Why in the world would we celebrate Ascension Day? For one thing, it marks a time when Jesus in physical form is no longer with the Disciples and they have to carry on in his name. And so every year, as we wait for the Spirit to appear, we acknowledge that we are now the hands and feet of God, blessing the world in holy ways. Texts to be shared this upcoming weekend remind the Believer that even though the person of Jesus has gone on, we who remain are tasked to do and be the Gospel to all.
ACTS 1:1-11 tells the story of Jesus’ ascension. It also gives the command to tell the Jesus story even “to the ends of the earth”. As was noted before, the Acts of the Apostles is like a puddle or pond: when a stone is dropped in, ripples spread to the other shore. Here is the stone–all analogies accepted–which has echoed through the ages, usually for good, but alas! often for evil. Now the focus of God’s Kingdom is placed on the Disciples. The GOOD news is that even though Jesus himself has gone to heaven, his Spirit, that of the Christ, re-appears again and again!
EPHESIANS 1:15-23 can be easily blown off as more of Paul’s ramblings, although there’s an emphasis on the reader, “you”. The verse that jumps out at me is the one which tells us that “God put this power to work in Christ whom he raised from the dead and seated him at his right hand in the heavenly places”. “What saves is Christ’s ascension, not only his sacrificial death” opines Bonnie J. Miller-McLemore in FEASTING on the WORD, B 2:516. There’s no reduction of suffering and persecution in these texts; but there is a final proclamation of ultimate righteousness and resolution of the Name which is above all other Names.
The Gospel lesson comes from the end of LUKE, vv.24:44-53, Jesus’ final admonishments to his friends. He spoke of “being clothed with power from on high”. And he also left them with a departing blessing, ascending before this blessing was done. This blessing continues unstoppable: “Just because they could no longer see Christ did not mean that he was no longer blessing them”. (Thomas Troeger, ibid., 523) Although we know of storms, shipwrecks, burnings and other persecutions, in this blessing remains the power to announce the Kingdom of God through the still-viable presence of an active Christ.
“God has gone up with a shout, the Lord with the sound of a trumpet. Sing praises to God, sing praises, For God is the king of all the earth; sing praises with a psalm.” –from Psalm 47
In the process of unfolding, Horace Brown King
Come along every Tuesday as we unpack some of the goodies from the assigned readings for the upcoming weekend–at horacebrownking.com
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