The Heavenly Power and Cosmic Presence of Christ
Commentary
Acts 1:1-11
The First Lesson is drawn from the second half of a two-part history of the church traditionally attributed to Luke, a physician and Gentile associate of Paul (Colossians 4:14; 2 Timothy 4:11; Philemon 24). The author’s intention was to stress the universal mission of the church (Acts. 1:8). The lesson commences by noting forty days of Jesus’ resurrection appearances. He is said to have spoken of the kingdom of God, ordering the apostles to remain in Jerusalem to wait for the Father’s promise (vv.3-4). As John the Baptist baptized with water, it is promised that the apostles would be baptized with the Holy Spirit (v.5). The apostles proceed to ask Jesus if he will restore the Davidic kingdom to Israel (v.6). Jesus replies that it is not for them to know the times or periods set by the Father (v.7). They are told that they will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon them and will be Jesus’ witnesses in Jerusalem and all Judea to the ends of the earth (v.8). This could refer to the conversion of the Gentiles, to Paul’s arrival in Rome, or to some other earth-shattering event. Then it is reported that Jesus begins to ascend. A cloud (symbolizing the presence and activity of God [Exodus 24:15-18]) is said to have lifted Him up. Next, two men in white robes appear. The men [andres] (angels) inform them that Jesus will come again in the same way that they had seen him ascend to heaven (vv.9-11).
This can be a sermon proclaiming the confidence and fresh perspective on life that the Ascension of Jesus can provide. Start the sermon by reflecting with the congregation on the despair they may be feeling personally on the despair over our nation’s future which may still be persisting as the American “honeymoon” with the new president and congress has ended. The Ascension gives hope. Jesus was lifted out of the world to return to the heavenly glories! The Ascension gives us a glimpse of the majesty and glories of the heavenly existence.
To see Christ exalted in this way is mesmerizing. Contemplating the grandeur of God makes everything else seem pretty darn small and unimportant. John Calvin claimed that such contemplation “doth lift us up unto the meditation of the life to come.” (Calvin’s Commentaries, Vol.XVIII/2, p.37) Medical science bears out this insight. Neurobiology has taught us that spiritual exercises facilitate the activation of the front part of the brain, while the back part of the brain which orients us in space and time and so gears us to our own personal agendas and our context goes dim (Dean Hamer, The God Gene, pp.12-124). In short, then, in spirituality we tend to lose ourselves and get caught up in a sense of things bigger than what we are! This sense of being one with what is more than us is certainly a glimpse of the grandeur of God and the universe which Jesus’ followers beheld at his ascension. The festival of the Ascension and the miracle it celebrates are good for helping us get out of ourselves and our depressing circumstances.
Ephesians 1:15-23
The Second Lesson is drawn from what seems to be a circular letter by Paul, likely written from prison late in his career or by one of his followers who had a hand in collecting his epistles. The latter prospect is made likely by the fact that the letter includes vocabulary and stylistic characteristics different from the indisputably Pauline writings. It may have been written to and for a later generation of Christians, as the writer claims to have heard of the recipients’ faith and love toward all the faithful (1:15).
The text begins with this praise of the Ephesians for their faith and love towards the saints. The writer prays that they may receive wisdom regarding the greatness of God’s power for the faithful. The faithful have been called to hope, the author claims (vv.17-19). God is said have put his power to work in Christ in raising him and seating him at the Lord’s right hand (in the Ascension) (v.20). It is claimed that the Ascension entails that all things are under Christ, including the church of which He is Head. The church is then the body, and Christ dwells in it (vv.22-23). These are claims not made in the unquestionably authentic Pauline letters (see Romans 12:5; 1 Corinthians 12:12-17).
There at least two options for sermons on this lesson. One approach, more in line with the overall theme for the day, is to begin by highlighting those things in life which are going wrong — be it the economy, the international situation, local family trials, etc. Raise the question of how a good God could allow these things to happen. When those thoughts go through our heads, life feels meaningless, For life has little meaning if eternity is not friendly towards us. For then life feels like blind chance with nothing but annihilation lying up ahead.
Our lesson gives us assurance. Paul claims that in raising Christ and in his ascension into heaven it becomes clear that God has put all things under Christ. This loving God of ours reigns supreme in the cosmos! Nothing can stop or ultimately befuddle His love! The worst tragedy or evil we can imagine is ultimately doomed to failure. The Ascension is God’s assurance to us that he is in control.
The other sermon option relates the text’s reference that Christ is now head of the church and dwells in it (vv.22-23). If God does not seem present in Sunday worship, if the congregation seems spinning its wheels sometime, Christ is not absent after all!. We have just been blind or not seen him when he is before our very eyes. Offer that assurance to those in the flock disillusioned by the church or hungry for more fellowship with our Lord.
Luke 24:44-53
The gospel is drawn from the second installment of a two-part history of the church. See the discussion of the First Lesson above for background information on the author and the reasons for writing the book. This text is the conclusion of Jesus’ commissioning of the disciples during his final resurrection appearance (vv.44-49), followed by the account of his ascension (vv.50-53). Only in Acts is reference made to the latter.
Jesus says the words he uttered to the disciples (that the Messiah should suffer [v.26]) demonstrate that the law of Moses, the prophets, and Psalms has been fulfilled (v.44). He opens the minds of the disciples to understand that His suffering and resurrection fulfill these Old Testament texts (vv.45-46). This word is proclaimed with the word of repentance and forgiveness of sin (v.47). As witnesses [martus, or martyrs], the disciples are to receive what the Father promises (power from on high) and remain in Jerusalem until it is received (vv.47-48). What the Father promises turns out to be the gift of the Holy Spirit (Acts 1:4-5,8; 2:4,17-18). Jesus leads the disciples to the east of Jerusalem to Bethany, blesses them, and then ascends to heaven (vv.50-51). The disciples respond with worship, return to Jerusalem with joy, and are said to be continually in the temple blessing God (vv.52-53).
A 2006 Pew Survey found that one in four Americans find God distant. The percentage rise of those not believing in God according to more recent surveys merely adds further to the sense of distance from God on American turf. Add to these findings, a 2024 Gallup poll found that 51% of American claimed to have experienced depression or anxiety in the past 12 months. This can be a sermon to point out how the Ascension addresses these attitudes.
Martin Luther offered an exciting insight on this matter. Rather than thinking of the Ascension as taking Jesus away from us the reformer claimed that since Christ is human, when He was raised we are raised with Him. So that as Jesus is now in the heavenly Presence of God, so are you and I (see Illustrations for the full quote) (Luther’s Works, Vol.13, p.243). How could we still feel depressed in the presence of God, confident of his care and fellowship all the time! Ascending to heaven is not vanishing from earth, unless you think of heaven as a place — up there in the clouds. But heaven is just God’s presence, in which case we can say it is everywhere and yet nowhere since God is omnipresent. Quantum physics provides a helpful way of thinking about this reality. It has posited the existence of the field which brings together all the articles which form the atom — the Higgs Field. It is not far-fetched for the faithful to understand God as present in this field, since his was and still is the creator of all matter. And the Higgs Field (and so God) is invisibly present in all matter, everywhere, just existing in one of the invisible dimensions beyond the height, width, depth, space and time.
No, God is right here in our guts, in all matter which has ever existed, ever in our presence. Anxiety and depression have no chance as we realize we are eternally now good enough to be in and with God.
All the lessons for the Ascension invite sermons celebrating Christ’s glorified presence and its implications for comfort as we now know that he is with God, permeating all aspects of our lives, and that as such we can be assured that nothing can overcome his love for us.
The First Lesson is drawn from the second half of a two-part history of the church traditionally attributed to Luke, a physician and Gentile associate of Paul (Colossians 4:14; 2 Timothy 4:11; Philemon 24). The author’s intention was to stress the universal mission of the church (Acts. 1:8). The lesson commences by noting forty days of Jesus’ resurrection appearances. He is said to have spoken of the kingdom of God, ordering the apostles to remain in Jerusalem to wait for the Father’s promise (vv.3-4). As John the Baptist baptized with water, it is promised that the apostles would be baptized with the Holy Spirit (v.5). The apostles proceed to ask Jesus if he will restore the Davidic kingdom to Israel (v.6). Jesus replies that it is not for them to know the times or periods set by the Father (v.7). They are told that they will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon them and will be Jesus’ witnesses in Jerusalem and all Judea to the ends of the earth (v.8). This could refer to the conversion of the Gentiles, to Paul’s arrival in Rome, or to some other earth-shattering event. Then it is reported that Jesus begins to ascend. A cloud (symbolizing the presence and activity of God [Exodus 24:15-18]) is said to have lifted Him up. Next, two men in white robes appear. The men [andres] (angels) inform them that Jesus will come again in the same way that they had seen him ascend to heaven (vv.9-11).
This can be a sermon proclaiming the confidence and fresh perspective on life that the Ascension of Jesus can provide. Start the sermon by reflecting with the congregation on the despair they may be feeling personally on the despair over our nation’s future which may still be persisting as the American “honeymoon” with the new president and congress has ended. The Ascension gives hope. Jesus was lifted out of the world to return to the heavenly glories! The Ascension gives us a glimpse of the majesty and glories of the heavenly existence.
To see Christ exalted in this way is mesmerizing. Contemplating the grandeur of God makes everything else seem pretty darn small and unimportant. John Calvin claimed that such contemplation “doth lift us up unto the meditation of the life to come.” (Calvin’s Commentaries, Vol.XVIII/2, p.37) Medical science bears out this insight. Neurobiology has taught us that spiritual exercises facilitate the activation of the front part of the brain, while the back part of the brain which orients us in space and time and so gears us to our own personal agendas and our context goes dim (Dean Hamer, The God Gene, pp.12-124). In short, then, in spirituality we tend to lose ourselves and get caught up in a sense of things bigger than what we are! This sense of being one with what is more than us is certainly a glimpse of the grandeur of God and the universe which Jesus’ followers beheld at his ascension. The festival of the Ascension and the miracle it celebrates are good for helping us get out of ourselves and our depressing circumstances.
Ephesians 1:15-23
The Second Lesson is drawn from what seems to be a circular letter by Paul, likely written from prison late in his career or by one of his followers who had a hand in collecting his epistles. The latter prospect is made likely by the fact that the letter includes vocabulary and stylistic characteristics different from the indisputably Pauline writings. It may have been written to and for a later generation of Christians, as the writer claims to have heard of the recipients’ faith and love toward all the faithful (1:15).
The text begins with this praise of the Ephesians for their faith and love towards the saints. The writer prays that they may receive wisdom regarding the greatness of God’s power for the faithful. The faithful have been called to hope, the author claims (vv.17-19). God is said have put his power to work in Christ in raising him and seating him at the Lord’s right hand (in the Ascension) (v.20). It is claimed that the Ascension entails that all things are under Christ, including the church of which He is Head. The church is then the body, and Christ dwells in it (vv.22-23). These are claims not made in the unquestionably authentic Pauline letters (see Romans 12:5; 1 Corinthians 12:12-17).
There at least two options for sermons on this lesson. One approach, more in line with the overall theme for the day, is to begin by highlighting those things in life which are going wrong — be it the economy, the international situation, local family trials, etc. Raise the question of how a good God could allow these things to happen. When those thoughts go through our heads, life feels meaningless, For life has little meaning if eternity is not friendly towards us. For then life feels like blind chance with nothing but annihilation lying up ahead.
Our lesson gives us assurance. Paul claims that in raising Christ and in his ascension into heaven it becomes clear that God has put all things under Christ. This loving God of ours reigns supreme in the cosmos! Nothing can stop or ultimately befuddle His love! The worst tragedy or evil we can imagine is ultimately doomed to failure. The Ascension is God’s assurance to us that he is in control.
The other sermon option relates the text’s reference that Christ is now head of the church and dwells in it (vv.22-23). If God does not seem present in Sunday worship, if the congregation seems spinning its wheels sometime, Christ is not absent after all!. We have just been blind or not seen him when he is before our very eyes. Offer that assurance to those in the flock disillusioned by the church or hungry for more fellowship with our Lord.
Luke 24:44-53
The gospel is drawn from the second installment of a two-part history of the church. See the discussion of the First Lesson above for background information on the author and the reasons for writing the book. This text is the conclusion of Jesus’ commissioning of the disciples during his final resurrection appearance (vv.44-49), followed by the account of his ascension (vv.50-53). Only in Acts is reference made to the latter.
Jesus says the words he uttered to the disciples (that the Messiah should suffer [v.26]) demonstrate that the law of Moses, the prophets, and Psalms has been fulfilled (v.44). He opens the minds of the disciples to understand that His suffering and resurrection fulfill these Old Testament texts (vv.45-46). This word is proclaimed with the word of repentance and forgiveness of sin (v.47). As witnesses [martus, or martyrs], the disciples are to receive what the Father promises (power from on high) and remain in Jerusalem until it is received (vv.47-48). What the Father promises turns out to be the gift of the Holy Spirit (Acts 1:4-5,8; 2:4,17-18). Jesus leads the disciples to the east of Jerusalem to Bethany, blesses them, and then ascends to heaven (vv.50-51). The disciples respond with worship, return to Jerusalem with joy, and are said to be continually in the temple blessing God (vv.52-53).
A 2006 Pew Survey found that one in four Americans find God distant. The percentage rise of those not believing in God according to more recent surveys merely adds further to the sense of distance from God on American turf. Add to these findings, a 2024 Gallup poll found that 51% of American claimed to have experienced depression or anxiety in the past 12 months. This can be a sermon to point out how the Ascension addresses these attitudes.
Martin Luther offered an exciting insight on this matter. Rather than thinking of the Ascension as taking Jesus away from us the reformer claimed that since Christ is human, when He was raised we are raised with Him. So that as Jesus is now in the heavenly Presence of God, so are you and I (see Illustrations for the full quote) (Luther’s Works, Vol.13, p.243). How could we still feel depressed in the presence of God, confident of his care and fellowship all the time! Ascending to heaven is not vanishing from earth, unless you think of heaven as a place — up there in the clouds. But heaven is just God’s presence, in which case we can say it is everywhere and yet nowhere since God is omnipresent. Quantum physics provides a helpful way of thinking about this reality. It has posited the existence of the field which brings together all the articles which form the atom — the Higgs Field. It is not far-fetched for the faithful to understand God as present in this field, since his was and still is the creator of all matter. And the Higgs Field (and so God) is invisibly present in all matter, everywhere, just existing in one of the invisible dimensions beyond the height, width, depth, space and time.
No, God is right here in our guts, in all matter which has ever existed, ever in our presence. Anxiety and depression have no chance as we realize we are eternally now good enough to be in and with God.
All the lessons for the Ascension invite sermons celebrating Christ’s glorified presence and its implications for comfort as we now know that he is with God, permeating all aspects of our lives, and that as such we can be assured that nothing can overcome his love for us.
