In Acts 1, we find Jesus giving final instructions to the disciples before His ascension into Heaven. They are still not quite understanding what is going to transpire when the Holy Spirit comes upon them. They are still thinking in worldly terms. In Acts 1:6-8 it says- “So when they had come together, they asked him, Lord, will you at this time restore the kingdom to Israel?” He said to them, “It is not for you to know times or seasons that the Father has fixed by his own authority. 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.”
It is interesting that they asked this question. It was the wrong question! It was not answered by Jesus. Did they not remember that earlier in His Ministry, Jesus had predicted the destruction of Jerusalem and the temple (Matt 24)? Did they not remember that? They saw His glory and power, and naturally thought about the restoration of the kingdom to Israel. They still had a natural mindset. Jesus did not answer them, and He did not remind them of what He had prophesied against Jerusalem. About 40 years later, the destruction that He had predicted came to Jerusalem. In 70 AD, Titus, the future Roman emperor, worked his way thru Israel, destroying city after city, and eventually destroying all of Israel and the temple.
After Jesus had ascended to heaven and before the siege of Jerusalem, the church age began. God used the Apostles mightily during those years. Heb 2:4 “And God confirmed the message by giving signs and wonders and various miracles and gifts of the Holy Spirit whenever He chose”. The Gospel went out to Jews and Greeks, to ALL the nations! Never before had this happened! The kingdom of God had come!!!!
When they had asked Him if He was going to restore the kingdom to Israel, He told them that it was not for them to know the times or the seasons. Jesus’ teaching had been all about the Kingdom of God having come to earth, about the circumcised in heart, Jews and gentiles!! The true Israel. The promises of God are for those who are children of the promise– it is the work of the sovereign God, creating children out of what no human being can do. By faith in Jesus, all people can be reckoned as part of the Kingdom of God. I don’t think the disciples understood this till after Pentecost. But God used them to fulfill the great mandate, that all the nations would hear the Gospel message and the message of the Kingdom of God. Their understanding was opened when they received the Holy Spirit. Their mind was no longer set on natural things, but on Spiritual things. What a difference! What a Kingdom!
May we all have our hearts and minds set on the Kingdom of God!!
Niels Prip - Blog 