TEAM JESUS | WEEK 2
"The Handoff"
Pastor Rory Chance
The Handoff
“You will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon you. And you will be my witnesses…” — Acts 1:8
In a relay race, one of the most important parts of the race happens in a small space called the changeover box.
The outgoing runner is already moving. Their back is turned. Their hand is stretched behind them. They can’t see the baton coming—they simply have to trust that it’s coming and be ready to receive it.
And if the handoff doesn’t happen inside that box, it doesn’t matter how fast the team runs.
Because sometimes races aren’t won or lost in the long stretches of the track. They’re won or lost in the few meters where the baton changes hands.
That’s more than a track principle. It’s a Kingdom principle:
You can’t run well until you learn to receive well.
Jesus Made the Handoff
Jesus said, “I will build my church, and the gates of Hades will not overcome it.” (Matthew 16:18)
The Church was never meant to be a religious club, a collection of theological positions, or a group of people who wear the jersey but never get on the field.
Jesus called His Church to continue His mission.
As He approached the end of His earthly ministry, Jesus began preparing His disciples for a handoff. He told them He was going away, but He wouldn’t leave them as orphans. He promised the Holy Spirit and told them:
“Whoever believes in me will also do the works that I do…” (John 14:12)
Jesus placed His mission into the hands of His Church.
He gave us His name.
He gave us His authority.
He gave us His mission.
And He promised us the power necessary to carry it.
But before we can run for Jesus, we have to learn to receive from Jesus.
Before the disciples went into the world, there were three things they needed to receive.
1. Receive His Plan for What’s Next
After His resurrection, Jesus spent 40 days with His disciples preparing them for what was coming. He gave them an enormous vision: take the gospel to the world.
But their first instruction was surprisingly small.
Go back to Jerusalem. Wait. Pray.
Sometimes small obedience feels harder than big vision.
We want God to show us the world-changing assignment, while He’s asking us to obey Him with what is right in front of us.
The disciples didn’t have the entire plan. They simply knew their next step.
And that’s often how God leads us.
Sometimes Jesus says, “Wait before you go.”
Sometimes He says, “You don’t need to know yet.”
Sometimes He says, “This is bigger than you.”
And sometimes God tells us to go back before we can go forward.
His plan may not always make sense in the moment, but the plan is often the path to the promise.
Our plans can feel big and still lead us into a small life. God’s plans can feel small and lead us into something bigger than we ever imagined.
You don’t have to know everything that comes next.
You just have to trust Him with what comes now.
2. Receive His Power on the Inside
Jesus didn’t just give His disciples a mission and send them away to figure it out.
He told them to wait.
“Do not leave Jerusalem until the Father sends you the gift he promised…” (Acts 1:4)
Before God sent them to the world, He drew them to Himself.
The disciples weren’t simply going to carry a message about what Jesus had done. They were going to carry the presence and power of the Holy Spirit.
Jesus had already told them:
“It is to your advantage that I go away…” (John 16:7)
Why?
Because the Holy Spirit would not merely be with them. He would be in them.
When the Spirit was poured out in Acts 2, it didn’t fit neatly into everyone’s categories. There was the sound of wind, tongues like fire, people speaking in other tongues, and a confused crowd trying to understand what was happening.
Sometimes God’s promises are designed to break our categories.
Some people approach the Holy Spirit cautiously. Others are curious. Others are convinced.
But the posture of the 120 was simple:
If Jesus promised it, we want it.
The question isn’t merely, “Do I need the Holy Spirit?”
A better question is: Do I want His presence and power for the purpose He has placed on my life?
Jesus said: “You will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon you. And you will be my witnesses…” (Acts 1:8)
Your calling is too big, your purpose is too great, and your future is too important to try to reach it in your own strength.
3. Receive His Purpose for Your Story
Nobody understood this better than Peter.
Jesus once looked at Simon and called him Peter—the rock.
But Peter didn’t always look much like a rock.
He acted impulsively. He tried to fight people Jesus came to save. And when Jesus was arrested, Peter denied Him three times.
The man Jesus called a rock crumbled under pressure.
Maybe you know what that feels like.
Sometimes your life doesn’t look anything like what God spoke over you.
Failure can make you believe your purpose has shattered on the ground. You begin defining your future by the worst moments of your past.
But after the resurrection, Jesus went looking for Peter.
Three times He asked him, “Do you love me?”
And three times Jesus restored purpose to Peter:
“Feed my sheep.”
Jesus didn't discard Peter because he failed. He restored him.
Then Peter was in the upper room when the Holy Spirit came.
And when the crowd gathered and questions started flying, the same man who once folded under pressure stood up.
Peter preached the good news of Jesus, and about 3,000 people responded.
Same man.
Different plan.
Different power.
Different understanding of his purpose.
Peter was no longer defined by the failures behind him. He was living for the purpose God had placed ahead of him.
And notice this: Jesus called him the rock before Peter failed.
God saw beyond Peter’s failure and spoke to his future.
The world doesn’t need a perfect Church. It needs a redeemed Church.
It needs people who can say:
“My family was broken, but look what Jesus did.”
“I was bound, but Jesus set me free.”
“I lived in fear, but Jesus gave me peace.”
“I doubted, but now I know.”
“I was lost, but Jesus found me.”
Your story isn’t something God has to work around.
Your redeemed story becomes part of your witness.
It’s Our Turn to Carry It
Peter stood up with a plan he couldn't have created, a power he couldn't produce, and a purpose God had written over his entire life.
And that isn't just Peter’s story.
That’s the Church’s story.
Everything Jesus placed into the hands of those first disciples has been handed forward through generations of believers.
God made Peter for his moment.
And God made His Church for this one.
The question is whether we will receive what Jesus has handed us.
Receive His plan for what’s next.
Receive His power on the inside.
Receive His purpose for your story.
Then run.
Because before you can run well, you have to receive well.
The baton is in our hands now.
What Do I Do Now?
The message Peter preached on the Day of Pentecost still calls us to respond today.
Repent. Turn toward Jesus. Put your faith and trust in who He is and what He has done.
Be baptized. Identify with Jesus in His death, burial, and resurrection. Let the old life be buried and step into the new life He has given you.
Receive the promised Spirit. The presence and power experienced by the first Christians wasn’t merely a historical moment to admire. Jesus promised His
Spirit to His people.
Don’t settle for standing on the sidelines.
Don’t just wear the jersey.
Don’t spend your life trying to run in your own strength.
Receive what Jesus has handed you—and run your race.
