerating power. His leading us to the cross brings about repentance and faith. Under his overruling and enabling, we look on the One we have pierced and repent of our sins; we look to the pierced Saviour as the only hope of deliverance. Repentance and faith are the evidences that we have been given life.

5. The coming of the Spirit was first known in Jerusalem

In verse 8, Jesus informs his disciples of his divine programme of blessing once they have received the Spirit: ‘you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.’ This order is the one that is followed in the Book of Acts and involves three stages: (a) Jerusalem, (b) Judea and Samaria, (c) the end of the earth. As we can see, stage 3 is still ongoing.

Regarding stage 1, it is marvellous to note the Saviour’s desire that the gospel be first preached with power in Jerusalem. Of all places, it deserved his judgement because there he had been crucified. Yet the desire of the risen Jesus, as he was on the doorstep of heaven, was for these great sinners to be converted. This gives great insight into the compassionate heart of Christ. He wanted his enemies to be delivered from the state of sin and be forgiven.

Some of the ones to whom the disciples were to preach had shown awful opposition to Jesus. There in the city were those who had cried for him to be crucified, were those who had spat on him, were those who had borne false witness against him, were those who had mocked him when he was on the cross. To them Jesus wanted his gospel to be preached in the power of the Holy Spirit.

But it was not only rebel sinners who were in Jerusalem. There were also religious sinners gathering there to keep the Feast of Pentecost. Jesus had his eye on them as well when he directed his disciples to begin there. They were travelling from all over the world to keep an appointment, but not the one that they expected. Jesus was watching them as they trudged the weary miles to Jerusalem to keep the feast. What a great surprise awaited them when they arrived! They would hear the way of salvation, a way that their religion could not provide.