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November 4 - Acts 1 · A Chapter a Day Bible Reading

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  Hello friends, it's Sean here. It's a Monday, the start of a
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  new week. It is the 4th of November and we
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  today get to open up a new book of the Bible.
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  Yes, we're going to open up to the book of Acts where we will
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  get to hear hear how this story goes from Jesus, this man
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  walking and ministering and living here on earth, to his
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  death and resurrection. And then from that point it goes
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  to this faith, this way, this religion which has spread and
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  eventually travels to all the corners of the globe.
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  And this is the beginning of that story, friends.
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  Now, the book of Acts is written by our friend Luke, who wrote
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  the Gospel of Luke. And he wrote this with a very
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  specific purpose in mind. In fact, I'm just going to read
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  you a couple of sentences from the beginning of the Book of
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  Luke. He says many people have set out
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  to write accounts about the events that have been fulfilled
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  among us. They use the eyewitness report
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  circulating among us from the early disciples.
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  Having carefully investigated everything from the beginning, I
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  also have decided to write an accurate account for you, Most
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  Honourable Theophilus, so you can be certain of the truth of
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  everything you were taught. So the Book of Acts is the
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  second part of the Book of Luke. And so as we read this, the same
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  motivation applies. He's writing this to convince us
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  of the truth about Jesus, who he said he was and what he did.
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  And you might think, ah, the story of Acts, that's about the
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  church, It's about the Holy Spirit.
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  Nope, the main character in the book of Acts is still Jesus and
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  all that Jesus accomplishes through his spirit and his new
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  church. So as we read these chapters,
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  keep in mind Jesus is still the protagonist.
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  He is still the driving force behind everything that happens.
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  So having said all that, nothing to do but to pick up where the
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  Gospel of Luke ended and continue with this incredible
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  story. Reading Acts chapter 1
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  in my first book, I told you Theophilus about everything
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  Jesus began to do and teach until the day he was taken up to
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  heaven after giving his chosen apostles further instructions
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  through the Holy Spirit. During the 40 days after he
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  suffered and died, he appeared to the apostles from time to
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  time and he proved to them in many ways that he was actually
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  alive and he talked to them about the Kingdom of God.
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  Once when he was eating with them, he commanded them, do not
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  leave Jerusalem until the Father sends you the gift he promised.
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  As I told you before, John baptised with water, but in a
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  few days you will be baptised with the Holy Spirit.
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  So when the apostles were with Jesus, they kept asking him,
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  Lord, has the time come for you to free Israel and restore our
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  Kingdom? He replied, The Father alone has
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  the authority to set those dates and times, and they are not for
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  you to know. But you will receive power when
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  the Holy Spirit comes upon you, and you will be my witnesses,
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  telling people about me everywhere in Jerusalem,
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  throughout Judea, in Samaria and to the ends of the earth.
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  After saying this, he was taken up into a cloud while they were
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  watching, and they could no longer see him.
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  As they strained to see him rising into heaven, 2 white
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  robed men suddenly stood among them, men of Galilee.
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  They said, Why are you standing here staring into heaven?
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  Jesus has been taken from you into heaven, but someday he will
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  return from heaven in the same way you saw him go.
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  Then the apostles returned to Jerusalem from the Mount of
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  Olives, a distance of half a mile.
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  When they arrived, they went to the upstairs room of the house
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  where they were staying. Here are the names of those who
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  were present, Peter, John, James, Andrew, Philip, Thomas,
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  Bartholomew, Matthew, James son of Alpheus, Simon the Zealot,
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  and Judas son of James. They all met together and were
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  constantly united in prayer along with Mary, the mother of
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  Jesus, several other women, and the brothers of Jesus.
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  During this time, when about 120 believers were together in one
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  place, Peter stood up and addressed them.
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  Brothers. He said the Scriptures had to be
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  fulfilled. Concerning Judas, who guided
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  those who arrested Jesus. This was predicted long ago by
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  the Holy Spirit speaking through King David.
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  Judas was one of us and shared in the ministry with us.
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  Judas had bought a field with the money he received for his
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  treachery, falling head first. There his body split open,
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  spilling out all his intestines. The news of his death spread to
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  all the people of Jerusalem, and they gave the place the Aramaic
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  name Akeldama, which means field of blood.
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  Peter continued. This was written in the book of
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  Psalms where it says let his home become desolate with no one
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  living in it. It also says let someone else
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  take his position. So now we must choose a
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  replacement for Judas from among the men who were with us the
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  entire time we were travelling with the Lord Jesus, from the
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  time he was baptised by John until the day he was taken from
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  us. Whoever is chosen will join us
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  as a witness of Jesus resurrection.
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  So they nominated two men Joseph called Barsabbas, also known as
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  Justice and Matthias. Then they all prayed, O Lord,
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  you know every heart. Show us which of these men you
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  have chosen as an apostle to replace Judas in this ministry,
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  for he has deserted us and gone where he belongs.
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  They cast lots and Matthias was selected to become an apostle
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  with the other 11. Our Lord, we see the passion in
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  your disciples. We see how the mission that you
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  had just given them was burning within them, sending them
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  forward to go and do the work that you had set apart for them.
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  And Lord, here we are, so many years down the track, but still
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  here living our lives in this broken, fallen world to share
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  your love and your hope. Those that we encounter.
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  Our Lord, I pray that just like those first disciples had this
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  mission burning in their hearts, Lord, that today you would
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  reignite this passion in us, that we would just long to share
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  your hope with the people in our lives.
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  So that as they encounter us and the joy in our hearts and the
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  hope that permeates all that we do, they would say, what is with
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  you? What gives?
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  With the hope that you just continually hold on to?
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  And that we can say that we believe in grace and we believe
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  in a God who loves us just as we are.
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  Thank you for that grace. Thank you for your love.
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  Thank you that you invite us to be a part of sharing that love
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  in this world so desperately in need of it.
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  We offer ourselves to you that you would fill us with that
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  love, assure us of your love, and share that love in our
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  lives. We ask us in your name, Jesus,
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  Amen.