Being Curious

1. Jesus was taken up into heaven
   1. God, the Father, took him from them
2. Disciples attached to earthly/temporal perspective
   1. When are you going to take over?
   1. Jesus answered that only the Father knows that
3. Straining to see Jesus as his physical body gets further and further away they are interrupted by the angels suddenly there, standing among them.
4. Its one thing to cling to life, to want to live to a ripe old age.
   1. Zechariah 8… once again old people will lean on their canes while children play in the streets. It’s a scene of safety, and peace… where men and women die of old age, natural causes, rather than war and pestilence
5. But there is obedience to God’s call… to forsake this need for long life, if he calls upon us to do so… but its about loving your life
   1. Whomsoever loses his life for my sake will gain it
6. There seems to be a bridge for them… Jesus ascends out of view, and then he is a memory, and they’re left alone
7. The sound of the wind was a bridge between spiritual and physical realm
8. Tongues of fire could be seen… but it was the manifestation of the Spiritual presence of God.
9. Perhaps in this present world, God is jarring us out of our attachment to this realm, by shaking it up… shaking our grip from it, to grab a hold of the eternal… our upset human natures are no different than Jesus’ suffering in the garden, but we must follow him, by being obedient to where God the Father is leading.

BACK GROUND RAMBLING of the above titration

As I began, for the first time, writing out the Book of Acts, I am once again astounded by what comes to my mind’s eye that I’ve missed for all these years.

The Book of the Acts of the Apostles, I’m told, is the journey of Christianity from the Jewish people, to the Gentiles. But I also see here in the first chapter that there was this journey from the earthly point of view, to the spiritual realm. From temporal to eternal. The same battle that I saw in John 6.

Jesus himself struggled with this, in that when his hour approached he was troubled. He sweat blood praying that “this cup” would be taken from him

Luke 22:39-45

So, I guess what I see here is that Jesus, was just as attached to LIVING as all of us are. It makes what he did all the more significant. Each of us is, as Macbeth put it, “a poor player, That struts and frets his hour upon the stage, And then is heard no more:

Macbeth

Jesus’ hour upon the stage was cut short. He didn’t have a wife, and children, nor a ripe old age. He gave those things up, he did not pursue them. In Zechariah we read,

Zechariah 8:4-5

What I’m getting at is that its ok to be attached to life… to wanting to live… but our obedience to God… once again I think of Revelation 12:11

Revelation 12:11

Acts 1:6

They still didn’t get it! I know that its important for me to remember that I must put myself in the disciples position, try to see things the way they saw them. And this verse helps me to do that. Jesus’ answer for them was that it wasn’t for them to know. Then he commands them concerning what will happen next, and what they are to do in the meantime.

When he ascends, they keep their eyes on the physical Jesus, and so much so it says…

Acts 1:9-11

As I ponder this, I had just written out chapter One, and one aspect of the disciples behavior gave me pause for reflection.

They were dependent on the physically present Jesus… and he had to be taken away. It says there, “he was taken up,” Jesus was taken. This is mentioned again by Peter when he is discussing the need to replace Judas. Peter says of Jesus, “…from the time he was baptized by John until the day he was taken from us…” He didn’t use the term “…until the day he left us”

Acts 2:6

Take for instance I’ve always known that the Holy Spirit’s coming was like a rushing mighty wind, but today as I read those words, they meant something more to me than ever before.

Acts 2:6 On Line Greek Interlinear

So did everyone hear the rumor of what had happened? Or did everyone hear the sound, and come running?

Acts 2:2

I found one translation that uses the word rumor:

Youngs Literal Translation Acts 2:6