“And, being assembled together with them, commanded them that they should not depart from Jerusalem, but wait for the promise of the Father, which, saith he, ye have heard of me.”
My Notes
What Does Acts 1:4 Mean?
"And, being assembled together with them, commanded them that they should not depart from Jerusalem, but wait for the promise of the Father, which, saith he, ye have heard of me." The risen Jesus gives one COMMAND before ascending: DON'T LEAVE JERUSALEM. WAIT. The command is to STAY and to WAIT — two of the hardest things for people who have been empowered to DO. The disciples who were just commissioned to go into all the world (Matthew 28:19) are first told to go NOWHERE. The mission begins with immobility. The going starts with staying.
The phrase "should not depart from Jerusalem" (mē chōrizesthai apo Ierosolymōn — not to separate/depart from Jerusalem) commands GEOGRAPHIC obedience: stay in THIS CITY. Don't leave. Don't start the mission yet. Don't scatter to your home regions. Stay in Jerusalem — the city where the rejection happened, the crucifixion happened, the resurrection happened. The mission launches from the site of the suffering.
The "wait for the promise of the Father" (perimenein tēn epangelian tou patros — to wait around for the promise of the Father) makes the waiting PURPOSEFUL: they're not waiting for nothing. They're waiting for a PROMISE — the promise the Father made, the promise Jesus told them about (the Holy Spirit, verse 5). The waiting has a DESTINATION. The inactivity has a GOAL. The staying produces the receiving.
Reflection Questions
- 1.What are you being told to wait for before you go — and are you staying or departing prematurely?
- 2.What does the mission starting with STAYING teach about the sequence of obedience?
- 3.Why does Jesus command them to stay in JERUSALEM — the city that killed Him — instead of safer territory?
- 4.What 'promise of the Father' must you receive before the mission can begin?
Devotional
Don't leave. WAIT. The risen Jesus' final command before ascension isn't 'go' — it's 'STAY.' Stay in Jerusalem. Wait for the promise. The mission that will go to the ends of the earth starts with the command to go NOWHERE. The going begins with staying. The doing begins with waiting.
The 'not depart from Jerusalem' keeps the disciples in the HARDEST possible city: Jerusalem rejected Jesus. Jerusalem crucified Jesus. Jerusalem is the city of the Sanhedrin, the hostile crowd, the memory of Calvary. And Jesus says: STAY THERE. Don't flee to safer Galilee. Don't scatter to friendly territory. Stay in the city that killed Me. The mission launches from the place of maximum resistance.
The 'wait for the promise of the Father' makes the staying PURPOSEFUL: the waiting isn't aimless. It has a DESTINATION — the promise the Father made. The Holy Spirit (verse 5) is the promise. The empowerment is the gift. The waiting produces the receiving. Without the waiting, there's no Spirit. Without the Spirit, there's no power. Without the power, there's no mission. The STAYING makes the GOING possible.
The command to WAIT is the hardest command for mission-oriented people: the disciples have been told to go into all the world. Every instinct says: START. GO. MOVE. And Jesus says: not yet. Wait. The urgency of the mission must submit to the TIMING of the empowerment. You can't go in your own power. You need the Father's promise first. The mission without the Spirit is human effort. The mission with the Spirit changes the world.
What are you being told to WAIT for before you GO — and are you staying or departing prematurely?
Commentary
Trusted original commentary from respected historical Bible scholars and theologians.
And being assembled together with them,.... At their last meeting at Bethany, or Mount Olivet, which was by appointment:…
And being assembled together - Margin, “or, eating together.” This sense is given to this place in the Latin Vulgate,…
And, being assembled together - Instead of συναλιζομενος, being assembled together, several good MSS. and versions read…
In these verses, I. Theophilus is put in mind, and we in him, of St. Luke's gospel, which it will be of use for us to…
not depart from Jerusalem This injunction is only mentioned by St Luke (Luk 24:49). The importance of their keeping…
Cross References
Related passages throughout Scripture