It is
now forty day since Christ’s death and resurrection. The earthly days of Jesus are drawing to
a close. He must leave His friends behind, these disciples whom He so tenderly
loves. It is time for Him to go back to His Father in Heaven; and it is
essential that His return be seen by His disciples. They have to learn that
death no longer has power over Him. They have witnessed that He can appear and
disappear from their sight, passing through walls and doors; so now they must
witness His return to Heaven, so that they will no longer expect Him to be among
them in His human form. He must prepare them for living without His physical
presence. He must teach them that God has planned a better way.
Christ
meets with the disciples once again, in Jerusalem. He repeats His commission
that they are to preach the good news of repentance and faith in Him. He
reiterates that they are to take the gospel first to Jerusalem, the place where
Christ was crucified; then they are to carry it to all of
Judea, the country round
about where they had walked with Him, and where He had done
miracles; and next they are to carry the gospel to
Samaria, a place which Jewish people
hated; and lastly Christ commissions them to carry
it to all the rest of the
world. Jesus teaches His disciples that His sacrificial
death was for ALL mankind, not just the Jews.
He
teaches the disciples that He is not leaving them without the comfort of His
presence. Should He remain on earth, even though He is no longer constrained to
human limitations, He still would be unable to be everywhere and with everyone
at the same time. Earthly bodies have their boundaries, but when He is departed
from them He will send His Representative down to be with them--His Holy Spirit. By His Holy Spirit He will
be with them always, even if they go to the ends of the earth.
Jesus’
next admonition is that the disciples are to remain in Jerusalem until the Holy
Spirit, whom John the Baptist had foretold should baptize them, gives them the
power to carry out His commission. The disciples listen with intent, although
their hearts are saddened, realizing that this is Christ’s last earthly farewell
to them. They follow Christ out of the eastern gate of the city, across the
brook Kidron, past the Garden of Gethsemane, where He had prayed His agonizing
prayer, and up towards the Mount of Olives. Now Jesus takes them past Bethany
where His good friends, Mary, Martha and Lazarus live. This exclusive group
walks on to a quiet place, hidden from the road and village. Below them is
Jerusalem, that city over which Christ had wept, that city which had rejected
Him and crucified Him, and which holds the tomb where unbelievers still think
that Christ lies buried.
Now,
away from the eyes of the world, in the quietness of this sacred place, Christ
spreads out His hands, and once more invokes a blessing on His beloved
disciples. Then slowly He begins to rise from the ground and float upwards. The
clouds gradually engulf Him. Two angels come down and accompany Christ to His
Heavenly Father. The disciples can no longer see Him. With pain in their hearts,
they gaze toward the sky. Their Friend, Teacher, Savior and Lord is gone from
their presence. They cannot take their eyes from the clouds. Not a word is
spoken amongst them.
As
they stand with their eyes upward, the two angels who had accompanied Christ
appear to them. “Ye men of Galilee, why stand ye gazing
up into heaven? This same Jesus, which is taken up from you into heaven, shall
so come in like manner as ye have seen him go into heaven.”
(Acts 1:11)
One by
one the disciples lower their eyes to the earth. Their Lord is gone from them.
Pensively they leave the mount of Olivet and head back to Jerusalem. They go
directly to the upper room as Jesus had instructed them to do. They would wait
and pray until the promised Comforter comes to
them.
The KING Is Welcomed
Home
Psalm
24: 7- “Lift up your heads, O ye gates; and be
ye lift up, ye everlasting doors; and the King of glory shall come in.”
The heavens burst into singing as choir after choir of angels
take up the chorus.
“Who
is this King of glory?” sings
an answering chorus within the heavenly realm.
A
resounding echo comes back, “The Lord strong and mighty, the Lord
mighty in battle. Worthy is the Lamb that was slain to receive power and riches,
and wisdom, and strength, and honor, and glory, and blessing, forever and
ever.”
Back
and forth the heavenly choirs sing, thousands and thousands of angels, as they
welcome back the “King of Heaven”.
He has successfully accomplished His mission on earth. Now He will resume His
place at the right hand of His Father, but it will be with added honor and
glory. He has brought salvation to
mankind.
The Disciples Await The Promised
Comforter
Now
back to the disciples, as they watch in awe Christ’s disappearance from them: As
they stand with their eyes upward, the two angels who had accompanied Christ,
appear to them, giving them the message that Christ will return, as He promised.
One by
one the disciples lower their eyes to the earth. Their Lord is gone from them.
They leave the mount of Olivet and head back to Jerusalem. Here they will wait
and pray, as Christ instructed them, until the promised Comforter comes.
Assembled
together in the upper room are Peter, James, John, Andrew, Philip, Thomas,
Bartholomew, Matthew, James and Judas the sons of Alphaeus, and Simon Zelotes.
And with them are the faithful women, Mary Magdalene, the other Mary, Salome,
Cleopas’ wife, as well as Mary, the mother of Jesus, and Jesus’ brothers. All in
all, about one hundred and twenty men and women are assembled, with a united
purpose. Here they all stay, praying and worshiping.
It may
seem strange to those who do not understand God’s forgiving power that it is
Peter who is leading this congregation. Peter, no longer a coward, Peter, no
longer impulsively jumping into things, but Peter, the Rock. It is this Peter
who stands up before the group and goes over the happenings of the past days,
reminding the group of David’s prophecy concerning Judas, how he had been
counted as part of them, but how he had sold his Lord, then killed himself; he
reminded them of how the money was spent which he had thrown down, to buy a
field, which was labeled, “The field of
blood.”
Peter
tells the group that a replacement for Judas must be picked. Two men, Joseph
Barsabas Justus, and Matthias are chosen. The group spends much time praying
over these two men, and finally a decision is made as to which of them would be
counted in with the other eleven disciples. Lots are drawn. Matthias is chosen
as the twelfth disciple.
And
here the groups of believers, headed by the twelve Disciples of Christ, await
the outpouring of the Holy Spirit. They await
the day of Pentecost.
Acts
2: 1-4:
“And when the day of Pentecost was fully come, they were all with one accord in
one place....And suddenly there came a sound from heaven as of a rushing mighty
wind, and it filled all the house where they were sitting....and there appeared
unto them cloven tongues like as of fire, and it sat upon each of them....And
they were all filled with the Holy Spirit, and began to speak with other
tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance.”
The
End and The Beginning
©
Helen Dowd.
Sources:
All Scripture passages, unless
otherwise stated, are from King James Version and New King James
Version.
Poetry, unless otherwise stated, is my own.
Historical data, as
well as some of my information, was gleaned (not copied) from “The Chosen Word”
- copyright 1915, by “The John A. Hertel Co.” Entered at Stationer’s Hall,
London England.
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