Purpose Driven Meeting With the Closest

And being assembled together with them, He commanded them not to depart from Jerusalem, but to wait for the Promise of the Father, "which," He said, "you have heard from Me (Acts 1:4 NKJV)

One of the strongest leadership traits practiced among the successful band of people is centered in the gathering together or in the assembling together. Purposeful gathering brings solution, reaffirming guidelines, principals, and even commitment in the looming potential difficulties we are all facing. It is in the meeting or “assembling together” that Luke, the author of the epistle of Acts, is directing the reader’s attention to bring to surface that Jesus can’t depart to Heaven without meeting with His closest.

In the span of Jesus' ministry, the assembling together of Jesus with the common people and His closest disciples are often times mentioned in the scriptures.  To the common people He customarily imparting parables or narratives so people could easily understood His points, but to the closest disciples He made applications widely on the ministry . He conducted both assemblies to the commoners and His closest, sometimes He separates the venue and times but frequently it happened altogether, and since He was about to be taken up to Heaven, He appeared to His disciples always. There are didactic points in this verse that we can learn together the purposeful meeting Jesus had before He went up to Heaven, and they are:

1.    The objective is easily achieved with the closest than with the non-closest (being assembled together with them):  The participants in this assembling are the one closest to Jesus. They knew Jesus personally since they were called to be His disciples, they have witnessed the works and wonders Jesus did alongside with them, and they have validated the lifestyle of Jesus as their Rabbi and the prophecies fulfilled through Him. It is much easier and more submissive in nature to present some objectives in the meeting with the closest persons Jesus conducted with. Objective can comes in directions or guidelines or can also be goals or commandments to follow.

2.    It has an instructive direction to achieved goals (He commanded them not to depart from Jerusalem, but to wait…): Jesus gives specific commands for them to wait specifically in Jerusalem City. The disciples can do whatever they want such as praying, teaching the scripture, preaching, having communion, singing hymns only within the boundary of Jerusalem City. Having to wait is not to be passive but being proactive occupying ourselves with things pertaining to Godliness. There is a spiritual application in the word “waiting”. It can apply to practicing “patient” as 2Timothy 2:24 says “And a servant of the Lord must not quarrel but be gentle to all, able to teach, and patient”. Certainly patient is one of the expansions of the Christian’s character.

3.    Bonding: Jesus builds closer relationship before He disappeared behind the clouds. It is not only the eastern culture that He practices, but Jesus values friendship and fellowship altogether. They’re brothers and sisters through His blood and He did it while He was on the cross. Hebrews 10:25 says “not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together…” speaks of being together in fellowship. Certainly bonding is among those general assets in having a meeting together.

Luke understands and highlighted the importance of having meeting. He gathers information orally, in writing both letters Luke and Acts, by having meeting directly with people Jesus met. Meeting with people in your organization or corporation certainly must be practiced or you lose direction and goals. Either classified or non-classified meeting is ever conducted in your group, have it as often as you can and bond as much as you want. Please add some inputs if you will under the comment below from this verse! The Lord bless you

His servant,

Steve