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12Then they returned to Jerusalem from the mount called Olivet, which is near Jerusalem, a Sabbath day’s journey away. 13And when they had entered, they went up to the upper room, where they were staying, Peter and John and James and Andrew, Philip and Thomas, Bartholomew and Matthew, James the son of Alphaeus and Simon the Zealot and Judas the son of James. 14All these with one accord were devoting themselves to prayer, together with the women and Mary the mother of Jesus, and his brothers.

The first thing I note about this pre-Pentecost prayer meeting is that the ”brothers” of Jesus were there. How remarkable, and how encouraging to all of us who have unbelieving (and maybe even hard, cold and resistant) families. Jesus brothers were not always believers (see John 7:5). It seems they were hostile. But now they were in a prayer meeting!!! and in obedience to their brother’s command. Things can change. Oh yes they can. We had better believe it.

But here’s the second thing about this prayer meeting, it was in definite belief of God’s promise and Christ’s own Word (4). It was God’s will and desire for them to be there and doing this during those days.

Thirdly, it was a united and lengthy prayer meeting which preceded Pentecost. They were committed and devoted in prayer. May I even say that there was an intensity (as well as faith) in their praying? They were serious. They meant business.

I have a book, by Spurgeon, of addresses given on and at prayer meetings, and it is entitled, ‘Only a prayer meeting’ The ‘Only’, of course, is ironic, because Spurgeon’s teaching clearly extols the power of prayer. Here are some of his own words on the subject:

”IF you were to go to one of the banks in Lombard Street, and see a man go in and out and lay a piece of paper on the table, and take it up again and nothing more; if he did that several times a day, I think there would soon be orders issued to the porter to keep the man out, because he was merely wasting the clerk’s time, and doing nothing to purpose. Those city men, who come to the bank in earnest, present their checks, they wait until they receive their gold, and then they go, but not without having transacted real business. They do not put the paper down, speak about the excellent signature, and discuss the correctness of the document, but they want their money for it, and they are not content without it. These are the people who are always welcome at the bank, and not the triflers. Alas, a great many people play at praying, it is nothing better. I say they play at praying, they do not expect God to give them an answer, and thus they are mere triflers, who mock the Lord. He who prays in a business-like way, meaning what he says, honors the Lord. The Lord does not play at promising; Jesus did not sport at confirming the word by his blood; and we must not make a jest of prayer by going about it in a listless, unexpecting spirit.”

Those men and women in the upper room had gathered to transact ‘real business’, and that is precisely what they did. They got their gold!

May God keep us from playing at prayer.

6So when they had come together, they asked him, “Lord, will you at this time restore the kingdom to Israel?” 7He said to them, “It is not for you to know times or seasons that the Father has fixed by his own authority. 8But 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.” 9And when he had said these things, as they were looking on, he was lifted up, and a cloud took him out of their sight. 10And while they were gazing into heaven as he went, behold, two men stood by them in white robes, 11and said, “Men of Galilee, why do you stand looking into heaven? This Jesus, who was taken up from you into heaven, will come in the same way as you saw him go into heaven.” (ESV)

My first observation on today’s passage is to say that there are times when Christ’s word to us is also, ”It is not for you to know…” There are certain mysteries with which we have to live. ”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.” (Deut. 29:29). It is a ‘revealed thing’ that Jesus will return, but around His coming there remain many mysteries – at least until it becomes time for God to make them plain. In the light of that coming, Jesus calls not for speculation but evangelization. Our call is not to stand gazing but go preaching. Spread the gospel everywhere in the world. Fixing our eyes on Jesus (which we are called to do: see Hebrews 12:2; Col.3:1ff.) is not incompatible with lifting up our eyes upon the fields (John 4:35).

Over the centuries many people have wasted hours, speculating about end time prophecies and how they will (or might be) be fulfilled. Time and again they have got it wrong. Even so, this kind of sensationalist approach to eschatology (the doctrine of last things) can be seductive in its own way. It’s hard to not be sucked into the pull of its magnetic field. But here, in Acts 1, we hear it from Jesus Himself. We are not to ponder what we cannot know but preach what we do know in the power of the Holy Spirit. Jesus is coming back to this world. Therefore we must let the whole world know.

I notice that the disciples were narrowly nationalistic in their vision (6), but Jesus’ heart is for the world (8). In fact, it’s been said that Acts 1:8 reads like a table of contents for the whole book, where we see the gospel message go out from Jerusalem to the capital of the then known world.

PRAYER: Lord Jesus, give us your heart for your world.

Thought: ‘The Holy Ghost gives you a Holy go!’ George Verwer

1In the first book, O Theophilus, I have dealt with all that Jesus began to do and teach, 2until the day when he was taken up, after he had given commands through the Holy Spirit to the apostles whom he had chosen. 3He presented himself alive to them after his suffering by many proofs, appearing to them during forty days and speaking about the kingdom of God.

4And 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; 5for John baptized with water, but you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit not many days from now.” (ESV)

‘Of the original quartet of writers on Jesus, Luke alone continues to tell the story as the apostles and disciples live it into the next generation. The remarkable thing is that it continues to be essentially the same story. Luke continues his narration with hardly a break, a pause perhaps to dip his pen in the inkwell, writing in the same style, using the same vocabulary.

The story of Jesus doesn’t end with Jesus. It continues in the lives of those who believe in him.’ Eugene Peterson

When Luke writes that in his first volume he ”dealt with all that Jesus began to do and teach”, his implication surely is that volume 2 is the story of Jesus continuing to do and teach. The ministry is still Christ’s, but He carries it out through His church. David Pawson, the eminent Bible teacher, put it like this: he said, at the Ascension Jesus switched bodies. In the gospel, we see Him moving towards Jerusalem in a physical body; in the ‘Acts’ we find Him moving out from Jerusalem in a spiritual body, the church.

In the book of ‘Acts’ there is an emphasis on the Person and Work of the Holy Spirit from the outset (2,5.8). In the gospel, Luke has a number of repeated themes. The Holy Spirit is one of them. (Prayer is another, and we’ll get to that great topic further on in the chapter). But here is another point of continuity between the gospel and ‘Acts’. What Jesus was enabled to do in the power of the Spirit, the church is now called and equpped to do in the power of that self-same Spirit. ‘The supernatural does not stop with Jesus.’ Peterson

As I read verse 3 again the other evening, I was impressed by the thought that, still today, encountering the risen Lord personally is the greatest evidence for the resurrection. ‘You ask me how I know He lives? He lives within my heart.’ I like the answer of the man who was challenged, ‘How do you know Jesus is alive?’ ‘Oh’, he replied, ‘I was talking with Him just five minutes ago!’

1In the first book, O Theophilus, I have dealt with all that Jesus began to do and teach, 2until the day when he was taken up, after he had given commands through the Holy Spirit to the apostles whom he had chosen. 3He presented himself alive to them after his suffering by many proofs, appearing to them during forty days and speaking about the kingdom of God.

4And 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; 5for John baptized with water, but you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit not many days from now.” (ESV)

Our minds inevitably go to the prologue of Luke’s gospel when we read the opening of ‘Acts.’ We cannot help but see/hear a similarity:

1Inasmuch as many have undertaken to compile a narrative of the things that have been accomplished among us, 2just as those who from the beginning were eyewitnesses and ministers of the word have delivered them to us, 3it seemed good to me also, having followed all things closely for some time past, to write an orderly account for you, most excellent Theophilus, 4that you may have certainty concerning the things you have been taught. (ESV)

Dr. Luke wrote a two volume history of the beginnings of Christianity: his gospel dealing with the life and ministry of Jesus, and the ‘Acts’ outlining the life and ministry of the earliest church. What is striking is that, it would appear, that all his painstaking work was done for just one man ‘Theophilus.’ Although ‘Theophilus’ could be a code word for the church, it seems likeliest that he was one precious human being – perhaps a ‘seeker’ after truth, or a new disciple. But he was well worth Luke’s efforts. More than worth them.

In Luke 15, the good doctor records three parables of Jesus: the lost sheep, the lost coin and the lost son. In fact these stories are about one lost sheep, one lost coin, and one lost son. And oh the joy when what is lost is found. It seems that this truth was deeply impressed upon Luke that one matters. Theophilus mattered, and he went to great lengths to help him.

Years ago I heard a preacher say, ‘You will never lock eyes with anyone who doesn’t matter to the Father.’

‘It is the individual touch that tells. He (Jesus) doesn’t love in the mass, but in one’s.’ Amy Carmichael

4“O LORD,” I prayed, “have mercy on me.

Heal me, for I have sinned against you.”

5But my enemies say nothing but evil about me.

“How soon will he die and be forgotten?” they ask.

6They visit me as if they were my friends,

but all the while they gather gossip,

and when they leave, they spread it everywhere.

7All who hate me whisper about me,

imagining the worst.

8“He has some fatal disease,” they say.

“He will never get out of that bed!”

9Even my best friend, the one I trusted completely,

the one who shared my food, has turned against me.

10LORD, have mercy on me.

Make me well again, so I can pay them back!

11I know you are pleased with me,

for you have not let my enemies triumph over me.

12You have preserved my life because I am innocent;

you have brought me into your presence forever.

13Praise the LORD, the God of Israel,

who lives from everlasting to everlasting.

Amen and amen! (NLT)

Yesterday we established the principle that God heals (v3). More, He is a loving, caring healer, ‘nursing’ His patients to health.

Following on from the principle David prays for healing. Note that it is not wrong to pray for our own health concerns. However, you will no doubt notice that David prays for restoration to health so that he can pay back his enemies. This inevitably raises questions in our minds, but commentators tend to point out that David is not talking about personal revenge, something forbidden in Scripture (Deut.32:35; Rom.12:19). But as king, he had the responsibility to punish wrongdoers, and to purge evil from the land. Because David was God’s anointed king, those speaking against him were actually speaking against God. David was supremely jealous for the Lord’s honour.

Perhaps even greater than the pain of sickness is the pain of treachery (v.9). Ultimately, this verse was fulfilled in Judas Iscariot, the betrayer of Christ.

The Psalms divide into five distinct sections, or ‘books’. With Psalm 41:13, book 1 comes to a glorious end. For all that our ever-living God is (and has taught us) to Him be eternal praise! ”Amen and amen!”

(From next Monday, God-willing, we will embark on a fresh journey through the book of Acts. You might want to look out for all the healing miracles as the ministry of Jesus continues in and through His church, by the power of the Holy Spirit).

4Oh, the joys of those who trust the LORD,

who have no confidence in the proud

or in those who worship idols.

5O LORD my God, you have performed many wonders for us.

Your plans for us are too numerous to list.

You have no equal.

If I tried to recite all your wonderful deeds,

I would never come to the end of them.

6You take no delight in sacrifices or offerings.

Now that you have made me listen, I finally understanda—

you don’t require burnt offerings or sin offerings.

7Then I said, “Look, I have come.

As is written about me in the Scriptures:

8I take joy in doing your will, my God,

for your instructions are written on my heart.”

9I have told all your people about your justice.

I have not been afraid to speak out,

as you, O LORD, well know.

10I have not kept the good news of your justice hidden in my heart;

I have talked about your faithfulness and saving power.

I have told everyone in the great assembly

of your unfailing love and faithfulness. (NLT)

If in the first three verses we see David waiting, here we find him witnessing. Note that witness is not only a matter of life (3 – people seeing our good deeds and glorifying the Father in heaven: Mt.5:16); it also involves our lips. Fear can hold a person back, but David was not to be silenced, although he had many enemies. Christian witness is both visual and vocal.

‘When we are delivered, let us set our gladness to music and embody it in renewed consecration, vv.4-10. Let us not hide God’s love in our hearts, but tell it out.’ F.B. Meyer

It is significant that Hebrews 10:5-7 places verses 6-8 on the lips of Christ. Under the Old Covenant, God very much did desire…Sacrifice and offering (see the book of Leviticus). But David’s words are prophetic of Jesus, who in offering Himself as the final, perfect Sacrifice, did away with any further need for Sacrifice and offering. At the heart of Christian witness there lies a simple pointing to Christ and His Cross as the only effective cure for human sin.

But verses 6-8 were spoken by David, and said something about him in the first place. David knew that ritual was not sufficient for God, who wanted ‘living sacrifices’ (see Rom.12:1,2). This is what enabled David to be a courageous witness. He desired to do God’s will. He sought to be surrendered to God.

PRAYER: ”O Lord, open my lips, and my mouth will declare your praise.” (Ps.51:15 ESV)

1I waited patiently for the LORD to help me,

and he turned to me and heard my cry.

2He lifted me out of the pit of despair,

out of the mud and the mire.

He set my feet on solid ground

and steadied me as I walked along.

3He has given me a new song to sing,

a hymn of praise to our God.

Many will see what he has done and be amazed.

They will put their trust in the LORD. (NLT)

Out on a pastoral visit one day, I saw a plaque over someone’s fireplace. It read, ‘Lord, grant me patience, but hurry!’ Tongue in cheek perhaps, but it expressed a certain truth about human nature. We are averse to waiting.

However, it came as a helpful insight to me when I discovered that the Bible speaks both of waiting on the Lord in prayer, and waiting for the Lord to act. We see this kind of waiting in David’s experience. This is how it is expressed in ‘The Message’:

I waited and waited and waited for God.

At last he looked; finally he listened.

He lifted me out of the ditch,

pulled me from deep mud.

He stood me up on a solid rock

to make sure I wouldn’t slip.

He taught me how to sing the latest God-song,

a praise-song to our God.

More and more people are seeing this:

they enter the mystery,

abandoning themselves to God.

When we ‘wait’ for God to act, rather than trying to make something happen ourselves, a watching world sees what God can do, and He gets the glory.

”When we rely upon organization, we get what organization can do; when we rely upon education, we get what education can do; when we rely upon eloquence, we get what eloquence can do. And so on. But when we rely upon prayer, we get what God can do.” A.C. Dixon

PRAYER: Lord God, as the world looks at the church, and at our individual lives, may people see your work and be drawn to you. In my life, Lord, be glorified. In our lives, Lord, be glorified…today