10 days in the New Testament: Day 1

I want to study my Bible deeply and get used to using commentaries and understand the importance of every verse. So in my Bible, there's a Bible plan called "50 days in the New Testament". I want to get through it all, but I might not be consistent because I can’t be committed to this everyday as school is getting more stressful.
(using NCV, similar to NIV)
Day 1

Acts 1:1-11
Written by: Luke
When: Around A.D. 63
Theme: The First Christian Church

In the first verse, he is addressing Theophilius. Who is he? Well I did some research and looked at different commentaries and they say that no one knows who he is but his name means "Friend of God". And Luke goes on after addressing him by saying, "The first book I wrote was about everything Jesus began to do and teach until the day he was taken up into heaven." So Luke is continuing his writing from where he left off in the book of Luke. As he goes on, writing to this man, he talks about what happened during the ascension of Christ into Heaven. If we go back to Luke, he only has 4 verses about Jesus going back to Heaven and in Acts, he has 11. He ends Luke with this, "Jesus led his followers as far as Bethany, and he raised his hands and blessed them. While he was blessing them, he was separated from them and was carried into heaven. They worshiped him and returned to Jerusalem very happy. They stayed in the temple all the time praising God." (Luke 24:50-53) 
No details were given here. From this reading, we can draw out these questions:

• What was the blessing?
• How was Jesus carried into heaven?
• Why did they worship after seeing Jesus get taken away from them?

I think that Luke starts out Acts the way he does so that he could address all these questions that we drew out from the end of Luke. So let's turn back to Acts and find the answers.

What was the blessing? 

Question found in Luke 24:50

Answer found in Acts 1:8

(NKJV) this is the Lord Jesus speaking "But you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be witnesses to Me. (or in the NU-text it reads, My witnesses) in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth."

So the blessing was that they will receive some power, not revealed yet, when the Holy Spirit comes upon them. So when will the Holy Spirit come upon them?

In Acts 2 we can find the answer. Let's take a look:

Acts 2:1-4

When the day of the Pentecost had fully come,

they were all with one accord in one place. 

It says that the Holy Spirit had come upon them on the Day of the Pentecost.
So the Disciples had been waiting quite a while for the Holy Spirit to come and the Spirit eventually comes. Let's continue on with the passage in Acts:

And suddenly there came a sound from heaven,

as of a rushing mighty wind,

and it filled the whole house where they were sitting.

Then there appeared to them divided tongues,

as of fire,

and one sat upon each of them.

And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak

with other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance.

This goes into depth of the blessing that they received. It said that they received spiritual gifts. The gift of speaking in tongues. Paul goes on later in one of the Epistles talking about how the gift of "Speaking in Tongues" is one of the greatest gifts you could receive from the Spirit. So the disciples received a great gift. 

Let's go to the second question:

How was Jesus carried to heaven?

Question found in Luke 24:51

Answer found in Acts 1:9

Now when He had spoken those things, while they watched, He was taken up, and a cloud received Him out of their sight.

He was taken up, but it doesn't mention how. It does mention that a cloud received the Lord.  

Why would a cloud be sent to take the Lord? 

Well the "Acts of the Apostles" commentary says that it may have been designed to answer a main purpose:

To make the ascension of the Lord more distinctly visible to others not just the disciples so that there may be a recorded day in the Jewish history in which the skies were dark and there was a dark and luminous cloud on that specific day. Although it did not say that it was dark or luminous, we can assume that it was. For if the cloud was small and white, like all the others, there wouldn't be any significance to it. No one would know about any unusual events that had happened on this very special day in Biblical history. God would not put a cloud in the picture unless it had some significance. Luke could've pointed out any other random clouds but he pointed out this specific cloud. It must've been very unusual or unique for him to add it in the passage. 

But in this other commentary that I found (http://www.biblecentre.org/commentaries/fbh_48_acts.htm),

it references us back to Luke 9:34:

While he was saying this (speaking of Peter),

a cloud came and overshadowed them;

and they were fearful as they entered the cloud.

And a voice came out of the cloud saying,

"This is My beloved Son. Hear Him!"

So this commentary says that doubtless, this was the same cloud. This picture of God's voice in the cloud, and we can know that it is God because Luke had capitalized "My", is similar to that of the burning bush in the Old Testament. I think by comparing these two commentaries, that they are both correct. I think that the Spirit of God had come down in the form of a cloud to receive His Son. And the reason why He used a cloud to represent Him is for the reason explained in the commentary above and because of Luke 9:34. Now I am not sure that what I had said is right, so don't take what I say as facts, I am still learning and growing in the Lord. 

Lets look at the last question:

Why did they worship after seeing Jesus get taken away from them?

Question found in Luke 24:52-53

Answer found in Acts 1:10-11

And while they looked steadfastly toward heaven as He went up, behold, two men stood by them in white apparel, who also said, "Men of Galilee, why do you stand gazing up into heaven? This same Jesus, who was taken up from you into heaven, will so come in like manner as you saw Him go into heaven."

Now I think that the reason for their rejoicing is their eagerness for their friend and saviour's return. This news had brought joy and hope into their hearts. Little did they know that the "angels" which I think the men were, were referencing Christ's second coming as talked about in Revelation, but that is a whole different topic. They would be already in heaven before the Son of Man comes again. But I think that it was relief that washed over them for it was not the end. Their friend would return someday. 

This is the end of Day 1. It was very long. I don't think I'll be doing another long one, but I do hope that I could stay committed to this plan.