The Feast of the Ascension
A HOMILY ON THE FEAST OF THE ASCENSION
"And when he had spoken these things, while they beheld, he was taken up, and a cloud received him out of their sight."
In tonight's epistle taken from the book of Acts, St. Luke records the final day of our Lord Jesus Christ's forty-day sojourn on earth after his resurrection on Easter Sunday. Having appeared and imparted a great deal of teaching and knowledge about the kingdom of God to his disciples, it was now time for His departure from earth. The day of the Lord's Ascension had arrived.
In our day, the doctrine of Christ's Ascension is often treated as a theological appendage tacked on to the end of his triumph over the grave. We tend to dwell joyously on the Easter event, and rightly so, as it was the momentous occasion when God our Father raised Jesus, who was both man and God, from the depths of Hades- death could not hold him- because, as St. Peter tells us in the first chapter of his first epistle, the Father would not let His Son remain there. He refused to allow his beloved to be consumed by death's corruption.
And yet, the upward movement of the risen Son continues far beyond Easter Sunday. The movement of the risen life would only reach its zenith as he's taken up, and a received in a cloud to his disciples' amazement. Now, as I said, we don't necessarily view the Ascension of our Lord as the grand conclusion of Easter, but the earliest church did. For them, the Ascension was a feast on par with Easter and Christmas, as evidenced in sermons preached by St. Chrysostom and Augustine on this highest feast of the church. So, with this in mind, let us contemplate the import of our Lords being lifted up into heaven.
The Collect appointed for a given Sunday or Feast Day, such as today, is often the key to unlocking the theological meaning of the epistle and Gospel readings. And today is no exception. The prayer, which we have already prayed for this Ascension eucharist, points out two essential truths: one, that we as Christians believe that Jesus truly ascended into heaven. And two, that we too can go where he has gone and dwell with him where he now is.
First, St. Luke records that the apostles were with Christ on the Mount of Olives; they were standing there with him. He wanted them there, not only to give them one last reminder of the mission imparted to them ("and you will be my witnesses”) but he wanted them to witness his being taken up into the cloud. Compare this with Easter morning. When the Son awoke to new life, no one was there; not a single apostle or disciple witnessed his resurrection (unlike the raising of Lazarus).
And yet, Jesus certainly intended for them to witness his being taken up. For he knew that they needed to see the One whom they proclaimed as King drawn up by the Divine hand to be rightfully enthroned on the seat of glory, the right side of the Father, where he now rules. The enthronement of the messiah, seen in a night vision given to Daniel, who saw One like a son of man, who came with the clouds of heaven to the Ancient of Days, and was presented before Him. "And to him" records Daniel, "as given dominion and glory and a kingdom, that all peoples, nations, and languages should serve him; [and] his dominion is an everlasting dominion, which shall not pass away, and his kingdom one that shall not be destroyed." (Dan 7:14-15).
Knowing the scriptures and having sung so many Psalms which prophesied the same, the apostles were given confirmation of whom they had believed in and had hoped. Jesus is the King of glory; he is the Son of Man of Daniel, the One in psalm twenty-four, who can and does ascend into the hill of the Lord, Jesus, the one raised up into his holy place. Jesus is the one spoken of by the prophets and in the psalms who would come and conquer the great enemy of God's people, and then, ascend into heaven to sit upon his throne and to "Sit at the Father's right hand until his enemies are his footstool" (Ps 110:1).
And note that St. Luke says that Jesus was taken up, AND, a cloud received him. His being taken into the cloud tells us something much deeper about the mystery of the Ascension. What the apostles witnessed was not only his rising from the earth, but his being brought back into the glory cloud, the abode of God, back into the Shekinah glory which is his rightful home, the glory from where the eternal Son descended and became man, veiling his divinity in humanity.
What was prefigured on the mount of transfiguration is now fulfilled as Jesus, risen a spiritual body, transfigured by Divine power, returns to the Glory cloud of divine dwelling. The implication? That they had not misplaced their faith; they hadn't been hood-winked or taken for a ride. No. Having witnessed Christ's Ascension, they knew with no uncertainty that Jesus Christ is the Son of God, ruler of the cosmos, Victor, Savior, and King. The Messiah of Israel's hope- the promised hope of the entire world.
And, by his Ascension, the doors of heaven have been swung wide open to all who believe. The psalmist asks, "who shall ascend into the hill of the Lord?" Answer: no one. Except for the perfect man. He "that hath clean hands, and a pure heart," the man who receives the blessing of God. For whom shall the gates be lifted up? For none other than the perfect man, the King of glory, Jesus Christ. You see, Jesus is the first man to enter heaven and walk through the ancient gates. And now, heaven is open to all who believe. The fiery swords that once barred us from Eden have been extinguished, the cherubim have stepped aside.
In a sense, Jesus has re-opened the garden to all who by faith have been cleansed by the blood of the lamb. And now he beckons all who will listen, to come into the garden and walk with your God! In other words, Jesus' entering into heaven makes possible our entry as well, that "we may also in heart and mind thither ascend, and with him continually dwell." To dwell in the cloud with our God: this is the reward of faith. To ascend in body and soul, just like Jesus, this is the Christian hope. And this is what Jesus wanted his disciples to see, to know, and believe.
With all of this in mind, we can begin to understand why the St. Luke says that after the Lord's Ascension, the disciples returned to Jerusalem "with great joy" (24: 52). Joy in professing with Job that their redeemer lives. That his temporary separation is not a cause for sorrow or anxiety, but confirmation of his reigning from heaven. Rejoicing in the knowledge of where they too shall one day be because the gates of eternal life have been opened forever. Beloved, this is our ascension hope as well, for the promises revealed by our lords lifting up are not only for the first disciples but given to you and to me. The promise of a sure and blessed future for all who trust in Jesus Christ, who even now is preparing a place for you to dwell with God, as humanity once did in the blissful garden of Divine delights. Amen+
