The Risen and Sending Savior
For Meditation (Corey Widmer)
Most people think of the book of Acts as the story of the early church. In the most straightforward sense, it is. But if we take seriously the way Luke prefaces his book in v.1, it would be more accurate to say that the book of Acts is the story of the risen and ascended Jesus' mission to the whole world, carried out through the Spirit-empowered church.
And that means it is a story that includes us.
In Acts 1, the disciples assume that they are at the "end" of the story — that the risen Messiah will now bring history to a close. But instead, Jesus tells them this is only the beginning. Rather than giving them a timeline, he gives them a calling: “You will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses… to the ends of the earth.” (Acts 1:8) The risen Jesus does not simply complete God’s mission— he invites his people to participate in it.
This is what Easter is all about. Easter is not just a moment to celebrate; it is a movement to join. The same Spirit that raised Jesus from the dead now sends ordinary people into the world as witnesses to his life and love.
This is the story of Acts, and it is also the season we believe God is inviting us into as a church.
In the months ahead, we will be exploring what it means to be a community that is “growing small”: not primarily becoming bigger or more centralized, but becoming more sent— more rooted in relationships, more attentive to the Spirit, and more present in the everyday places where God is already at work.
As we gather this Sunday, we come not only to remember what Jesus has done, but to listen for where he is sending us.
Questions for Reflection and Discussion
As you think about Easter, do you tend to experience it more as a moment to celebrate or a movement to participate in? Why?
The disciples expected a clear plan and timeline from Jesus, but instead received a calling. Where in your life are you longing for clarity, and how might Jesus be inviting you into trust and participation instead?
Jesus says, “You will be my witnesses.” What does it mean to be a witness in your everyday life—not just in words, but in presence, relationships, and actions?
Where do you sense the Spirit might already be at work around you, in your neighborhood, workplace, or relationships? What would it look like to join in, even in a small way?
Our church is entering a season of “growing small.” What excites you about this vision? What feels challenging or uncertain?
Acts 1:1–11
In my former book, Theophilus, I wrote about all that Jesus began to do and to teach until the day he was taken up to heaven, after giving instructions through the Holy Spirit to the apostles he had chosen. After his suffering, he presented himself to them and gave many convincing proofs that he was alive. He appeared to them over a period of forty days and spoke about the kingdom of God. On one occasion, while he was eating with them, he gave them this command: “Do not leave Jerusalem, but wait for the gift my Father promised, which you have heard me speak about. For John baptized with water, but in a few days you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit.”
Then they gathered around him and asked him, “Lord, are you at this time going to restore the kingdom to Israel?”
He said to them: “It is not for you to know the times or dates the Father has set by his own authority. But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.”
After he said this, he was taken up before their very eyes, and a cloud hid him from their sight.
They were looking intently up into the sky as he was going, when suddenly two men dressed in white stood beside them. “Men of Galilee,” they said, “why do you stand here looking into the sky? This same Jesus, who has been taken from you into heaven, will come back in the same way you have seen him go into heaven.”