Waiting Between Ascension and Pentecost: Worship, Prayer, Obedience

Devotional

Day 1: Hands Lifted in Blessing

Jesus stood near Bethany, calloused feet on dusty ground. He raised scarred hands over heads bowed in confusion. His final act before ascending wasn’t a miracle or rebuke—it was blessing. The disciples watched until a cloud swallowed Him, leaving only sky. They walked back to Jerusalem, not with despair, but with irrepressible joy. The Ascension wasn’t abandonment—it was the start of a new closeness. [01:29]

The lifted hands matter. Jesus didn’t vanish mid-sentence or retreat in defeat. He blessed them as a priest blesses a congregation, securing their identity as His body on earth. His physical absence created space for His Spirit’s invasion.

You’ve felt the ache of “in between”—between prayer and answer, calling and fulfillment. Like the disciples, you’re called to walk homeward with joy even when the road feels empty. What if your waiting became worship? When did you last notice Christ’s blessing over your life?

“And he led them out as far as Bethany, and lifting up his hands he blessed them. While he blessed them, he parted from them and was carried up into heaven. And they worshiped him and returned to Jerusalem with great joy, and were continually in the temple blessing God.”
(Luke 24:50-53, ESV)

Prayer: Thank Jesus for His priestly blessing over your unmet hopes and unresolved struggles.
Challenge: Write down one area where you’ll choose joy while waiting. Tape it to your bathroom mirror.

Day 2: Upper Room and Unshaken Joy

The disciples didn’t pace Jerusalem’s streets demanding answers. They gathered in an upper room—Peter’s rough fisherman hands clasped in prayer, Mary Magdalene’s tears now dried by resolve. For ten days, they praised. For ten days, they remembered broken bread and pierced feet. The temple courts echoed their hymns. Waiting became their act of war. [22:11]

Praise isn’t denial. Their songs acknowledged Roman oppression, personal failures, and unmet promises. Yet they sang because Ascension proved Jesus ruled even what they couldn’t see. Joy became their weapon against despair.

You face two options while waiting: rehearse disappointments or rehearse Christ’s faithfulness. Which playlist fuels your days? Identify one situation where you’ll replace grumbling with gratitude today.

“Then they returned to Jerusalem from the mount called Olivet… When they had entered, they went up to the upper room… All these with one accord were devoting themselves to prayer, together with the women and Mary the mother of Jesus, and his brothers.”
(Acts 1:12-14, ESV)

Prayer: Ask God to turn your most anxious thought into a prompt for praise.
Challenge: Set a phone timer for 3 PM today—pause and sing one verse of a hymn aloud.

Day 3: Saul’s Unfinished Altar

Saul’s knees dug into Gilgal’s soil as Philistine taunts echoed. Samuel was late. Men deserted. So Saul seized the knife—he’d offer the sacrifice himself. As smoke rose, Samuel arrived. The king’s crown cracked with one sentence: “Your kingdom will not endure.” Saul traded legacy for immediacy. [19:36]

God tests our wait. Saul feared losing control more than losing God’s favor. His story warns: shortcuts in God’s kingdom cost more than delays.

How often do you hijack God’s plans to ease your anxiety? Where have you replaced “Your will” with “Hurry up”? What current situation tempts you to seize control from God?

“He waited seven days, the time appointed by Samuel. But Samuel did not come… So Saul said, ‘Bring the burnt offering here to me…’ And as soon as he had finished offering the burnt offering, behold, Samuel came.”
(1 Samuel 13:8-10, ESV)

Prayer: Confess one area where you’ve prioritized speed over surrender.
Challenge: Text a friend: “Hold me accountable to wait instead of fix this week.”

Day 4: Clothed with Promised Power

Jesus didn’t leave the disciples with a to-do list. He gave a promise: “Wait for the Father’s gift.” For ten days, their sandals gathered upper room dust as they prayed—not for faster results, but for readiness. Then fire fell. Tongues of flame crowned each head, turning fishermen into prophets. [13:39]

The Spirit’s clothing matters. Armor would’ve signaled battle. Robes might suggest royalty. But fire? It purified, illuminated, and spread. The disciples weren’t just equipped—they were engulfed.

You’ve prayed for outcomes. But have you prayed for empowerment? What problem are you facing where you need the Spirit’s fire more than a solution?

“And while staying with them he ordered them not to depart from Jerusalem, but to wait for the promise of the Father… ‘John baptized with water, but you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit not many days from now.’”
(Acts 1:4-5, ESV)

Prayer: Ask for fresh baptism in the Spirit’s power—not for productivity, but for holiness.
Challenge: Fast from one media input today to create space for Spirit-led prayer.

Day 5: Every Knee, Every Tongue

The Philippians hymn crescendos: every knee bows, every tongue confesses. Roman jailers. Corinthian merchants. Jerusalem priests. Even Saul’s Philistine enemies. Jesus’ Ascension declares this future certain. The servant King now rules—not from a throne, but a cross-etching scars. [06:08]

Bowed knees now choose allegiance. Bowed knees then will acknowledge reality. Ascension assures us: today’s rejections don’t rewrite eternity’s script.

Whose resistance to Christ weighs heavy on you? How does Jesus’ ultimate victory reshape how you pray for them?

“Therefore God has highly exalted him… that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.”
(Philippians 2:9-11, ESV)

Prayer: Intercede for one person who needs to bend their knee to Jesus willingly.
Challenge: Write their name on your palm—pray each time you see it today.

Sermon Summary

Luke’s brief ascension scene lifts Jesus’ hands in blessing and then lifts him to heaven, and that action cues Philippians 2 to sing the backstory and the point. Christ, who is in very nature God, chooses the downward road into servanthood, enters real temptation without sin, and embraces the cross. Therefore God exalts him to the highest place and gives the name above every name so that every knee will bow and every tongue confess Jesus Christ is Lord to the glory of the Father. The Christus Victor image fits here: the ascended Christ announces that death and hell got conquered, not barely but decisively.

Hebrews 1, Colossians 3, and Romans 8 then state what the throne means. Christ sits at the right hand because purification is finished, believers are raised with him, and his current work is intercession. He is not idle in heaven; he is advocating. The timeline sits between ascension and return. First Thessalonians 4 names the next event clearly: the Lord himself will come with a shout, with the archangel’s voice, and the trumpet of God, and the church will meet him. No secret rapture. Just the King coming.

The in-between is the hard part. First Peter 4 refuses to pretty it up, and suffering is not caused by God but allowed by him to fasten hearts to him. Luke 24 tells what fills the wait: repentance and forgiveness will be preached to all nations, and the Lord promises the Father’s gift. Acts 1 adds the command to wait and the content of the promise. Water baptism marks entry, Spirit baptism marks empowering. The Spirit’s power is not a sideshow or a badge; its first work is holiness, endurance under trial, and courage to speak Christ.

Waiting tests trust and confronts pride. Proverbs 3 insists that straight paths begin where sight gives way to trust. The blindfold illustration lands the point: half-seeing keeps veering. First Samuel 13 then warns what happens when control muscles up. Saul refuses to wait for God’s timing, offers what is not his to offer, and loses what could have been a dynasty. God seeks a heart that will wait in obedience.

Acts shows waiting is not passive. The people worship in the temple with joy, pray together constantly with the women, with Mary, and with Jesus’ brothers, and handle necessary work like appointing Matthias, who will carry the gospel and pay for it. That mix of worship, prayer, and faithful administration keeps pride out and hope in. So a mini Lent before Pentecost makes sense: cut the clutter, name one or two long asks, and lean back into worship, prayer, and whatever small faithful steps God lays at hand, trusting the Ascended One who is interceding even now.

Key Takeaways

1. Christ’s ascension crowns his humiliation The hymn in Philippians runs downhill to the cross and then up to the throne. The ascension is not an epilogue but the Father’s public vindication of the Son. The name above every name belongs to Jesus because the self-emptying Servant is the eternal Son. The crown fits because the cross did its work. [04:32]
2. Waiting exposes trust and kills pride The in-between pushes hearts to decide whether God’s timing or self-management will rule. Saul’s rush to offer what was not his to offer shows how fear dresses up as piety and still disobeys. God’s severe mercy removes a kingdom to save a soul from self. Obedience in delay is not wasted time, it is the time when God forms a different kind of person. [20:40]
3. The Spirit empowers holy, witness-bearing lives Power from on high is aimed first at character and courage, not spectacle. Holiness that endures suffering and mouths that speak repentance and forgiveness are the Spirit’s signature. Tongues may appear, but a cruciform life and gospel boldness are the promised norm. The same power that raised Jesus steadies ordinary disciples to open their mouths. [14:18]
4. Worship, prayer, and faithfulness fill waiting Acts refuses the fantasy of spiritual drift. Joyful worship, united prayer, and practical obedience keep hearts aligned while God’s timing ripens. Those habits do not force God’s hand; they keep hands open for his gift. The mundane becomes sacramental when it is done before his face. [22:11]

Youtube Chapters

[00:00] - Welcome
[00:31] - What is Ascension Sunday
[01:29] - Luke’s snapshot of the ascension
[02:41] - Philippians 2: the descent
[04:32] - Therefore exalted: the throne
[04:54] - Christus Victor and the name above names
[05:32] - Every knee and the coming judgment
[06:43] - Seated at the right hand, interceding now
[08:11] - No secret rapture, the next event
[09:40] - The ache of the in-between
[11:16] - Suffering allowed, not caused
[12:15] - The mission: repentance to all nations
[13:18] - Wait for the Father’s promise
[13:39] - Baptized with the Spirit for power
[14:43] - Wanting the kingdom now
[15:20] - Trust when sight runs out
[16:54] - Pride’s urge to seize control
[18:13] - Saul’s shortcut in 1 Samuel 13
[20:18] - Consequences and a heart after God
[22:11] - How to wait: worship
[22:45] - How to wait: pray together
[24:23] - Faithful administration and Matthias
[25:52] - A mini Lent before Pentecost
[27:05] - Closing prayer for steadfast trust

Bible Study Guide

Bible Reading
Philippians 2:5-11 (ESV)
Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus, who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied himself, by taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men. And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross. Therefore God has highly exalted him and bestowed on him the name that is above every name, so that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.

Acts 1:4-8 (ESV)
And while staying with them he ordered them not to depart from Jerusalem, but to wait for the promise of the Father, which, he said, “you heard from me; for John baptized with water, but you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit not many days from now.” So when they had come together, they asked him, “Lord, will you at this time restore the kingdom to Israel?” He said to them, “It is not for you to know times or seasons that the Father has fixed by his own authority. But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.”

Observation questions

In Philippians 2:5-11, what two contrasting actions does Jesus take (downward and upward) to fulfill God’s plan?
According to Acts 1:4-8, what specific command did Jesus give the disciples before ascending, and what promise did he attach to their obedience?
What practical activities did the disciples engage in while waiting in Jerusalem after Jesus’ ascension? (See Acts 1:14, 24-26 and the sermon’s emphasis on worship, prayer, and administration [22:11].)
How did Saul’s decision in 1 Samuel 13:8-14 contradict God’s instructions, and what was the consequence?

Interpretation questions

Why is the order of Jesus’ humiliation (Philippians 2:8) before his exaltation (2:9-11) significant for understanding his authority and mission?
How does the command to “wait” in Acts 1:4-8 challenge modern cultural values that prioritize immediate results and self-reliance?
In 1 Samuel 13, Saul’s fear of losing control led him to disobey. How might his story parallel situations where believers today rush ahead of God’s timing?
The sermon states, “Waiting is not passive” but includes worship, prayer, and practical faithfulness. How do these actions guard against pride or despair during seasons of waiting?

Application questions

What is one area of your life where you feel God is asking you to wait, and how might impatience or fear be tempting you to “take control” like Saul did? [20:40]
The disciples prayed together constantly while waiting (Acts 1:14). Who could you intentionally pray with this week to strengthen your trust in God’s timing?
The Holy Spirit’s power is described as enabling holiness and courage, not just dramatic signs. What ordinary situation this week (e.g., a difficult conversation, a temptation) will require you to rely on the Spirit’s strength? [14:18]
The sermon suggests cutting out “clutter” to focus on worship and prayer. What distraction (e.g., a habit, screen time, worry) could you set aside temporarily to create space to seek God? [25:52]
Reflect on a time when waiting deepened your trust in God. How could that experience encourage someone currently struggling with impatience?

Sermon Clips

41s

“There is no secret rapture. The next thing is that he will come again, and we read about it in first Thessalonians four so wonderfully, so clearly. It says the next thing we are looking for, for the Lord himself will come down from heaven with a cloud. How does he ascend? In a cloud. Right? With a loud command, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trumpet call of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first. And after that, we who are alive and are left will be caught up together with them in the air and in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air, and so we will be with him forever.”

53s

“And it says it gave him the name that is above every name. Now if he was not God, could his name be above God's? No. Do you follow me? So the name above every name, meaning he is divinity in the flesh, that at the name of Jesus, every knee should bow. Now we look around this world today, and we know there are a lot of knees that refuse to bow. Not only that, there are a lot of knees, so to speak, that mock our Lord, that ignore his word, that reject everything he says. But there will come a day that every one of us will stand before the judgment seat of Christ and be held accountable for who we are and who he is to us.”

45s

“more than that, who was raised to life is at the right hand of God. And please hear this. He's not at the right hand of God kinda playing, you know, on his Rubik's cube waiting for its time to come back. Right? No. We read that he is also interceding for us. Are you part of The Us? Am I part of The Us? Yeah. That he is on his throne in heaven to the right of the of God the father interceding on our behalf. That that is what he is doing right now in the heavenly realm. And we are in this in between time now between his ascension and when he will come again.”

40s

“Colossians three one says, since then, you have been raised with Christ. Amen? That's really good news for those of us this morning that have had a cruddy week. It may have been a bit self defeating in the way we've talked about ourself. That has not stopped the reality that you and I have been raised with Christ. And so never allow our emotions or the circumstances around us to affect that vital truth that you and I, because of what he has done for us, are raised with Christ. So set your hearts on those things above where Christ is seated at the right hand of God.”

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Waiting Between Ascension and Pentecost: Worship, Prayer, Obedience

Devotional

Day 1: Hands Lifted in Blessing

Day 2: Upper Room and Unshaken Joy

Day 3: Saul’s Unfinished Altar

Day 4: Clothed with Promised Power

Day 5: Every Knee, Every Tongue

Sermon Summary

Key Takeaways

Youtube Chapters

Bible Study Guide

Sermon Clips

Waiting Between Ascension and Pentecost: Worship, Prayer, Obedience

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