Therefore, when they had come together, they asked Him, saying, “Lord, will You at this time restore the kingdom to Israel?” And He said to them, “It is not for you to know times or seasons which the Father has put in His own authority. ”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." Now when He had spoken these things, while they watched, He was taken up, and a cloud received Him out of their sight. And while they looked steadfastly toward heaven as He went up, behold, two men stood by them in white apparel, 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.” (Acts 1:6-11).
My mother and I were standing on an overlook, about 5000’ up in the North Carolina mountains. I had gone there to make a cell phone call to Libbie and you have to get up on a high spot to get a “line of sight” to the cell towers which are located in the valley towns far below.
The imagery that greeted us was simply stunning. Twinkling lights of far away towns could be seen in the distance all around. The sky was a very dark blue with a few brilliant white stars. The moon was almost full. A few puffy white clouds were lazily drifting past the moon which was intermittently popping in and out of view. In the valleys below cool air was condensing and accumulating as fog in the low lying areas like puddles of white cotton.
My phone call was finished and we had been standing for several minutes, quietly drinking in our surroundings when my mother said, “Won’t it be something when the Lord comes back through the clouds?”
The matter of fact record that Luke makes in Acts 1 is of a simple conversation between several individuals on a mountain ridge about 2700’ high. On that day Jesus left for home. The angels who suddenly appeared remarked that Jesus would come back again in the same way he left.
It has been many years now since my Mom and I had that chat, but I was there and it happened. It’s been many years since the angels delivered their speech, but the disciples were there and it happened. It’s just a matter of fact.
- Tim Orbison
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