Don’t Just Stand There!

Dear friend,

“Don’t just stand there, do something!” Long before you ever heard this familiar phrase, the Lord’s disciples heard something like it. In fact they heard it from a couple of angels.

Jesus had just spoken his last words to his nearest friends before leaving this earth. He gave them an outline of what was going to happen, what they were going to do. He said, “You will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth” (Acts 1:8). Immediately after saying this he ascended into the clouds of heaven. His disciples stood staring into the now Jesus-less sky. That is when it happened.

Two angels appeared and asked them an accusing question, “Why do you stand looking into heaven? This Jesus, who was taken up from you into heaven, will come in the same way as you saw him go into heaven” (Acts 1:11). Now let me paraphrase what the angels were saying. “Don’t just stand there! He will be back. He told you what you were to do. So get going. Move along!”

The words of Jesus in Acts 1:8 apply to us all. He wants us to be his witnesses. That is to say, he wants us to tell other people about the means of eternal salvation through faith in His work on the cross (John 3:16). His blood was shed for our sins and the whole world needs to know. We can start right here in our own neighborhood (our Jerusalem). Then some of us ought to head out into the nearby towns (our Judea). Still others must go into difficult and uncomfortable locations (our Samaria). Finally, some need to go far away to a place where no one has heard the gospel (the end of the earth).

Friend, what will you do with this bit of information? Will you just stand there looking? Or will you be a witness for Jesus?

Your servant,

Stephen

Rev. Stephen St. John
Pastor/Elder