“Looking Up”
First Congregational Church of Wauwatosa
Ascension
May 5, 2013
Barry W. Szymanski

Acts 1:1-11

In the first book, Theophilus, I wrote about all that Jesus did and taught from the beginning until the day when he was taken up to heaven, after giving instructions through the Holy Spirit to the apostles whom he had chosen. After his suffering he presented himself alive to them by many convincing proofs, appearing to them over the course of forty days and speaking about the kingdom of God. While staying with them, he ordered them not to leave Jerusalem, but to wait there for the promise of the Father. ‘This’, he said, ‘is what you have heard from me; for John baptized with water, but you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit not many days from now.’ So when they had come together, they asked him, ‘Lord, is this the time when you will restore the kingdom to Israel?’ He replied, ‘It is not for you to know the times or periods that the Father has set by his own authority. But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.’ When Jesus had said this, as they were watching, he was lifted up, and a cloud took him out of their sight. While he was going and they were gazing up towards heaven, suddenly two men in white robes stood by them. They said, ‘Men of Galilee, why do you stand looking up towards heaven? This Jesus, who has been taken up from you
into heaven, will come in the same way as you saw him go into heaven.’

Sermon

It is so easy not to understand the Gospel of Jesus. Today’s passage, which focuses on the Ascension of Jesus, has many subplots. When the Gospels were written, the authors weighed every word. They were extremely careful about what they wrote. Every word and phrase is a clue which opens up entire cavern-sized concepts and scenes.

Let me give you an example. Two Saturdays ago, I listened to a radio program called Car Talk. The two brothers, Tom and Ray gave their weekly Puzzler. RAY: This week's Puzzler was sent in by Joe Barger. He writes, "My father, Max, at about age 65 still likes to mow his own lawn with a gasoline push mower (not self-propelled). He's had the same mower for 20 years. About a year or so ago, he noticed that the mower was not getting very good gas mileage. The mower was using much more gas than it used to per cut of the lawn. So Max took the lawn mower to the neighborhood small-engine repair shop. They replaced a spark plug and spark plug wire, cleaned the carburetor, and installed a new air filter. After all the repairs, Max took the newly repaired lawn mower home. But he noticed that the gas mileage had not changed a bit. The engine and the lawn mower were in perfect working order. The lawn-mower service guys did nothing wrong, and there's nothing they overlooked. TOM: The lawn isn't thicker than it used to be? RAY: Nope. What's going on? RAY: Here’s the answer. Now remember, at age 65, Max, seeing the loss of mileage with his lawn mower, has to do with one thing and one thing only. The only answer is one thing. Max is walking slower. If you walk slower, of course it's going to take longer, because it's running doing nothing most of the time. At the worst case, it would take an infinite amount of gas. The clue to the puzzler, which they said most people of age got, was the slower walking.

What are the clues to what Luke wants us to know in today’s Gospel passage? Jesus told his disciples that: “. . . John baptized with water, but you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit.”

The disciples had been with Jesus for approximately 3 years, and now had been with him for an additional 40 more days. They had experienced his resurrected person. Yet they still did not understand who he was, nor did they comprehend his mission, nor did they grasp the spiritual Kingdom of God which Jesus taught.

Look at the uncomprehending question the disciples asked of Jesus: “Lord, is this the time when you will restore the kingdom to Israel?” The disciples could not completely conceive of the spiritual Kingdom of God. All of their prior life experiences, and their knowledge of scripture, caused them to anticipate an earthly kingdom.

What about you and me? How have our prior life experiences shaped our expectations? Each of us has a vision of who we are, what the world around us should be, how other people should behave, how others should interact with us. As to God, each us of us has an expectation of how God should respond to us, and what God’s world should be like.

The question the disciples asked of Jesus was: “Lord, is this the time when you will restore the kingdom to Israel?” The question we probably want to ask of Jesus is this: Lord, is this the time when you will restore the kingdom to us in the way we imagine it? The way we want it to be?

And Luke tells us that: ‘Jesus presented himself to them by many convincing proofs, and appeared to them over forty days and spoke with them about the kingdom of God.’ I like that passage, because when I feel that I don’t fully grasp the concept of the Kingdom of God as plainly as I should, I know that Jesus’ disciples didn’t either. And this was after Jesus had been with them offering proof and teaching them.

Then Jesus gave them their assignment. He charged them to: “. . . be [His] witnesses in Jerusalem, in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.” After Jesus gave them their job description the disciples watched Jesus lifted up, “and a cloud took him out of their sight.”

Luke then tells us after Jesus was out of sight two guys in white robes were with the disciples. What were the disciples doing? They were standing looking up towards heaven. Luke tells us they were STANDING THERE, LOOKING UP. They did not move. Luke does not record that they said anything. They were well past their astonishment of the ascension. They were rigid – like fossils. They were standing there looking up.

What were their thoughts and emotions? I think that it was now clear to them – like a brick striking them on their heads - that they were now the church. Jesus in the body was no longer with them. I think that anxiety gripped them – they were paralyzed with fear. The reason for their being overwhelmed was that they were apprehensive about the future.

Fear is a powerful emotion. Because of fear we can run to a place of safety – or we can fight - the adrenaline in our bodies gives us the ability to do either. But fear can also cause us to stand still – to paralyze us – to take away any ability to move. Sometimes fear is rational. Often fear has no logic.

We have all heard Winston Churchill’s famous statement that: “All we have to fear, is fear itself.” We all have fears. Many people fear change, or rejection, or failure. Most people fear death; or extreme heights; or large long snakes. Anxiety is a cause of alarm – because the reality may not exist.

A writer of mystery novels, Gillian Flynn, said this: She starts with three very loud bangs on a door: “Bang bang bang. I understand now why so many horror movies use that device -the mysterious knock on the door -because it has the weight of a nightmare. You don't know what's out there, . . . “ —, Gone Girl

Another author, Jim Butcher, wrote this about overcoming fear: “Courage is about learning how to function despite the fear, to put aside your instincts to run or give in completely to the anger born from fear. Courage is about using your brain and your heart when every cell of your body is screaming at you to fight or flee - and then following through on what you believe is the right thing to do.” — Ghost Story

The disciples had legitimate cause for fear. They had seen their close friend, Jesus, crucified. They felt that the governmental authorities who eliminated Jesus, wanted to kill them also. Jesus had, in the last 40 days consoled them and provided safety. He just left them. So, they were just standing there, looking up.

Their genuine cause for anxiety was that they were IT. They were the big IT of God’s new Kingdom. They were the new witnesses. They were the new messengers, the new servants, and the new bodies of the spiritual flesh of Jesus on this earth.

On a personal note, when my minister asked me if I considered ordination, I had that same anxiety. On my inside I was frozen with anxiety - with my mouth wide open. My response was: “I know I am in seminary, but I am just there to receive an education.” Then the words of my minister came flying at me: ‘That’s what you thought – in my prayer I know that is not what God has in mind for you.’

This is why I can so easily picture the disciples, standing there, rigid with fear, fully of worry about what was ahead of them. Then, with their mouths open, speechless, the two guys in white robes started to prod them. ‘Why are you just standing here? Don’t you realize what you are now to do? Disregard your anxieties, show courage, receive and be filled with the Holy Spirit, and start to Witness!’

My invitation to you this morning is to picture those disciples. Better yet, let’s deal with today, May 5, 2013, a sunny day. You are told by Jesus, in a flash of a moment’s vision, that he is going on vacation for 6 months, and you are his hands, his feet, his eyes, and his mouth, and his heart, his soul, his representative on this earth. Isn’t that what he left the disciples with? Isn’t that what he is asking of us anyhow? We are to be Him in this world! We are to do the acts of Jesus in this world for His people!

Just like the disciples, we cannot go back. The past is history. We live in the now. God has entered into our lives. Just like the disciples, we realize that we must unlock our potential. Just like the disciples, we know that we need courage; we need wisdom. Just like the disciples, we are asked to mature spiritually. We have to blend our home life, our personal desires, our work life, with the teachings of Jesus.

As the disciples learned to be relevant, so that people would look to them as sound followers of Jesus, the Christ, so we are to use all of our world experiences, and spiritual insights, to make the Kingdom of God culturally relevant. How do we do this?

First, the Holy Spirit is essential to do God’s work. That means prayer. The other basic spiritual tools are scripture,
- attentive listening to the four Gospels. Next is observing life and the world around us. This is God’s created world. God has placed us here with people around us. Quiet meditation is important.

It need not be long – but it should be enough for a person to answer three basic questions: What do you fear? Second: Who are you? Another way of asking this question is: When you peel the layers of who you are, who do you find inside? I believe these are the basic questions with which all disciples are confronted.

The question, ‘How does the spiritual and practical Kingdom of God fit into our lives?’ became important to them. They had to answer that question before they could tell others about their friend Jesus. The divine and real-world Kingdom of God becomes a question of value.

What is the value of diamonds? What is the value of $10,000.00? What is the value of a cup of hot coffee or tea, hot cider or brandy on a very cold day? What is the value of a friend? What is the value of the life of a parent? - a child? - a spouse? Does God’s Kingdom have value? If so, where does it rank?

I think that that is why the disciples were standing there rigid – looking up at the now empty sky. They needed the prod of the two guys in white robes to break into their fears. Their friend, Jesus, proved that he cared for them – loved them.

He was now gone from their sight. They were alone – yet with each other. They were the members of that first congregation. They could see their task of witnessing in front of them. Gigantic in proportion. We have the same task.

To witness Jesus by observing what Jesus taught, living as he lived, and loving as he loved. Just like the disciples, we have Jesus’ promise that the Holy Spirit of God is with us. With the Holy Spirit we are able to see the ordinary of everyday in new ways, as God’s Kingdom.

How we approach life’s problems, and suffering, and joys, is how our spiritual life fits in with our entire being – who we are. That is what the disciples learned – and all, except John, gave their lives as martyrs for Jesus.

Amanda Nuri, a writer, had a character say this: “It was then that I realized I wasn't afraid to lose my life; I was afraid to lose the life I could've lived.” — Emerald Butterfly

I think this is what each of the disciples who died felt: each was afraid to lose the life that Jesus gave them. Through the disciples we are the beneficiaries of those 40 days when Jesus explained His life and teachings and the significance of Holy Thursday, Good Friday, and Easter Sunday.

The Ascension is the culmination of Jesus walking this earth. Today we are to manage our fears, our anxieties, our worries, and go out to witness Him. Jesus somehow chose each of us often in a unique way, with our peculiar personalities and backgrounds, to spread His Gospel among his people in a world that needs healing, and curing, and accepting, and loving, and forgiving.

Be His witnesses. That is what Jesus asks us to do.

Amen.