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Author: Stephen Weller
641 words, 3 minutes read time

The Purpose of the Holy Spirit

Scripture: Luke 24:50; Acts 1:6-8

With the previous lesson we finish the section covering the final words of instruction Jesus gave to his disciples before his ascension. With this lesson we will begin a section that covers the ascension of Jesus.

^{Lk 24:50} And he led them out as far as Bethany, ^{Acts 1:6} So when they had come together, they asked him, “Lord, will you at this time restore the kingdom to Israel?” ⁷ He said to them, “It is not for you to know times or seasons that the Father has fixed by his own authority. ⁸ But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.”

This section opens with Jesus and the eleven disciples at Bethany on the Mount of Olives. Bethany was located on the eastern slopes of the Mount of Olives and is where Mary, Martha and Lazarus lived.

While they were together the disciples asked Jesus when he planned to restore the kingdom to Israel. The disciples assumed from his resurrection and the promise of the Spirit that the messianic era had begun, and that the final salvation of Israel was imminent. However, they were probably still expecting the restoration of a military and political kingdom that would deliver them from Roman control and restore national sovereignty to Israel, an event that happened numerous times in the Old Testament. They still did not understand or comprehend that the kingdom they were to look for was to be formed in heaven first before being brought to and established on earth.

Jesus does not directly answer their question by giving them a time, but instead tells them that it is not for them to know when it will happen. The Father knows the “times or seasons” and by his own authority the kingdom will come at the established time and season set by him. Among the persons of the trinity, ultimate authority to determine the events of history, including this one, is ascribed to God the Father.

What the disciples have yet to understand is that they will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon them at Pentecost to equip them to spread the good news of the gospel throughout the world and make more disciples to continue the process until the kingdom is fully populated, that the body of Christ is complete. The body of Christ is one body but is made up of many members. Those members are all born again believers. The establishment of this body of Christians who are indwelt by the Holy Spirit is the piece the disciples have yet to learn and start to do. We will begin to cover this learning is just a few days when we begin our study of the Acts of the Apostles.

Jesus instructs the disciples to stay in Jerusalem until the Holy Spirit comes to them at Pentecost and then they are to be his witnesses first in Jerusalem and then is all of Judea and Samaria, and then to the other nations of the earth. This assignment to them is to be passed on to future generations and carried out until the work is finished.

Conclusion

Here we are at a historical transition point. I don’t know about you, but I feel the excitement. I started writing and posting Bible lessons on the gospels on February 22, 2015, and have just two lessons left to write, and the four gospels will have been covered from beginning to end. In our next lesson we will witness the ascension of Jesus and then in our final lesson we will look at John’s Epilogue.