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Beginning a series of sermons on " The Acts
of the Apostles. ”
ET ME say that name, “The Acts of
the Apostles,” is a misnomer. This book
does not record the acts of the apostles;
only a very few of the apostles are even
mentioned in the book. As we see from
the first verse, the book is a continua
tion of the things that Jesus began to do
and to teach. Os course the means by
which Jesus does His work is the Holy
L
Spirit through the apostles. The Acts of the Apostles
then should properly be called the Acts of Jesus
through the Holy Spirit.
Now, please, look at the first section, which is
the introduction to the book, verses one, two and
three. Take these two expressions: “The former
treatise,” and “began”. From the first of these we
gather that Luke is the author of this book. There
is scarcely any question about that, but that the
“former treatise” that he speaks of is Luke’s gospel.
Then, the word “began”, calls attention to the
fact that in that former treatise he spoke of the
beginning of Jesus’ actions and teaching. The min
istry of Jesus did not end when He was crucified;
that was the beginning of His work. Jesus Himself
said on the cross, “It is finished,” but He did not
mean that His ministry was finished. He never
meant that all He meant to accomplish was com
plete. He referred to the foundation work in the
world’s redemption. He referred to His atoning
death. In so far as his atonement was sufficient
to save the world His work was complete, but the
work that Jesus came to do and to teach was more
than simply making atonement. It was the work
of application. It was the work of reducing these
principles of atonement to the solution of the prob
lems that beat and throb in the daily life of the
world and, in this sense of the word, what Jesus
came to do was incomplete when He died. He
wrought out the principle. He made the atonement
for the sin of the world and then He left the appli
cation to those that made up His Church. And
so Luke as he begins to write the Book of Acts
refers to the work that Jesus began to do and to
teach, which was cut short at His death and ascen
sion, and now is purposed to be carried on through
the agency of the Holy Spirit, by the co-operation
of the Church.
THE SPIRIT PROMISED.
This brings us to the second general division of
this chapter— the Spirit promised. After Luke has
finished his introduction, after he lias told for what
purpose the book is to be written, he then proceeds
to tell of the promised power with which and
through which this work is to be done. This is a
reference to Luke 25:49, where Jesus before His
ascension, gathered His disciples about Him and
gave them the command, “Tarry in Jerusalem until
ye are endued with power from on high.”
Now, you want to get some conception of the
condition at the time when Jesus gave to His dis
ciples that command. Remember that on the one
hand stood the Jewish world with all of its religious
formalism and death. They were intensely relig
ious, but theirs was a religion absolutely non-prac
tical; it was altogether formalism. On the other
hand stood Rome with her great heathen idolatry.
Here stand the disciples, that little band in the
midst of these two great powers—religious formal
ism, without a single whit of its spirit, and the
worst form of heathen idolatry. Jesus is soon to go
away and is to leave upon the shoulders of this
little band the burden of evangelizing the world.
He has said, “Go ye into all the world and make
disciples of every creature.” What a stupendous
task! How they must have quaked and trembled
as they faced this great mission. But Jesus knew
how utterly impossible it was for them to accom
plish the great task which he had laid upon them
if left to their own efforts, for they were a humble
hand, an unknown people gathered from the shores
”T A WRY YE”
7 abernacle Sermon by 'Reb. Len G. Broughton, D. D.
Stenographically reported for The Golden Age.—Copy right applied for.
of Galilee, unlettered, untaught, except as He had
taught them. Think, will you, of such men, under
such circumstances, with the tremendous task of
evangelizing the world, with this great opposition
arrayed on either hand, with its wealth, influence
and power. All of them, the religious formalists and
the heathen idolaters were banded together to defeat
these disciples in their great purpose of evangelizing
the world. I cannot conceive of a more discour
aging outlook than that which these men faced, and
Jesus knew it far better than they did. Jesus al
ways knows. He knows the enormity of the
problem that He has sent them to work out, but
He never let them go until He had prepared them
for it. You and I can always rely on one thing,
and that is that when He directs us to a task, He
prepares us for the task.
When He had directed them, He stood by them
until He equipped them for the task that He had
given, and here is the equipment —“Tarry ye in
Jerusalem until ye receive power from on high.”
Now, we want to study a bit that command. He
does not mean that thew shall be endowed with
power. It is a greater work than endowment, a deep
er work, more comprehensive. You may endow
an institution by imparting to it a small amount.
But to endue a thing is to envelop it, control it,
master it. “Tarry in Jerusalem until ye are envelop
ed with power from on high.”
What does He mean by power? He does not
mean what the world calls power. He never meant
wealth. Wealth is not power though we seem to
have away of looking at it as if it were. He never
meant culture. Culture is not power. He never
meant numbers. Numbers is not power. He never,
meant influence. Influence is not power. He Him
self had no influence, but He had power. He meant
that those men were to assemble in the upper
chamber and there remain until they were envel
oped by the power of the supernatural; until they
were given the power to do things out of the ordi
nary, until they were taken possession of by the
Holy Ghost.
He did not tell them how long to tarry, whether
ten days or twenty days. He simply told them to
remain until they were endued with power from
on high.
Now, we find that just about that time there arose
a questioning among these disciples. “Wilt thou.
at this time restore the kingdom to Israel?” Why
were they so anxious about that just at this time?
They were anxious because Jesus had been talking
*
to them about power ,and as He talked to them
about the enduement of power they began to feel
their importance. They did not understand that
Jesus was talking about a spiritual Kingdom. They
never until Pentecost understood what the Kingdom
meant. They thought that He was talking -about a
kingdom on earth, a material kingdom, and they
began to feel their importance with reference to it.
They felt that when this kingdom of power was
come they were going to sway the universe as the
representatives of the Kingdom of Heaven upon the
earth. “Lord, wilt thou at this time restore the
Kingdom to Israel?” And Jesus answered, saying:
“It is not for you to know times or seasons, which
the Father hath set within his own authority.”
PURPOSE OF POWER.
Then comes the third division. He continues,
“But ye shall receive power when the Holy Spirit
is come upon you; and ye shall be my witnesses,
both in Jerusalem, and in Judea and Samaria, and
u"*o the uttermost parts of the earth.” As much
as to say: “You are mistaken about this Kingdom.
You are mistaken concerning the purpose for which
this power is to come. This power is not to equip
you for a higher place in this life. You will receive
power, and then you will be my witnesses. The
power of which I speak is not a civil, or military
power. It is the power of the Spirit, equipping
you with a testimony and giving you power to give it
for me in all the world.”
First, this ministry was to begin in Jerusalem, the
place in which they lived at that time, and let me
The Golden Age for September 8, 1910.
say that that is the place for all of us our work to
begin. Many people today are anxious to enter
Christian work, and they do not see that which is
lying at their own door. Your Jerusalem and mine
is first of all the home in which we live. Is there
anybody in there that needs a witness? There is
your Jerusalem. If there is in my neighborhood a
man or woman, boy or girl whom I can help to
see God, then Jerusalem is there. But we must
not stay there. One great trouble with us is
that we begin at home and don’t want to go any
where else. Begin there and proceed until the utter
most parts of the earth are reached. Begin at Jeru
salem, and then go into Judea, your neighbors’ terri
tory, see if there is anything there you can do for
God, any opportunity for witnessing for Jesus. Then
go into Samaria, further still, unto the uttermost
parts of the earth.
THE SECOND ADVENT.
Following this we find Jesus referring to His
second advent. It is significant to me that Jesus
speaks of His second coming just here. It is very
encouraging. We are not always to keep working
on this proposition without the Head of the Church.
He has retired now but He purposes to come back,
and He gives this promise as an encouragement to
this end, saying, “I know it is a great problem even
with the equipment of the Spirit, but you will not
always nave to work on it yourselves. I will come
back and assume the reins of government and order
the affairs of the Kingdom.”
We find this second advent spoken of again in
verses nine to eleven. After He had spoken to them
about their ministry. He suddenly began to arise
out of their midst. He arose higher and higher, up
and on until He passed through cloud and on until
He reached His Father’s presence. When He had
disappeared, two men appeared, robed in white. I
do not know what you think about this, and I only
give my opinion, but I think that these two men
on this great occasion of the ascension of the Son
of God were none other than the same two men
who stood by on the Mount of Transfiguration. 1
believe they were Moses and Elias; Moses as the
representative of the law, and Elias as the repre
sentative of the prophets. The law and the prophets
coming together on this occasion when Jesus has
taken His final departure from the earth. Here
they stand to give their testimony to the fact that
the law and the prophets have been fulfilled. In
other words it looks to me as if Moses and Elias
came to see the finishing of their work. They are
there to give their personal testimony to the fact
that He has gone as they prophecied He would, and,
furthermore, to give to them and to future ages the
additional hope and assurance of the fact that He
is coming again as they prophecied in the olden
times. But it makes no difference as to whether
these two men were angels or whether they were
Moses and Elias. It is their message that counts.
This is what they said, “Ye men of Galilee, why
stand ye looking into heaven? This Jesus who was
received up from you into heaven, shall so come in
like manner as ye beheld him going into heaven.”
It is the first word spoiten from heaven after Jesus
left this earth, and it is a promise concerning the
Lord’s second coming. And from that time on the
Church has been proclaiming that truth and looking
for the fulfillment of that promise, and some day,
we don’t know when, perhaps soon, that promise is
going to be fulfilled.
After these men had made this promise, after they
had given to these sorrowing disciples the light of
a glorious hope, and departed, the disciples went
back to Jerusalem, and there in accordance with
Jesus’ instructions, we find them assembled in that
upper room.
For what purpose are they there? They are
gathered there for the purpose, of being endued with
power from on high, in order that they may begin
to evangelize the world. That is all that Jesus
commanded them to do; they were to wait until the
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