Don't worry; the Holy Spirit is good at improv

"He had given them commandments... He had chosen them... He presented Himself alive to them... He was seen by them... He spoke to them..."
Acts 1:2-3

This is a powerful segment in what I think is one of the most important books in the Bible.  I'm going to explain that belief of mine, but before I do that, let's do a little word study.

First:  the word "disciple."  These men were more commonly known as the disciples, so why isn't this book called "The Acts of the Disciples"?  I think because, in the truest sense of the word, they were no longer disciples.  The word "disciple" comes from the Latin for "pupil," and it means "to learn".  It is, interestingly, the same place we get our word "discipline".  When they followed Jesus from town to town, or sat at His feet, they were learning from him.  But after Jesus was taken up to heaven, they could no longer sit at His feet.  First of all, His feet weren't there to sit at, but more importantly, they had been given instructions:

John 21:17 "Feed My sheep"
Luke 24:47 "Repentance and remission of sins should be preached in My name, to all nations..."
Mark 16:15 "Go into all the world and preach the gospel"
Matthew 28:19 "Go, therefore, and make disciples of all the nations"

But the word "apostle" comes from the Greek for "messenger".  Do you see the amazing implication of that?  Their "selfish" time of "taking in" was over, and it was time for them to give to others.  No longer just learning, but now teaching.   These men had graduated, if you will, and been given their diploma, (if you will again), in the form of the Holy Spirit, and were now to begin the work that Jesus had set before them.

And that brings us back to our selected verse, which specifies how the disciples had been prepared to become apostles:  Jesus had chosen them, and commanded them, even presented Himself to them after His resurrection - both visually and verbally.  And the title of the book speaks to their response.  For it is the Acts of the Apostles.  They obeyed Him, and we are privileged to witness their efforts and results.

And now, dear Reader (as the eminent Spurgeon would say) is there something in this passage for you?  If you are a disciple of Jesus... a follower... a pupil... then you are challenged to be an apostle.  Yes, I know, you are not done learning.  You don't know the Bible well enough.  You get Saul of Tarsus mixed up with King Saul.  You think Samson and Delilah is a Shakespearean play.  But yes, we can be an apostle even while we are still disciples.

He has chosen you, and commanded you.  He has presented Himself to you, and you have words to speak and yes, miracles to perform in His name.  And that is why I think this book - Acts of the Apostles - is such an important book.  Because it challenges us to do what they did.  To be apostles, and to act on that.