Meanwhile, the eleven disciples went to Galilee, to the mountain Jesus had designated.But the eleven disciples went into Galilee, to the mountain where Jesus had sent them.Then the eleven disciples went away into Galilee, into a mountain where Jesus had appointed them.But the eleven disciples went into Galilee, unto the mountain where Jesus had appointed them.
5 sermons cite this verse
Praise to you, Lord Jesus Christ. May you have a seat. So one, I would say this, one of the many gifts of the TV show, The Chosen, is I, I mean, kind of humanizing the apostles and that sense of just the way in which the apostles, at a moment like this, at a moment like the ascension, would have just been so confused and just kind of utterly, I imagine, imagine being one of the apostles, one of the disciples who is standing there and you watch Jesus go and you're just like standing there with your mouth open. He just flew away. and then you're like, what now? What do we do now? That's why God had to send a couple of angels. Like, why are you still sending it with their mouths open? But that's the question, like, what do we do now? But also a bigger question, not a bigger question, but another question. Not just what now, but why? like why the ascension? Like why does Jesus have to leave? …
… Matthew chapter 28, the Great Commission. The eleven disciples went to Galilee, to the mountain to which Jesus had directed them. And when they saw him, they worshipped him, but some doubted. Jesus came and said to them, All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And then here's the important part for tonight. And behold, I am with you always to the end of the age. There's the answer. Jesus gives us the answer to the question, where is Jesus? us. He's with us. He is with us always. However, our second text, Acts chapter 1, verse 6, when they had come together, they asked him, Lord, will you at this time restore the kingdom to Israel? He said to them, it is not for you to know times or seasons that the Father is fixed by his own authority, but 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. And when he had said these things, as they were looking on, he was lifted up and a cloud took him out of their sight. And then while they were gazing into heaven, as he went, behold, two men stood by them in white robes and said, men of Galilee, why do you stand looking into heaven? …
… Because he's the way. And then in Matthew chapter 20, verse 28, look at this. The Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve and to give his life a ransom for many. The word ransom, we don't see that word often, but it means that Jesus Christ came to pay what was hanging over your head by your enemy. You have been kidnapped. Are you guys listening? You guys have been kidnapped by sin, and Satan uses that against you. And the Bible says Satan is always accusing you before God about how bad you are. Did you know that? The Bible says he's before God day and night accusing us. Isn't that something? So why does God allow that? Don't worry. Read the rest of the Bible. It turns out really good for you. In fact, all that accusation falls right back on Satan's face. That's going to be a great moment. I want to make sure you want to capture that on film, on camera when you do that. …
… or the excitement, the fear or the joy. Now, here's what Matthew tells us next. Now, the 11 disciples, hearing the testimony of the women, went to Galilee, to the mountain where Jesus told them to go. I'm guessing it wasn't just the 11 disciples who went. Remember, Judas had taken his life. I'm guessing it's not just the 11 disciples. I'm guessing those women went too. I'm guessing anybody else in Jerusalem who knew about Jesus, who was a follower of Jesus, they went too, because they heard the news, Jesus is going to meet you there. He's alive. Who wouldn't go? And so they made their way to the Galilee. Now, the Galilee is about 75 miles north of Jerusalem. I've made the journey many times, and I just want to show you where this is. So this is Jerusalem here, and here is the Galilee, is a region in this area up here. Jesus' home base was Capernaum. Here's the Sea of Galilee right here, the Jordan River. …
… bunker and we've staked everything on this mission. And so with that perspective, let's dive into Matthew chapter 28 verse 16. The Bible says the 11 disciples went to Galilee to the mountain where Jesus had told them to go. Just a pause there. Remember that whenever we see Jesus go into a mountain, really God meeting with his people all throughout scripture on a mountain, it signifies a very important message. Even in the book of Matthew, his ministry starts with his teaching, the Sermon on the Mount. And then in the very middle, you've got the Mountain of Transfiguration. And then at the end here, you see Jesus taking his disciples to the mountain. Verse 17 says, When they saw him, they worshipped him, but some doubted. And Jesus came to them and said, All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Therefore, go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. …