While We Wait
Scripture:
“Once when he was eating with them, he commanded them, ‘Do not leave Jerusalem until the Father sends you the gift he promised, as I told you before. John baptized with water, but in just a few days you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit.’
So when the apostles were with Jesus, they kept asking him, ‘Lord, has the time come for you to free Israel and restore our kingdom?’
He replied, ‘The Father alone has the authority to set those dates and times, and they are not for you to know. But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon you. And you will be my witnesses, telling people about me everywhere—in Jerusalem, throughout Judea, in Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.’
After saying this, he was taken up into a cloud while they were watching, and they could no longer see him. As they strained to see him rising into heaven, two white-robed men suddenly stood among them. ‘Men of Galilee,’ they said, ‘why are you standing here staring into heaven? Jesus has been taken from you into heaven, but someday he will return from heaven in the same way you saw him go!’”
—Acts 1:4–11 (NLT)
Even after witnessing the resurrection, the disciples still had the wrong picture in their minds. Lord, they asked, has the time come for you to free Israel and restore our kingdom? They were still thinking in terms of political liberation, a restored earthly throne, freedom from Roman occupation. And Jesus did not rebuke them for it. He simply redirected them. The dates and times of His final return were not theirs to know. What was theirs to know was the mission He was placing in their hands right now, and the promise that they would not carry it alone. In just a few days, the Holy Spirit would come upon them, and they would receive power to be His witnesses to the ends of the earth.
That promise changed everything. When the Spirit came at Pentecost, those same disciples who had been hiding behind locked doors became unstoppable. They preached in the streets. They healed the sick. They turned the world upside down. They made disciples who made more disciples. And the movement they launched has never stopped. Two thousand years later, across every continent and in nearly every language on earth, the witness continues. We are not spectators of that story. We are participants in it, standing in the same Spirit-empowered lineage as those first followers.
“Expect great things from God; attempt great things for God.”¹
— William Carey, sermon preached at Nottingham, 1792
Carey understood what the disciples discovered. The Holy Spirit does not come to make us comfortable. He comes to make us witnesses. And the call Jesus gave in Acts 1 was never intended only for that first generation. It belongs to every generation until He returns. Which means it belongs to us. We have been given the same Spirit, the same commission, and the same promise. And the world still needs to hear.
So let us not be found standing still, staring at the sky, waiting for what is coming while neglecting what has already been given to us. Jesus will return exactly as He promised. But until that day, we are His witnesses. There is work to do, neighbors to love, and a Kingdom to proclaim. Let’s be about it.
Reflection:
- In what ways are you tempted to look for earthly solutions or political change instead of focusing on the spiritual Kingdom Jesus calls us to advance?
- How have you experienced the power of the Holy Spirit in your life and witness?
- In what ways can you live more intentionally as Christ’s witness right now?
Prayer:
Ask the Lord to fill you afresh with the Holy Spirit and renew your passion to be His witness. Pray for boldness, clarity, and love as you share the good news in your everyday life.
Footnote:
¹ William Carey, sermon preached at Nottingham, England, May 30, 1792.