Acts 1:12-14 12Then they returned to Jerusalem from the mount called Olivet, which is near Jerusalem, being a Sabbath day’s journey away. 13And when they had entered, they went up to the upper room where they were staying; that is, Peter and John and James and Andrew, Philip and Thomas, Bartholomew and Matthew, James the son of Alphaeus, and Simon the Zealot, and Judas the son of James. 14These all with one mind were continually devoting themselves to prayer, along with the women, and Mary the mother of Jesus, and with His brothers.

Verse 12 gives the clue to where Jesus ascended and the angels appeared to the disciples. The Mount of Olives is located east of Jerusalem, across the Kidron Valley. Luke notes the distances as a Sabbath days’ journey, which was the Jewish interpretation of how far a person could walk on the Sabbath without violating the fourth commandment in Exodus 20:8-11. This distance was about three-quarters of a mile, which is not far. The disciples did not need to travel far from Jerusalem. After receiving the good news of Jesus’ resurrection, they returned to Galilee, where they met the resurrected Jesus (John 21). At some point, they then returned to Jerusalem, where they met Jesus before his ascension. In his resurrected state, Jesus did not seem to be confined to space and time in the same way as when he was alive as a typical human. The New Testament gives little information about his resurrected state, but it was both physical and spiritual in some sense.

The disciples obeyed Jesus and the angels and went back into Jerusalem to the upper room. The way the reference to this room is stated makes it sound like this was a well known hang out for the disciples. One theory is that it is the same place as the last supper (Luke 22:11), but there is not enough evidence to conclude this convincingly. Large houses often had a second or even third floor where meals were eaten. The room was large enough for all the disciples to gather. Luke lists the names also found in Luke 6:13-16, with one notable name missing, Judas Iscariot, who becomes the topic of discussion in verse 15.

Many women were also present, possibly the wives of any married disciples and/or those at the empty tomb. The mention of Mary, the mother of Jesus, and Jesus’ brothers indicates that Jesus’ family had come to believe in him. Mark 6:3 states that Jesus had four brothers: James, Judas, Joseph, and Simon. The assumption of the New Testament is that Joseph and Mary went on to have natural children, so the brothers and sisters of Jesus were his half-siblings. Two of these brothers went on to write books in the New Testament, James and Jude.

Verse 14 notes a significant change that was happening to the eleven disciples. Two qualities were developing in the disciples. First, Jesus’ prayer for unity among his followers, given in John 17:21, was beginning to be answered with the disciples being of one mind (homothymadon). The word used here became a characteristic of the early church (2:1, 46; 4:24; 7:57; 8:6; 12:20; 18:12; 19:29; 20:18). Second, they devoted themselves to prayer (1:24; 2:42; 3:1; 4:24; 6:6). Unity and prayer prepared them to receive the Holy Spirit. God moves among his people when they are united in thinking and purpose and pray together seeking his will.

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