May 1, 2025 • 25 mins
Between resurrection and Pentecost lies a crucial season that transformed ordinary followers into world-changers. This waiting period wasn't wasted—it was precisely where God prepared His people for an unprecedented mission.
The disciples found themselves in limbo. Their Rabbi had conquered death, yet confusion lingered. What comes next? When would Israel be restored? Rather than offering clear timelines, Jesus redirected their focus: "You will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon you." Before they could go change the world, they needed to wait.
This pattern reveals a profound truth for our spiritual journeys today. When we find ourselves in waiting seasons—seeking healing, clarity, or breakthrough—we're not being punished. These periods confirm what's true and prepare us for what's coming. The disciples craved certainty just as we do, but Jesus knew they needed something more fundamental: supernatural power from above.
What made the early church extraordinary wasn't superior information or organizational structure. They changed the world because they were immersed in God's presence and empowered for His mission. Jesus didn't want followers who merely believed the right facts about Him—He wanted disciples filled with the same Spirit that raised Him from the dead.
Throughout Christian history, believers have emphasized different aspects of the Spirit's work—producing holiness, enabling spiritual gifts, or empowering service. The beauty of Acts is that it embraces all these dimensions. The Spirit-filled life isn't a "special deluxe edition" of faith but essential for every believer who wants to experience the fullness of what God offers.
Are you trying to navigate life's challenges through human effort alone? Have you settled for knowing about God without experiencing His transforming presence? Join us as we explore what happens when ordinary people surrender to divine power and discover that waiting seasons often become the launching pad for God's greatest work in and through us.
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:00):
Welcome to Madison Church Online.
I'm Stephen Feith, lead pastor,and today we are stepping into
a brand new series called In theWaiting, and we're going to go
to the book of Acts, which youmight think would be after Luke.
For some of you theology nerdswho grew up in the church, you
know that Luke wrote both ofthese, but it actually isn't.
I'll talk about that some othertime.
I don't have a lot of time tounpack that, but you're going to
(00:23):
go from Luke to John and thento Acts is where we're going
today.
But how did we get here?
I mean, if you just jumped intoMadison Church, let's say even
the last year, you have not beenpart of this whole journey
through Luke with us, becausewe've been in it for almost two
years now.
Well, last Sunday we celebratedEaster and we concluded our
study through Luke.
(00:43):
It was about the resurrectionof Jesus, the culmination of
those, verse by verse and wordby word, this journey with Jesus
through Luke's gospel.
And to recap briefly, god brokethe silence with a Savior who
entered our world not in powerbut in vulnerability and hope.
And then we read how Jesus wasfilled with the Spirit and
(01:05):
tested in the wilderness.
That showed us that real powercomes through surrender.
Jesus invites ordinary peopleto find their place in God's
kingdom, and then he set hisface toward Jerusalem, teaching
that impact is marked bycompassion, presence and prayer.
And then, in our most recentseries, we talked about how not
(01:27):
even compassion, presence andprayer.
And then, in our most recentseries, we talked about how not
even betrayal, suffering anddeath could stop Jesus.
He rose again, bringing thathope that no power on earth
could silence.
And that was it.
That was the last two years.
We just did it in 20 secondsCould have saved all sorts of
Never mind.
Today we're moving into thesecond half of Luke's writing.
This is a continuation ofLuke's gospel, so we should
(01:48):
think about this as one storywith two parts.
Now I want to point out at thevery onset of this study, as
we're going to go now two yearsthrough Acts Acts is not a new
story, it's not a differentstory.
It is the continuation of thestory that we have been in, and
in that first story he describeswhat Jesus began to do and to
(02:11):
teach.
These were the opening signs,or signals, if you will, that
something is important ishappening, and as we go into
Acts now, we're told thatJesus's work did not end with
the resurrection or ascension,that it was just getting started
.
It was just getting started.
Luke writes in my first book,theophilus I told you about
(02:33):
everything Jesus began to do andteach until the day he was
taken up to heaven after givinghis chosen apostles further
instructions through the HolySpirit.
So if you got done last weekand read the Easter story and
Jesus is alive and he raisedfrom the dead, you might think,
(02:54):
well, the story's over.
But Luke is saying no, it'sjust beginning.
Actually, and to the earlyreaders, those people who
converted to Christianity, whobelieved in Jesus after the
resurrection not before hisdeath, but after the
resurrection predominantlyJewish and Gentile believers
this would have been deeplyencouraging, Because you would
(03:15):
have.
If you were walking with Peter,james and John.
You were walking with peoplewho walked with Jesus.
You might feel lesser thanthese other folks, wouldn't you?
I mean, they walked with Jesus,they heard Jesus, they got to
witness it and I'm just kind ofcoming in at the tail end of
something, but through theSpirit, luke assures them you
are still part of the story, youare still part of the ongoing
(03:38):
mission.
You are not just rememberingsomething that happened in the
past, but you are participatingin a present reality and we can
find ourselves in a similarstate today.
I mean, the series is called Inthe Waiting.
We're talking about whathappened from the time Jesus
overcame death to the time thatthe Holy Spirit comes, a season
(04:00):
of waiting.
And I know from many of yourprayer requests, from just
conversations that we have overcoffee, a lot of you are also
waiting.
You're waiting for abreakthrough of some kind.
You're waiting for healing,maybe physical or emotional, or
(04:20):
something in your family.
You're waiting for what's next.
God, I'm so eager to hear fromyou.
What do you want me to do?
And you feel paralyzed.
But their waiting wasn't wasted, and neither is ours.
See, a waiting season isn't awasted one.
(04:41):
God uses seasons of waiting toconfirm what's true and to
prepare us for what's coming.
Okay, if you find yourself in awaiting season today, god uses
that season to confirm what istrue and to prepare you for what
is next.
And we live in a world notunlike theirs, as we look
globally at what's going onUncertainty, division, everyone
(05:07):
desperate for hope and Jesusinvites them.
Remain in the waiting season.
Step in to this ongoing mission, but not by your own strength,
fueled by the same spirit andpower that raised Jesus from the
dead.
(05:27):
Luke zooms in on what happenedin those crucial days between
Jesus' resurrection and hisascension.
We read in verse 3, time totime.
And he proved to them in manyways that he actually was alive
(05:47):
and he talked to them about thekingdom of God.
Once, when he was eating withthem, he commanded them do not
leave Jerusalem until the Fathersends you the gift he promised.
As I told you before, johnbaptized with water, but in a
few days you will be baptizedwith the Holy Spirit.
So Jesus spends a little bitmore than a month with his
disciples and he's doing thenormal human things that he did
(06:09):
before he died.
He's eating with them, he'steaching them and he's proving
to them he's really alive.
And I kind of found that, as Iread it, kind of humorous,
because you can imagine you sawJesus die and then he's back and
he's eating.
Can you just imagine, like theninth time you're having a meal
with Jesus and you're like, isthis really happening?
Like the ninth, 10th time?
How ridiculous would it be?
But like Jesus keeps engagingthem in their doubts and their
(06:32):
questions and it doesn't seemlike he's rushing them beyond
their grief or their confusion.
It's in the waiting season hemeets them and embraces them in
it.
Jesus knows that in waitingseasons we don't need
inspiration, we need deep soullevel assurance that can only
come from above, soul assurancethat he truly did defeat death
(06:57):
and that he can do anything else.
Now, many of them, the disciplesthey were afraid, confused and
even ashamed after thecrucifixion and Jesus'
appearances to them.
Those weren't random miracles,they were acts of restoration.
With every meeting, everyconversation, every meal shared,
he was rebuilding their faith,their courage and their calling.
(07:20):
But he was also preparing themfor what was to happen next.
But he was also preparing themfor what was to happen next.
Verse four tells us that Jesuscommanded them.
That's not a suggestion, that'sa command.
Do not leave Jerusalem, do notleave the waiting.
My command is that you staywaiting.
(07:41):
The word Luke uses forcommanded was a military order.
So you're thinking about like,how big of a deal did Jesus say
he'll want you to wait?
It was a military order.
There were no ifs, ands or buts, there was no questions about
it.
It was not optional, it wasmission critical.
And that command was to do twothings Wait.
(08:01):
Wait in Jerusalem for thepromised gift the Holy Spirit
and then go.
Before they could go, they hadto wait.
If you find yourself in awaiting season today, you're not
being punished for somethingyou did wrong.
It's not some cosmic spanking.
(08:21):
Sometimes it's.
You're in the right place,you're doing the right things.
The disciples were exactly whereGod wanted them to be, in
Jerusalem.
And he says now, hold on.
Oh, you're going to go, it'sgoing to happen, it's going to
be remarkable.
But first we're going to dosome unremarkable things.
(08:45):
First, because Jesus knew thatwhat he was calling them to the
vision that he had, not just fortheir lives, not just for his
community, but for the kingdomof God and earth, that they
would not be able to do it bytheir strength alone.
He knew that they would facepersecution, hardship, enormous
cultural barriers.
They would need more thanconviction.
(09:05):
Okay, hear this.
The disciples would need morethan conviction.
They would need more thanconviction.
Okay, hear this.
The disciples would need morethan conviction.
They would need more than faithand they would need more than
belief.
Alone, they would not havegotten through what they were
going to be put up against.
Jesus knew they needed power.
And if there was no spirit,there was no power.
And if there was no spirit,there was no power and that
(09:28):
meant there could be nofundamental transformation.
Now look again what Jesus sayssays John baptized with water,
but in a few days you will bebaptized with the Holy Spirit.
And as we were getting startedin Luke's gospel, I said you
know, for those of you who wantto dive deep, just circle, every
time Luke says spirit or HolySpirit, because it is a
recurring theme in Luke'swritings and this word to
(09:49):
baptize in the Greek it was toimmerse, to dip fully under the
water, is to be completelycovered in something.
And Jesus was saying you're notjust going to get a little
touch of the Holy Spirit.
The Holy Spirit isn't going tocome and pat you on the back or
high you is.
The Holy Spirit was going tocome and take over from the
inside out, top, bottom,everything, fully immersive,
(10:14):
fully covered in the fullness ofGod's Spirit.
Luke uses language like this allthe time to paint the picture.
He doesn't just use baptized,to be fully immersed in the
Spirit.
He talks about being clothedwith power.
The clothes, just as yourclothes, cover you, the Holy
Spirit is going to clothe you inpower.
And he says you're going to befilled with the Holy Spirit.
(10:36):
So Luke is grabbing from allsorts of analogies, which is
just to say the Holy Spirit isgoing to be all-consuming, every
part of your life.
And this baptism is not justsymbolic.
It's not just symbolic, it's anexperience, it's God's presence
and it's God's power, meant tochange everything about our
(10:56):
lives.
And, of course, the disciplesthey do what they normally do,
which is completely miss thepoint.
We keep reading.
So the apostles they're withJesus and they kept asking him.
Keep reading.
So the apostles they're withJesus and they kept asking him
Lord, and this question is youcan't even believe it.
Has the time come for you tofree Israel and restore our
kingdom?
How many times are we going toask this question and have Jesus
(11:19):
redirect the conversation?
Jesus replied the Father alonehas authority to set those dates
and times and they are not foryou to know.
But you will receive power.
Here's the redirect.
You will receive power when theHoly Spirit comes upon you and
you will be my witnesses tellingpeople about me everywhere, in
Jerusalem, throughout Judea andSamaria and to the ends of the
(11:41):
earth.
Again, the disciples thoughJesus is like the Holy Spirit's
coming, you just got to wait andwhen the Holy Spirit comes,
you're going to go.
And is that when Israel gets putback on top?
They wanted certainty, theywanted a timeline, they wanted
comfort and, in their mind,their community, the biggest
(12:03):
thing, was to be restoredpolitically so their lives could
go back to normal.
But Jesus redirects them.
It's not about knowing thetimeline, it's about receiving
the power they would need forwhat is ahead.
Now, you and I, we can laughand joke about how could these
(12:24):
disciples keep asking questionsabout Israel's return to power.
But that human instinct, what'smaking them ask the question you
struggle with, because Istruggle with it and I know from
talking to you, we all strugglewith it.
What am I talking about?
Certainty.
We crave certainty.
(12:45):
We want safety, not justphysical safety, but
psychological safety.
We want safety, not justphysical safety, but
psychological safety, spiritualsafety.
And we want simple answers.
What's the time and date?
How do we get there?
When do I take a left?
When do I take a right?
When do I stop?
When do I go?
And Jesus oftentimes redirectsus.
(13:07):
He says I know, I know, I knowyou want that, but only God
knows these things and it's notfor you to know no clear
timelines, but it will give youpower in the meantime.
Everything in Acts that we aregoing to read about the miracles
, the sermons, the church'sgrowth, it all flows out of this
one promise you will receivepower when the Holy Spirit comes
(13:32):
upon you.
And if we, today in Madison,watching or listening online
from wherever you're at if wewant to live the kind of life
that Acts is going to describeand I think it's the most
attractive kind of Christianlife that we can see or
experience we have to hold twothings together and naturally,
based on who you are, you'regoing to drift to one side or
(13:55):
the other, but we need both.
And the first thing that weneed is objective truth.
We need objective truth.
Becoming a Christian startswith believing the truth about
Jesus he lived, he died, he roseagain, he is the Lord.
Following him means growingdeeper in that truth, learning,
(14:17):
studying and understanding moreof who God is and what he's done
.
But that's not all.
So, again, some of you, youreally resonate with that, some
of you don't.
Some of you resonate more withpersonal experience, and that's
the other side of this coin.
It's the lived reality of God'sspirit filling us, empowering
(14:40):
us and leading us.
Jesus didn't just give theapostles more information.
He didn't just throw a manualat them or drop a map and then
peace out.
He empowered them and he ledthem through experience.
He ate with them, he was withthem, he did the human things.
He prepared them for anencounter with the living God,
(15:03):
and I love that.
And that experience isn't justreserved for certain traditions
or a time period long ago.
It's reserved for all believersof all time.
Everywhere Throughout Christianhistory, believers have
described the Spirit's work indifferent ways and because at
Madison Church anon-denominational church, I
(15:23):
know you all have a variety offaith backgrounds and so talking
about the Holy Spirit,depending on your background,
might be making you reallyuncomfortable right now, and
some of you, depending on yourbackground, are ready to jump on
your seat and start clappingfor me, right, and then we're
just going to all kind of livein that tension right now.
But throughout Christian historyand through your backgrounds,
the Holy Spirit has beenemphasized in different ways.
(15:45):
Some emphasize that the HolySpirit's role is to produce
holiness and sanctification.
I'm going to be a better person.
The Holy Spirit's going to helpme do the right things and help
me stop doing the wrong things.
Some religious traditionsemphasize that the Spirit's
power is for bold witness andspiritual gifts, specifically
charismatic gifts, and othersemphasize the Spirit's strength
(16:08):
to serve whoever God calls.
Well, god's going to call youto be a missionary in Madison,
or missionary in China, andwherever God's called you, his
Spirit's going to empower you tobe a missionary.
I don't think you have tochoose one.
From where I sit, I think Actsis going to make the argument
that all of these things areimportant and happen.
(16:29):
I believe it all matters.
You see, baptism of the HolySpirit isn't about fitting into
one box.
I'm not going to sit up hereand say this is exactly what
your experience of the baptismof the Holy Spirit should be
like.
You can read blogs on that orwatch YouTube videos.
A lot of people have set off todo that.
I want to do somethingdifferent.
I want to convince you,regardless of how you grew up in
(16:52):
the church.
I want to convince you to beopen to the full experience of
God's presence, holiness andpower, gifts, service,
transformation.
The challenge for us is to notsettle for knowing facts about
(17:12):
God without experiencing God inhis fullness.
That's why we do the music andthe different things through
creative arts.
It's not just about coming hereand getting more facts about
God and hearing more Biblestories, but it's about
experiencing God and when theband is up here or when we're
praying or when we partake incommunion together, these
different elements, it's aboutexperiencing God.
(17:32):
And when the band is up here orwhen we're praying or when we
partake in communion together,these different elements, it's
about experiencing God.
I don't want you to just knowGod, I want you to know God.
Aw Tozer once said thespirit-filled life is not a
special deluxe edition ofChristianity.
It is part and parcel of thetotal plan of God for his people
(17:55):
.
Every Christian is invited toexperience the fullness of the
Spirit, not just to know aboutit, not just to read about it
happening to someone else.
Next week we're going to talkabout Peter.
Not just about Peter, but foryou to live a spirit-empowered
life, full of God's presence,power and mission.
(18:19):
So a few simple steps that youcould take to live that out this
week.
The first thing is maybe justspend some time just reading
Acts 1 and 2 this week.
If you're looking to pick aBible up this week and start
doing a devotion or reading theBible, let's just start with
Acts 1 and 2.
Don't go beyond that.
Just read a couple verses hereand there.
Perhaps it's not part of yourdevotional life.
(18:40):
That's okay.
I know many of you already havesomething in place.
But what would it take for youto then say, hey, every morning
I'm going to pray.
Holy Spirit, fill me today,lead me to your mission, god, I
want to experience the fullnessof you.
Are you willing to pray that?
And maybe, most importantly,will you respond?
(19:01):
I've talked about kind of howwe made up our hour together,
our gathering, and we do it withmusic and we end with communion
.
But the reason we end withcommunion is for that response,
because discipleship isn't justabout learning things, it's not
just about experiencing God, butit is about doing something.
And so we stop and we respond,even in small ways.
(19:21):
Acts is going to show us a worldabsolutely transformed by the
Holy Spirit.
The question for you and metoday is are we willing to be
part of it?
Are we willing to betransformed?
Do not live the Christian lifeon your own strength.
Do not hope things will getbetter if you just try a little
(19:43):
harder.
None of these things are thingsJesus promised.
The early church didn't changethe world because they had
better information, better Biblestudies, they weren't involved
in more small groups.
They changed the world becausethey were filled with the Holy
Spirit again, immersed in God'spresence and empowered for his
mission.
(20:04):
I think about when we startedMadison Church back in 2014.
We had visions, we had dreams,all these things that the church
could be.
We had visions, we had dreams,all these things that the church
could be.
But, most importantly, like myheart, as the person kind of
leading this, was that MadisonChurch would be the kind of
church we read about in Acts.
We would be a spirit-filledcommunity where lives are
(20:28):
changed and transformed.
And it's been good.
I mean we're coming up on 11years.
It's been good, but many of youknow it's also been hard Not
bad, but definitely hard attimes.
There have been seasons where wehave felt stuck, where we have
felt like we are in this waitingseason and perhaps we're just
going to be in a waiting life.
(20:49):
Seasons where let me paint abetter picture for you seasons
where we would pray and pray andpray and those prayers would
just seemingly go unansweredSelfless prayers God, do
something here, all about yourglory and what you want to do.
There are times where the pathwas unclear.
I don't know if you know this,but sometimes there's not a good
(21:10):
and a bad option, it's a badand a worse option, and
sometimes there's just two badoptions or two worse options and
you're like God are we missingsomething here?
Are we so far out of your willthat there's no good thing to
choose?
The only thing that has kept usgoing I truly believe this at
Madison Church, whether it's ourleadership referring to me, my
family, our community the onlything that has kept us going has
(21:32):
been the presence and power ofthe Holy Spirit.
We've been living in thewaiting, and not as a theory,
but out of obedience, and I canconfidently say that God has
been faithful throughout all ofit.
I can confidently say he'sshaped Madison Church to be the
church we are today, and notjust a gathering on Sunday
(21:56):
mornings, but your life and whatyou do with the rest of your
time.
That I don't see, that theperson next to you doesn't see,
but what you do with the rest ofit.
That is how God is shaping andpreparing and sustaining us, and
it continues to get better.
Look, you don't have tomanufacture anything when it
(22:17):
comes to a spirit-filled life,and I don't have to force
anything.
We just have to be opentogether and individually, open
to a deeper work of God in us,open to being prepared for what
he would have for us to embracebeing an empowered people who
are sent at this time to Madison, wisconsin, because the Holy
(22:41):
Spirit is essential to ourmission and the mission is
critical to our understanding ofthe Holy Spirit.
We have to keep them together,mission and Holy Spirit.
You were never meant to followJesus alone.
You were never meant to carrythe weight of your calling alone
.
You were never meant to figureout life and faith and purpose
on your own.
(23:01):
And I'm not even about to sayyou're supposed to do those
things through community and youare.
But we're supposed to do thosethings with the Holy Spirit,
with the Spirit of God in us,immersed in the Spirit's power
and love.
And this isn't just Acts 1.
This is all over the NewTestament.
Paul writes since we live by theSpirit, let us keep in step
(23:24):
with the Spirit.
It's just more proof that theSpirit isn't how we start the
Christian life.
It isn't.
I say a little prayer and Godmoves into my little heart and
he shuts his little door.
But it is that the Spirit willcontinue to fill me day in and
day out and moment by moment,and in seasons of waiting and in
(23:46):
seasons of thriving and livingon mission.
And just imagine as MadisonChurch keeps walking into it.
You don't always have toimagine.
We talked about some of thethings that we're doing.
Some of you have been here forsome of the things that we've
done, but we are a churchcommunity where people don't
just talk about Jesus.
We live in that power and thatboldness that can only be
(24:08):
explained by being a peoplefilled with the Spirit.
We're a faith community whereI've heard it over and over
again, especially a lot recently, that love is tangible, that
prayer here is powerful, thatthe generosity of this community
is contagious and hope isbreaking into ordinary lives.
(24:29):
Perhaps your situation andcircumstances haven't changed
from the time you came toMadison Church, but a lot of you
are saying, but somethinginside of me is changing.
Out there might not be changing, but in, here is.
That's the invitation, that'swhat's possible.
This is our vision, but itstarts with us waiting on God
(24:53):
and receiving His Spirit so thatwe can step out in faith and do
as those first disciples did.
And we'll continue this storynext week.
Welcome to Madison Church Online.
I'm Stephen Feith, lead pastor,and today we are stepping into
a brand new series called In theWaiting, and we're going to go
to the book of Acts, which youmight think would be after Luke.
For some of you theology nerdswho grew up in the church, you
know that Luke wrote both ofthese, but it actually isn't.
I'll talk about that some othertime.
I don't have a lot of time tounpack that, but you're going to
(00:23):
go from Luke to John and thento Acts is where we're going
today.
But how did we get here?
I mean, if you just jumped intoMadison Church, let's say even
the last year, you have not beenpart of this whole journey
through Luke with us, becausewe've been in it for almost two
years now.
Well, last Sunday we celebratedEaster and we concluded our
study through Luke.
(00:43):
It was about the resurrectionof Jesus, the culmination of
those, verse by verse and wordby word, this journey with Jesus
through Luke's gospel.
And to recap briefly, god brokethe silence with a Savior who
entered our world not in powerbut in vulnerability and hope.
And then we read how Jesus wasfilled with the Spirit and
(01:05):
tested in the wilderness.
That showed us that real powercomes through surrender.
Jesus invites ordinary peopleto find their place in God's
kingdom, and then he set hisface toward Jerusalem, teaching
that impact is marked bycompassion, presence and prayer.
And then, in our most recentseries, we talked about how not
(01:27):
even compassion, presence andprayer.
And then, in our most recentseries, we talked about how not
even betrayal, suffering anddeath could stop Jesus.
He rose again, bringing thathope that no power on earth
could silence.
And that was it.
That was the last two years.
We just did it in 20 secondsCould have saved all sorts of
Never mind.
Today we're moving into thesecond half of Luke's writing.
This is a continuation ofLuke's gospel, so we should
(01:48):
think about this as one storywith two parts.
Now I want to point out at thevery onset of this study, as
we're going to go now two yearsthrough Acts Acts is not a new
story, it's not a differentstory.
It is the continuation of thestory that we have been in, and
in that first story he describeswhat Jesus began to do and to
(02:11):
teach.
These were the opening signs,or signals, if you will, that
something is important ishappening, and as we go into
Acts now, we're told thatJesus's work did not end with
the resurrection or ascension,that it was just getting started
.
It was just getting started.
Luke writes in my first book,theophilus I told you about
(02:33):
everything Jesus began to do andteach until the day he was
taken up to heaven after givinghis chosen apostles further
instructions through the HolySpirit.
So if you got done last weekand read the Easter story and
Jesus is alive and he raisedfrom the dead, you might think,
(02:54):
well, the story's over.
But Luke is saying no, it'sjust beginning.
Actually, and to the earlyreaders, those people who
converted to Christianity, whobelieved in Jesus after the
resurrection not before hisdeath, but after the
resurrection predominantlyJewish and Gentile believers
this would have been deeplyencouraging, Because you would
(03:15):
have.
If you were walking with Peter,james and John.
You were walking with peoplewho walked with Jesus.
You might feel lesser thanthese other folks, wouldn't you?
I mean, they walked with Jesus,they heard Jesus, they got to
witness it and I'm just kind ofcoming in at the tail end of
something, but through theSpirit, luke assures them you
are still part of the story, youare still part of the ongoing
(03:38):
mission.
You are not just rememberingsomething that happened in the
past, but you are participatingin a present reality and we can
find ourselves in a similarstate today.
I mean, the series is called Inthe Waiting.
We're talking about whathappened from the time Jesus
overcame death to the time thatthe Holy Spirit comes, a season
(04:00):
of waiting.
And I know from many of yourprayer requests, from just
conversations that we have overcoffee, a lot of you are also
waiting.
You're waiting for abreakthrough of some kind.
You're waiting for healing,maybe physical or emotional, or
(04:20):
something in your family.
You're waiting for what's next.
God, I'm so eager to hear fromyou.
What do you want me to do?
And you feel paralyzed.
But their waiting wasn't wasted, and neither is ours.
See, a waiting season isn't awasted one.
(04:41):
God uses seasons of waiting toconfirm what's true and to
prepare us for what's coming.
Okay, if you find yourself in awaiting season today, god uses
that season to confirm what istrue and to prepare you for what
is next.
And we live in a world notunlike theirs, as we look
globally at what's going onUncertainty, division, everyone
(05:07):
desperate for hope and Jesusinvites them.
Remain in the waiting season.
Step in to this ongoing mission, but not by your own strength,
fueled by the same spirit andpower that raised Jesus from the
dead.
(05:27):
Luke zooms in on what happenedin those crucial days between
Jesus' resurrection and hisascension.
We read in verse 3, time totime.
And he proved to them in manyways that he actually was alive
(05:47):
and he talked to them about thekingdom of God.
Once, when he was eating withthem, he commanded them do not
leave Jerusalem until the Fathersends you the gift he promised.
As I told you before, johnbaptized with water, but in a
few days you will be baptizedwith the Holy Spirit.
So Jesus spends a little bitmore than a month with his
disciples and he's doing thenormal human things that he did
(06:09):
before he died.
He's eating with them, he'steaching them and he's proving
to them he's really alive.
And I kind of found that, as Iread it, kind of humorous,
because you can imagine you sawJesus die and then he's back and
he's eating.
Can you just imagine, like theninth time you're having a meal
with Jesus and you're like, isthis really happening?
Like the ninth, 10th time?
How ridiculous would it be?
But like Jesus keeps engagingthem in their doubts and their
(06:32):
questions and it doesn't seemlike he's rushing them beyond
their grief or their confusion.
It's in the waiting season hemeets them and embraces them in
it.
Jesus knows that in waitingseasons we don't need
inspiration, we need deep soullevel assurance that can only
come from above, soul assurancethat he truly did defeat death
(06:57):
and that he can do anything else.
Now, many of them, the disciplesthey were afraid, confused and
even ashamed after thecrucifixion and Jesus'
appearances to them.
Those weren't random miracles,they were acts of restoration.
With every meeting, everyconversation, every meal shared,
he was rebuilding their faith,their courage and their calling.
(07:20):
But he was also preparing themfor what was to happen next.
But he was also preparing themfor what was to happen next.
Verse four tells us that Jesuscommanded them.
That's not a suggestion, that'sa command.
Do not leave Jerusalem, do notleave the waiting.
My command is that you staywaiting.
(07:41):
The word Luke uses forcommanded was a military order.
So you're thinking about like,how big of a deal did Jesus say
he'll want you to wait?
It was a military order.
There were no ifs, ands or buts, there was no questions about
it.
It was not optional, it wasmission critical.
And that command was to do twothings Wait.
(08:01):
Wait in Jerusalem for thepromised gift the Holy Spirit
and then go.
Before they could go, they hadto wait.
If you find yourself in awaiting season today, you're not
being punished for somethingyou did wrong.
It's not some cosmic spanking.
(08:21):
Sometimes it's.
You're in the right place,you're doing the right things.
The disciples were exactly whereGod wanted them to be, in
Jerusalem.
And he says now, hold on.
Oh, you're going to go, it'sgoing to happen, it's going to
be remarkable.
But first we're going to dosome unremarkable things.
(08:45):
First, because Jesus knew thatwhat he was calling them to the
vision that he had, not just fortheir lives, not just for his
community, but for the kingdomof God and earth, that they
would not be able to do it bytheir strength alone.
He knew that they would facepersecution, hardship, enormous
cultural barriers.
They would need more thanconviction.
(09:05):
Okay, hear this.
The disciples would need morethan conviction.
They would need more thanconviction.
Okay, hear this.
The disciples would need morethan conviction.
They would need more than faithand they would need more than
belief.
Alone, they would not havegotten through what they were
going to be put up against.
Jesus knew they needed power.
And if there was no spirit,there was no power.
And if there was no spirit,there was no power and that
(09:28):
meant there could be nofundamental transformation.
Now look again what Jesus sayssays John baptized with water,
but in a few days you will bebaptized with the Holy Spirit.
And as we were getting startedin Luke's gospel, I said you
know, for those of you who wantto dive deep, just circle, every
time Luke says spirit or HolySpirit, because it is a
recurring theme in Luke'swritings and this word to
(09:49):
baptize in the Greek it was toimmerse, to dip fully under the
water, is to be completelycovered in something.
And Jesus was saying you're notjust going to get a little
touch of the Holy Spirit.
The Holy Spirit isn't going tocome and pat you on the back or
high you is.
The Holy Spirit was going tocome and take over from the
inside out, top, bottom,everything, fully immersive,
(10:14):
fully covered in the fullness ofGod's Spirit.
Luke uses language like this allthe time to paint the picture.
He doesn't just use baptized,to be fully immersed in the
Spirit.
He talks about being clothedwith power.
The clothes, just as yourclothes, cover you, the Holy
Spirit is going to clothe you inpower.
And he says you're going to befilled with the Holy Spirit.
(10:36):
So Luke is grabbing from allsorts of analogies, which is
just to say the Holy Spirit isgoing to be all-consuming, every
part of your life.
And this baptism is not justsymbolic.
It's not just symbolic, it's anexperience, it's God's presence
and it's God's power, meant tochange everything about our
(10:56):
lives.
And, of course, the disciplesthey do what they normally do,
which is completely miss thepoint.
We keep reading.
So the apostles they're withJesus and they kept asking him.
Keep reading.
So the apostles they're withJesus and they kept asking him
Lord, and this question is youcan't even believe it.
Has the time come for you tofree Israel and restore our
kingdom?
How many times are we going toask this question and have Jesus
(11:19):
redirect the conversation?
Jesus replied the Father alonehas authority to set those dates
and times and they are not foryou to know.
But you will receive power.
Here's the redirect.
You will receive power when theHoly Spirit comes upon you and
you will be my witnesses tellingpeople about me everywhere, in
Jerusalem, throughout Judea andSamaria and to the ends of the
(11:41):
earth.
Again, the disciples thoughJesus is like the Holy Spirit's
coming, you just got to wait andwhen the Holy Spirit comes,
you're going to go.
And is that when Israel gets putback on top?
They wanted certainty, theywanted a timeline, they wanted
comfort and, in their mind,their community, the biggest
(12:03):
thing, was to be restoredpolitically so their lives could
go back to normal.
But Jesus redirects them.
It's not about knowing thetimeline, it's about receiving
the power they would need forwhat is ahead.
Now, you and I, we can laughand joke about how could these
(12:24):
disciples keep asking questionsabout Israel's return to power.
But that human instinct, what'smaking them ask the question you
struggle with, because Istruggle with it and I know from
talking to you, we all strugglewith it.
What am I talking about?
Certainty.
We crave certainty.
(12:45):
We want safety, not justphysical safety, but
psychological safety.
We want safety, not justphysical safety, but
psychological safety, spiritualsafety.
And we want simple answers.
What's the time and date?
How do we get there?
When do I take a left?
When do I take a right?
When do I stop?
When do I go?
And Jesus oftentimes redirectsus.
(13:07):
He says I know, I know, I knowyou want that, but only God
knows these things and it's notfor you to know no clear
timelines, but it will give youpower in the meantime.
Everything in Acts that we aregoing to read about the miracles
, the sermons, the church'sgrowth, it all flows out of this
one promise you will receivepower when the Holy Spirit comes
(13:32):
upon you.
And if we, today in Madison,watching or listening online
from wherever you're at if wewant to live the kind of life
that Acts is going to describeand I think it's the most
attractive kind of Christianlife that we can see or
experience we have to hold twothings together and naturally,
based on who you are, you'regoing to drift to one side or
(13:55):
the other, but we need both.
And the first thing that weneed is objective truth.
We need objective truth.
Becoming a Christian startswith believing the truth about
Jesus he lived, he died, he roseagain, he is the Lord.
Following him means growingdeeper in that truth, learning,
(14:17):
studying and understanding moreof who God is and what he's done
.
But that's not all.
So, again, some of you, youreally resonate with that, some
of you don't.
Some of you resonate more withpersonal experience, and that's
the other side of this coin.
It's the lived reality of God'sspirit filling us, empowering
(14:40):
us and leading us.
Jesus didn't just give theapostles more information.
He didn't just throw a manualat them or drop a map and then
peace out.
He empowered them and he ledthem through experience.
He ate with them, he was withthem, he did the human things.
He prepared them for anencounter with the living God,
(15:03):
and I love that.
And that experience isn't justreserved for certain traditions
or a time period long ago.
It's reserved for all believersof all time.
Everywhere Throughout Christianhistory, believers have
described the Spirit's work indifferent ways and because at
Madison Church anon-denominational church, I
(15:23):
know you all have a variety offaith backgrounds and so talking
about the Holy Spirit,depending on your background,
might be making you reallyuncomfortable right now, and
some of you, depending on yourbackground, are ready to jump on
your seat and start clappingfor me, right, and then we're
just going to all kind of livein that tension right now.
But throughout Christian historyand through your backgrounds,
the Holy Spirit has beenemphasized in different ways.
(15:45):
Some emphasize that the HolySpirit's role is to produce
holiness and sanctification.
I'm going to be a better person.
The Holy Spirit's going to helpme do the right things and help
me stop doing the wrong things.
Some religious traditionsemphasize that the Spirit's
power is for bold witness andspiritual gifts, specifically
charismatic gifts, and othersemphasize the Spirit's strength
(16:08):
to serve whoever God calls.
Well, god's going to call youto be a missionary in Madison,
or missionary in China, andwherever God's called you, his
Spirit's going to empower you tobe a missionary.
I don't think you have tochoose one.
From where I sit, I think Actsis going to make the argument
that all of these things areimportant and happen.
(16:29):
I believe it all matters.
You see, baptism of the HolySpirit isn't about fitting into
one box.
I'm not going to sit up hereand say this is exactly what
your experience of the baptismof the Holy Spirit should be
like.
You can read blogs on that orwatch YouTube videos.
A lot of people have set off todo that.
I want to do somethingdifferent.
I want to convince you,regardless of how you grew up in
(16:52):
the church.
I want to convince you to beopen to the full experience of
God's presence, holiness andpower, gifts, service,
transformation.
The challenge for us is to notsettle for knowing facts about
(17:12):
God without experiencing God inhis fullness.
That's why we do the music andthe different things through
creative arts.
It's not just about coming hereand getting more facts about
God and hearing more Biblestories, but it's about
experiencing God and when theband is up here or when we're
praying or when we partake incommunion together, these
different elements, it's aboutexperiencing God.
(17:32):
And when the band is up here orwhen we're praying or when we
partake in communion together,these different elements, it's
about experiencing God.
I don't want you to just knowGod, I want you to know God.
Aw Tozer once said thespirit-filled life is not a
special deluxe edition ofChristianity.
It is part and parcel of thetotal plan of God for his people
(17:55):
.
Every Christian is invited toexperience the fullness of the
Spirit, not just to know aboutit, not just to read about it
happening to someone else.
Next week we're going to talkabout Peter.
Not just about Peter, but foryou to live a spirit-empowered
life, full of God's presence,power and mission.
(18:19):
So a few simple steps that youcould take to live that out this
week.
The first thing is maybe justspend some time just reading
Acts 1 and 2 this week.
If you're looking to pick aBible up this week and start
doing a devotion or reading theBible, let's just start with
Acts 1 and 2.
Don't go beyond that.
Just read a couple verses hereand there.
Perhaps it's not part of yourdevotional life.
(18:40):
That's okay.
I know many of you already havesomething in place.
But what would it take for youto then say, hey, every morning
I'm going to pray.
Holy Spirit, fill me today,lead me to your mission, god, I
want to experience the fullnessof you.
Are you willing to pray that?
And maybe, most importantly,will you respond?
(19:01):
I've talked about kind of howwe made up our hour together,
our gathering, and we do it withmusic and we end with communion
.
But the reason we end withcommunion is for that response,
because discipleship isn't justabout learning things, it's not
just about experiencing God, butit is about doing something.
And so we stop and we respond,even in small ways.
(19:21):
Acts is going to show us a worldabsolutely transformed by the
Holy Spirit.
The question for you and metoday is are we willing to be
part of it?
Are we willing to betransformed?
Do not live the Christian lifeon your own strength.
Do not hope things will getbetter if you just try a little
(19:43):
harder.
None of these things are thingsJesus promised.
The early church didn't changethe world because they had
better information, better Biblestudies, they weren't involved
in more small groups.
They changed the world becausethey were filled with the Holy
Spirit again, immersed in God'spresence and empowered for his
mission.
(20:04):
I think about when we startedMadison Church back in 2014.
We had visions, we had dreams,all these things that the church
could be.
We had visions, we had dreams,all these things that the church
could be.
But, most importantly, like myheart, as the person kind of
leading this, was that MadisonChurch would be the kind of
church we read about in Acts.
We would be a spirit-filledcommunity where lives are
(20:28):
changed and transformed.
And it's been good.
I mean we're coming up on 11years.
It's been good, but many of youknow it's also been hard Not
bad, but definitely hard attimes.
There have been seasons where wehave felt stuck, where we have
felt like we are in this waitingseason and perhaps we're just
going to be in a waiting life.
(20:49):
Seasons where let me paint abetter picture for you seasons
where we would pray and pray andpray and those prayers would
just seemingly go unansweredSelfless prayers God, do
something here, all about yourglory and what you want to do.
There are times where the pathwas unclear.
I don't know if you know this,but sometimes there's not a good
(21:10):
and a bad option, it's a badand a worse option, and
sometimes there's just two badoptions or two worse options and
you're like God are we missingsomething here?
Are we so far out of your willthat there's no good thing to
choose?
The only thing that has kept usgoing I truly believe this at
Madison Church, whether it's ourleadership referring to me, my
family, our community the onlything that has kept us going has
(21:32):
been the presence and power ofthe Holy Spirit.
We've been living in thewaiting, and not as a theory,
but out of obedience, and I canconfidently say that God has
been faithful throughout all ofit.
I can confidently say he'sshaped Madison Church to be the
church we are today, and notjust a gathering on Sunday
(21:56):
mornings, but your life and whatyou do with the rest of your
time.
That I don't see, that theperson next to you doesn't see,
but what you do with the rest ofit.
That is how God is shaping andpreparing and sustaining us, and
it continues to get better.
Look, you don't have tomanufacture anything when it
(22:17):
comes to a spirit-filled life,and I don't have to force
anything.
We just have to be opentogether and individually, open
to a deeper work of God in us,open to being prepared for what
he would have for us to embracebeing an empowered people who
are sent at this time to Madison, wisconsin, because the Holy
(22:41):
Spirit is essential to ourmission and the mission is
critical to our understanding ofthe Holy Spirit.
We have to keep them together,mission and Holy Spirit.
You were never meant to followJesus alone.
You were never meant to carrythe weight of your calling alone
.
You were never meant to figureout life and faith and purpose
on your own.
(23:01):
And I'm not even about to sayyou're supposed to do those
things through community and youare.
But we're supposed to do thosethings with the Holy Spirit,
with the Spirit of God in us,immersed in the Spirit's power
and love.
And this isn't just Acts 1.
This is all over the NewTestament.
Paul writes since we live by theSpirit, let us keep in step
(23:24):
with the Spirit.
It's just more proof that theSpirit isn't how we start the
Christian life.
It isn't.
I say a little prayer and Godmoves into my little heart and
he shuts his little door.
But it is that the Spirit willcontinue to fill me day in and
day out and moment by moment,and in seasons of waiting and in
(23:46):
seasons of thriving and livingon mission.
And just imagine as MadisonChurch keeps walking into it.
You don't always have toimagine.
We talked about some of thethings that we're doing.
Some of you have been here forsome of the things that we've
done, but we are a churchcommunity where people don't
just talk about Jesus.
We live in that power and thatboldness that can only be
(24:08):
explained by being a peoplefilled with the Spirit.
We're a faith community whereI've heard it over and over
again, especially a lot recently, that love is tangible, that
prayer here is powerful, thatthe generosity of this community
is contagious and hope isbreaking into ordinary lives.
(24:29):
Perhaps your situation andcircumstances haven't changed
from the time you came toMadison Church, but a lot of you
are saying, but somethinginside of me is changing.
Out there might not be changing, but in, here is.
That's the invitation, that'swhat's possible.
This is our vision, but itstarts with us waiting on God
(24:53):
and receiving His Spirit so thatwe can step out in faith and do
as those first disciples did.
And we'll continue this storynext week.
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