Worshipping through Acts 1:6-11

This week Pastor will be preaching from Acts 1:6-11 in a sermon he has titled “Not Only Waiting But Working”

6 Therefore, when they had come together, they asked Him, saying, “Lord, will You at this time restore the kingdom to Israel?” 7 And He said to them, “It is not for you to know times or seasons which the Father has put in His own authority. 8 But you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be witnesses to Me in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth. 9 Now when He had spoken these things, while they watched, He was taken up, and a cloud received Him out of their sight. 10 And while they looked steadfastly toward heaven as He went up, behold, two men stood by them in white apparel, 11 who also said, “Men of Galilee, why do you stand gazing up into heaven? This same Jesus, who was taken up from you into heaven, will so come in like manner as you saw Him go into heaven.”

Below are the songs for this coming week. As we prepare our hearts and minds for worship remember to Pray for one another and for the church.

Acts 1:6-11 is an interesting scripture that speaks of Jesus' ascension into heaven. But not just his ascension but also the promise of his return. "The Lion and the Lamb" is a powerful song that goes along with this theme, by portraying Jesus as both the Lion of Judah representing His authority as King and the Lamb of God who was sacrificed for our sins.

As the disciples were gazing into the sky I am sure the thought crossed their mind Lord I need you. Every hour we need Him. He is our rest, our guide, our strength, and we can rely on Him for our every need.

The plea to "open the eyes of my heart" is a call for spiritual revelation and insight. Imagine being the disciples as Jesus ascends into heaven. Jesus was not going to physically be with them anymore, there was a change that needed to take place and soon the Spirit would be given so that we could know who God is and know what we should do to follow Him. We desperately need the eyes of our hearts to be open, if we are in Christ, that same Spirit has been given to you and me.

This hymn no matter how its sung whether with strings and drums or piano or even acapella it is a grounding moment in the worship service, reminding the us of the solid foundation we have in Christ. Just as the disciples stood firm in their faith this song can encourage believers to stand firm today. It is a great way to wrap up the worship service.