SCRIPTURE: Acts 1:1-11
OBSERVATIONS
1. (vv.1-3) Luke continues his account of the life and impact of Jesus (see Luke 1:1-4). It is interesting to note that His work continues after He ascends to His throne, only now it is carried out by the Spirit and the Church.
APPLICATION: Jesus is still at work today, we are still in the ongoing story of the Acts of the Risen Lord. Church history (and my story) is the unfolding of the victory and power of Jesus the Messiah, now ruling from His throne in heaven.
2. (vv.4-8) We are called (and equipped with the Holy Spirit) to be Christ’s witnesses to the whole world. We are witnesses to His kingdom rule, though we do not know when and how He will accomplish this. We are called to witness, and to trust that the Spirit will make us effective for Him.
APPLICATION: I have a huge task, I am not just a minister of a church, I am an ambassador of Jesus Christ the King (2 Corinthians 5:20), the Ruler of the universe (Matthew 28:18-20). I am uncertain about how and when His reign will reveal itself, but I have the Spirit of God at work in me to fulfill this task.
3. (vv.9-11) Jesus went “up” in relation to the disciples, but this does not mean that heaven is “up”, it is “out there” somewhere, in another dimension. Jesus is ruling this universe from this God-dimension, but He will reveal Himself one day.
APPLICATION: Heaven (where God is) is not up in the sky, but somehow in another dimension, which is very near to us. God and Jesus are present to us, though we cannot see them. Though He is hidden from my sight, He is present to me, wherever I am, whatever I am doing.
PRAYER:
Lord, You are in charge of the universe, and You are in charge of me. Help me to recognize You with me wherever I am, and help me to rely on Your Spirit to fulfill Your calling on my life. Amen.
Hi Suzan, thanks for the question. We need to remember that the Bible, inspired by the Spirit of God, was written by human authors from their human perspective. For example, when we read in Joshua that the “sun stood still” (Joshua 10:12-14), it did so only from their point of view, since in actual fact the earth rotates around the sun, not the other way around. What it describes happened, but the technical description is not scientifically accurate.
Similarly with heaven. The original meaning for the Hebrew word for “heaven” refers to “the blue firmament, or the region of the clouds that pass along the sky. Genesis 1:20, speaks of the birds “under the firmament of heaven”. In other passages it denotes the region of the stars that shine in the sky.” Because God rules over everything (including the stars and planets), He rules over the heavens (outer space) and the earth. “Heaven is my throne, and the earth is my footstool.” (Isaiah 66:1).
Over time, heaven (singular, derived from the heavens) came to be identified as God’s dwelling place, not in “outer space” or the “skies” but out there, beyond this created universe.
There is no geographical way to describe the location of God, or those whose spirits are with God. We know they are with God, but we don’t know where that is. The language of the Bible describing “heaven” as up there is figurative. It is likely a different plane of reality altogether. We can only speculate, using limited words to try and capture spiritual, mysterious realities.
To understand heaven as “up there” and hell as “down there” is figurative. Remember that for those on the other side of the planet, my “up there” would be “down there” for them, and vice versa. “Out there” beyond what we see and know, beyond the plane of reality that we experience, seems the best way to explain where God is, where Jesus is, where spirits of the dead go.
Pastor Norm, could you give us a bibical reference to your comment “this does not mean that heaven is “up”, it is out there somewhere in an other dimenision”. The reference to “heaven” has come up several times in discussions at Bible studies about heaven and where it is and how do we get there.