body, who is to empower this body for service and is to direct it in all its work of testifying for him. Then, too, the story is so told as to present the substance of the witness, for within its brief compass mention is made of the works and words of Christ, of his “passion," of his resurrection, of his ascension, of the gift of his Spirit, of his second coming and his Kingdom; and as we review The Acts we find that these are the very truths to which testimony is being borne continually by the witnessing Church. These are the themes which the Church ever emphasizes, when it is faithfully witnessing for its Lord.

Thus it is evident that the opening paragraph, vs. 1-11, like the rest of the first chapter, vs. 12-26, is introductory to the main action of the book; its most important statements concern the ascension, vs. 2, 9, 11; but it also contains the author's preface, vs. 1-5, the Great Commission, vs. 6-8, and the promise of Christ's return, vs. 10, 11.

1. When compared with the introduction to the Third Gospel, Luke 1: 1-4, the preface to The Acts, ch. 1 : 1-5, is less formal and from a literary point of view less perfect; yet in relation to the narrative which follows, it is more significant, for it declares that the Person whose words and works are recorded in "the former treatise" is he of whom Luke is again to write, and it affirms that this Jesus is risen from the dead and ascended into heaven; and it intimates that "the acts" which this book records are wrought by his Spirit through the agency of his apostles.

In each instance Luke addresses his work to Theophilus (beloved of God), of whom nothing further is known, although he is supposed to have been a distinguished Gentile convert to Christianity residing in Rome. Luke here summarizes his Gospel by calling it a "treatise . . . concerning all that Jesus began both to do and to teach, until the day in which he was received up." Thus the ascension, which was the culminating feature of the Gospel narrative is the starting point for The Acts. Luke here reminds Theophilus that previous to his ascension Jesus "had given commandment through the Holy Spirit unto the apostles," and that this commandment concerned

the preaching of Christ to "all the nations"; The Acts is now to relate how this preaching was begun in Jerusalem and continued as far as the imperial city of Rome. In his reference to the resurrection, Luke adds to the records of his Gospel the statements that the appearances of Jesus, who "showed himself alive after his passion," were numerous and convincing and were continued at intervals during "the space of forty days." This resurrection is to be the supreme message of the apostles in the scenes which follow; it is the best attested fact in history; it is the corner stone of the Christian faith. The teaching of Christ, during the days between his resurrection and his ascension, was "concerning the kingdom of God" which in all its perfection is to be established upon earth. There first must be, however, a universal proclamation of the Gospel; and therefore in the crowning statement of his "preface" Luke repeats the promise of the baptism of the Spirit, by whose power the preaching, which The Acts records, is to be done. This promise Jesus called "the promise of the Father," because God had given it through inspired prophets, including John the Baptist, but it was also the promise of Jesus himself, frequently made to his disciples, particularly on the night before his crucifixion, and again, as recorded by Luke, after his resurrection. This promise was of a baptism strikingly contrasted with that of John; the latter was momentary, in the physical element of water, implying a cleansing from sin; the former was to consist in an abiding relation to a Person whose continual presence was to transform character and to impart power for service. For the fulfillment of this promise the disciples were to wait in Jerusalem, and when it was fulfilled the followers of Christ would be equipped for the work which The Acts relates. Such, in brief, is "the preface" to the book; it brings an important message, that all witness for Christ must not only declare his works and words, but must present him as the risen and ascended Lord, and that such witness can be given only by those who are baptized in his Holy Spirit.

2. The Great Commission, vs. 6-8, is given with a some

what altered accent at the close of each of the four Gospels. The substance is ever the same, but Matthew, ch. 28: 18, sounds the note of kingly "authority"; Mark, ch. 16 : 1518, emphasizes the accompanying divine power; Luke, ch. 24: 46-49, makes prominent the universal witness; John, ch. 20:21, 22, lays stress upon the spiritual issue of the work. Of course, all elements are, in a measure, common to these reports of the one final command; and it is interesting to note how, in The Acts, all are emphatically combined. Here the "commission" is given in connection with a question asked by the disciples of their risen Lord: "Dost thou at this time restore the kingdom to Israel?" Jesus does not correct any misconceptions in reference to the Kingdom which may have lingered in their minds. Their belief was essentially true. Jesus encourages them to expect that there would be a restitution; how much larger and more wonderful and more spiritual than they dreamed, he does not pause to explain. They had the right conception. Peter in his "second sermon," Acts 3: 21, calls it the "restoration of all things." True blessedness for Israel and for the world was sure to come; but there were certain events to precede, certain conditions to be fulfilled; chief among which, on the human side, was the universal preaching of the Gospel. Just when this would be accomplished and the perfected Kingdom of God would appear, it was not given to the disciples to know; exact dates and epochs, "times or seasons... the Father hath set within his own authority." The disciples must first accomplish their task, and for this work they would be equipped when they should be filled with the Holy Spirit. This power came upon them mightily at Pentecost, and it ever since has been residing upon those who are completely surrendered to do the will of their Lord. The immediate task, then, of the disciples, and now of all who truly pray, "Thy kingdom come,” is that of witnessing for Christ. "Ye shall be my witnesses," however, does not mean merely that Christ is the object or subject of the testimony, but that the witnesses belong to him, and that through them the living Lord is prosecuting the work by the power of his divine Spirit.

The sphere of this witnessing was to be universal. "In Jerusalem [city evangelization], and in all Judæa and Samaria [home missions], and unto the uttermost part of the earth [foreign missions]" was the command. Just how it was carried out is the story of The Acts.

3. The ascension of Christ, v. 9, includes two great realities: (a) he then passed from the sphere of the seen and temporal into the sphere of the unseen and eternal; and (b) he then assumed "all authority in heaven and on earth." The event is quite distinct from the resurrection which took place forty days before, and also from "the gift of the Spirit" which occurred ten days later, at Pentecost. In the preaching of the apostles and in their inspired writings this event held a prominent place. It is possible that it should be given more serious consideration and a new emphasis in the present day.

(a) Ever since his resurrection Jesus had been meeting frequently with his disciples, eating and drinking with them, teaching them and "speaking the things concerning the kingdom of God"; now he formally and finally withdraws from them: "a cloud received him out of their/ sight"; henceforth he will be an unseen Presence, he will speak to them by his Spirit. "He was taken up"; but we are not to suppose that he passed through infinite spaces, and is now at a vast distance, in some remote sphere. There is no "up" or "down" in this universe. To say that he "ascended" is a correct but merely conventional use of speech; it fitly describes his disappearance from earthly sight and from material conditions into the heavenly and spiritual.

It was at this time, and not at his resurrection, that our Lord assumed "the body of his glory." His resurrection was literal and real; the very same body which was laid in the tomb came forth from the tomb; in it were the nail prints and the mark of the spear; it was a body which could partake of food, which was made of "flesh and bones." Luke 24: 39, 42. Christ's leaving the tomb, his appearing behind closed doors in the upper room, his disappearing suddenly at Emmaus, were miracles no more remarkable than his walking upon the sea, and were per

formed in the same body. When he ascended, however, the body of our Lord was transformed, was glorified; "flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God," and the body, in which Christ appeared in "the upper room" with his disciples, differed in essence from that in which he now is, “seated on the right hand of God." Such a bodily transformation as Christ experienced at his ascension was a fitting termination to his earthly ministry. As his birth had been miraculous, so, too, was his withdrawal into the region and order of the unseen; and the incarnation and the ascension well may be associated in thought. This transformation is an example and an assurance of the change which will be experienced by believers when Christ returns; they will "be changed from mortal to immortal, and caught up "to meet the Lord in the air." I Cor. 15: 51-53; I Thess. 4: 13-18. This transformation is further used as a symbol of the present spiritual experience of those who, by faith, are not only raised from death but are now seated in "heavenly places in Christ."

(b) Even more important is the fact that, at the time of his ascension, Jesus assumed universal power. He can no longer be regarded as a mere human teacher, a prophet, a martyr; he now enters the glory which he had with the Father “before the world was"; he again exists “in the form of God"; as the Creed states: "He ascended into heaven, and sitteth on the right hand of God the Father Almighty"; as he declares in the Apocalypse, "I also overcame, and sat down with my Father in his throne." Such a conception of what is meant by an ascended Christ inspires every reader with new hope and confidence; and such a picture forms a fitting introduction to The Acts, for it fixes the thought upon Christ, the Head of the Church, occupying the place of supreme power in the universe, and so able to guide, control, and protect his witnesses in their work of world-wide testimony.

4. The disciples were encouraged to undertake their task, not only by the assurance of the ultimate establishment of the Kingdom and by the expected gift of the Holy Spirit but also by the promise of Christ's return, vs. 10, 11.