After Jesus Left...

Title: After Jesus left…
Date: 19 May 2024
Preacher: Pastor Zhang Li

After the Lord Jesus departed, although the mission of the church was arduous, the Holy Spirit would make it possible, He guides them to bear witness to Jesus and teaches the church the truth.
【introduction】
Recently I chatted with my mom over the phone, as usual, we shared about the younger ones. My sister’s child will go to another city for his master’s program soon, and my son is going to NS next year. My mom worried about them leaving home, to start something new.
Impossible missions of the disciples
This made me imagine for the first time the situation of the disciples after Jesus ascended to heaven. In John 16, towards the end of Jesus ministry on earth, He told His disciples, “now I am going to him who sent me. ”
Soon after that, as most of us know, Jesus was arrested and was crucified. This was his first separation from the disciples.
On the third day, Jesus rose from the dead. Within forty days, He appeared to the disciples many times, strengthening them, relieving them from guilt of denying Him, and teaching them about the kingdom of heaven. Then, He ascended to .
This was the second separation between Jesus and the disciples, and it was a very long one. Jesus has not returned ever since.
The disciples had been following Jesus for 3+ years already. During the time when Jesus was still with them, He handled everything himself. They had nothing to worry but to follow Jesus and listen to His instructions,
They had once enjoyed the wine at a wedding feast, which was miraculously turned from water by Jesus. They were all amazed and saw His glory through it.
When Jesus met the Samaritan woman at the well and noticed her spiritual thirst, He engaged in conversation with her. The disciples saw it and were simply puzzled by Jesus speaking with such a woman.
When Jesus healed the man born blind and called Lazarus, who had been dead for four days, out of the tomb, the disciples simply followed Jesus and witnessed these miracles.
The disciples heard Jesus' calling to the Jews, urging them to believe in Him, to believe that He was sent by God the Father. They also witnessed the Jews' disbelief and resistance. However, at that time, they didn't have to confront the Jews themselves.
Jesus did many more amazing things until His final departure. He had said that he would send the disciples out. They are to proclaim the gospel of the kingdom of God, to witness to nations that Jesus is the Son of God, so that people could have faith in and follow him, become children of God, and enjoy abundant life. Now, it was time for the disciples themselves to take on the responsibility, to accomplish the mission entrusted by Jesus.
Just as children leave home when they grow up. It is not easy, but every child must take the step and learn to face real life challenges.
The disciples will learn to face challenges themselves, when Jesus is not around. They will experience rejection, hostility, and accusations, being cast out from synagogues, and even being killed. To witness for Jesus means that they must uphold their faith in such a dangerous situation. It means to point out sins, such as idol worship, lie, jealousy, deceit, wickedness, and so on, and call for repentance. It also means to encounter many in need: the sick, the demon-possessed, those without food or clothing.
Indeed, what an incredibly challenging task it is for such a tiny group of people!
 
Impossible missions of the modern church
Brothers and sisters, upholding the truth, proclaiming the gospel and bearing witness to Christ is the mission given to every church and every Christian. For the modern church, it is still an extremely challenging task.
Nearly 2,000 years have passed ever since the church was established. Starting from Jerusalem, the gospel was spread to Africa and Europe, and then to Asia. Today, compared to the early church, Christians are no longer just a tiny group. According to 2020 statistics, Christians now make up 32% of the world's population.
However, the brokenness of the world and struggles of humanity still persist. Today, humanity is in its fastest and most vigorous period of development in terms of civilization and scientific technology. Scenarios we could only see in science fiction movies ten years ago are now appearing in our real lives. However, our lives have not become easier as a result. On the contrary, these advancements have brought us deeper anxiety, and have caused more isolation between people.
Let me use devices and social media as examples.
In this digital age, we are all so used to handphone and devices that more or less we all forget how to rest. Felicia Wu, a cultural sociologist says (“Even as we succeed in multitasking our way through the day in order to store up time to enjoy) when we try to rest, we are restless. (And when we are restless,) we reach for our phones and devices because we don’t know what else to reach for (in some curiously deep and unexplored ways, our bodies and our imaginations have forgotten what else there is to reach for.”)
Scientific paper proves that the use of social media can lead to tremendous stress, pressure to compare oneself to others, and increased sadness and isolation.
(Ágnes Zsila and Marc Eric S. Reyes, Pros & cons: impacts of social media on mental health, BMC Psychology, 20(23)
Human beings are having great mental and spiritual needs, which can only be met by God, actually. But on the other hand, postmodernism says that every individual has his/her own truth. Rather than submitting to a universal set of laws or ethics, you determine what is right and wrong. And the Gospel, the absolute truth of God sounds unreasonable and out dated.
If you ever tried to share the gospel with your unbeliever friends or family members in the past 5 years, you probably can echo with me.
Then, let’s also have a quick look at the situation of modern church. J.I. Packer points that ignorance of God is the root of the church’s weakness, which was produced by 2 trends:
1. Christian minds have been conformed to the modern spirit: which generates great thoughts of man and leaves room for only small thoughts of God.
2. Christian minds have been confused by the modern skepticism.
His book was published 52 years ago, today the situation of church does not get any better. The ignorance of God - ignorance both of His ways and of the practice of communion with Him, is still weakening the church of Christ.
Brothers, sisters, friends, we do not know enough about God, we do not know enough about His ways, how can we accomplish the mission in this postmodern world?
 
The Holy Spirit made the mission POSSIBLE
Let’s go back to John 16. Not only did Jesus told his disciples that he’s departing soon, He also said, “7 But very truly I tell you, it is for your good that I am going away. Unless I go away, the Advocate will not come to you; but if I go, I will send him to you. ”
Indeed, after Jesus left, the disciples were not gonna carry out Jesus' commission alone. The Holy Spirit would be sent. It is Him who enables the disciples and makes the mission possible!
1. He testifies for Jesus!
The Holy Spirit works powerfully and pervasively in the lives of his disciples, He bears witness to Jesus in their hearts, and enables them to bear witness to Jesus in the world.
Ten days after Jesus left them, the Holy Spirit truly came! This happened on the first Pentecost. The disciples were hiding and praying in an upper room in Jerusalem. Suddenly, the Holy Spirit came like a rushing wind and appeared like flames of fire that settled on each person's head. These people began to speak in the languages of other countries, proclaiming what God did through Jesus.
Then Peter stood up and boldly spoke to the crowd, telling them that Jesus is the Christ, the Savior promised by God in the Old Testament. That day, three thousand people came to believe and were baptized!
From that day on, the disciples were completely transformed. Peter, in Jesus' name, made a lame man stand up and walk. He and John also bravely testified about Jesus before the Jewish authority. This small group of Jesus' followers, empowered by the Holy Spirit, did many many unimaginable things. Even they left Jerusalem for other cities under persecution, they still bore witness to Jesus wherever they went.
And then there is the apostle Paul, we are familiar with him. The HS led him and his coworkers, took them to Asia Minor, and all the way to many cities in Europe to carry out the mission.
The Holy Spirit is the presence of Jesus when Jesus is absent, He is like a spotlight on a stage, never lets anyone focus on himself, but always draws people’s attention to Jesus and helps them to see Jesus clearly.
2. The HS teaches about the truth of Jesus.
The HS is also addressed as the Spirit of Truth in the passage. When Jesus was with the disciples, they were not able to fully understand the words of Jesus, neither could they fully understand Jesus’ crucifixion, resurrection, and ascension (uh·sen·shn). Then when the Holy Spirit came, he taught the disciples the truth of Jesus and led them deeper within the truth.
(12 “I have much more to say to you, more than you can now bear. 13 But when he, the Spirit of truth, comes, he will guide you into all the truth. He will not speak on his own; he will speak only what he hears, and he will tell you what is yet to come. “ )
The disciples reflected on Jesus’ birth, ministry on earth, including his crucifixion, resurrection, and ascension under the light of the Old Testament. They realized that Jesus was the salvation of God, the fulfillment of God’s promises.
They began proclaiming the gospel. They also wrote to various local churches to address misunderstandings about the truth of Jesus, to resolve issues within those communities, and to pass Jesus' teachings and actions to new generations. Guided by the Holy Spirit, certain writings were selected and compiled to form what is now known as the New Testament.

 
The Holy Spirit is still working
Brothers and sisters, the church does not accomplish Jesus' mission alone, either. Ever since the Holy Spirit descended on the first Pentecost, He has been at work within church of God. Indeed, the Holy spirit is the way the presence of the Father and the Son is experienced on earth.
He has never ceased to testify about Jesus and to illuminate hearts, making the truth of Jesus known.
In our community worship at church, during our small group gatherings, and in our personal Bible study and prayer, the Holy Spirit continuously works within us. He is a way of life that penetrates our very being, turning us towards Gospel living in order to find God in the midst of life. This could be the perfect antidote to the church’s ignorance of God, as long as we are open to learning the truth and engaging with the mystery of grace.
Some twenty years ago, two men came to the Bible study I attended. Without the work of the Holy Spirit, they would never have been able to stand side by side like this.
The left is Steve Saint. His father, Nate Saint, was a missionary pilot. And this guy on the right, Mincaye（Mincayi），is from the Waorani tribe in Ecuador, a tribe known for being extremely violent. In 1956, while attempting to make contact with this isolated tribe, Nate and four other missionaries were killed by tribe warriors. Mincaye was one of them.
Their death sparked significant interest in missions. Western missionaries, as well as local Christians in South America, came forward to approach this jungle tribe. 2 years later，many Waorani people were converted, including Mincaye. In fact, he became a church leader in the community. The tribe was changed by the gospel, completely turned from the violent way of living. There’re 2 movies based on their stories.

Steve was only 5 years old when his father was killed, his family continued their mission work, and Steve grew up among the Waorani. Years later, as an adult, Steve returned to the tribe to help them with various projects. Mincaye adopted Steve as his tribal son.
We might say that these missionaries are extraordinary peoples. We, on the other hand, are just ordinary believers. Well, the Holy Spirit works in ordinary people as well.
Couple of months ago, A sister got into a cab and felt prompted to share her faith with the driver. She hesitated cause sharing the gospel with a stranger sounds crazy. But the prompting grew stronger, so she took a deep breath and began to speak. To her surprise, the driver said, “I also go church before, but I don’t go any more.”
As the conversation continued, the sister got to know that He was addicted to gambling, which got himself into big trouble. His wife left with his 2 children, his life was so messy that he stopped going to church. The sister prayed in her heart while telling the brother about God's acceptance. She encouraged him to return to the church and seek help. The brother was deeply moved and said he never knew that God could forgive him; he promised he would definitely return to the church.
There’re many many stories like this. Brothers, sisters, friends, the Holy Spirit is still working in churches all over the world, the Holy Spirit is still working among ordinary people like you and me. Are we willing to be led by Him, taught by Him, used by Him?

Bilingual Sermon Video Link:https://youtu.be/n6pTzcuOJ9E?si=g96M_a8o-b_7-Grz