Men of Galilee

Acts 1:4 And while staying with them he ordered them not to depart from Jerusalem, but to wait for the promise of the Father, which, he said, "you heard from me;" (ESV)

In verse eleven we find out that Jesus was addressing  the ‘Men of Galilee‘, so for them to stay in Jerusalem would have created a sense of uncomfortably. At this point in time they did not know that Jesus would ascend from their very presence, although I could imagine his final words were imprinted in their minds and hearts after the ascension. So of all things Jesus could have talked about we are given this dialogue in verses five through eight as his last instructions to his people before he returns to the Father. Looking further ahead in the book of Acts we see why Jesus gave them final instructions to stay in Jerusalem. For we find out on the day of Pentecost he fulfills his promise in verse five and pours out his Holy Spirit upon his people. I think we can draw a very practical principle of the character of God from this verse. Often times we sense God is instructing us to something but it is uncomfortable. Like the apostles, for them to remain in Jerusalem, it didn’t make much sense, especially since Jesus was now gone, what more did they have to stay there for? But Jesus knew, because he sees the bigger picture. Remember when God instructs us to do something he is not telling us with the limited scope we often confine him to. “But God you know I cant afford that”, or “I have to be somewhere in 15 minutes, what do you mean you want me to stop and help this person?” How often do we rob God of the blessings he has for us because we are so confined to our narrow minded view of this life he has given us. Imagine if they had went back to Galilee and missed out on the experience of Pentecost, the very start of the church today as we know it. Why did they wait? Because they had been with Jesus. They knew and trusted him by now. So what can we take from this verse. For one we need to allow God to speak into our lives and allow space in our schedules for God to bless us. But most importantly we need to spend time with Jesus. For when we do, it will be plain for all to see. “And they recognized that they had been with Jesus.” This is said in Acts 5:13 by the rulers and elders in Jerusalem, the religious leaders of the law. Like Peter and John we will have a boldness and confidence in Christ’s instruction that surpasses the ignorance of our nature.

Application:
I want people to see Christ in me, but I also know my flesh wants to keep me bound in my selfishness. Today I will kill out my flesh by confessing my shortcoming to another and asking for forgiveness, taking responsibility for the wrong I have done.