Sermon - Empowered by Their Acts: Boldness

Empowered by Their Acts: Boldness
Acts 4: 23-31
by Rev. Carson Overstreet
Van Wyck Presbyterian Church
June 16, 2019
Trinity Sunday

The past six weeks we have been sitting in the story of the Acts of the Apostles. Luke’s writings tell us that being an apostle of Jesus Christ is not for the faint of heart.

The twelve apostles, Mary the mother of Jesus, and other women had to practice patience and wait in Jerusalem for God to empower them by the gift of the Holy Spirit (Acts 1: 1-11). As they waited they devoted themselves to prayer and yet they had no idea what to expect in their near future (Acts 1: 12-26).

Holy Spirit made her dramatic entrance in the event of Pentecost. The Spirit birthed the first century church and empowered the apostles to have a sense of urgency to continue Jesus’ ministry; they were divinely inspired to dream big like God and do God’s work in the world (Acts 2: 1-4, 14-14-20).

Living into God’s dream started with relationships with God and one another. As the early Christians were united in the gift of faith they were empowered to live differently by God’s provision, Jesus’ redeeming grace, and the Spirit’s guidance.

Jesus’ instructions were to witness to the Lord’s authority and power starting in the apostles’ backyard of Jerusalem. Filled with Holy Spirit’s power, Peter and John embarked on their first mission trip as they were entering the temple for prayer. Peter and John were empowered to give hope to a man who had been born lame. They extended Jesus’ compassion and grace to heal this man whom society had merely taken pity on (Acts 3: 1-12).

This first local mission trip landed Peter and John in jail because they were daring greatly to be about the Lord’s business (Acts 4: 1-4, 13-22). Just proclaiming the name of Jesus Christ changes things, and yet this holy work in Jesus’ name threatened the religious authorities in Jerusalem.

This is where we enter the story today in Acts 4: 23-31.

After they were released, they went to their friends and reported what the chief priests and the elders had said to them.

When they heard it, they raised their voices together to God and said, ‘Sovereign Lord, who made the heaven and the earth, the sea, and everything in them, it is you who said by the Holy Spirit through our ancestor David, your servant:

“Why did the Gentiles rage,
and the peoples imagine vain things?
The kings of the earth took their stand,
and the rulers have gathered together
against the Lord and against his Messiah.”

For in this city, in fact, both Herod and Pontius Pilate, with the Gentiles and the peoples of Israel, gathered together against your holy servant Jesus, whom you anointed, to do whatever your hand and your plan had predestined to take place.

And now, Lord, look at their threats, and grant to your servants to speak your word with all boldness, while you stretch out your hand to heal, and signs and wonders are performed through the name of your holy servant Jesus.’ When they had prayed, the place in which they were gathered together was shaken; and they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and spoke the word of God with boldness.

The apostles received their first lesson in the school of hard knocks: being about the Lord’s business was not going to be easy. In order to experience God’s victory, they recalled Jesus’ example. Whenever Jesus was about to embark on the challenges of life and ministry he prayed. So the apostles did just that in our text today; they prayed for boldness (Acts 4: 29-31).

This was a full circle moment for the apostles. When we go back to Luke’s Gospel these men and women were not bold. They were like you and me.

Mary the mother of Jesus had big questions about bearing the Son of the Most High (Luke 1:29).
Peter felt unqualified and unworthy to follow Jesus (Luke 5:8).
The apostles argued about being the greatest without realizing what being empowered by God really meant (Luke 9:46).
They worried about God’s provision even after seeing Jesus feed five thousand (Luke 9: 10-17; 12:22).
After Jesus’ lesson on prayer, the apostles had no spiritual stamina in light of Jesus facing his destiny on the cross (Luke 11:1; 22: 39-46).
After following Jesus for three years the apostles still did not understand the big picture of God’s work in Jesus Christ.
Peter denied his association with Jesus three times after Jesus had washed his feet (Luke 22: 31-34).
When Jesus died on the cross the apostles stood at a distance as their hope dissolved into despair like a deflating balloon (Luke 23:49).

Who in the world would entrust the kingdom of God to a group of women and men like these? God did. And God empowered these women and men to be bold in order to join the Lord in kingdom building.

So how do you and I become empowered with boldness? How do we grow in our confidence of God’s power, Jesus’ grace, and the Spirit’s guidance? How do we come full circle from being timid disciples to bold apostles?

My commentary gave me a big clue to these questions: “If the church is too timid and does not ask God for enough boldness for ministry it must have timid convictions about who God is, what God has done, and what God will do” [1].

The Greek definition of boldness is to have a resolve of leaving a witness that something deserves to be remembered. That resolve is speaking with a growing confidence in love. It took years for the apostles to grow in their faith to be confident in God’s ability to do far more than they could ever hope, ask for or imagine. It takes time for your faith and mine to grow in godly confidence too.

Personal and communal commitment are required in order for our actions and voices to embody a bold conviction that God’s character and actions deserve to be remembered. Where do you go to learn who God is, what God has done, and what God will do? God’s Word will always illumine the truth of God’s character and actions in the past, present, and future.

Scripture tells us that the Lord is the everlasting God, the Creator of the ends of the earth; he does not faint or grow weary; his understanding is unsearchable (Isaiah 40:28). And yet God knows each of us intimately and calls us by name saying we belong to God (Isaiah 43:1). God is love (1 John 4:16). God’s love was revealed in sending Jesus Christ, God’s only Son as the Savior of the world, so that we might live through him (1 John 4:9, 14).

Through the cross and resurrection God has given us life in Jesus’ name. God revealed his sustaining presence in the Holy Spirit, who came like a violent wind to set the apostles’ faith aflame with a passion to serve God alone no matter the costs (Acts 2:2).

And as obstacles and adversity arise in our lives God promises to strengthen us, help us, and uphold us with God’s victorious right hand, therefore we have nothing to fear because of who our God is (Isaiah 41:10).

God’s character is unchangeable, and it is impossible that God would prove false (Hebrews 6:17-18). God’s word will accomplish God’s purposes (Isaiah 55:11). If we confess this to be true about God, then what a mighty spiritual force we have in every obstacle and opportunity.

All of our spiritual ancestors faced life’s obstacles and spiritual adversity. When they asserted their own strength they did not go very far. But as they tapped into the power of our God, they grew in their confidence that they would overcome. And their stories give us courage to say we shall overcome too. The genuineness of our faith will be tested (1 Peter 1: 6-7). Every test is an opportunity for our spirits to fully rely on God so that our faith may be refined and strengthened.

The Lord will always reward our imperfect faithfulness as our faith seeks understanding. God will bring us full circle from a timid faith to a bold faith as we commit to these things: steeping our spirits in God’s living Word; devoting ourselves to prayer; acknowledging our need for the Lord’s help – “I believe Lord, help my unbelief!”; focusing where God is active in our personal lives and in the life of our surrounding community and world; proclaiming that God’s faithfulness is bigger than any obstacle we may face; taking risks to join God in kingdom building. Therefore, when we are faced with obstacles, we will stand firm in the Lord and speak the truth in love and with integrity.

When we live out our faith with intentionality and authenticity, God honors our faithfulness by empowering us to grow in our confidence in God’s ability to do far more than we can ever hope, ask for, or imagine.

The Presbyterian tradition describes being empowered by acts of boldness in this way:

The church universal is to be a community of faith, entrusting itself to God alone, even at the risk of losing its own life. The church universal is to be a community of love, where sin is forgiven, reconciliation is accomplished, and the dividing walls of hostility are torn down.
The church universal is to be a community of witness, pointing beyond itself through word and work to the good news of God’s transforming grace in Christ Jesus our Lord [2].

This is what godly boldness looks like.

May our faith be in conversation with our heart to grow in confidence of God’s ability and in confidence of our shared call to be holy partners with God.

And may we be empowered by the apostles’ acts of boldness because this is where the rubber meets the road - you and I are the next generation of apostles to join God in building the kingdom. And God's grace requires something of you and me.

In the name of God our Creator, Redeemer, and Sustainer. Amen.

Sources Referenced:

[1] New Interpreter’s Bible Commentary, Volume IX Acts (Nashville: Abingdon Press, 2015), p. 73.
[2] The Book of Order 2017-2019, Part II of the Constitution of the Presbyterian Church (USA) (Louisville: Office of the General Assembly, 2017), p. 2, F-1.0301

Sermon: Empowered by Their Acts - Divinely Inspired

Empowered by Their Acts: Divinely Inspired
Acts 2: 1-4, 14-21
by Rev. Carson Overstreet
Van Wyck Presbyterian Church
June 9, 2019
Pentecost Sunday

It was the moment they had been waiting for. Jesus had given the apostles their marching orders before he ascended to heaven: “Do not leave Jerusalem, but wait there for the promise of the Father. This is what you have heard from me; for John baptized with water, but you all will be baptized with the Holy Spirit not many days from now” (Acts 1: 4-5).

The apostles had constantly devoted themselves to prayer, and yet they did not know what to expect. Today we stand in the story of Acts and remember the way in which the apostles’ prayers were answered in the powerful event of Pentecost.

Listen to Luke tell the story of the Holy Spirit’s dramatic entrance in Acts 2: 1-4, 14-21.

When the day of Pentecost had come, they were all together in one place. And suddenly from heaven there came a sound like the rush of a violent wind, and it filled the entire house where they were sitting. Divided tongues, as of fire, appeared among them, and a tongue rested on each of them. All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other languages, as the Spirit gave them ability.

But Peter, standing with the eleven, raised his voice and addressed them: ‘Men of Judea and all who live in Jerusalem, let this be known to you, and listen to what I say. Indeed, these are not drunk, as you suppose, for it is only nine o’clock in the morning. No, this is what was spoken through the prophet Joel:
“In the last days it will be, God declares,
that I will pour out my Spirit upon all flesh,
and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy,
and your young men shall see visions,
and your old men shall dream dreams.
Even upon my slaves, both men and women,
in those days I will pour out my Spirit;
and they shall prophesy.
And I will show portents in the heaven above
and signs on the earth below,
blood, and fire, and smoky mist.
The sun shall be turned to darkness
and the moon to blood,
before the coming of the Lord’s great and glorious day.
Then everyone who calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved.”

The apostles were not only surprised by the Holy Spirit’s presence. They were also divinely inspired to prophesy to God’s mission in the world, to be captivated by God’s vision of Christ’s ongoing ministry, and to receive the Spirit’s holy imagination to live out the gospel. The dramatic entrance of the Spirit reminds me that God gave the apostles a sense of urgency to do God’s work in the world!

This year our session elders are learning how critical it is to be divinely inspired by the Holy Spirit in their personal lives and in their spiritual leadership. Together we are studying under the Rev. Joan Gray, a respected pastor and preacher in the Presbyterian Church and the Moderator of the 217th General Assembly. Gray says this about the Holy Spirit inspiring our personal lives:

When the Spirit begins to work in a person, God starts moving to the center of [one’s] life. Before this point, for many people, even believers, God has been on the edges of life, with one’s self at the center. The little religion we have makes life a little better, like an accessory added to an outfit or a bit of spice stirred in a recipe. Spirituality makes us feel better, and so we try to fit it in when we have time, but God’s impact on the deepest concerns, values, and decisions of our lives is minimal.

As the Spirit begins to work in us, the relationship with God that used to be a nice accessory in our life becomes more and more central to who we are. What God wants moves to the top of our priority list. Prayer becomes a desire more than a duty. Gratitude for God’s goodness comes out of nowhere and surprises us. We hear God speak in Scripture in deeper and more personal ways. God’s call on our life becomes central. Spiritual passion is about a kind of deep relationship with God that influences every area of life. [1]

And Gray says this about the Holy Spirit inspiring the community of faith:

[Churches] know that when God becomes the chief guide and power source in their life and ministry, the unthinkable moves into the realm of the possible. The first believers in Jesus thought his story was finished when they put his body in a tomb and rolled a stone in front of the opening, but God had other possibilities in mind. Just as human will did not produce Jesus, neither did human powers have the last word in his life. He came to bring a new reign of God upon the earth that no human power could ever equal or destroy.

The church was created to be both a demonstration of this new creation and a staging ground for partnering with God in taking it out to the world. Only congregations living into a transforming relationship with the God for whom nothing is impossible can hope to fulfill their potential as the body of Christ. [2]

Friends, Gray is talking about Pentecost moments in our individual and communal lives.

Discerning our potential as the body of Christ is something I continue to pray and think about often. Every January a new verse of Scripture guides my hopes and visions for ministry with you. This year that verse is from Isaiah 43: 18-19 – Do not remember the former things, or consider the things of old. I am about to do a new thing; now it springs forth, do you not perceive it? That’s a bold verse, isn’t it?

I caught a glimpse of God doing a new thing on Thursday evening. About 100 Van Wyck residents gathered at the community center for a candlelight vigil. The purposes of that vigil were to grieve the four young adults (ages 18-31) who died too soon from alcohol or drug related deaths (January – May this year), to acknowledge the tragic effects on their families and this community, and to advocate for the awareness of substance abuse.

Local clergy, including myself, were invited to share in the grass roots leadership. Our Sherriff was present and encouraged by the community’s desire for change. But what gave me goosebumps were the closing remarks from my friend and colleague – Rev. Dennis McCleave, pastor at White Oak AME Zion Church.

Rev. McCleave said, “As the larger body of Christ we have a responsibility to this community. We have a responsibility to come alongside our youth and young adults to encourage them to make better choices. We have a responsibility to really come together as sisters and brothers. This vigil is not an ending; it is a beginning.”

I left that vigil Thursday night feeling the Holy Spirit was powerfully present. I hear God’s voice saying, “I will make a way in the wilderness where the Van Wyck community feels at a loss. I will make rivers in the desert where the people’s thirst can only be satisfied by the living water of Jesus Christ.

I strongly believe that Holy Spirit is calling us to start dreaming how Van Wyck Presbyterian and White Oak AME Zion might create unity in the community. God has a dream for the kingdom of God to break in right here so that all of us may have an abundant life in Jesus Christ.

How will you and I open ourselves to be transformed to join God in reaching our potential as the body of Christ? I cannot see the whole of God’s vision alone. It will take intentionality, prayerful effort, and divinely inspired passion of many in our respective churches.

On this Pentecost Sunday we affirm that God has indeed poured out the Holy Spirit to empower us to be transformed by God’s faithfulness. At this Table, Holy Spirit clothes all apostles - past, present, and future - with power from on high (Luke 24:49). It is by the power of the Holy Spirit that we are united with our risen Lord and spiritually empowered by Jesus’ gifts; the bread of life and cup of salvation.

Gathered together just like that first century community of believers, the Holy Spirit is at work to embolden us to proclaim the good news. God’s Spirit is on the move here and now to stir our imaginations so that we might be captivated by the vision of God’s will.

We believe, according to The Brief Statement of Faith, that we tap into God’s dreams when we unite in faith “to pray without ceasing, to witness among all peoples to Christ as Lord and Savior, to unmask idolatries in Church and culture, to hear the voices of peoples long silenced, and to work with others for justice, freedom, and peace” [3].

Making God’s dream come true starts right here at the Table. We see and taste the goodness of God and then we take God’s goodness out to the streets.

With any discipline, it takes passion and effort to reach our individual and collective potential. Therefore, I want your faith to be on fire for Jesus Christ! And as our faith is rekindled it must be fueled by the breath of prayer. Fire cannot thrive without oxygen and faith cannot be fueled without prayer.

My ultimate prayer is that we may live into a transforming relationship with God as the body of Christ. The Lord God has plans to give our community a future with hope.

Each step we take to follow God’s mission is taking a step towards realizing our potential as the body of Christ. May the Holy Spirit divinely inspire us to realize our God-given potential.

In the name of God our Creator, Redeemer, and Sustainer. Amen.

Sources Referenced:

[1] Joan Gray, “Spiritual Leadership for Church Officers” (Louisville: Geneva Press, 2009), p. 24.
[2] Gray, p. 21.
[3] Part I of the Constitution of the PC(USA): The Book of Confessions, (Louisville: Westminster John Knox Press), A Brief Statement of Faith , 11.4.

Sermon: Empowered by Their Acts - Daring Greatly

Empowered by Their Acts: Daring Greatly
Acts 4: 1-22
by Rev. Carson Overstreet
Van Wyck Presbyterian Church
June 2, 2019


The apostles Peter and John had just encountered their first local mission trip at Solomon’s Temple, as told in the third chapter of Acts. Through the ministry of personal connection, Peter took the hand of the man who was born lame and raised him up in God’s strength. And then this man walked into the temple with Peter and John (Acts 3:7-8). The man was not only healed by the power of Jesus Christ, but he was freed to be who God created him to be; a beloved child of God. This man’s whole identity changed by being restored to the community.

The apostles’ first mission opportunity was about practicing resurrection. Practicing resurrection not only meant seeing this man’s need but also honoring this man’s dignity. Peter and John empowered this man to stand on his own two feet. And at that moment, this man received the hope of Jesus Christ and he could do nothing less than praise God.

This is where we enter the story of Acts 4: 1-22:

While Peter and John were speaking to the people, the priests, the captain of the temple, and the Sadducees came to them, much annoyed because they were teaching the people and proclaiming that in Jesus there is the resurrection of the dead. So they arrested them and put them in custody until the next day, for it was already evening. But many of those who heard the word believed; and they numbered about five thousand.

The next day their rulers, elders, and scribes assembled in Jerusalem, with Annas the high priest, Caiaphas, John, and Alexander, and all who were of the high-priestly family. When they had made the prisoners stand in their midst, they inquired, ‘By what power or by what name did you do this?’

Then Peter, filled with the Holy Spirit, said to them, ‘Rulers of the people and elders, if we are questioned today because of a good deed done to someone who was sick and are asked how this man has been healed, let it be known to all of you, and to all the people of Israel, that this man is standing before you in good health by the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, whom you crucified, whom God raised from the dead. This Jesus is
“the stone that was rejected by you, the builders;
it has become the cornerstone.”
There is salvation in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given among mortals by which we must be saved.’

Now when they saw the boldness of Peter and John and realized that they were uneducated and ordinary men, they were amazed and recognized them as companions of Jesus. When they saw the man who had been cured standing beside them, they had nothing to say in opposition.

So they ordered them to leave the council while they discussed the matter with one another. They said, ‘What will we do with them? For it is obvious to all who live in Jerusalem that a notable sign has been done through them; we cannot deny it. But to keep it from spreading further among the people, let us warn them to speak no more to anyone in this name.’ So they called them and ordered them not to speak or teach at all in the name of Jesus.

But Peter and John answered them, ‘Whether it is right in God’s sight to listen to you rather than to God, you must judge; for we cannot keep from speaking about what we have seen and heard.’ After threatening them again, they let them go, finding no way to punish them because of the people, for all of them praised God for what had happened. For the man on whom this sign of healing had been performed was more than forty years old.

The religious authorities in Solomon’s Temple did not think the first Christian mission was a success. Rather, they threw Peter and John in jail. You see, Jesus and his ministry made the religious authorities nervous.

Even after they had sentenced Jesus to die on the cross, he had somehow been raised from the dead. And now the Christian movement was gaining momentum at five thousand followers. The religious authorities wanted to bring the movement to a stop.

The religious authorities and the crowd in Solomon’s Temple were shocked by the apostles’ boldness. Peter and John had stepped into the arena of faith and by the power of the Holy Spirit they were confident to lift up the power of Jesus Christ and the need for God’s blessed assurance of salvation to be remembered. With zeal and passion Peter and John said to all who had ears to listen, “We cannot keep form speaking about what we have seen and heard!” (Acts 4:20).

Can you imagine having such passion for making Jesus Christ known, regardless of the costs? Many of us find ourselves quite timid in sharing our faith. Where does confidence like that come from?

The year was 1910. President Theodore Roosevelt gave his famous speech, commonly referred to as “The Man in the Arena” delivered in Paris, France. His words eloquently reveal that the confidence and success of a people stem from discipline and character. Listen to the most quoted portion of his speech:

It is not the critic who counts; not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles, or where the doer of deeds could have done them better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood; who strives valiantly; who errs, who comes short again and again, because there is no effort without error and shortcoming; but who does actually strive to do the deeds; who knows great enthusiasms, the great devotions; who spends himself in a worthy cause; who at the best knows in the end the triumph of high achievement, and who at the worst, if he fails, at least fails while daring greatly, so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who neither know victory nor defeat.

Roosevelt’s words not only speak to the collective spirit of the American people to act with confidence and courage, but his words aptly apply to the community of faith.

Within the arena of faith, we experience the victory of Jesus Christ as we follow Christ’s example striving to do his deeds; committing to know the great enthusiasms of the gospel and the rewards that come from our great devotion to it; and spending ourselves in the worthy cause of proclaiming the kingdom of God.

Spiritual confidence is built by the act of showing up again and again to step into the arena of faith daring greatly, even when we stumble and fail. And we will stumble and fail because we cannot live out our faith perfectly.

Most of us have been captivated by the bold faith of someone we know. The way she or he lives out their faith and dares greatly for God in authentic ways inspires us to do the same. And yet there are a number of ways we Christians do this.

I had the privilege of meeting Rev. Jack Haberer, years ago when serving my last church in Mississippi. Rev. Haberer is a fellow minister in the Presbyterian Church and former editor of The Presbyterian Outlook. Haberer worked with the last church I served in helping us understand the core convictions of faith (God Views)that drive us to dare greatly for God.

Haberer says there are five basic convictions that we live out in the arena of faith. The five convictions are: the Confessionalist, the Devotionalist, the Ecclesiast, the Altruist, and the Activist. The Holy Spirit drives us to identity with one or more of these five convictions.

The Confessionalist has a conviction to “enlist in God’s mission to proclaim and promote scriptural truth. Joining the great theologians, the Confessionalist happily affirms the core doctrines of the Church and when facing challenges to the truth, puts the declaration of truth above maintaining comfortable relationships within Christian community [1]. The apostles Peter and John stepped into the arena of faith with a Confessionalist conviction to proclaim the truth of Jesus’ resurrection power.

The Devotionalist has a deep hunger for a growing relationship with God and a passion to know Christ more fully. The Devotionalist adopts a vision of God and a commitment to God’s mission that calls people into a direct, vital, and dynamic relationship with God [2]. Mary, the sister of Martha and Lazarus, was a Devotionalist (Luke 10: 42). For Mary, the arena of faith began in her home and then stretched into her everyday living.

The Ecclesiast is driven to gather believers together for “worship, for sharing sacraments, for study, for mutual care, and for equipping the community of faith to serve God.” The Ecclesiast leads the church into ministries of outreach by never allowing the overall vision to turn inward [3]. The apostle Paul was an Ecclesiast. As a church planter, Paul stepped into the arena of faith to encourage both devotion to God and reaching out to the community and world to bring about God’s redemptive unity.

The Altruist is committed to “be as Christ to others…by showing altruism towards the needy to express their gratitude to God. The Altruist drives many to Christian service, because Jesus called us to care for the least of these by feeding the hungry, refreshing the thirsty, sheltering the stranger, clothing the naked, caring for the sick, and visiting the imprisoned” [4]. The Altruist Mother Teresa is a household name who stepped into the arena of faith with a wholehearted conviction to seek the welfare of the least.

The Activist takes Micah’s prophetic voice seriously that God requires us mortals to do justice, love kindness, and walk humbly with our God (Micah 6:8). The Activist has “sensed God’s call to follow Christ to become a social transformer” to join Christ in breaking down barriers to knowing God’s peace and unity. And yet, “the call to do social transformation has been blurred by an ongoing difficulty felt by those trying to sort between their faith and their politics” [5].

Jesus Christ embodied these five convictions. Jesus confessed God’s truth, devoted himself fully to love God and neighbor, worked for unity, and served the least of our neighbors. Jesus also stepped into the arena of faith as an activist.

Jesus lifted his voice with righteous anger in the temple and turned over the moneychangers’ tables for defiling his Father’s House (John 2:13). He demanded change that glorified God.

At the moment of Jesus’ triumphant entry into Jerusalem on Palm Sunday, “Jesus threatened the religious power and authority of the Jewish religious elite and he threatened the political power of the Romans” [6]. Not only did Jesus challenge the Jewish and Roman authorities but he turned them on their head though his actions on the cross.

Even as Jesus Christ embodied all five core convictions that Haberer names, there is no single right way for you and me to enter into the arena of faith. Haberer says that we need all five of these convictions to drive us forward into God’s vision of reconciling the world according to God’s will.

Our text from Acts today encourages you and me to pay attention to the way God’s Spirit is moving in our lives. Pay attention because being empowered to dare greatly is to claim the responsibility to carry on Jesus’ ministry and join God’s mission to transform the world. Each of us will claim this responsibility of faith in our own unique ways as the Spirit of God equips us to be agents of God’s faith, hope, and love in our communities and in the world.

What convictions will drive you into the arena of faith to dare greatly as an apostle of Jesus Christ? It is a worthy question for us to be in prayer about.

In the name of God our Creator, Redeemer, and Sustainer. Amen.

Sources Referenced:

[1] Jack Haberer, “God Views: The Convictions of Faith that Drive Us and Divide Us” (Louisville: Geneva Press, 2001), p. 48.
[2] Haberer, p. 59.
[3] Haberer, p. 66, 69.
[4] Haberer, p. 81.
[5] Haberer, p. 87.
[6] Haberer, p 86.

Sermon: Empowered by Their Acts - Giving Hope

Empowered by Their Acts: Giving Hope
Acts 3: 1-10
by Rev. Carson Overstreet
Van Wyck Presbyterian Church
May 26, 2019

The Christian movement in the first century was growing. The women, men, and children began to live differently by the standard of God’s grace. They leaned in to treating others with love and dignity. They focused on serving one another in compassion. They strove to forgive one another as Christ had already forgiven them on the cross.

God honored that kind of faithfulness by adding to their numbers (Acts 2:47). God gathered the apostles and early Christians for the purpose of inspiring others to live differently by making Jesus Christ and the kingdom of God known. The ministry of Jesus Christ and the reconciling mission of God Almighty was to begin in the people’s own backyard of Jerusalem and then reach out to the ends of the earth (Acts 1:8).

Our text today from Acts reveals the very first local mission opportunity. And Luke, the author of Acts, opens our eyes to see what living by the standard of grace looks like.

Listen to God’s Word to you in Acts 3: 1-10:

One day Peter and John were going up to the temple at the hour of prayer, at three o’clock in the afternoon. And a man lame from birth was being carried in. People would lay him daily at the gate of the temple called the Beautiful Gate so that he could ask for alms from those entering the temple.

When he saw Peter and John about to go into the temple, he asked them for alms.

Peter looked intently at him, as did John, and said, ‘Look at us.’ And he fixed his attention on them, expecting to receive something from them.

But Peter said, ‘I have no silver or gold, but what I have I give you; in the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, stand up and walk.’ And he took him by the right hand and raised him up; and immediately his feet and ankles were made strong.

Jumping up, he stood and began to walk, and he entered the temple with them, walking and leaping and praising God. All the people saw him walking and praising God, and they recognized him as the one who used to sit and ask for alms at the Beautiful Gate of the temple; and they were filled with wonder and amazement at what had happened to him.

It is no coincidence that this story is the first local mission for the apostles Peter and John. Why did Peter take such great interest in this man? Because he knew Jesus’ ministry did. Peter had personally seen Jesus take great interest in those whom society had discarded. Jesus Christ always drew near to those on the margins. His life from the cradle to the cross demonstrated God lives in solidarity with the poor, meek, and marginalized.

Jesus came alongside men, women, and children who were unstable physically, emotionally spiritually. While others passed by or looked away, Jesus met his brothers and sisters where they were. Jesus looked them in the eyes and listened to their stories. And Jesus empowered them to rise into the promise of new life. Therefore, through Jesus Christ “the blind receive their sight, the lame walk, the lepers are cleansed, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, and the poor have good news brought to them” (Matthew 11:5).

Why did these particular ones matter so much to Jesus? The answer is that they have always mattered to God, and always will. As Moses gathered the people of God in community the people were commanded to love God and love neighbor by caring for those in need:

If there is among you anyone in need, a member of your community in any of your towns within the land that the Lord your God is giving you, do not be hard-hearted or tight-fisted towards your needy neighbor. You should rather open your hand, willingly lending enough to meet the need, whatever it may be. Give liberally and be ungrudging when you do so, for on this account the Lord your God will bless you in all your work and in all that you undertake. Since there will never cease to be some in need on the earth, I therefore command you, ‘Open your hand to the poor and needy neighbor in your land’ (Deuteronomy 15: 7-8, 10-11).

Open your hands because you and I are our sisters’ and brothers’ keeper. To do otherwise and mock the poor insults our Maker (Proverbs 17:5).

There is something amazing about the healing of the man who had been lame from birth. Peter saw the man’s need and brokenness. He did not open his hand with money to enable. Peter opened his hand with the hope of Jesus Christ to empower.

Peter took the man by the hand and raised him up in God’s strength. And then this man walked into the temple with Peter and John (Acts 3:7-8). The man was not only healed by the power of Jesus Christ, but he was freed to be who God created him to be; a beloved child of God. This man’s whole identity changed by being restored to the community.

This man was empowered by the act of receiving hope. Friends, to give hope by raising up another in the name of Jesus Christ requires personal connection. Within the space of personal connection, our faith is at work to honor the dignity of the other.

The core of honoring another’s dignity is to see another person’s intrinsic worth as a fellow child of God, regardless of the circumstances that surround them. Honoring another’s dignity marks the difference between serving a sister or brother in need with compassion versus having pity on her or him.

Pity carries another to the gate to beg. Compassion walks with another to empower him or her to stand on their own feet again.

Isaiah’s Table is a community of faith that serves grace, hope, and food for all. Formed in 2012, they are one of the Presbyterian Church’s 1001 new worshipping communities in Syracuse, New York. Isaiah’s Table gathers weekly to serve breakfast to community members, followed by worship. Their vision for ministry is to build congregational vitality, eradicate systemic poverty and dismantle racism.

Many who come to Isaiah’s Table battle addictions, struggle with poverty, and are in and out of prison. And yet this ministry of personal connection in the name of Jesus Christ is empowering women and men in need to live differently by receiving hope. Isaiah’s Table is also empowering the apostles of that faith community to gain a new perspective. One ministry leader said, “[Our neighbors in need] are not just statistics anymore or people that you can just walk away from.”

Curtis Jenkins is a bus driver for Lake Highland Elementary School in Dallas, Texas. He approaches his job from a missional standpoint. Curtis strives to empower the children on his school bus just as if they were his own children; he treats them as a family and impresses upon them the importance of community.

Curtis sees the dignity in each child and knows that each one is capable of doing a job on the bus. Each child has a responsibility to contribute towards building up unity. Curtis often says on the bus microphone: “We are going to care about each other and love everybody.” Scripture says, “Teach a child the way she or he should go and she or he will not depart from it” (Proverbs 22:6).

Curtis places a high value on the virtues of time, effort, love, care, and understanding. And he shows his love and understanding to the students by giving the children presents through the school year. He knows which ones are struggling as he learns their stories. Each gift is personally chosen with a particular child in mind. Curtis has given bikes on birthdays, books, t-shirts to inspire, and turkey at Thanksgiving.

But if you ask the students what Mr. Curtis has given them the gifts never come up.

Students said, “Mr. Curtis cares about us.” “He is really kind.” “He helps everyone in need.”

Curtis is empowering these children by giving them the hope that Jesus still gives, the hope that Peter gave to the man who was lame, and that you and I are called to give in our community.

Each of us here today has a mission as a community and as individuals to empower the least, the needy, the weak, and the vulnerable in our community by giving hope. Serving our sisters and brothers in need matters because it was the core of Jesus’ ministry. It was the core of Jesus’ ministry because it mattered to God and it always will.

May we open our hands to risk leaning into the ministry of personal connection. That is the Jesus way. And this is the way of practicing resurrection as Easter people to make Jesus known and reveal the kingdom of God a little more.

Practicing resurrection is to notice the need and brokenness in those around us. It is to be an authentic agent of God’s presence. And it is to bring the hope of Jesus Christ as the Spirit leads us.

May we be empowered by the apostles’ acts of giving hope this week.

In the name of God our Creator, Redeemer, and Sustainer. Amen.

Sermon: Empowered by their Acts: Living Differently

Empowered by Their Acts: Living Differently
Acts 2: 38-47
by Rev. Carson Overstreet
Van Wyck Presbyterian Church
May 19, 2019

It was a new day and Peter, the rock of the apostles, was preaching to the 120 followers and apostles gathered together. He spoke passionately about the costly grace of the cross. He spoke with conviction that it was our sin that crucified our Lord. And yet when God raised up Jesus, our Lord and Messiah, from the dead, it changed everything. The weight of God’s grace cut the people to the heart. And they asked Peter, “What should we do?” (Acts 2:22-28, 36-37).

Peter’s instructions are where we enter today’s text in Acts 2: 38-47.

Peter said to them, ‘Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ so that your sins may be forgiven; and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. For the promise is for you, for your children, and for all who are far away, everyone whom the Lord our God calls to him.’ And he testified with many other arguments and exhorted them, saying, ‘Save yourselves from this corrupt generation.’ So those who welcomed his message were baptized, and that day about three thousand persons were added. They devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and fellowship, to the breaking of bread and the prayers.

Awe came upon everyone, because many wonders and signs were being done by the apostles. All who believed were together and had all things in common; they would sell their possessions and goods and distribute the proceeds to all, as any had need. Day by day, as they spent much time together in the temple, they broke bread at home and ate their food with glad and generous hearts, praising God and having the goodwill of all the people. And day by day the Lord added to their number those who were being saved.

Peter proclaimed the most faithful way to respond to the grace of God in Jesus Christ is to embrace a radical change of the mind and the heart. That is what “repent” means. In our tradition we recognize that because of the human condition of sin we cannot create a radical change all by ourselves. The Holy Spirit reorients our minds to the grace of Jesus Christ and then moves us in the direction of the heart’s true destination.

The water of Baptism is a sign that God has delivered us from sin by the costly grace of the cross. We share in Christ’s dying and, in his being raised to new life. The Holy Spirit seals us with the promise that nothing will ever separate us from the love of God in Jesus Christ. And by the grace of God we begin to live differently. As God’s grace reorients our minds, the Holy Spirit moves us in the direction of the heart’s true destination… destination is community. Baptism initiates us into the greater family of faith.

The marks of that family of faith in the first century faith are the basics of growing as God’s people: the devotion to the apostles’ teaching, fellowship, worship, and prayer.

But this first picture of the early Christian community was not exclusively about sharing a common set of beliefs. My commentary says it was to display a profound regard for one another’s spiritual, physical, and emotional well-being as a community of friends [1].

The first century community was comprised of a diversity of backgrounds. As they communed together, they had the opportunity to really get to know one another, as they were growing in the gift of faith that connected them. A pastoral colleague shared a quote from Greg Lyons’ book, “The Next Christians,” says this about the acts of living into Christian community:

Despite what most people think, the “church” is more than just bricks and mortar. It’s always been, and always will be, a fellowship of people that goes far beyond the walls of any building, denomination, or meeting space. It’s a community of people who have found healthy patterns of human relating and new standards for how to treat one another, serve one another, and even forgive one another that run counter to the world [2].

This is poignant description of the early Christian community in our text today. And that new standard for patterns of relating to one another is the grace of Jesus Christ. The standard of grace empowers us to live differently with each other. God honors that kind of faithfulness to treat others with love and dignity, serving one another in compassion, and forgiving one another as we have already been forgiven.

In our text today God honored that kind of faithfulness by adding to the number of the first century community. Don’t get lost in the modern language of a small church membership growing leaps and bounds into a megachurch of three thousand. That is not Luke’s point. When the text says “God added,” the Greek verb actually means “gathered for a purpose.”

Those changed minds and hearts were gathered for the purpose of showing the world how awesome God is. That purpose was living the good news that we are more than the worst thing we have ever done. That purpose united the first century believers to saying “yes” to God’s invitation to join the Lord in transforming the world by God’s intentions.

And that purpose bound the believers in having the good will for all creation and humanity. We love with a good will for all because God first loved us (1 John 4:19).

The relevance of the first century community of faith is not lost on us. Here at Van Wyck Presbyterian, growing in relationship with God and one another is a priority. Holy Spirit has gathered us together as we have seen that God’s love still changes the world. Holy Spirit has reoriented our minds and hearts in some big or even small way.

And so, we gather like the first century believers to live differently in the world by practicing resurrection. Practicing resurrection is to live into the hope of new life.

The Lord was raised to new life on the first day of the week and so we gather on the Lord’s Day to say, “Thank you Jesus.” We bless the Lord and we trust our very lives to God’s saving grace, for nothing is impossible with God. Today we thank the apostles among us who lead our children, youth, and adults to grow in God’s Word through relationships. Thank you for inspiring us to live differently through Christ’s example.

We gather together to study, pray, and savior table hospitality. I am so grateful for the apostles among us who lead our ministries here. And I pray that the Lord will continue to nudge each of us to connect to the ministries here to grow in God’s grace.

As we gather to grow as followers of Jesus Christ, we are also united by God’s purposes to be sent out in the community and in the wider world. God has a purpose for each of us to practice resurrection.

Sometimes we do this in concerted efforts through Dimes for Hunger, Hope Food Pantry, Promise Neighborhood, and Back to School Bash. Your generosity of sharing your time, talents, and treasures in mission is so very moving. These ministries are joining God’s purposes to encourage others to live differently because hope shines upon the most vulnerable in our community.

But let me tell you something. This particular body of Christ has moved my faith in seeing how committed you are to the well-being of the community. Over the past four years I have seen many of you meeting the needs of your neighbors who are enduring hard times; those neighbors have been inspired by receiving the generosity of God’s grace. I am blessed knowing you are living differently by sharing the love of Christ in your everyday work.

To live differently by the gift of faith is to live into encouragement and accountability with God. This is the hallmark of why Christian community is so important. The gift of faith encourages us by the greatest commandment to love God and love neighbor as ourselves. But here is no accountability without community.

I pray that as we continue to walk the path of faith together that you leave here today with the assurance that you and I are gathered for a purpose – God’s purpose. Everything that we do or say has the potential to give glory to God. We cannot do God’s work all alone or in isolation; we need one another just as we need God’s grace.

May we be empowered today by the ACTS of the apostles to live differently. The grace of God is what unites us in the gift of faith. The grace of God encourages us to allow Holy Spirit to build us up so that we may be a blessing to others. And the grace of God is the standard of holding us accountable to love God and to love our neighbor as ourselves.

Wherever we go, I pray you and I will inspire someone else to live differently because of Jesus’ love.

In the name of God our Creator, Redeemer, and Sustainer. Amen.

Sources Referenced:

[1] New Interpreter’s Bible Commentary, “Acts, Volume IX” (Nashville: Abingdon Press, 2015), p. 54-57.
[2] Gabe Lyons, “The Next Christians: Seven Ways You Can Live the Gospel and Restore the World (Colorado Springs: Multnomah Books, 2010). p. 161.

Sermon: Empowered by Their Acts: Devoted

Empowered by Their Acts: Devoted
Acts 1: 12-17, 21-26
by Rev. Carson Overstreet
Van Wyck Presbyterian Church
May 12, 2019


Then they returned to Jerusalem from the mount called Olivet, which is near Jerusalem, a sabbath day’s journey away. When they had entered the city, they went to the room upstairs where they were staying, Peter, and John, and James, and Andrew, Philip and Thomas, Bartholomew and Matthew, James son of Alphaeus, and Simon the Zealot, and Judas son of James. All these were constantly devoting themselves to prayer, together with certain women, including Mary the mother of Jesus, as well as his brothers.

In those days Peter stood up among the believers (together the crowd numbered about one hundred and twenty people) and said, ‘Friends, the scripture had to be fulfilled, which the Holy Spirit through David foretold concerning Judas, who became a guide for those who arrested Jesus— for he was numbered among us and was allotted his share in this ministry.’

So one of the men who have accompanied us throughout the time that the Lord Jesus went in and out among us, beginning from the baptism of John until the day when he was taken up from us—one of these must become a witness with us to his resurrection.’ So they proposed two, Joseph called Barsabbas, who was also known as Justus, and Matthias. Then they prayed and said, ‘Lord, you know everyone’s heart. Show us which one of these two you have chosen to take the place in this ministry and apostleship from which Judas turned aside to go to his own place.’ And they cast lots for them, and the lot fell on Matthias; and he was added to the eleven apostles. - Acts 1: 12-17, 21-26

Jesus had instructed the apostles to not leave Jerusalem, but to wait for the Holy Spirit’s arrival (Acts 1:4). They had watched Jesus ascend to heaven on the Mount of Olives (Acts 1:12). And now walking back to Jerusalem there was a heaviness among the apostles. They felt Jesus’ real absence.

Memories of the recent past must have flooded their minds. The Mount of Olives was the place where Jesus began his triumphant entry into Jerusalem to claim his destiny of suffering and salvation (Luke 19:29, 37-38). It is where Jesus regularly went to be still in the presence of the Lord and pray (Luke 22:39). After their last supper together, the disciples had followed Jesus to the Mount of Olives. On that night the disciples saw Jesus wrestle with fulfilling God’s will by the costly grace of the cross. It was in that moment the disciples’ faithfulness was being tested as they slept there in grief and denial of what Jesus had predicted (Luke 22:40-46).

I imagine the eleven apostles struggled with the contradiction that while Judas Iscariot shared in their three-year ministry with Jesus, he was capable of betraying Jesus; and this was to fulfill the Scriptures (Luke 22:21; Psalm 41:9; Acts 1:16). Now they were grieving Judas’ death.

In the mix, Peter must have wrestled with his own denial of Jesus Christ; he too had turned against his Lord and friend not once but three times (Luke 22:34, 55-61). When the cock crowed Peter had wept bitterly (Luke 22:62). But Jesus’ words remained on Peter’s heart: “Simon Peter, I have prayed for you that your faith may not fail; and you, when once you have turned back, strengthen your brothers” (Luke 22:32).

Now here they were back in the upper room of Jerusalem with Jesus’ mother and brothers (Acts 1:14). The weight of it all was palpable and there was an awkwardness among them. The question was how would the apostles go forward in the face of these obstacles? Could they really take Jesus’ marching orders to carry on Jesus’ work in world and make him known?

What the apostles are led to do next matters for the sake of the biblical story and for our stories today. Luke says the eleven apostles together with Jesus’ mother and brothers were constantly devoting themselves.

When we hear that word “devoted” we usually think of someone being a devoted parent, a devoted student, a devoted employee, a devoted friend. In this light it sounds like being devoted is simply being loyal. And there is some truth to that. But sometimes our English language falls short in capturing the essence of a word’s truth.

That word “devote” in the Greek means to give constant attention to; to stay fixed in one direction; to prevail in spite of difficulty.

In the first real challenge they found themselves in, the apostles constantly devoted themselves by giving attention to prayer. You see the apostles were in a process of becoming the hands and feet of Jesus Christ. That meant they needed to call to mind what made Jesus Christ’s life, ministry, and faithfulness to God authentic and powerful. If you look through the gospel accounts Jesus’ authenticity and power were rooted in prayer.

The Lord taught his disciples the way he prayed. To pray for God’s kingdom to come, to pray for God to supply our needs, to pray for forgiveness, and to pray for faithfulness in a world of trials and temptation had become foundational to these apostles (Luke 11:2-4). If the apostles were going to wait and live by the Spirit, they also needed to keep in step with the Holy Spirit. Devoting themselves to prayer guided their steps even as prayer guided Jesus’ steps of obedience to God.

The apostles were becoming resolute in staying fixed in one direction; the direction of unity. They were devoted to living in community as Jesus had called them to live in community with him. In this very uncertain time, solidarity was key in order to process their roller coaster of emotions. Solidarity created a space to imagine their next steps going forward into our risen Lord’s instructions.

The apostles began taking steps to discern God’s will to prevail in spite of difficulty. In order to take the baton and run with it, the apostles had to look at the work they had done with Jesus and the work they were called to do.

Therefore, Peter claimed his authority to be the rock in which the church would be built. He led his fellow apostles in a strategy to restore the group to Jesus’ vision of twelve apostles; this was symbolic for the twelve tribes of Israel and God’s faithfulness to the covenant of God’s people. With a complete number, each apostle would assume specific responsibilities to be the hands and feet of Jesus and make him known.

You and I are in our own processes of becoming apostles of Jesus Christ too. It matters why and how we are joining our risen Lord’s ongoing mission in the world.

Maybe you are new in the faith and you are here today because you are curious to know what a disciple of Jesus Christ actually means. Maybe you have been a cradle Christian and you are seeking a fresh Word as you walk another stretch on the path of faith. Somehow…someway Jesus Christ has touched your life and mine along the way and we want to know what the next right step is.

When I think about why I follow Jesus Christ I always think about a song I once heard as a new Christian from a band called Third Day:

I want the world to turn because of love and mercy to find each of us doing what we can to just believe. I want the world to know that You're the One, Who fills me up and gives me hope and brings about this change that's in me.

Each of you have your own story as to why you follow Jesus Christ. But the how you and I follow is just as important. The writer of Acts, Luke, wants you and I to be empowered by the apostle’s act of being devoted. That does not mean that you and I will devote ourselves to our Creator God, Redeemer Jesus Christ, and Sustainer Holy Spirit perfectly. There was only One who lived in perfect devotion and perfect faithfulness to God and that was Jesus Christ.

Instead Holy Spirit is empowering you and I in this process of devoting ourselves by the example of Jesus’ faithfulness and devotion. Being a devoted apostle is not just about being loyal to the idea of being a Christian. There is more to it than that. And we do it one day at a time in some specific ways.

I want to encourage you to take the time each and every day to devote your faith to prayer. Pray for God’s kingdom to unfold a little more today on earth as it is in heaven. Pray for God to supply your needs and to open your eyes to supply the needs of others. Pray for the courage to forgive just as the costly grace of the cross has already forgiven you. Pray for God to strengthen your faithfulness amidst the trials and temptation of life. Prayer is just talking with God. It gives us a relational framework to discern God’s will, gain spiritual wisdom, glean understanding, wrestle with tough stuff, and mature in our spiritual walk with God (Colossians 1:9, 4:3, 4:12).

I want to encourage you to devote your faith in the fixed direction of unity. Consider the ways your presence brings about unity in community. Make worship a priority in your spiritual life. The community of faith is where we ground ourselves in the truth of whom we belong to. We rejoice with those who rejoice, and we weep with those who weep. Our solidarity is a holy action of trusting God with our lives. The greatest act of being devoted to unity is joining hands across denominational lines in God’s mission. God smiles when we do this.

I want to encourage you to devote your faith to prevail in spite of life’s difficulties. You and I are not just learning the ropes of faith together, but we are “the sent ones” to be the hands and feet of Jesus in a hurting world. Each of us have different responsibilities Monday through Saturday. In the pews I see students, teachers, managers, financial experts, business owners, lawyers, nurses, retirees. But do you know that first and foremost you are a beloved child of God and an apostle of Jesus Christ?

Just imagine how God is calling you to put your faith in action to make Christ known where you work and play? Where is God calling you to extend the grace and compassion of Jesus Christ? Our actions of faith speak much louder than our words.

Becoming a devoted apostle is not about how we live on Sundays or how we live within the four walls of church. Devotion is more about the ways we are being led to put our faith into action in the world so that Jesus’ ministry of reconciliation will prevail in spite of all the obstacles that seem to threaten it.

And on the days when we feel like our faith has failed, we need the unity of Christian community to build us up in the assurance that nothing will ever thwart God’s purposes.

May you and I be empowered by acts of devoting ourselves to Jesus Christ this week.

In the name of God our Creator, Redeemer, and Sustainer. Amen.

Sermon: Empowered by their ACTS: Waiting

Empowered by Their Acts: Waiting
Acts 1: 1-11
by Rev. Carson Overstreet
Van Wyck Presbyterian Church
May 5, 2019

The Gospel according to Luke, the beloved physician, took us on this past Lenten journey (February, March, and April) to see God moving in our lives with regards to Jesus’ teachings. It was Luke who took us inside the empty tomb of Easter to proclaim Christ’s message that brokenness, destruction, and death are not the end of our human story. Because he lives, we can face tomorrow – Amen?

And here we are on the third Sunday of Easter. I don’t know about you, but my soul has been stirring and asking, “What is next?” Where does our faith go from here?

Luke says that the disciples, the men and women who had been with Jesus those three years, were asking themselves the very same question. They were chosen by Jesus to proclaim the kingdom of God and to do mighty works in his name. And yet these followers were still trying to get their mind around Jesus death and resurrection.

After Easter they had been with the risen Lord for forty days. And Jesus was preparing to leave them again to ascend to heaven and sit at the right hand of God the Father Almighty, as we say in the Apostles’ Creed. The disciples were now being prepared to be “the sent ones” – that is what the word ‘apostle’ means. The apostles would be sent from Jerusalem to the ends of the world to continue Jesus’ work and making him known.

Listen to Luke’s words in the Acts of the Apostles – the first chapter, verses 1-11.

In the first book, Theophilus, I wrote about all that Jesus did and taught from the beginning until the day when he was taken up to heaven, after giving instructions through the Holy Spirit to the apostles whom he had chosen. After his suffering he presented himself alive to them by many convincing proofs, appearing to them over the course of forty days and speaking about the kingdom of God. While staying with them, he ordered them not to leave Jerusalem, but to wait there for the promise of the Father. ‘This’, he said, ‘is what you have heard from me; for John baptized with water, but you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit not many days from now.’

So when they had come together, they asked him, ‘Lord, is this the time when you will restore the kingdom to Israel?’ He replied, ‘It is not for you to know the times or periods that the Father has set by his own authority. But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.’ When he had said this, as they were watching, he was lifted up, and a cloud took him out of their sight. 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 up towards heaven? This Jesus, who has been taken up from you into heaven, will come in the same way as you saw him go into heaven.’

In the book of Acts, Luke tells the story of the very beginning of the Christian movement. In the same way Luke began his Gospel, so here he addresses the story to Theophilus, whose name means “Lover of God” (Luke 1:3; Acts 1:1). Some scholars say that this name addresses people like you and me who are curious about who this Jesus is and are searching for God’s direction [1].

The apostles are all standing with Jesus and just beyond the crest of the present is a very uncertain future – at least to the human eye. I think Jesus knew the apostles were curious, anxious, and questioning. He meets them where they are and gives them their marching orders, their next steps.

The apostles are to trust God’s timing for the big picture of God’s will and NOT get stuck on the details of how God would accomplish his purposes, especially in regards to God honoring his covenant with Israel (Acts 1:7).

The apostles will be empowered by the Holy Spirit to continue Jesus’ work by joining God in changing the world (Acts 1:8).

And the apostles are to make Jesus known by starting in their immediate community of Jerusalem and then reaching out to the ends of the earth (Acts 1:8).

But before the apostles could do any of this, Jesus said something very important. Jesus commanded the apostles to wait (Acts 1: 4). What did Jesus mean? Does waiting mean to sit on the dock of the bay wasting time?

What happens when you wait and do nothing? It seems like nothing happens.

Jesus is not talking about a passive waiting without effort. The word he uses in the Greek means to remain all around regardless of the obstacles. That kind of waiting takes the efforts of expectation, hope, and not giving up.

In fact, Jesus told the apostles to wait in this way for the blessing of the Holy Spirit because without the power of God’s Spirit they could do nothing through their human strength.

In the Gospel of John Jesus told his followers that after his death and resurrection they would be waiting for the Advocate, the Helper, the Spirit of Truth to come. “The Holy Spirit, whom God will send in my name, will teach you everything and remind you of all that I have said to you” (John 14: 17, 26-29).

The apostles are waiting for the future to unfold by the power of the Holy Spirit and there is one thing that makes it possible for them to do that. My commentary says, “Waiting for the dynamic future to unfold involves a measure of uncertainty and urgency. What makes waiting possible for the apostles to hope for tomorrow’s best is remembering God’s past faithfulness” [2].

The secret of waiting according to the lens of faith is holy memory; remembering God’s past faithfulness. Scripture not only tells us the incredible life changing story of God’s radical love for creation and humanity, but the Good Book is the keeper of God’s faithfulness among our spiritual ancestors; their story is our story.

Scripture is the living Word of God because it is still at work to rewrite your stories and mine. The beauty of gathering in Christian community is that we not only study, learn and remember the story of God’s faithfulness but we share our personal and communal encounters of God’s amazing grace in our lives.

To have that kind of holy memory reminds us that no matter what we are waiting for, we have hope that God is still at work to mend the brokenness in the world and in our hearts and raise us to new life – not just when we die but now.

Charles Spurgeon was a well-known preacher in the 19th century. He once preached, “The waiting itself is beneficial to us: it tries faith, exercise patience, trains submission, and endears the blessing when it comes.”

What are you waiting for? Are you waiting for courage to face that challenge? Are you waiting for that relationship to heal and be restored? Are you still waiting for those chains to break? Are you waiting to discover where you belong? Are you waiting for the Lord to show up and show you the way? Are you waiting for the church to become more relevant in a quickly changing world?

Whatever you are waiting for, I want you to know that you are not alone. So don’t just wait and passively let your life go by. Faith gives us the framework to wait with expectation, hope, and perseverance. Waiting is the first step of being an apostle of Jesus Christ.

Do you know why? Because without the power of the Holy Spirit we can do nothing. You and I cannot solely generate a sufficient version of hope apart from God.

And so in the meantime we question what this thing called faith is. We tap into that holy memory to remain confident in God’s ability; holy memory is the anchor of the soul (Hebrews 6:19). We keep learning to trust God’s timing without getting stuck in the little details of exactly when and where God is going to work things out. And we endear the blessing of the Holy Spirit when she shows up in all her power and might. The Spirit of Truth will teach us everything.

My hope for our journey together through Acts is this: that we might be empowered by the marks of the first century Christian community; that you and I may be compelled to claim our identity as followers of Jesus Christ (because sometimes we get lacks in that); and that we may discern where God is leading us communally and individually.

May it be so…
In the name of God our Creator, Redeemer, and Sustainer. Amen.

Sources Referenced:

[1] New Interpreter’s Bible Commentary “Acts, Volume IX” (Nashville: Abingdon Press, 2015), p. 26.
[2] New Interpreter’s Bible Commentary “Acts, Volume IX” (Nashville: Abingdon Press, 2015), p. 33.