A Correction

Acts 1 (New International Version)
New International Version (NIV)
Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984 by International

Bible Society

Acts 1

Jesus Taken Up Into Heaven

1In my former book, Theophilus, I wrote about

all that Jesus began to do and to teach 2until

the day he was taken up to heaven, after giving

instructions through the Holy Spirit to the

apostles he had chosen. 3After his suffering, he

showed himself to these men and gave many

convincing proofs that he was alive. He appeared

to them over a period of forty days and spoke

about the kingdom of G-d. 4On one occasion, while

he was eating with them, he gave them this

command: "Do not leave Jerusalem, but wait for

the gift my Father promised, which you have heard

me speak about. 5For John baptized with[a] water,

but in a few days you will be baptized with the

Holy Spirit."
6So when they met together, they asked him,

"Lord, are you at this time going to restore the

kingdom to Israel?"

7He said to them: "It is not for you to know the

times or dates the Father has set by his own

authority. 8But you will receive power when the

Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my

witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and

Samaria, and to the ends of the earth."

9After he said this, he was taken up before

their very eyes, and a cloud hid him from their

sight.

10They were looking intently up into the sky as

he was going, when suddenly two men dressed in

white stood beside them. 11"Men of Galilee," they

said, "why do you stand here looking into the

sky? This same Jesus, who has been taken from you

into heaven, will come back in the same way you

have seen him go into heaven."


According to Act 1, after the resurrection, Jesus

told the apostles to 'wait in Jerusalem'. In a

prior post, I made an error speculating about the

activities of the disciples/apostles in the time

between the resurrection and the day of

pentecost. It was some time over forty days,

according to Acts, and they spent that time in

their upper room, devoted to prayer, awaiting the

promise of the Holy Ghost. It's not a major

error, but they were keeping out of the way of

the authorities, until after the day of

pentecost.


Another thing I noticed last night was, while

watching a video, the subject of the Bible comes

up, and then the topic jumps over to evolution.

Well, as I've tried to point out over and over

again, everyone seems to get the point that these

are two conflicting ideologies. What they miss

is that they are two *theological* ideas in

collision. It's not christianity vs. science.

It's theism vs. atheism. Evolutionistas base

their theology on

the absence of a Creator, while christians base

their theology on the intervention of a Creator.

Even standup comedians get it... up to a certain

point.


It's not terrifying times, as the comedian would

suggest. These are idiotic times. But

that's par for the course. I see it as just

another act on the part of the perceptive

comedian. People have an underlying fear about

what lies ahead. There's uncertainty. That's

always the case. It's

always been that way. What gets my attention is

that, with all the material available and what

makes for an easy target of ridicule, he takes a

few potshots at the creation vs. evolution

conflict. In my estimate, it goes straight to

the heart of the underlying fear. Just what will

we say to our Creator on the day of reckoning?

Oh, we don't want to think about that too long,

but we can become a little giddy about the

approaching menace, whether it's at the end of a

long natural lifespan or something interrupted by

an apocalyptic event, as it's portrayed in

scripture. What we do know, is that the normal

psychological reaction to approaching fear, that

we feel can't be avoided, is to go into a state

of denial and manic activity. So, in that

context, then we should expect to see an increase

in the trend toward idiotic manic activity and an

increasingly vigorous denial of pending

destruction. The comedy routine, as it plays

with the audience, provides a clue to me that

this psychological state is already well into the

development stage. And what I see as idiotic, is

in fact, an affirmation of the accuracy of the

comedy routine in the sense that there are alot

of frightened people out there. There's a heightened

sense of uncertainty. Here's what Jesus said:


John 16:33 (King James Version)
King James Version (KJV)
Public Domain

33These things I have spoken unto you, that in

me ye might have peace. In the world ye shall

have tribulation: but be of good cheer; I have

overcome the world.


If you've been around for any length of time,

then you know by experience, that whenever things

aren't going smoothly, people will have a

tendency to share their misery with others. Yes,

there are times of tribulation in this world. In

my own experience, there has never been a time

when people had so much stuff and yet, were not

finding satisfaction with any of it. Why do I

think so? Easy. There is no other way to

explain the increasingly lofty levels of public

debt. It says straight out, that people are not

finding satisfaction with what they have. And

then, I just take a look around. Yeah. That's

what I see, if I'm not mistaken. Really. Does

anyone *need* a Hummer? I'm not trying to pick

on Hummer's. I just can't honestly figure out

why anyone would want one. In my mind, it's a

perfect statement of dissatisfaction. As a

military buff, the idea of having a real Humvee

does have a certain appeal, the same appeal that

having a real M-1 Abrams has, but only if it's

authentic military. Do I need one? No way.

Would it make a cool toy? Sure. Am I going to

get another credit card to make it happen? Not

in this lifetime. But the point is not what

makes a cool toy, as much as it is the idea of

finding satisfaction in what you have, and

letting go of the idea that more debt will result

in greater satisfaction. So, at the end of it

all, I'm expecting that there is going to emerge

a whole new paradigm of human financial misery,

and they will make every effort to share it

generously. In fact, I'm thinking that the cat

is already out of the bag, and the human misery

quotient is on the increase.


Jesus was right again. In this world we will

have tribulation. But there is an option to be

of good cheer. As a christian, the way to

approach that state of satisfaction is not going

to be met with accumulation of more stuff.

Genuine satisfaction is found in the fact that

Jesus has overcome the world. It's for ever.


1 John 2:17 (King James Version)
King James Version (KJV)
Public Domain

17And the world passeth away, and the lust

thereof: but he that doeth the will of G-d

abideth for ever.