Acts 1:3

The Greek word tekmeriois, translated "proofs," occurs only here in the New Testament. It refers to proof by incontrovertible evidence as contrasted with the proof claimed by a witness. Luke asserted that Jesus Christ’s resurrection was beyond dispute.

"The fact of the resurrection was to be the solid foundation of the apostles’ faith and the chief ingredient of their early message." [Note: Blaiklock, p 49.]

As 40 days of temptation in the wilderness preceded Jesus’ earthly ministry (Luke 4:2), so He introduced His present ministry with a 40-day period of preparation. Jesus’ baptism with the Spirit occurred before his 40-day test, whereas the reverse order of events appears here in Acts. God had instructed Moses for 40 days on Mt. Sinai in preparation for Israel’s mission in the world. Now Jesus instructed the Apostles for 40 days in preparation for the church’s mission in the world.

"What Luke is describing is a new beginning, yet a beginning which recalls the beginning already made in the Gospel and with which the story of Acts is continuous. The forty days, therefore, is a vital vehicle for conveying Luke’s theology of continuity . . ." [Note: John F. Maile, "The Ascension in Luke-Acts," Tyndale Bulletin 37 (1986):54.]

The term "kingdom" occurs only eight times in Acts but 39 times in Luke , 18 times in the New Testament epistles. The "kingdom of God" of which Jesus taught His disciples between His resurrection and ascension undoubtedly refers to God’s earthly kingdom program for the future. Dispensationalists believe that Jesus Christ will rule on the earth as Messiah in the future. Progressive dispensationalists, along with covenant premillennialists, amillennialists, and postmillennialists, believe that the messianic kingdom began during Jesus’ first advent ministry and that the church is the present form of the messianic kingdom on earth. Normative dispensationalists (i.e., those other than "progressives") believe that the Jews’ rejection of Jesus resulted in a temporary withdrawal or postponement of the kingdom and that the church is a distinct entity, not another name for the messianic kingdom. They believe that the messianic kingdom is an earthly kingdom and that it will begin when Jesus Christ returns to reign personally on the earth. I believe there is better scriptural support for the normative view.

Sometimes the phrase "kingdom of God" refers to God’s heavenly rule over humans throughout history. Both are biblical uses of the term "kingdom of God." [Note: For a synopsis of the New Testament revelation concerning the kingdom of God, see Robert L. Saucy, "The Presence of the Kingdom and the Life of the Church," Bibliotheca Sacra 145:577 (January-March 1987):30-46.] An earthly kingdom seems clearly in view here since the disciples had expected Jesus to inaugurate the messianic kingdom predicted in the Old Testament on earth then (Acts 1:6). However God postponed that kingdom because Israel rejected her King (Acts 1:7). [Note: J. Dwight Pentecost, Thy Kingdom Come, pp. 214, 225-28. See also Cleon L. Rogers Jr., "The Davidic Covenant in the Gospels," Bibliotheca Sacra 150:600 (October-December 1993):458-78.] Evidently during those 40 days before His ascension Jesus gave His disciples further instruction concerning the future and the postponed kingdom. There may be some significance in the fact that God renewed the broken Mosaic Covenant with Moses on Mt. Sinai in 40 days (Exodus 34:5-29). [Note: J. Manek, "The New Exodus in the Books of Luke," Novum Testamentum 2 (1957):8-23.]