Acts 1:1-11
My Story
When I was eight years old, my parents sat me down one day and told me we were moving. At first, I was a little concerned and confused. I had always lived in the same house in the same town, so I wasn’t sure if I would like moving. But my parents assured me that we were moving to a great community where I would have many new friends and have lots of fun. So, after the initial shock, I became excited about the move.
But as moving day came approached, I became less excited and more afraid. “What if I didn’t like my new house? What if I didn’t make any new friends? Could I play baseball in our new community? Would I like my new school?” All of these questions and many more flooded my mind.
On our last Sunday at church before we moved, a man asked me how I felt about moving. I started to cry. I’ll never forget the feeling of that man putting his hand on my shoulder and saying, “Well, if you don’t like the new place, then maybe one day you can come back here.”
I never moved back to that church or community. But just knowing that someone told me I might be able to go back one day gave me all the hope I needed to leave the only home I had ever known and move to a new place.
Your Story
Tell about a time in your life when you . . .
• Moved away from one home/community to a new place.
• Went someplace (camp, a friend’s house, etc.) and you felt lonely or scared.
• How did you handle the situation?
• What made you feel better?
The Bible Story
The Bible story today is the Ascension account. This passage tells us that Jesus appeared to his disciples for forty days after his crucifixion and resurrection. These must have been comforting days for the disciples who had been so sad when Jesus died.
But in our text for today, the time had now come for Jesus to return to heaven. So Jesus told his followers that he had to leave them so that he could go to be with God, but soon, he said, they would receive the gift and presence of the Holy Spirit. And when Jesus finished speaking with the disciples, the Bible says he was taken up into the sky and disappeared in a cloud.
While the disciples were looking into the sky, two men—probably two angels—appeared and said to them, “Don’t worry. Jesus is fine. And this same Jesus who just went up to heaven will come back some time in the future.” Jesus is now in heaven, but God has given us the Holy Spirit to be with us while Jesus is away.
Earlier, Jesus told the disciples in the Upper Room, “It is actually good for you that I go away.” Surely that statement did not make sense to the disciples at the time, but they learned later that the Holy Spirit would only come after Jesus left, and Jesus really wanted the Holy Spirit to be with them! All things come and go in life—even Jesus had to leave earth. Life is constantly changing. But sometimes very good things can come to us even through the changes of life.
Discussion Questions
• Why did Jesus have to leave?
• Why is the promise of the Holy Spirit so important to us?
• Why were the two men (angels) standing there? Who were they? Why only two?
• How was Jesus taken up into the air?
• When is Jesus coming back?
• What can you do when you feel lonely, afraid, or scared about changes in your life?
Prayer
• Give God thanks for the resurrection of Jesus and for the ascension into heaven. Thank God also that we can now receive the Holy Spirit.
• Ask God to give you courage, strength, and peace for those times when changes happen to us in life.
Action
If you are going through some changes now, ask God to give you comfort through the Holy Spirit. Talk with your family about changes you have been through together in the past and how God has blessed you during those times. Also, discuss possible upcoming changes for you individually or as a family (new school, new house, new family member, new community, etc.).
Jessica Asbell is currently serving as the Minister to Children at First Baptist Church of Roswell, GA. She has worked with children in various capacities at several churches, including Winter Park Baptist in Wilmington, NC, First Baptist of Decatur, GA, and Highland Hills Baptist in Macon, GA. She has a Master of Divinity from McAfee School of Theology and a BBA from Mercer University. In her spare time she loves to read, watch movies, and of course spend time with her sweet kitty, Lucy.
Kevin Head began serving as Minister to Young Families at First Baptist Roswell, Georgia, in February 2012. He has pastored three churches in Kentucky and more recently served as Senior Pastor of First Baptist Church, Lumberton, North Carolina. In 2007, Kevin and his wife, Amy, began a ministry-based counseling practice called New Perspectives for Life in East Cobb, Georgia. He is a graduate of Furman University (B.A.) and the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary (Ph.D., M.Div.) in Louisville, Kentucky. Kevin was ordained by the First Baptist Church of Belvedere, South Carolina. His model of ministry is based on John 8 and the amazing, continual grace of Jesus Christ. Kevin and Amy have two children, Jenna and Joshua.
