| First Reading |
Psalm |
Epistle |
Gospel |
| Acts 1:6–14 |
|
1Peter 4:12–14, 5:6–11 |
John 17:1–11
|
After the resurrection, events happened very quickly for the first disciples. Jesus was revealed alive on the Emmaus' Road, at an evening supper table behind closed doors in a safe house in Jerusalem, and beckoning on the Galilee lakeshore at dawn. Then, without much advance notice, Jesus ascended. There is some whimsical wisdom on always celebrating Ascension Day on a Thursday. It means for most of us, Ascension Day is something we hear about only after it is over and behind us, when we come to church the following Sunday.
The images the Gospels first used to convey the meaning of the Ascension and the new way Jesus now lives among us, were largely taken from the Roman imperial court where the emperor was portrayed on a throne higher above all other authority. The point that the Gospels were trying to make is that it is now Jesus, not the emperor, who is above all other authority. In one sense it was a deliberately subversive proclamation that all the disciples clearly understood. It had nothing to do with direction or distance, but with centrality. For Christians, the risen Jesus was now to be central to one's life.
To emphasize the point and to make sure later readers got the message, when the witnesses to the ascension kept looking up in the sky, they were told, "Stop craning your necks and looking up. Jesus is not going far away from you, Return to Jerusalem, and you will find him present among you." We then have the picture of disciples, an inclusive family of both woman and men, around the table reflecting and praying together.
My sense is that prayer is really about working 80% of the time on listening, rather than talking. It is no accident that after the Ascension when the disciples returned to Jerusalem and gathered around the table they devoted themselves to prayer. They didn't each have an easel and begin going around listing their own plans on newsprint. Instead they sat down, and reflected upon where the risen Jesus might be leading them.
Many of us have probably had the unpleasant experience of service on boards where the main agenda appears to be getting one's own point across, rather than listening to other points of view or a mutual seeking of a larger picture of things. The overall group process seems to involve winning votes or to be on the winning side. Such dynamics often contribute to low board morale and inevitably to the detriment of any vision of the organization.
That is why the Gospels place so much emphasis on the image of the centrality of Jesus rather than the actions or great plans of the early disciples. Jesus was the central figure, the host at the table, no matter where or when disciples would ever gather.
I once told a story about a grandmother who was out walking with two of her grandchildren when they came to visit. The children lived in a different city, and grandmother's neighborhood was always strange to them. They had walked several blocks to a large city park, and spent much of the morning exploring the trails, playground, and gardens. When it was time to go home, the grandmother asked, "How far do you think we are from home?" One child answered, "Grandma, I don't know." So the grandmother asked, "Well, where are you? The other child said, "Neither of us knows." Then the grandmother said chidingly, "Well it sounds as if you are lost." "Oh, no," the grandchildren both replied, "We can't be lost. We are with you."
In one sense I wish I could hand you detailed instructions telling you exactly how to be good and wise representatives of Christ in the world, but I cannot, and I would be very wary of another agenda by anyone who would so claim. Yes, there are such people, and it is very tempting to succumb to them, but ultimately they are as phony as the Wizard of Oz. The so-called mighty Oz was merely a little humbug behind the curtain. It was all a deception. If nothing else, remember that Jesus never ascended somewhere beyond the rainbow. Jesus ascended in order to empower us in this world.
What the Gospels of Ascension tide affirm is that as long us we gather to pray together around the table and make the risen Christ central, discipleship may very well be difficult and challenging, but Jesus' presence and the guidance of the Holy Spirit will be sufficient and no matter where we are, we won't be lost.
And I offer this to you in the name of the Living God, Amen.
