Up In the Air
Acts 1:1-11
In the first book, Theophilus, I wrote about all that Jesus began to do and teach 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 during 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 he 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 toward heaven, suddenly two men in white robes stood by them. They said, “Men of Galilee, why do you stand looking up toward 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.”
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Introduction Since the beginning, humankind has been obsessed with flight and looking up towards the heavens. It might be fair to say we bought into the dream that we can find freedom up in the air (unless you're afraid of heights). From kites as early as 5 BCE in China to hot air balloons and modern aviation wonders, we've looked to the sky with the same longing looks as the disciples, believing that something better was awaiting us beyond the ground. What if that isn't the case? What if we've got it all wrong and turned around? What if the answers, the hopes, and the dreams we are looking for aren't in the clouds but right here and now? It might not be the answer we want to hear, yet it seems like it is the one we need to hear this morning.
Escaping from Tall Towers
We spend a lot of time looking up at the sky. Sometimes it's to find inspiration, and other times it's to daydream or escape from the present realities we face. Take the legend of Daedelus and Icarus, who fashioned wings out of thread and wax so that they might escape the tower that held them prisoner, on the island of Crete. Jumping from tall towers with makeshift wings was the only method of "flight" (if you want to call it that) until we better understood the principles of aerodynamics and the feeling of letting the air take you away. The disciples looked at the sky with the same longing look, yearning for freedom, as they watched Jesus ascend back into heaven. However, the disciples are quickly told that what they are looking for isn't up in the clouds and that there is work ahead of them as commissioned by Jesus.
Tower jumping with questionably made wings was not an option for them. Moreover, it was not a viable way to escape their problems (threats from the Romans, Caesar, and those who labeled them as heretics). The voices of the men in dazzling clothing reminded the disciples and us that relief would not be found in their death but in their striving to build a better world. Unfortunately, so much of popular Christian culture is focused on what comes after we pass. It's led to a mentality of Christians who can only look up at the sky, shrug their shoulders, and carry on with their lives as if what they do now doesn't matter since we'll join the great cloud of witnesses in the end. We've seen the devastation that kind of thinking leads to and how it's negatively impacted our planet, our communities, and ourselves. "[People of God], why do you stand looking up toward heaven?]
The Great Ends of the Earth/Church
Jesus, having given the disciples the commission to spread the good news to the ends of the earth, ascended into heaven, and at first, it seems like the charge given to them by Jesus goes in one ear and out the other. Yet, just because Jesus ascended into heaven does not mean he left us alone. On the contrary, he left us the Spirit of God that dwells inside us and gave us a community of followers and a shared mission to make heaven on earth right here and now. In our tradition, we follow this calling from Jesus by professing the great ends of the church:
"The great ends of the church are the proclamation of the gospel for the salvation of humankind; the shelter, nurture, and spiritual fellowship of the children of God; the maintenance of divine worship; the preservation of truth; the promotion of social righteousness; and the exhibition of the Kingdom of Heaven to the world."
Both the great ends of the church found in our Presbyterian polity and the words of Jesus we hear this morning direct our gaze not only upwards towards the heavens but to what is right in front of us right here and now. The message for us is that the ascension of Jesus was not the end of God's saving work; it was only just the beginning. This Ascension Sunday, we are told that we have a chance to make the new life of Easter something tangible in our world, something we can taste and see. In that way, perhaps we end up shifting our perspective of looking up at the sky from one of longing to inspiration.
Conclusion
Having been created and called by God, taught by Jesus, and inspired by the Holy Spirit, the disciples eventually go out to carry on Jesus' vision. It is a holistic vision that allows us to look up at the sky and what is happening around us in the here and now. When asked about their early interest in flight, the Wright brothers told reporters they wanted to fly for fun and to advance scientific exploration that would lead to peace. Flight for the Wright brothers was not a means of escape but a way to embrace the freedom of the sky to improve our lives on the earth; flight was not a means to escape; it was a means to improve ourselves and our communities. The ascension of Jesus points us to a similar goal of bringing about the new life and hope of Easter so that all may taste and see.