Sermon Tone Analysis

The Ascension of Our Lord

Recap:

Last week, we introduced the Bible book entitled, “The Acts of the Apostles.”

Some quotes from last week:

The problem is, if we stayed in Acts, we’d remain spiritual babies.

Without the Book of Acts, we’d have no understanding of our the Gospel was to be a world-wide mission.

This book is really about seeing the Great Commission given to the church in ACTION.

That’s why I like the name, Acts of the Apostles.

The early church was a church on the move.

That’s what we should be.

A church on the move.

We also talked about how the risen Lord demonstrated to His disciples infallibly that He was risen from the dead, He gave them specific commandments, and told them to wait until they were endued with power from on high.

We also talked about the “Promise of the Father”, which we identified from the Scriptures as the “Baptism of the Ghost,

which covers putting us into the body of Christ (; empowers us to be witnesses (); and fills us with the Spirit, which gives us power for godly living ()

This, week, moving right along, our main topic will be the Ascension of our Lord.

We’ll do this verse by verse.

I.

A Question of Vital Importance.

It is vital, because many denominations and religions do not accept this verse.

It deals with the nearly one-eighth of the OT.

It is vital because many unBible-scholars teach that this question was asked by the disciples in ignorance.

One commentator said: “This is done by men who want to protect the infamous postmillennial theory of Plato (427–347 B.C.) and Augustine (A.D. 354–430)—who were both evolutionists.

The idea is that the poor deluded Jewish apostles were so materialistic and carnal in their conception of “the Kingdom” that they thought it had to do with the Messiah sitting on David’s throne () and reigning over the house of Jacob () at Jerusalem () over a regenerated () earth ().

“Oh, if these ‘carnal believers’ had only known the spiritual joys of the heavenly reign where Christ ruled in the heart by...yak, yak, yak.”

Ruckman, Dr. Peter S.. Acts Commentary (The Bible Believer's Commentary Series) (Kindle Locations 571-580).

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Kindle Edition.

Ruckman, Dr. Peter S.. Acts Commentary (The Bible Believer's Commentary Series) (Kindle Locations 571-580).

BB Bookstore.

Kindle Edition.

Ruckman, Dr. Peter S.. Acts Commentary (The Bible Believer's Commentary Series) (Kindle Locations 571-580).

BB Bookstore.

Kindle Edition.

That commentator went on further to say, “No, the question, “Wilt thou at this time restore again the kingdom to Israel?” is the most logical and scriptural question a Jewish disciple of a Jewish Messiah ever asked.

Ruckman, Dr. Peter S.. Acts Commentary (The Bible Believer's Commentary Series) (Kindle Locations 604-607).

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Kindle Edition.

The restoration of the “kingdom to Israel” is the theme of more than 500 passages in the Old Testament.

Isaiah deals with the subject in more than 100 verses; Ezekiel devotes twelve chapters to it; Jeremiah mentions it in at least 100 verses; Daniel is so full of it (Chapters 2, 7, 9, and 12) Ruckman, Dr. Peter S.. Acts Commentary (The Bible Believer's Commentary Series) (Kindle Locations 614-617).

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Kindle Edition.

The restoration of the “kingdom to Israel” is the theme of more than 500 passages in the Old Testament.

Isaiah deals with the subject in more than 100 verses; Ezekiel devotes twelve chapters to it; Jeremiah mentions it in at least 100 verses; Daniel is so full of it (Chapters 2, 7, 9, and 12)

Ruckman, Dr. Peter S.. Acts Commentary (The Bible Believer's Commentary Series) (Kindle Locations 614-617).

BB Bookstore.

Kindle Edition.

Ruckman, Dr. Peter S.. Acts Commentary (The Bible Believer's Commentary Series) (Kindle Locations 614-617).

BB Bookstore.

Kindle Edition.

Ruckman, Dr. Peter S.. Acts Commentary (The Bible Believer's Commentary Series) (Kindle Locations 604-607).

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Kindle Edition.

II.

God has plans for this current age.

Ruckman, Dr. Peter S.. Acts Commentary (The Bible Believer's Commentary Series) (Kindle Locations 614-617).

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Kindle Edition.

“It is not for you to know THE TIMES OR THE SEASONS, WHICH THE FATHER HATH PUT IN HIS OWN POWER.”

This statement of our Lord is sooooo packed with information.

We couldn’t possibly unravel all of its truths in one session.

We will cover some of them.

Dispensation: A time period in which God reveals certain truths to certain people for a certain purpose, and it is certain that it will pass.

A dispensation then, is a determination by God to deal with man according to His will.

The Bible is not a systematic treatise on Theology, or Morals, or History, or Science, or any other topic.

It is a REVELATION of God, of the Fall of Man, the Way of Salvation, and of God's "Plan and Purpose in the Ages."

It treats of- 1.

Four Persons-God the Father, God the Son, God the Holy Spirit, and Satan.

2. Three Places-Heaven, Earth and Hell.

3. Three Classes of People-The Jew, the Gentile, and the Church of God.

The Scriptures were given to us piece-meal, "at sundry times and in divers manners."

Larkin, Clarence.

Clarence Larkin Collection - 6 Complete Larkin Books [illustrated] (Kindle Locations 102-106). .

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Go over dispensation chart: 10 Minutes

These are important to understand as we’re reading Scripture.

What is important here?

Is it for us to worry about what God has told us not to worry about?

What is it that He wants us to be focused on?

III.

It is God’s Purpose for Us to Preach the Gospel, because He is calling out His bride.

Since God has turned away from Israel for the time being, He is focusing on the Gentiles.

Our responsibility is to be a witness unto Jesus Christ.

“Unto me.”

This is impossible with the empowerment of the Holy Spirit.

John 16:7

Our “commission,” brother, is to preach and bear witness to the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth, ‘til hell freezes over.

We are to witness for the Lord Jesus in the fullest sense, and we are to no more omit the witness of His work as a Jewish Messiah, Who will come to reign over Israel, than we are to omit His atoning death on the cross for sinners.

For every passage in the Bible matching , there are ten matching .

We are to be His witnesses at home (Jerusalem), next door (Judaea), all over the town (Samaria), and all over the country (“uttermost part of the earth”).

Our orders are to start and keep going till God stops us, and our missionary work is essential, mandatory, primary, and providential; not incidental, optional, secondary, or circumstantial.

Ruckman, Dr. Peter S.. Acts Commentary (The Bible Believer's Commentary Series) (Kindle Locations 784-791).

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Kindle Edition.

IV.

For we walk by faith, not by sight.

V. Obedience is our Obligation.