Come Be My Follower - Jehovah's Witnesses Official Media Web Site

C H A P T E R 1 8
“Continue Following Me”
ELEVEN men stand together on a mountain. With great
love and admiration, they look upon a 12th figure. He
ishumaninform,butinfactheistheresurrectedJesus,
once again the mightiest of Jehovah’s spirit sons. Jesus
has gathered his apostles to meet with him here on the
Mount of Olives for one last time.
2 This mount, part of a chain of limestone hills across
the Kidron Valley from Jerusalem, surely brings a wealth
of memories to Jesus’ mind. On these slopes lies the
town of Bethany, where Jesus resurrected Lazarus. Just
weeks ago, Jesus set out on his triumphal ride into Jerusalem
from nearby Bethphage. The Mount of Olives is also
the probable site of the garden of Gethsemane, where Jesus
spent the agonizing hours before his arrest. Now on
this same hill, Jesus prepares to leave his closest friends
and followers behind. He utters kind parting words. Then
he begins to rise from the earth! The apostles stand there
rooted to the spot, gazing after their beloved Master as he
ascends into the sky. Finally, a cloud obscures him from
their view, and they see him no more.—Acts 1:6-12.
3 Does that scene strike you as a bittersweet ending, a
forlorn farewell? It is not. In fact, as two angels now remind
the apostles, Jesus’ story is far from over. (Acts 1:
10, 11) In many ways, his departure toward heaven is just
a beginning. God’s Word does notleaveusinthedark
1-3. (a) In what manner did Jesus leave his apostles, and why was
that not a forlorn farewell? (b) Why do we need to learn about the
life Jesus has led since returning to heaven?