The Promise of Jesus and His Commands

The Promise of Jesus and His Commands
(Acts 1:1-11)
Rev. Neil Kim

 I. Doing and teaching go hand in hand (v. 1)
Jesus preached what He practiced, and He practiced what He preached.

 

II. Work of Jesus was done through the Holy Spirit (v. 2)
Jesus was the only person who ever existed as 100% God and 100% human.  But, it was Jesus’ human nature, “through the Holy Spirit” that carried out His ministry.
The power of the Holy Spirit that worked in Jesus also worked in His disciples, and it will work in us as well.

 

III. The Promise of Jesus (vv. 4-5)
We need to receive the power of the Holy Spirit in our lives and our ministries, in order to serve God well in this world.
Only the Holy Spirit knows what, why, when and how things need to be done.
 “Waiting” is not optional; it is necessary.

 IV. Misunderstanding of the nature of God’s Kingdom (vv. 6-7)
Even after Jesus’ death and resurrection, His disciples did not yet fully understand the nature of God’s Kingdom.  The disciples were still expecting a political and territorial kingdom.

 

V. Power of the Holy Spirit and its purpose (v. 8)
The power of the Holy Spirit is essential for doing God’s work.
The purpose of needing the power of the Holy Spirit is to witness God’s Kingdom. 

 VI. Without Jesus being with us on earth, we need the Holy Spirit (vv. 9-11)
Without having Jesus with us on earth, we now have direct access to the only power source, the Holy Spirit, capable of binding and overcoming spiritual darkness so that we can continue to carry on His work.

 VI. Applications
What kind of power does the Holy Spirit give?
How were the early disciples changed by the power of the Holy Spirit?
How is the Holy Spirit working in your personal life?