Acts 1 — The Ascension, the Wait, and the Choosing of Matthias

I have a jig in the shop that I use for cutting tenons. It is a simple thing, a piece of plywood with a stop block clamped at the correct distance. When I set it up properly, every tenon comes out the same length. When I do not set it up, I measure each one by hand and they come out different. The jig is not the work itself, but the work does not happen without it.

Acts 1 reads like that jig in the way it sets up everything that follows. The chapter covers the forty days between the resurrection and the ascension, the final instructions Jesus gave the Apostles, and the orderly process of replacing Judas. Nothing in the chapter feels like the main event, but without it the rest of the book does not hold together.

What Happened in Acts Chapter 1

The chapter opens with Luke addressing Theophilus, the same recipient of his gospel. He reminds him that Jesus spent forty days after His resurrection appearing to the Apostles and speaking about the kingdom of God. That detail matters because the resurrection was not a quick appearance followed by an immediate departure. Jesus stayed and taught, and then He told them to wait.

Do not leave Jerusalem, He said. Wait for the promise of the Father, which you have heard from me. John baptized with water, but you will be baptized with the Holy Ghost in a few days.

I have always found that instruction uncomfortable. Waiting is not something I do well. When I finish a project, I want to start the next one immediately. The Apostles had just spent three years with Jesus. They had seen Him crucified and resurrected. They had every reason to want to get started, and He told them to sit still.

The Apostles asked a natural question. Lord, will you at this time restore the kingdom to Israel? It was the wrong question, but it was an honest one that Jesus did not dismiss or brush aside. He redirected them. They were still thinking about political restoration, about Israel as a nation. Jesus redirected them. It is not for you to know the times or the seasons, He said.

But ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you: and ye shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judaea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth.

— Acts 1:8

That is the core of the chapter. The question was about timing and the answer was about mission.

Meaning of the Ascension of Jesus in Acts 1

After He said this, Jesus was taken up while they watched. A cloud received Him out of their sight. The Apostles stood there looking up, and two men in white apparel appeared beside them and asked a question that has stayed with me.

The question the angels asked, why do you stand gazing up into heaven, is a gentle correction that I have needed to hear more than once in my own life. The ascension was real and it was glorious, but the work was not in the sky. The work was back in the city. The men told them that Jesus would return the same way He left, but in the meantime, there was a city full of people waiting to hear the gospel.

I think about that question when I find myself staring at something I cannot change. There is a difference between reverence and paralysis. Looking up is appropriate for a moment, and then you go back to the city.

The Apostles walked back to Jerusalem from the Mount of Olives, a distance of about a sabbath day's walk. They went into an upper room and stayed there with Mary the mother of Jesus and His brothers, plus about 120 other followers. They were all in one accord, praying together. That detail stands out. One hundred and twenty people, united in prayer, waiting for something they had never experienced before. They did not know what the Holy Ghost would feel like. They only knew Jesus had promised it.

How Was Matthias Chosen to Replace Judas

Peter stood up among the group and addressed the vacancy left by Judas Iscariot. He quoted from the Psalms to show that the replacement was anticipated in scripture. Then he laid out the qualification. The person had to have been with them from the baptism of John until the day Jesus was taken up. They had to be a witness of the resurrection.

Two men fit the description. Joseph called Barsabas and Matthias. The group prayed and asked the Lord to show which one He had chosen. Then they cast lots, and the lot fell on Matthias.

I have thought about that process for years. It is not how we select leaders today, but the principle behind it is worth holding onto. They identified the qualification first. They narrowed the field to qualified candidates. Then they prayed and trusted the Lord to make the choice clear.

There is a kind of humility in that process. They did not vote or campaign or argue about who was better suited. They laid the question before the Lord and accepted His answer.

I wrote about the pattern of order in the early church in an earlier article on D&C 52, and the same principle shows up here. The Lord builds His church with systems that work. The process for replacing an Apostle was deliberate and prayerful, grounded in qualification.

Jesus Promise of the Holy Ghost in Acts 1

The promise of the Holy Ghost is the thread that runs through the entire chapter. Jesus mentions it twice. He tells them to wait for it and that it will give them power, making them witnesses.

The Holy Ghost is not presented here as a comfort or a feeling. It is presented as power for a specific purpose. The purpose is witness. The Apostles were not asked to build an organization or write a book. They were asked to testify of what they had seen and heard. The Holy Ghost would give them the ability to do that.

I have seen that principle play out in smaller ways. On my mission in Brazil, there were days when I had no idea what to say. I would knock on a door and the words would not come. But when I prayed and trusted, something shifted and the conversation opened. The person listened, and it was not my skill that made that happen.

That is what Jesus was describing. The power to witness does not come from training or eloquence. It comes from the Spirit. The Apostles had to wait for it because they could not manufacture it themselves.

Why Did the Apostles Wait in Jerusalem

The waiting period in Jerusalem is one of the most instructive parts of the chapter. The Apostles had the commission and the message, plus the urgency. And they were told to sit still.

Waiting is not empty time but preparation time, and the Apostles used it to pray together and study the scriptures, plus put their leadership in order by replacing Judas. When the Holy Ghost came at Pentecost, they were ready because they had used the waiting well.

I keep a piece of cherry wood on my workbench that has been clamped in a jig for three weeks. It is a curved rail for a rocking chair, and it needs to hold its shape before I can fit it to the rest of the frame. If I take it out of the jig too soon, it will spring back and the joint will be wrong. The waiting is not wasted. The waiting is what makes the fit possible.

Frequently Asked Questions

Why did Jesus tell the Apostles to wait in Jerusalem

Jesus instructed them to wait for the promise of the Father, which was the baptism of the Holy Ghost. This spiritual endowment was necessary to give them the power to act as witnesses of His resurrection. They could not begin the work without it.

How was Matthias selected to be an Apostle

The Apostles first identified the qualification. The candidate had to have accompanied Jesus from the baptism of John until the ascension. They narrowed the field to two men, Joseph Barsabas and Matthias, then prayed for God to reveal His choice. They cast lots and Matthias was chosen.

What does it mean that Jesus will return in like manner to His ascension

The angels told the Apostles that Jesus would return the same way He left. This means His Second Coming will be a visible, physical event witnessed by the world. It will not be secret or purely spiritual.

What is the significance of the upper room in Acts 1

The upper room was where the Apostles and Mary, plus Jesus's brothers and about 120 followers, gathered to pray with one accord. It represents unity and preparation during the waiting period between the ascension and Pentecost.

Why did the Apostles ask about restoring the kingdom

The Apostles were still thinking in political terms. They expected Jesus to restore Israel as a nation. Jesus redirected them to a spiritual mission. The timing of the kingdom was in the Father's power, but their job was to be witnesses.

The jig for the tenons is still on my bench. I used it this morning and it worked the same way it worked last year. The stop block has not moved. The plywood has not warped. The jig is reliable because it was set up correctly the first time.

The Apostles were set up the same way. Jesus gave them the pattern and told them to wait for the power, then sent them out. The jig was in place. The work was about to begin.

-- D.