What Are You Waiting For?

Introduction

What are you waiting for? In this opening sermon of a new series on the Acts of the Apostles, Mark Fletcher traces how the kingdom of God broke out from a frightened band of disciples to fill every corner of the earth. The declaration that Jesus is Lord shaped a movement of witnesses to Jesus — and Mark asks what verse each of us will contribute.

Some things are so familiar that you hardly see them, as if they were hidden in plain sight. But has it ever struck you how remarkable it is that in almost every town and city, in almost every corner of the world, often built at the very heart of the city, built with the most beautiful architecture, is a building which has no economic or specifically political purpose, but is dedicated to Jesus Christ? Have you ever thought, how did that happen? What does it mean? How did the church go from a tiny band of frightened disciples to be in every corner of the world? To answer that question, we are starting a new series, and it’s called The Acts of the Apostles.

So we are still in this joyful post-Easter season as we continue to celebrate the victory of Jesus over sin, and even death itself. As the lovely old Charles Wesley hymn puts it, “love’s redeeming work is done.” Or as Jesus himself said on the cross, “it is finished.” And it is. Salvation is a gift to be received by faith, not a prize to be earned. But does that mean there is nothing yet to do? Of course not. Of course not. The early church did not sit still, and neither should we. And so the Acts of the Apostles begin. Verse 1. “In the first book, Theophilus, I wrote about all that Jesus began to do and teach from the very beginning.” I don’t know if that sounds at all familiar. I think perhaps it should. The first book that is referenced there is the Gospel of Luke, that we’ve just spent time exploring. This is Luke part 2, the sequel. The Empire Strikes Back.

And in the same way as Luke, it is addressed to this figure that we don’t know exactly who they are, but they’re called Theophilus. It may in fact be a pseudonym. It means lover of God. And it’s an indication of quite how dangerous it was to be a Christian in the first century. But we surmise that this Theophilus is someone Greco-Roman, someone influential and educated, somebody sophisticated. And we also know that from a literary perspective, like Luke’s Gospel, this is written in a way that’s got more in common with sort of Roman chronicles and histories than the rest of the New Testament. It is a book written for the Christian community. It is written for a global audience. Speaking to the kingdoms and powers of this world. Written for you and I.

And so begins this book. And I don’t know if you noticed in it, but the disciples have a new name. And a new role. Verse 2 said, “the apostles who he had chosen.” No longer are the disciples called disciples. I suspect we never cease to be disciples, but they are now called apostles. And an apostle is an emissary, or an ambassador, or very simply one who is sent. They are the eyewitnesses of Jesus and his resurrection. And they are the ones who will take his teaching viral around the world. Because of course, in a very pre-internet age, news is sent in person. And the apostles are the ones who will carry it. And Jesus equips them for their new task. Verse 3 says, “after his suffering” — after the cross — “Jesus presents himself alive to them by many convincing proofs, appearing to them over the course of 40 days and speaking to them about the kingdom of God.” So we know that Jesus is alive. We know about many of those encounters with the risen Christ, whether it’s Mary Magdalene at the tomb, or doubting Thomas, or the disciples on the road to Emmaus. But there would have been many, many more. And through them, Jesus is encouraging and teaching and preparing these disciples to be apostles. But did you note what the theme that Jesus is teaching about? He’s teaching about the kingdom of God. And that is in many ways the theme of the book of Acts. This is the story of how God’s kingdom breaks out and goes global. It’s not just a history. It sort of has a direction, a trajectory. In fact, I think it’s the story of two opposing kingdoms. One of this world, grounded in power and pride and military might. The other, based on humility and sacrifice and love. And it would be a fool who bet against the victory of the former. And yet by the end of this book, the gospel will be established across the empire and ultimately in Rome itself. And of course, you know that within three centuries, the emperor himself will bow the knee to Jesus. Because the apostles, fearlessly and courageously, proclaim that Jesus is Lord. So that word for Lord, which we use quite a lot, is a Greek word, Kyrios. And it originally meant the head of a household, but it evolved to be used for the rulers and the powers of this earth. And ultimately, of course, it was used for the emperor himself, for Caesar. And so what the early church is doing is facing up to the might and the power of Rome and saying there is a new and better kingdom in this world. And there is a new and better king. Because if Jesus is Lord, then Caesar is not. And all those other things which claim our allegiance must take second place. And that is why the church is saying that no worldly power, no political allegiance, no wealth or celebrity comes before Jesus. To say Jesus is Lord is a statement of allegiance. The early church is saying, you need to choose this day who you will serve. As the apostle Paul says, “if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.”

But the courage to do that, to stand in the face of all of the worldly might and power, the courage to do that comes from a new source. In verse 8, Jesus said, “you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon you and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and all Judea and Samaria to the ends of the earth.” God is on the move. He is transforming his people. And it is the outpouring of the Holy Spirit which we will celebrate at Pentecost which transforms these bewildered disciples into bold, selfless, courageous witnesses to the kingdom of God. But that same Holy Spirit is at work in you who believe. This is our calling too. We speak of a better king. We live as citizens of the kingdom of heaven. And we build these communities of grace and truth in every corner of the world. That is why wherever you go, even in the darkest of days, even in the darkest places, you will find churches and Christians bearing witness to a better king, bearing witness to Jesus.

It does, however, I think, beg one question. And the question is, why us? I don’t know if you ever think that. But why must it be that flawed and often fallible human beings are those who are witness to Jesus? Surely somebody else would do a better job than us. Sometimes I think we have a sort of spiritual imposter syndrome. And maybe that’s right. But there is in that question one of the foundational understandings about the way that God works in this world. Remember that even Jesus himself came not in power and majesty, but in humility and service and sacrifice. And you and I, well actually we have the greatest dignity. Because we are made in the image of God. An image, yes, which is flawed and broken, but is true nonetheless. You and I are created to be image bearers, to be stewards of this good creation, to reflect God’s goodness and love in this world. And that Holy Spirit, that Spirit of Christ which is at work in us, is restoring us to that role. We are being remade as we were intended to be. And so the church, you and I, is the means by which God is at work in this world. Church is not, as someone said, a holding bay for people waiting to be shipped to heaven. And it isn’t the building which is the witness. It is us in our worship and our proclamation of the gospel and our prayer and our love and our service which sows the seeds of the new creation. We are the yeast which spreads throughout the whole dough and causes the whole world to rise.

And so Jesus ascends to the throne of heaven. Verse 9, “When he had said this, as they were watching, he was lifted up, and a cloud took him out of their sight.” And as much as that would have been such a sadness to them, you know, Jesus after the 40 days leaving and returning to heaven, what it meant to them was this, that the universe is not a kingdom. It is not a cold and uncaring place. God is not distant and unknowable. But at the heart of the universe is a loving, compassionate, relational God. The throne of heaven is occupied by Jesus. The king of the whole earth is a friend of mine and a friend of yours. And so when the world seems overwhelming, when the problems seem too great, or the task seems too hard, remember that Jesus is Lord.

And so then ultimately, what do you need to be afraid of? Do not fear. Because ultimately, God will work all things together for the good of those who love him. And so one last question. What do you need? What are you waiting for? Verse 10. “While he was going, and they were gazing up towards heaven, suddenly two men in white robes stood by them. They said, Men of Galilee, why do you stand, looking towards the sky?” It always makes me chuckle. Do you hear essentially what they’re saying is, what are you standing around for? Get on with it. There is a job to be done. There is good news to be proclaimed. I think too many of us need to be asked the same question. There is work to be done. There is hope now in this world. There is a gospel to be proclaimed, a church to build, a hurting world to serve. So what is it that you’re called to do? Now on one level, the answer to that question is very simple, because it’s the same for all of us. We are each called to love and to serve and to pray and to witness to the good news in our world. But in another sense, each of you have a unique contribution to make, a contribution which is unique as you are as a person. There’s a wonderful line in that old Walt Whitman poem that says, “the powerful play goes on, and you may contribute a verse.” What’s the verse that you are? You are called to contribute to this story. You are a gifted group of people. And like the servant blessed with many talents, your call is to not bury that in the ground, to put it to work. Play your part in what God is doing in this world, in the renewal of all things, confident that this Jesus who has been taken up from us will come in the same way that you saw him go into heaven. Because the time is short, and the day will come when the heavens will be rolled back like a scroll and the skies torn open, and every knee will bow, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord. And the earth will be full of the knowledge of God as the waters cover the sea. And so here and now in this moment, you have a job to do, a part to play. What is it that you have to contribute to this powerful story? What are you waiting for? Amen.

Shall we take a moment just to be still together and ask God by his Holy Spirit to lay upon our hearts that which we need to hear and to act on. Let’s be quiet together, shall we?

Lord Jesus, just as you chose those first disciples to be your witnesses to the ends of the earth, so you have chosen us. And we need your Holy Spirit to help us to be that which we were created to be. Lord, we pray that in this Pentecost season you would be transforming us. Give us confidence in our faith. Give us boldness in our witness. Give us courage in our proclamation that Jesus Christ is Lord. Amen.