Acts 1:9-14 - "Waiting on the LORD"

Acts 1:9-14

"And when he had spoken these things, while they beheld, he was taken up; and a cloud received him out of their sight. And while they looked stedfastly toward heaven as he went up, behold, two men stood by them in white apparel; Which also said, Ye men of Galilee, why stand ye gazing up into heaven? this same Jesus, which is taken up from you into heaven, shall so come in like manner as ye have seen him go into heaven. Then returned they unto Jerusalem from the mount called Olivet, which is from Jerusalem a sabbath day's journey. And when they were come in, they went up into an upper room, where abode both Peter, and James, and John, and Andrew, Philip, and Thomas, Bartholomew, and Matthew, James the son of Alphaeus, and Simon Zelotes, and Judas the brother of James. These all continued with one accord in prayer and supplication, with the women, and Mary the mother of Jesus, and with his brethren."

Waiting on the LORD sounds simple, yet it presses against everything in our sinful flesh that would have us up and doing rather than waiting on the LORD. The opening chapter of Acts draws our attention not only to waiting itself, but on Whom we wait. After speaking of the kingdom and promising Power from on high, Christ was taken up and received out of sight (v.9). His bodily absence did not signal abandonment. Rather, it marked the completion of His earthly work and His continuing reign from heaven, seated in Glory.

The disciples watched Him ascend, not as one who vanished abruptly, but as One Who steadily rose until their eyes could see Him no longer (v.10). The same Jesus Who walked among them, suffered, died, and rose again, ascended into glory. That detail matters. A Man entered heaven. A Man Who ever lives to represent His chosen, redeemed, and justified children before God the Father. And the same Man Who ascended into glory, His work complete, will return in the same manner as He departed (v.11). Waiting, then, is not some vague expectation. It is that fixed hope in the living, reigning, and returning Christ.

This ascended LORD is seated. Scripture never presents Him as restless or unsettled. He sits because His work is done. God the Father's law and justice satisfied, sin put away, and eternal redemption accomplished (Hebrews 9:12) . God would not have raised Him from the dead or received Him into glory had anything remained undone (Romans 4:25; Hebrews 10:12). Waiting on such a LORD is not anxious delay but confident rest.

We are not waiting on a christ who failed and now waits on sinners to complete what He could not, nor a savior hoping for permission to save. Scripture reveals the One Who accomplished salvation for those given to Him, losing none (John 6:37–39). Faith does not complete His work; it receives what He has already finished. It is the Spirit of Christ that reveals Him and His finished work in the hearts of those for whom He paid the debt.

The angels’ message who stood looking up was one of certainty in waiting. This same Jesus will come again bodily, visibly, and gloriously. His return is not determined by man, but by God's Purpose. What seems long to us is measured differently from heaven (2 Peter 3:8–9). The delay does not weaken the promise. It magnifies the Sovereign Hand of God behind it.

Having been told to wait, the disciples returned to Jerusalem. Waiting did not leave them idle, scattered, or speculative. They gathered together in an upper room, continuing with one accord in prayer and supplication (Acts 1:14). Their unity was not manufactured. It flowed from the shared Revelation of Christ in them by His Spirit. Agreement about His Person, His Finished work, His victory over sin, the world, Satan, death, and His present reign formed the foundation of their fellowship.

Even Mary, the mother of Jesus, appears here simply among the others. Her role was fulfilled. She stands not above the church, but within it, a sinner dependent upon the same Savior as all the rest. Grace levels every distinction. All who wait on Christ do so on the same foundation of His death accomplished for them.

Waiting on the LORD is expressed through Spirit-given prayer, and not the restless multiplying of words that would seek to influence God or bend His will to theirs (Matthew 6:7). It is the settled posture of hearts already persuaded by God that He is Sovereign and accomplishing His will in all things. Prayer here is the Spirit drawing Christ to remembrance, turning hearts again to what He has accomplished and where He now reigns. Supplication rises from gratitude, dependence, and assurance, not fear.

The object of waiting defines its character. To wait on the finished work of the Savior is to wait with confidence. To wait on the exalted LORD is to wait with reverence. To wait on the returning King is to wait with hope. Fellowship among believers grows naturally where Christ Himself is the Foundation, not merely discussed as doctrine but known in His revealed Person.

Thus, waiting on the LORD is not standing still inwardly while time drags on. It is resting in Him Who has already acted decisively, Who reigns presently, and Who will return bodily in glory. The church waits, not because something is uncertain, but because everything essential has already been obtained and purposed in Him. When the last sinner that Christ redeemed is drawn to Him by the Spirit, Christ will return.