Forty Days with Jesus 

April 27, 2025 

Jesus could have immediately ascended to Heaven after his resurrection, but he chose to stay on earth for forty days before returning to his Father in Heaven. 

Why did the risen Lord stay on earth for forty days before ascending to Heaven?   

• Jesus stayed on earth to show his followers He was truly alive. 

“In my first book I told you, Theophilus, about everything Jesus began to do and teach until the day he was taken up to heaven after giving his chosen apostles further instructions through the Holy Spirit.  During the forty days after he suffered and died, he appeared to the apostles from time to time, and he proved to them in many ways that he was actually alive…” (Acts 1:1–3a, NLT)  

“Let me now remind you, dear brothers and sisters, of the Good News I preached to you before. You welcomed it then, and you still stand firm in it. It is this Good News that saves you if you continue to believe the message I told you—unless, of course, you believed something that was never true in the first place. I passed on to you what was most important and what had also been passed on to me. Christ died for our sins, just as the Scriptures said. He was buried, and he was raised from the dead on the third day, just as the Scriptures said. He was seen by Peter and then by the Twelve. After that, he was seen by more than 500 of his followers at one time, most of whom are still alive, though some have died. Then he was seen by James and later by all the apostles. Last of all, as though I had been born at the wrong time, I also saw him. For I am the least of all the apostles. In fact, I’m not even worthy to be called an apostle after the way I persecuted God’s church.” (1 Corinthians 15:1–9, NLT)  

So, beginning on the day of his resurrection, Jesus appeared to various groups of his disciples for forty days to prove to them he was alive.  Christ wanted his followers to be 100% certain that he had defeated death!   

Seeing the risen Lord assured his followers of some very important things:   

1.  God had accepted Jesus’ payment for their sins.   

“So Christ has now become the High Priest over all the good things that have come.  He has entered that greater, more perfect Tabernacle in heaven, which was not made by human hands and is not part of this created world.  With his own blood—not the blood of goats and calves—he entered the Most Holy Place once for all time and secured our redemption forever.  Under the old system, the blood of goats and bulls and the ashes of a heifer could cleanse people’s bodies from ceremonial impurity.  Just think how much more the blood of Christ will purify our consciences from sinful deeds so that we can worship the living God.  For by the power of the eternal Spirit, Christ offered himself to God as a perfect sacrifice for our sins.  That is why he is the one who mediates a new covenant between God and people, so that all who are called can receive the eternal inheritance God has promised them.  For Christ died to set them free from the penalty of the sins they had committed under that first covenant.” (Hebrews 9:11-15, NLT)  

2.  Jesus could be trusted.   

Jesus’ resurrection proved to his followers that he is not a liar or lunatic.  Whatever doubts and fears Jesus’ followers had about him were eradicated when they saw the risen Lord!  

3.  Christians will be resurrected unto eternal life. 

“But in fact, Christ has been raised from the dead.  He is the first of a great harvest of all who have died.  So you see, just as death came into the world through a man, now the resurrection from the dead has begun through another man.  Just as everyone dies because we all belong to Adam, everyone who belongs to Christ will be given new life.  But there is an order to this resurrection: Christ was raised as the first of the harvest; then all who belong to Christ will be raised when he comes back.”  (1 Corinthians 15:20–23, NLT)  

Adam brought death into the world when he sinned (Gen. 3:17-19; Rom. 5:12), but all those related to Christ by spiritual birth will be resurrected to eternal life (John 1:12; 3:1-18; John 11:25-26; 14:1-4).  The Apostle Paul expands on this grand truth in Romans Chapter Five (5:12-19). 

• Jesus stayed on earth to teach his disciples. 

“And he talked to them about the Kingdom of God.” (Acts 1:3b, NLT)  

The apostles (sent ones) would be responsible for teaching Christians about the spiritual kingdom of God on earth, but they lacked the understanding and ability to succeed in their apostolic ministry.  They needed more knowledge, wisdom, faith, courage, patience, and power.   

1st - Jesus taught his disciples that the Holy Spirit would be their power source.   

Once when he was eating with them, he commanded them, “Do not leave Jerusalem until the Father sends you the gift he promised, as I told you before.  John baptized with water, but in just a few days you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit.”  (Acts 1:4-5, NLT)  

2nd - Jesus taught his disciples what they were to focus on. 

So when the apostles were with Jesus, they kept asking him, “Lord, has the time come for you to free Israel and restore our kingdom?”  He replied, “The Father alone has the authority to set those dates and times, and they are not for you to know.  But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon you.  And you will be my witnesses, telling people about me everywhere—in Jerusalem, throughout Judea, in Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.” (Acts 1:6-8, NLT)  

Instead of worrying about the earthly kingdom, the apostles were to focus on telling people about Jesus.  The disciples were to preach the Good News of Jesus Christ and encourage people to become Christ followers.   

Jesus came and told his disciples, “I have been given all authority in heaven and on earth. Therefore, go and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit.  Teach these new disciples to obey all the commands I have given you.  And be sure of this: I am with you always, even to the end of the age.”  (Matthew 28:18-20, NLT)  

The Great Commission spells out what Jesus wanted his disciples to focus on while he was in Heaven preparing a place for them.  Disciples of Christ are to make more disciples of Christ.  Acts 1:8 details the geographic locations where the apostles were to make disciples of Christ - Jerusalem (Acts 1-7), Judea and Samaria (Acts 8-12), and all over the earth (Acts 13-28).