A King and a Kingdom - Acts 1
Glorious day (chorus)
Call to worship:
pastor andrew loginow
Psalm 110
song:
Behold our God
Historical reading:
pastor bobby owens
Apostles' Creed
song:
Lord have mercy
Confession & Pardon
dr. Alex loginow
Doxology
song:
Jesus is better
Sermon:
dr. alex loginow
A king and a kingdom - Acts 1
Introduction
This week I googled the phrase, “king of America” just to see what I might find. The top result by far was an album by Elvis Costello. Once I worked past all of the Elvis Costello links (and there was a lot) there were a few links to articles and biographies about George III of England, the British monarch at the time of the American Revolution. The third link was a book by William Federer about the uniqueness of America in world history because America doesn’t have a king. And that’s the point – there is no king or queen of America.
The United States of America has never had a monarchy. America was founded in rebellion to the king of England and it is ingrained in our national identity that we proudly neither serve nor submit to a monarch. Our national identity is grounded in the words, “We the people…” The pursuit of individual happiness is part and parcel of what it means to be an American. We don't want a king; we don’t need a king; and we’re proud to have never had a king.
That, in part, is why it is so difficult for us to understand a passage like Acts 1. There are many gaps between the ancient Scripture and our contemporary context – there is a linguistic gap: Acts was written in Greek and we speak English; there is a cultural gap: our modern Western culture is very different than 2nd Temple Judaism in 1st century Greco-Roman culture. Another gap is that the original audience and most people throughout world history have correctly understood kings and kingdoms; not only have we never experienced that reality, but we hate it. Our Scripture passage is all about the coronation of the Lord Jesus Christ as God’s king and his kingdom. As Americans we’re adverse to kings and kingdoms but there is a sense in which we’re wrong. It’s actually really good news that Jesus of Nazareth is God’s king. And it’s really good news that the Kingdom of God is alive and well and Acts chapter 1 shows us why.
Before we exposit Acts 1 we should note that this chapter is made up of two organic pericopes. The word “pericope” is a transliteration of the Greek word περικοπή, which literally means, “a cut.” It refers to a coherent unit or thought of sacred Scripture. A pericope is a section of the text that the original author and audience would have viewed as a complete thought, story, paragraph, or unit of communication. English Bibles are divided into chapters and verses but the Bible was not written in chapters and verses. Chapters were added to Scripture about 500 years after the New Testament was written and verses were added about 500 years ago.
When St. Luke wrote the book of Acts he wrote it to be read and understood as a whole. Actually as we saw in verse one the book of Acts is the sequel to the Gospel of Luke so Acts is best understood as one book with Luke. Even so this one book is divided into organic sections or pericopes. Luke didn’t divide the book into chapters or verses himself but he did give us organic grammatical and literary clues to know when pericopes or organic sections begin and end. Acts chapter 1 is comprised of two pericopes – verses 1-11 and verses 12-26.
Verses 1-11 are very clearly about the ascension of the Lord Jesus Christ. Notice the organic clues in the narrative that define the pericope: verse 2 mentions Jesus’ ascension (until the day when he was taken up) and in verse 11 the two angels mention the ascension again (you saw him go into heaven). Then we get a well-defined literary transition in verse 12: the location changes – the Apostles leave the Mount of Olives and return to Jerusalem. Verses 12-26 are about Matthias replacing Judas as the 12th Apostle. We then see a clear change of scene again in Acts 2.1 when there is a change in time (when the day of Pentecost arrived). So Acts 1 is comprised of two organic pericopes: verses 1-11, which for the purposes of this sermon we will label as “The King’s Coronation;” and verses 12-26, which we’ll label as “The Kingdom Continues.”
The King’s Coronation (Acts 1.1-11)
The first pericope, the King’s coronation, begins in verses 1-3 with St. Luke giving us a recap of his Gospel, which was the first book he wrote to Theophilus (Luke 1.3). Scholars debate whether Theophilus was a real person or simply a pseudo name for any Christian who reads Luke’s books because the name Theophilus means, “lover of God” (θεός means God and φιλέω means love). It doesn’t really matter either way. The important thing to note here again is that the book of acts is the sequel to the Gospel of Luke.
Luke says that the first book was about all that Jesus began to do and teach, specifically mentioning Jesus’ suffering and how Jesus presented himself alive after his suffering. This is the reason that the church has labeled Luke’s first book as a Gospel, because the point of Luke (along with Matthew, Mark, and John) is to tell the story of the death and resurrection of Jesus. This is the good news that every human who has ever lived needs to hear. Because there is only one true God – Father, Son, and Holy Spirit – and this holy God created humanity in his image and because all people are guilty of sin, we need good news. Without any further good news the bad news is that we all deserve eternal conscious punishment in hell because we have sinned against the one true and holy God.
And thanks be to God there is good news! The good news is that the eternal second person of the Holy Trinity – the Son of God – became human in his incarnation. This is what we celebrate every Christmas. We confessed it earlier as Pastor Bobby led us in the creed: Jesus was conceived by the Holy Spirit and born of the virgin Mary.
And in his life Jesus never sinned. Jesus always obeyed God’s Law. Jesus never sinned in thought, word, or deed; Jesus never sinned by what he did or by what he left undone. Jesus always loved God with his whole heart; Jesus always loved his neighbor as himself. Jesus always delighted in God’s will and walked in God’s ways to the glory of God’s name.
In so doing Jesus earned righteousness on our behalf so that when Jesus suffered under Pontius Pilate and died on the cross the “great exchange” happened. 2nd Corinthians 5.21 says, for our sake [God] made [Jesus] to be sin who knew no sin, so that in [Jesus] we might become the righteousness of God. On the cross Jesus took our sin on himself and suffered the wrath of God against the sins of all of the elect so that everyone who believes can receive Jesus’ righteousness. Then Jesus died and was buried. Jesus had to die to pay the penalty of sin – the wages of sin is death (Rom 6.23).
But death could not hold Jesus because Jesus was not a sinner so on the third day the Lord Jesus Christ resurrected from the dead. This is where Acts 1 picks up but before we move foreword in the text it’s imperative we note that this good news demands a response. You must repent and believe this good news. To repent means to confess that you are a sinner and to turn from your sin. Repentance is only possible when the Holy Spirit opens your eyes to see that you are a sinner but if the Spirit does open your eyes you will repent.
You must also place your faith in Christ. If you have been with us here at Christ Community Church for any length of time you have heard us teach that the Reformed tradition has long defined faith in terms of three facets: knowledge, assent, and trust. To have faith in Jesus first means to know who Jesus is and what Jesus did. That knowledge comprises everything I just walked through about the holiness of God, the sinfulness of humanity, and the person and work of Christ.
But knowledge alone falls short of faith. You must also assent to the validity of these truth claims about the person and work of Jesus. You must actually think it is all true. But even knowledge with assent is not genuine faith without trust. Scripture says that demons have knowledge and assent but they do not trust in Christ (James 2.19). Trust is the final and key facet of faith.
To trust in Christ means to lay the full weight of your hope for forgiveness of sin and eternal life on who Jesus is and what Jesus did. To trust in Christ is like being a deer who comes to a stream with nothing to offer other than the reality if the deer does not drink from the stream, the deer will die. You are the deer; Christ is the stream. To trust Christ means to understand that without him you die. To trust Christ means to bet your life on God’s promise that if you confess your sins [Jesus] is faithful and just to forgive you of your sins and cleanse you from all unrighteousness (1 John 1.9). Repent and believe the gospel.
After recapping the good news Luke tells us that Jesus taught his disciples for forty days after his resurrection about the kingdom of God and promised them that they will be baptized with the Holy Spirit (more on that next week when we look at Acts 2). And then the disciples ask Jesus if at this point Jesus will restore the kingdom to Israel. Dispensationalists have wrongly interpreted this verse to teach that there is a point in the future that national Israel will once again be the kingdom of God. That is not true and while there are several reasons why we know it’s not true, two immediate textual reason are: (1) Jesus answers their question not by discussing Israel but by talking about the whole earth; and (2) after the Apostles are baptized in the Holy Spirit they do not preach about Israel anymore but about the church.
Jesus’ response in verse 8 is the thesis statement of the book of Acts; this is what the book of Acts is all about: 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. If you like to mark up your Bible do so now. Highlight, underline, bracket, do whatever you do to verse 8. As we move through Acts we will see that this verse is what Acts is all about. The Apostles start in Jerusalem and by the end of the book Paul is preaching the gospel in Rome, which would have been considered the end of the earth for them.
Then after Jesus said these things he was lifted up and a cloud took him out of their sight. Jesus ascended to the right hand of God the Father almighty. Pastor Andrew read Psalm 110 as he led us in our call to worship; the ascension of the Lord Jesus Christ here in Acts 1 is the fulfillment of Psalm 110. This is where yhwh said to David’s Lord, “sit at my right hand.” Jesus is the true and final son of David. Jesus is the king promised in the Davidic covenant.
The ascension of Christ reveals to us that Jesus is the king. Because Jesus is king he has the right to tell us what to do. The Bible is Jesus’ Word to us and we must submit to the king. Because Jesus is king he is owed our ultimate allegiance. More than our country; more than our money; more than our families; more than our work; more than anything or anyone Jesus deserves our ultimate allegiance because he is the king.
The Kingdom Continues (Acts 1.12-26)
At this point we move to the second pericope in this chapter: verses 12-26, the kingdom continues. We must note that as Luke shifts the scene to Jerusalem, he is shifting away from the mount called Olivet, meaning Jesus ascended to heaven from the Mount of Olives. This is noteworthy because there is debate about what Jesus is referring to when he taught the Olivet discourse. We wont do a deep dive on this now because we don’t have time and because we already preached on the Olivet discourse when we preached through Mark so if you want to refresh yourself on that go to our website and find those sermons.
But in light of Acts 1 we should mention that in the Olivet discourse Jesus says this:
24 “But in those days, after that tribulation, the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light, 25 and the stars will be falling from heaven, and the powers in the heavens will be shaken. 26 And then they will see the Son of Man coming in clouds with great power and glory. 27 And then he will send out the angels and gather his elect from the four winds, from the ends of the earth to the ends of heaven (Mark 13.24-27).
In Mark 13 Jesus is quoting from Daniel 7, which says:
13 “I saw in the night visions, and behold, with the clouds of heaven there came one like a son of man, and he came to the Ancient of Days and was presented before him. 14 And to him was given dominion and glory and a kingdom, that all peoples, nations, and languages should serve him; his dominion is an everlasting dominion, which shall not pass away, and his kingdom one that shall not be destroyed (Daniel 7.13-14).
Daniel 7 says that the son of man comes through the clouds to the Ancient of Days (God) where he was given dominion, glory, and an eternal kingdom comprised of peoples from all languages and nations. Jesus preached about Daniel 7 on the mount of olives (that’s why it’s called the Olivet Discourse!). And now Acts 1 tells us that Jesus ascended to heaven from the mount of olives and the rest of the book of Acts tells us about the kingdom he receives comprised of people from all languages and nations. Acts is the story of Jesus’ messengers gathering his elect from the ends of the earth. So to what degree is the Olivet Discourse about the 2nd coming of Christ? I’m not sure but what I am sure of is that it is 100% about the ascension of Christ.
Luke then tells us that the eleven Apostles along with Jesus’ mother, brothers and the other women who had been following Jesus gathered together and devoted themselves to prayer. This passage is descriptive, it is describing what happened, but it is also prescriptive. In response to Jesus’ word his people devoted themselves to prayer. May that be true of us also.
Whether we’re gathered together on Sunday, or meeting in small groups like bible classes, flocks, or other bible studies, or with our families, or when we’re by ourselves, we must be devoted to prayer because we are utterly dependent on God and prayer is our acknowledgment of that. Do you want to know God better? Do you want to feel closer to God? Do you want to battle your anxiety? Do you want to grow as a Christian? Pray.
After they prayed Peter stood up and said, “the Scripture had to be fulfilled…” The King James translation reads, “this scripture must needs have been fulfilled.” God predestined Judas’ betrayal of Christ and Acts 1.20 tells us that it was foretold in Psalm 69 and Psalm 109 (it’s interesting to note that Judas’ betrayal was shadowed in Psalm 109 and the ascension of Christ was shadowed in Psalm 110). From these verses we’re reminded of several theological and hermeneutical truths: (1) Scripture is always true; (2) the sovereignty of God governs the responsibility of humans – Judas willfully betrayed Christ but it was predestined long before; (3) once again we see that all of Scripture is Christ-centered. The entire Bible is telling the story of Jesus Christ. Psalms 69 and 109 are preparing us for the betrayal of Jesus hundreds of years beforehand.
In light of Judas’ betrayal we are told in verses 21-26 that the Apostles must find a replacement for Judas. There needs to be a 12th Apostle who followed Jesus from the time of his baptism through Jesus’ ascension in order to be a witness to Christ’s resurrection. So they put forward 2 men – Matthias and Joseph, who apparently had 2 nicknames: Barsabbas and Justus. The Apostles then prayed and asked God to show them who the replacement should be and then the Apostles cast lots and the lot providentially fell on Matthias so Matthias was numbered among the Apostles. So there was once again 12 Apostles.
The question is why? Why was it necessary that there be 12 Apostles who had followed Jesus from his baptism through his ascension to be witnesses to Jesus’ resurrection? Why couldn’t there just be 11 Apostles? Why couldn’t they have made both Matthias and Joseph Apostles? Why was it so important that there be 12 Apostles at this point in redemptive history?
The answer is that the church is the continuation of the kingdom of God. The church is what Israel was. Just as there were 12 tribes of Israel there had to be 12 Apostles because the church is the fulfillment of Israel. The fact that there had to be 12 Apostles reveals to us that the era of national Israel being the kingdom of God is over. The church is now and forever the kingdom of God.
For all of human history the kingdom of God has been “God’s people in God’s place under God’s blessing and rule.” Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden were the kingdom of God. Noah and his family in the Ark were the kingdom of God. Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob along with their families sojourning around Canaan were the kingdom of God. From Mt. Sinai until the coming of Christ Israel was the kingdom of God.
Now the book of Acts reveals to us through the 12 Apostles that the church is the true and final kingdom of God. The kingdom of God will never be comprised exclusively of national Israel again because the church, made up of people from every language and nation, is the fulfillment of the kingdom of God. This also means that the church is not a completely new and different entity in the New Testament. It is not as if Israel was in the Old Testament and now the church is an entirely separate thing in the New Testament. The church is the continuation of God’s kingdom.
Jesus is the king and the church is his kingdom. America is not the kingdom of God. Israel is not the kingdom of God. God’s kingdom is not exclusively in the past. God’s kingdom is not exclusively in the future. We are the kingdom of God and Jesus is ruling and reining at the right hand of God the Father where he has been for the last 2,000 years.
Conclusion
It turns out there is a king of the Untied States of America and it’s not George III or Elvis Costello. He’s the same man who is the king of the entire universe. More importantly he is the king of God’s Kingdom – the church. His name is Jesus of Nazareth and he has ascended to the right hand of God the Father almighty. Because Jesus is King we must submit to his Word. Because Jesus is King we can trust God’s promises. Because Jesus is King the church is the Kingdom of God. Because Jesus is King our allegiance, first and foremost, is to a King and a kingdom.