“When they therefore were come together, they asked of him, saying, Lord, will you at this time restore again the kingdom to Israel? And he said to them, it is not for you to know the times and the seasons, which the Father has put in his power. But you shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you: and you shall be witnesses to me both in Jerusalem, and in Judea, and in Samaria, and to the uttermost part of the earth.” Acts 1: 6-8
Some disciples of Christ believed that the kingdom of national Israel was to be restored to them by Christ during his public acceptance and exultation by the multitude and during his triumphal entry into Jerusalem. They thought this was the time they were looking forward to according to their judgment and expectations. His brothers were disappointed when he couldn’t declare himself as the Messiah publicly at the feast. When the Roman cohorts came to arrest him the disciples were also disappointed, they believed it was time to take up arms and restore the nation Israel: given the content of one of the discourses of Christ thus, “Think not that I am come to send peace on earth: I came not to send peace, but a sword.”(Matthew 10:34) and his instruction to them to sell their cloaks or garments and buy swords if they had none in their possession (Luke26:36).
One of them took up arms in defence and by extension to provoke the long awaited revolution and cut the ears of one of the cohorts. Christ returned the ear and told them not to respond. (Matthew 26:51-52, Mark 14:47, John 18:10-11). They were at a loss as to the purpose of his earlier instruction to buy swords. Their hope that Christ was he who “should have redeemed Israel...” (Luke 24:21) was buried when Jesus died the type of death he did without a commensurate insurrection from his followers, if not including the entire nation of Israel.
However their hope was ‘temporarily’ restored when Christ rose from the dead. They saw that he had garnered enough power for the restoration of the kingdom of Israel, having come back to life. Therefore, they had to confront him with that question when he said they should wait for the promise of the Father, thinking that was to be the time of the restoration. The nationalist thought came alive with the resurrection of Christ. The disciples of Christ were engulfed in this nationalistic mind set of their time, a natural tendency prevalent throughout Jewish growth and development, away from the divine instructions given to Abraham that he “shall be a blessing…and in him shall the families of the earth be blessed” (Genesis 12:2-3).
This was pronounced at the time of Abraham’s call by God, which was passed onto Isaac (Genesis 25:11), and Isaac in turn to Jacob (called Israel).(Genesis 28:1-4) It was further reiterated to Moses and the entire nation of Israel when God said they “shall be to me a kingdom of priests…” (Exodus 19:6) The word ‘priests’ implies that the Israelites were to be mediators between themselves, other nations of the earth and God. They were made a peculiar treasure and a holy nation to be an example of what God wants his people to become.
Israel failed in this regard and isolated themselves from other nations, for whom they were meant to be a blessing. Through their stumbling the knowledge of God came to other nations as they went into captivity. It is excellent to expand the blessings of God to others through right and absolute obedience to the oracles and directions of God.
Christ showed the disciples what they should focus their attention on - the reception of the Holy Spirit which will empower them to serve as witnesses from Jerusalem to the ends of the earth. Then will the ‘mamlakah’ (Hebrew word for kingdom) come for it does not come by observations. Where ever they went they were having dominion inspite of the oppositions.
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