You Will Be My Witnesses

Today, Dave Blow kicks off our new series about the birth of the church as recorded in the book of Acts. What does it mean to be a witness of Christ?

Please find the slide deck for this week's teaching here.

Home Church Questions:

1. What stood out to you from this week's teaching?

2. What is something in life you find difficult to wait for? Why do you think waiting can feel so uncomfortable?

3. Read Acts 1:1-11 (preferably in multiple translations). What stands out to you from this passage?

4. Jesus tells the disciples to wait for the Holy Spirit before beginning their mission. Why do you think waiting was so important? How do we normally respond when life feels slow or uncertain? What might it look like to “wait on God” in everyday life?

5. Jesus calls his followers to be witnesses. What comes to mind when you hear the word “witness”? How is being a witness different from trying to “have all the answers”? Can you think of someone whose life quietly pointed you toward Jesus?

6. Jesus begins with Jerusalem—the place where the disciples already were. What might “Jerusalem” represent in your life right now? Who are the people God has already placed around you? What are simple ways we can reflect Jesus in ordinary relationships?

7. Jesus also mentions Samaria and “the ends of the earth.” Why do you think God continually pushes his people beyond comfort zones? Are there people or situations we sometimes overlook or avoid? What might it look like for our community to become more open, welcoming, and outward-focused?

8. Where do you sense God inviting you to trust him more deeply this season: in waiting, in witness, or in stepping beyond comfort?

9. Pray with and for one another, our church community, and our world.

Instagram: @theharbournewmarket
Website: theharbournewmarket.ca
Email: david@theharbournewmarket.ca

Transcript

SPEAKER_00 0:19

Hi everyone, Will here. Just a couple of notes before Dave begins the teaching this morning. First, we had a bit of trouble with the microphone this morning, so there will be a dead spot at one point. Please forgive it. There's also a little bit of audio interference in the first bit of the teaching. Unfortunately, it cannot be fixed, and we'll just have to live with it for this week. Secondly, at the very beginning of the teaching, Dave makes reference to the theme in the slides, and the slides he's referring to are the announcement slides that had just been shown in the theater. So if you were not there this morning, those are the slides that he's referring to, in case it's not clear. Thanks so much. Please enjoy.

SPEAKER_01 0:58

Well, the overall uh theme on one of those slides, uh, the big picture is we are here this summer. Uh church is happening, um understanding that people go on vacation and people are here and there and everywhere. That's what's great about uh you know summer and vacation. But um we feel that it's important to also have a yeah, have a space to meet on Sunday for whoever's able to come. So there will be something every Sunday, the um kind of the long weekends, um August, September, and of course June 28th, um will be off-site, but there'll be lots of notice. There'll be lots of um yeah, lots of direction of where we're going and what we're doing, but uh we want to be together in community. Well, kicking off a few weeks here on the book of Acts, uh a natural progression uh following the resurrection of Jesus. And without diving right in, I thought it would be good to have a couple of minutes to talk about the ascension. Um we don't talk, especially in North America, a lot of about a lot about Ascension Day. It has that little tiny space on the uh the Carlton calendar. It's still a holiday in many places over Europe, but it's kind of an overlooked moment in the Christian story. You know, we we talk about Christmas and we talk about Good Friday and we talk about Easter, but often forget about the ascension. And that's where in the lectionary the story turns to kind of move into more maybe an application section of now what after the resurrection of Jesus. And we know that Christ ascends not to withdraw from the world, but to fill it with his presence and authority. And of course, we see that in Matthew 28, 18, where he says, all authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. So the early church lived with that conviction that Jesus was Lord. Jesus was Lord now, not someday, not only in heaven, but over every nation, every power, every corner of creation. And the ascension declares that Christ is seated above, and I need to really highlight the word above every ruler and authority, and as a church, we're called to live faithfully under the reign of Christ right now. And as a prologue, this matters as we dive into Acts. The disciples aren't building an empire, they're not defending a nation, they're certainly not seeking political dominance, that wasn't happening. They're simply witnesses to the risen Christ who has ascended. So their calling is really prophetic faithfulness, not power through force, but the spirit-filled way of Jesus. So as we get into Acts, we're going to see that it's a story of simple people learning how to live in a world under the Lordship of Christ. And uh it all began with the ascension that announced that Christ is the Lord of all. So he's ascended and not absent. And I guess more simply put, we haven't been left alone here to do what we want, thinking um we're smarter than everybody else. So for a big eye idea, if we were going to use that for this series, it's pretty simple. God uses us, ordinary people, empowered by the Holy Spirit to share the hope of Jesus. Now, I must admit I'm a bit of a, I feel like a bit of a heretic this morning. I'm reading off my reading off my phone. I don't have uh, I I I don't want you to tell tell on me or anything, but Sherry was phoning me the throne. You've got everything ready, you've got everything ready. She's at she's at the trailer, and of course I said, Why are you calling me? Of course I have everything ready. Well, other than the scripture. Anyhow, don't tell them we have the phone, we have the technology. And this is a great passage, so let's just uh turn to Acts chapter 1, 1 verse 11. The promise of the Holy Spirit. In my first book, I told you, Theophilus, about everything. Jesus began to do and teach until the day he was taken up to heaven after giving his chosen apostles further instructions through the Holy Spirit. During the forty days after he suffered and died, he appeared to the apostles from time to time, and he proved to them in many ways that he was actually alive. He talked to them about the kingdom of God. Once, when he was eating with them, he commanded them, do not leave Jerusalem until the Father sends you the gift he promised. As I told you before, God baptized with water, but in just a few days you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit. So when the apostles were with Jesus, they kept asking him, Lord, has the time come for you to free Israel and restore our kingdom? He replied, The Father alone has the authority to set those dates and times, and they are not for you to know. But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon you, and you will be my witnesses, telling people about me everywhere, in Jerusalem, throughout Judea, in Samaria, and to the ends of the world. After saying this, he was taken up into a cloud where they were watching, and they could no longer see him. As they strained to see him rising into heaven, two white robed men suddenly stood among them. Men of Galilee, they said, Why are you standing here staring into heaven? Jesus has been taken from you into heaven, but someday he will return from heaven in the same way you saw him go. And may God add his blessing on his word this morning. Well, waiting. It's uh it's challenging. And uh, as we start our series through the early part of the Acts, we're seeing a beautiful story on the birth of the church. But Acts is more than history, it's really just a story of what happens when ordinary people filled with the Spirit of God begin living in the way of Jesus. So it begins in a strange place. No crowds at this point, not with miracles, not with fine expository preaching. It begins with waiting. And honestly, most of us aren't really good at waiting. We live in a world that wants instant answers, instant purchases. I'm guilty as anyone, love Amazon, instant entertainment. So uh for many of us, waiting feels kind of unproductive. And I I totally understand that. Um it kind of feels like nothing is happening. But in the kingdom of God, waiting is where transformation begins. So before the church moved outward in mission, it first learned how to wait in dependence upon God, and perhaps it's still true today. Well, in Acts 1, Jesus has been risen from the dead and he's been active, he's appeared to his followers, they've seen him alive, they've heard him teach, they know that something world-changing is happening, and yet Jesus tells them slow down. He tells them not to rush ahead. Acts 1, 4 and 5 says it really clear. Do not leave Jerusalem, but wait for the gift my Father has promised. Well, waiting is hard. It must have felt strange to the disciples. Um I'm in a season of that now on on something completely unrelated, and it's driving me bonkers as I've worked on this this week. Um we've been, Sherry and I have been working from the trailer, and uh we have a leak. Now, those of you who don't know trailers know that water and trailers, bad combination, not good. Um, you really want your trailer to outlast the payment. That that's just a good premise. So the RV wizard is gonna come and solve my problem. Now I reached out to RV Wizard, his name is Cody last fall. Too busy, can't come, reach out in the spring, you know. And by then we didn't have a leak inside, but we had stuff that needed to be doing. Okay. So in March, I figure, well, it's spring in Myrtle Beach, so I'll reach out to him. Um so the emails start back and forth, and he's gonna do this and he's gonna do that. I'll be there the first of May, when the park's open, first of May. Okay. Well, needless to say, we're still waiting for the RV wizard. And um it's um it's an adventure. Um, you know, he was gonna come Monday, Monday, but you know, he was a little behind, so could I come Wednesday? Sure. Well, Wednesday was seven degrees and raining, so the wizard doesn't like to do much outside wizarding when it's seven degrees and raining because it's bad for you know it's bad for cocking and all that stuff. And of course, Thursday, away, you know, same thing. So Sherry's just looking at me kind of like this, she's working away, and I'm working away, and I'm just like, this isn't good. Well, then Friday we spot a a leak inside around the shower, and now I really want the RV wizard to start wizarding like instantly. He needs to, well, of course, it's the Friday of a long weekend. Um, not happening. So we wait, and uh my bright idea was I'm not waiting, I'll call somebody else. I know another guy. Well, I called him, and his voicemail was, do not even think of leaving a message. Um, you know, I uh it's a long weekend in me. You and 4,000 other people have issues with their trailer. I get two days off, do not call me. Okay. Anyhow, needless to say, we still have a a leak, but Sherry and Lori are on top of it this morning. I'm not sure what they're doing. It makes me a little nervous, actually. But I guess the joy is in these situations, people have just enough knowledge to be dangerous. So we don't need people running around fixing my problems. Anyhow, back to the again, back to the story. Um waiting is hard. And I can't, I get it. You know, reading that this week, Jesus had been with the disciples for a long time. They had heard his teaching, they had watched his miracles, yet Jesus still says to them, You're not ready. You need to wait. Man. So knowledge alone wasn't enough. Enthusiasm, I'm sure they had lots of that. It wasn't enough. Good intentions weren't enough. They needed the Holy Spirit. And I think over the years, you know, when we've looked at ministry, for those of us that have been around the church, we imagine that effectiveness comes through just talent and strategy and charisma and experience. And that's all good, but Axe reminds us that the church was never built primarily on human ability, but it was built on surrendered people filled with the present of God. And so the foundation of Christian life is not self-sufficiency, it's dependence. And that's difficult for us for sure. Um so there's a difference between activity and spiritual power. Um, but in that dependence is where it can be challenging. You know, we much rather solve than pray, we'd much rather plan than surrender. That's just how we build. Um but there's certainly a difference between activity and spiritual power, and we've seen it here, and we see signs of that all over the world with beautiful stories. And the disciples clearly needed to learn that, and uh, it's a great lesson for today. Jesus said something famous in Acts 1, verse 8. But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all of Judea and Samaria and to the ends of the earth. And that one verse, church, is the outline to the book of Acts, and that's where our story begins. The gospel begins in Jerusalem, then it spreads outwards, it crosses boundaries, and then moves into a wider world. Now, something really important, and we've talked about this before, but you can't work through this passage without without saying it. Um Jesus doesn't say you're gonna build the best institution going. Jesus doesn't say you're gonna win arguments all the time, you're gonna be really good. He certainly doesn't say you will gain political power. He says you will be my witnesses. What's a witness? Well, a witness simply tells what they've seen and what they've experienced. The early Christians were certainly not experts with all the answers, but they were people who simply had had their lives changed by Jesus. So when we and we've had conversations this morning about chat GBT and all of this stuff, but when we when we back to the story. Yeah, so we're not pretending to be perfect, we're not trying to win every debate, we don't have every theological answer, but we simply live and speak in a way that points towards Jesus. And I sometimes that word witness, I mean, we've a lot of us have heard that over the years, and it it can kind of feel frightening because it often makes you think you have to have Apollo speech to be a really good witness. But as I've learned and experienced over the last few years, it it can be much simpler, you know. It looks like kindness, forgiveness, hospitality, that's a big big deal. Just the gift of hospitality, compassion, faithfulness, listening well, serving quietly, and speaking honestly about hope. And the early church changed the world, friends, because they were just coming off of their encounter with Jesus, and he had changed their life. So where do we start? Because it it feels hard. We've got to be witnesses, and I think we start where we are. I mean, Jesus says Jerusalem, Judea, Samaria, and the ends of the earth. So there's clearly a movement outward, but Jesus says it begins where you already are. So for the disciples, it was Jerusalem, and there's a lot of wisdom there. Um getting uh getting back up to our trailer, we have, I call them summer friends, and through my crack social media teammate here, they know about, I have no idea how, but they know about that David is now the pastor at the harbor. So I've had lots of comments um over the last couple weeks, all very, very positive. And uh, you know, I'm now the Rev, and they, you know, all very good natured, and and um but then now you start hearing stories. So a couple of people that lost partners over the winter, the battle health challenges. I have no gospel tracts to give them, but what I do have is time when I'm there to listen, to do more listening, and just to offer peace, hope, and compassion, and as the Spirit leads a conversation about Jesus. And it's amazing when we stay focused on conversations like that instead of the invariable questions of who went to the States this winter and who didn't, we can stay focused. And uh I know as as pastors over the years, my colleagues have dreamt about doing great things for the gospel. You know, often somewhere far away, I'm gonna be a missionary in a foreign field. Um, but it's okay to witness locally too. So, what does that look like? Well, in homes, neighborhoods, conversations at work, school, coffee tables, community dinners, carbohydrate community dinners with beloved spaghetti, family, friends, the kingdom of God grows in ordinary places through ordinary faithfulness. And I think one of the greatest joys of serving here is that we see that ministry happens in simple moments. I can't tell you how excited I have I am when I see families walk down the aisle. It makes me happy because that's the future. That's what's going to keep this um movement of God uh moving forward. And so I never underestimate the simple act of faithfulness of people coming to church, and we need to have space for that. And underneath all of that, these are moments where we as a community learn to love well. Now, Jesus also mentions Samaria. Hmm. Well, that would have been difficult, and and that in the book matters. We kind of gloss over that sometimes, yeah, yeah, yeah, around the world. But we've talked about Samaria this this spring. Um, that was a tough spot for Jews. Samaria was just north of Judea and located between Jerusalem and Galilee and ancient Israel. And the Samaritans were related to the Jewish people, but deeply divided because of religiosity and cultural. And so many Jews just avoided Samaria altogether. So when Jesus says the gospel's going to Samaria, that would get their attention because he's saying this message is for people who are different than you, people you may not like, people you may distrust, and certainly for people outside your comfort zone. And so that's really important because as we get through the book of Acts, we see that Philip preached in Samaria and the Holy Spirit moved powerfully there. Well, for the disciples, the end of the earth meant nations beyond Israel and the wider Roman world, and ultimately people everywhere. So, because the Jews and Samaritans had all this hostility, Jesus is already hinting that the gospel's moving way beyond comfort zones. It's a much bigger picture. It's moving way beyond tribal lines, way beyond categories. The spirit always pushes outward and often towards people we may overlook, towards people unlike us, and that can be ouchy, towards outsiders. But I think a church is healthiest when it resists being kind of closed in on ourselves. And acts as a story of God continually widening that circle. If you read the book of Acts just as a narrative, it's always about God pushing out, widening the circle. And that can be uncomfortable. And it's natural to think, you know, to drift towards people who think like us, you know, who live like us, often devote like us, worship like us. But again, the spirit keeps pushing beyond that. The church doesn't belong to us, Rands, it belongs to Jesus, and Jesus is always, always, always reaching towards people with grace. So then comes the ending of the passage today, and it's kind of a natural split as you look through the various commentaries. Jesus has ascended into heaven, and the disciples are standing there staring upward. And that would have been quite a sight for sure. And two angels appear. It's like, what are you looking at? Why do you stand here looking into the sky? And it's kind of funny because I can imagine, you know, we look at airplanes, and I'll look around, and someone's got his head stuck up there, and I'm like, what are you looking at? But it's meaningful because the disciples are now learning they can't stay in the same place. They can't stand still forever. There's work to do with a world needing hope. So here we see the pivot where waiting turns into going, prayer turns into action, worship turns into witness, and the church story begins. So that's our word for us this morning. It's uh it is possible to admire Jesus from a distance without participating in the mission. I've done it. I suppose we all have it sometime or another. We can um, you know, show up on Sunday and write a check periodically and just kind of look at it that way. And it is possible to remain spiritually fascinated while never stepping outward in faith. Where we have pretty good access to lots of good Christian reading, but uh calls us for it beyond all that, not perfectly, not fearlessly, because it it can be hard, but faithfully. So summing up today, what do we do with this here on a summer, early summer Sunday while we wait? And that that's hard, but not passive waiting, there's a difference. Prayerful dependence. God, what do you have in store for us? And I've been doing that a lot lately for a variety of reasons, you know, ministry related and with some of my work at John Howard. Um, so waiting on God, prayerful dependence, and asking, Holy Spirit, you know, just lead me. Second, remember that witness is relational. You don't have to be impressive, you just simply need to be faithful and just be a friend, just be available, just listen well. And thirdly, and I think this is really, really important. Pay attention to where God's already got you. God has me here. So this is my Jerusalem in a variety of contexts. God also has me in time from time to time in Hastings. I don't know why, but we're there. So the people around me matter there, whatever that context is. But but God knows, and God places us wherever he places us. So wherever your Jerusalem is, that matters. And the people around you matter. And fourth, just stay open to where the spirit may stretch you. God's love is always wider than we expect. Well, the church began, as we're gonna see over the next few weeks, with a small group of ordinary people waiting in prayer. That's it. There was no buildings, there was no influence, no wealth, certainly no certainty, and yet through the Spirit of God, the gospel spread. So Acts, as we we dive in over the next few weeks, reminds us that this is a story of the church that never ultimately depended on human strength. It depended on the faithfulness of God who were willing to just work away at it. And that story unfolds across the world today. Not just cathedrals and conferences, but in places like this, with ordinary people among communities just trying to follow Jesus. You will be my witnesses. So, church, may we be a people who wait well, listen well, and love well, and courageously bear witness to the hope of Christ wherever God places us as we move about the week. Let's just pray together. Well, Jesus, you left us the church. You left us a beautiful gift, and we thank you for it. May we never take it for granted. We acknowledge that not everybody around the world can worship in safety and in peace. So may we be a people who are sensitive to our brothers and sisters globally, and may we take our calling seriously to be faithful witnesses of your love and grace throughout the world today and moving forward. In Jesus' name. Amen.