XLVIII. Jesus’ Ascension and Bestowal of the
Spirit of Truth

179. The Last Appearance

        ³To the apostles Jesus presented himself alive after his passion by many proofs, appearing to them during forty days, and speaking of the kingdom of God. ^{a 4}And being assembled together with them he charged them not to depart from Jerusalem, but to wait for the promise of the Father:^{b 49}“And behold, I send the promise of my Father upon you; but stay in the city, until you are clothed with power from on high.”
        ⁶So when they had come together, they asked him, “Lord, will you at this time restore the kingdom to Israel?”^{c
        8}He said, “You shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you,^d and you shall be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria and to the end of the earth.”
        (Ac. 1:3–4; Lk. 24:49; Ac. 1:6, 8)

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a   “speaking of the kingdom of God.” —After his death Jesus continues to emphasize the central concept of his ministry—the kingdom of God (the rule of God in the heart of the individual believer).

b   “the promise of the Father”—the Spirit of Truth. “But when the Comforter comes, whom I shall send to you from the Father, even the Spirit of Truth....” (Ch. 140, Jn. 15:26)

c   “will you at this time restore the kingdom to Israel?”—The apostles still cling to their long-nourished concepts of a Jewish Messiah who restores Israel's political kingdom. But Jesus was not a material Messiah coming to reestablish the political power of the Jewish state. He responds by promising that new spiritual power will come upon the apostles, and that they will then go into all the world preaching the gospel of the kingdom.

d   “you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you”—Here again the influence and activity of the Holy Spirit is closely associated with the coming of the “new Counselor,” the Spirit of Truth. (See Ch. 140, fn. b and Ch. 141, fn. c.)

Ac. 1:3  To the apostles Jesus presented (Ch. 22, fn. a) / To them he presented (RSV)
Ac. 1:4  And being assembled together with (KJV) / And while staying with (RSV) • Father. / Father, which he said, “you heard from me, (RSV)
Ac. 1:8  He said, “You / But you (RSV)   (193:3/2055)

180. Jesus' Ascension

        ⁵⁰He led them out as far as Bethany, and lifting up his hands he blessed them. ¹⁹Then the Lord Jesus, after he had spoken to them, parted from them and was taken up into heaven and sat down at the right hand of God.
        (Lk. 24:50; Mk. 16:19)

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Mk. 16:19  Then / So then (RSV) • them, parted from them and was (Lk. 24:51) / them, was (RSV)   (193:5/2057)

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