5 Minute Read

Prepare Your Heart

To the best of your ability, get rid of all distractions. Take a few minutes to breathe deeply and quiet yourself in the Lord’s presence. Then, ask the Lord to speak to you in this time. Let Him know that you will listen and make whatever adjustments He will reveal to you.

Read God’s Word

1 Chronicles 24-25
Acts 1

A Verse for Today

Slowly and reflectively read the following verse(s) and listen to what God will say to you through His written Word. Consider writing down any insights He reveals to you.

Acts 1:8 (CSB): “But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come on you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.”

Reflecting on God’s Word

What is the purpose of following Jesus? That’s an important question because if you asked 100 Christians what the answer was, you’d probably get 100 different answers.

Ultimately, our primary goal is to obey the greatest commandment, which means we must strive to love the Lord our God with every part of our being.

Matthew 22:37-38 (CSB): “He said to him, ‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind. This is the greatest and most important command.'”

But Christian love is not stagnant. Christian love motivates us to do things for the object of our affection.

John 14:15 (CSB): “If you love me, you will keep my commands.”

So, out of a love relationship with our God, what has He called us to do until He calls us home? Simply put, we are to obey the great commission (Matthew 28:18-20), which calls us to make disciples. That means we are in the business of helping unbelievers come into a saving relationship with Jesus and helping the saved to progress even further in their obedience, love, and submission to our great God.

But many Christians often disagree on where we are to carry out the Great Commission. Some say that we must reach primarily those who are in our general area. They sometimes say that we waste money on mission trips that could be spent on discipleship here.

Other Christians say things like: “No one should hear the Gospel twice until everyone has heard it once.” By that, they mean that America (my country) has had the Gospel proclaimed to it, but there are people in other countries who have never heard about Jesus. (There is a rapidly growing number of people in America who have never heard the Gospel, either.)

So what’s the answer? Should we focus on people who are in the general proximity of our churches? Or should we reach people in faraway lands?

The answer is a resounding “Yes!” We must do both!

Acts 1:8 gives us the concentric circles in which we are to obey the Great Commission.

Acts 1:8 (CSB): “But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come on you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.”

Jesus told His apostles that they could not do this work on their own. They would need the Holy Spirit to empower them. But when He came and filled them, they would begin bearing witness to Him (which makes disciples) in their immediate proximity of Jerusalem, then progress out to the region of Judea, then press out even further to the area of Samaria, and then press out even further to the ends of the earth.

In fact, Acts 1:8 is essentially the outline of the book of Acts. It tells us of the progress of the Gospel that began locally and eventually turned the world upside down (Acts 17:6).

Acts 1-7 – Jerusalem
Acts 8-12 – Judea & Samaria
Acts 13-28 – Ends of the earth

So, where are Christians to make disciples? I believe that Acts 1:8 tells us that we are to begin locally and fan out. In fact, when we look at the books of Acts, the disciples didn’t stop reaching their “Jerusalem” when the Gospel was penetrating the ends of the earth. They continued to make disciples in all four concentric circles simultaneously. And that’s what we must do: make disciples locally, in faraway lands, and in places between those two locations simultaneously.

I recently became the pastor of White Hall Baptist Church in Richmond, Kentucky. As I understand Acts 1:8, it tells me that we are to be about the business of making disciples in Richmond (our Jerusalem), Kentucky (our Judea), places in the other 50 states (our Samaria), and in other countries (our “ends of the earth”).

Honestly, this isn’t easy. But it’s where Christianity gets fun and adventurous. It’s where we see God moving in our midst. When we are doing what He has commanded in the way He desires, expect resistance from our hellish enemy. But also expect that our God will enable us to do great things for Him as He does them through us.

A runner who runs a race and crosses the finish line with plenty of energy left over didn’t run well. It is expected that a runner who gives his or her best must cross the finish line exhausted and exhilarated. And a Christian who enters Heaven without having given much effort to do what Jesus has called us to do will answer to Him on the day of judgment. It won’t determine our eternal destination. But it will certainly determine the kind and amount of eternal rewards. So, let’s run our race, give it our all, and wait for the affirmation from Heaven’s throne at the finish line.

Spend Time in Prayer

  • Ask God to help you understand what He has called you to do in the one life He has given to you.
  • Ask God to fill you with His Holy Spirit so that you have the direction and power to do exactly what He has called you to do. Then get busy!

Going Deeper

If you want to dig a little deeper into what Acts 1:8 means, consider reading the following GotQuestions article:

“What is the significance of Jesus saying, “You will be my witnesses” (Acts 1:8)?”

Sharing

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Matt Ellis is the pastor of White Hall Baptist Church in Richmond, Kentucky (whitehallbaptistchurch.org)