May 28, Ascension Sunday, Memorial Sunday

Lesson: Acts 1.1-11

Sermon Title: Up He Goes!

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While telling her Sunday school class about Jesus' Ascension into heaven the teacher was taken aback by the question of a young would-be scientist.

"How fast was Jesus traveling when he ascended into the heavens?" asked the little girl.

Thinking fast, her teacher responded, "Well, obviously not faster than the speed of sound because the Bible says Jesus spoke words of blessing to the disciples as he departed."

"Well, then," the precocious child replied, "in that case, Jesus isn't even there yet!"

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INTRODUCTION:

  1. Something small has large consequences.

  2. Ascension Day may seem minor and unimportant, but is an important day in the life of the church.

    1. We don't spend a lot of time on Ascension Day.

    2. We ought to spend more time to understand what is happening and why.

For Want of a Nail

For want of a nail the shoe was lost.
For want of a shoe the horse was lost.
For want of a horse the rider was lost.
For want of a rider the battle was lost.
For want of a battle the kingdom was lost.
And all for the want of a horseshoe nail.

      1. A Nursery Rhyme explaining consequences through its lyrics (1)

        1. "A clever set of lyrics encouraging a child to apply logic to the consequences of their actions.

        2. "Perhaps used to gently chastise a child and explain the possible events that might follow a thoughtless act.

        3. "The references to horses, horseshoe, riders, kingdoms and battles indicate the origins of this nursery rhyme were probably set in English History"

      2. Ascension Day is part of the whole.

        1. Christmas

        2. Maundy Thursday

        3. Good Friday

        4. Easter Sunday

        5. Pentecost

      3. They all hang together as elements in the process.

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    MAIN BODY:

    1. What impact does Ascension day have on the disciples and ultimately the church.

      1. Gene Mims, "Leading your church through change," writes: (2)

    I once read a truism that always seems appropriate whenever I think about change.

    "Change is the only constant everyone agrees upon and the only one everyone resists."

    People in general resist change, and this is certainly true in churches...

    Every church is in transition because every church is being born, growing, maturing, declining or dying. Every congregation is at some stage in a cycle of life common to congregations and organizations. How it meets the demands of change can mean not only the viability of the congregation for the future, but more importantly the viability of the congregation to be an effective congregation fulfilling the great commission.

      1. Since your church is going through constant transition, how can you lead your people to greater kingdom effectiveness?

    1. Ascension Day is about change, transitions.

      1. Jesus moves from teacher and sacrifice to high priest.

        1. The work of Jesus on earth is limited.

          1. He is limited in time and space.

          2. He is limited in the numbers of people that can be taught.

          3. He is limited in the numbers of people that can be helped.

        2. The work of Jesus as high priest is unlimited.

      2. The disciples move from the pupils to the teachers.

        1. David P. Scaer, in "Jesus Did Not Leave - He Reigns Through Us," observes: (3)

    The early church never understood the Ascension of Jesus as a departure ceremony for a beloved teacher traveling to a distant and unknown land. Rather, it was seen as a further step in his glorification, from which the church could benefit.

    Luke, the only New Testament writer to give us a graphic account of the Ascension, also points out that after the event Christ was working with his apostles (Acts 14:3).

    For Luke, the Ascension did not mean that Jesus was no longer with them. Describing it, he gives no indication that the disciples were in any way saddened or disappointed. On the contrary, they were elated and glorified God.

    The Ascension did not only mean that Jesus had entered a new dimension. It also meant that through it they were going to participate in Christ's universal reign through their preaching of the gospel. What God had been doing through Jesus in calling men to repentance he was now going to do through them.

        1. They are reluctant movers.

          1. "Lord, is this the time when you will restore the kingdom of Israel?"

          2. They have not yet grasped the true meaning and purpose of Jesus ministry.

            1. They will spend time in prayer.

            2. They will have hard discussions.

            3. Eventually in the next ten days they will hammer out conclusions that will take them far beyond, theologically and communally their present position.

        2. They stand gazing up into heaven.

          1. He is going up.

          2. Reluctant to let him go.

          3. They are reminded of the vital nature of the moment.

    10While he was going and they were gazing up toward heaven, suddenly two men in white robes stood by them. 11They 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."

      1. Jesus teaches that the disciples transit from the One to the Holy Spirit.

        1. If Jesus does not leave, the Holy Spirit cannot come in all his fulness.

          1. In John 16:4-11, Jesus said to the disciples:

    4But I have said these things to you so that when their hour comes you may remember that I told you about them.

    "I did not say these things to you from the beginning, because I was with you. 5But now I am going to him who sent me; yet none of you asks me, 'Where are you going?' 6But because I have said these things to you, sorrow has filled your hearts. 7Nevertheless I tell you the truth: it is to your advantage that I go away, for if I do not go away, the Advocate will not come to you; but if I go, I will send him to you. 8And when he comes, he will prove the world wrong about sin and righteousness and judgment: 9about sin, because they do not believe in me; 10about righteousness, because I am going to the Father and you will see me no longer; 11about judgment, because the ruler of this world has been condemned.

        1. Jesus now communicates a short, but fuller understanding:

    8But 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."

      1. The proclamation of the Gospel moves from local to universal.

        1. The disciples become the witnesses to and for Jesus.

        2. The disciples will move out from Jerusalem to the then known world.

        3. More and more people will be reached, converted, healed, and blessed.

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    CONCLUSION

    1. The ascension is a point of transition.

    2. As John S. McClure in "The ascension--a promise of great things to come." observes: (4)

    This ascension of Jesus Christ is good news for us as Christians, and through us, for our world. It means that God loves, values, holds and will transform our fragile and broken humanity in Christ. It means that, at the ascension, Jesus took all of human life, which he cared for so deeply, and brought it "into the heavenly places," into the very heart of God. This includes the suffering refugee, the abused child or spouse, the victim of war or terror, the lonely one in the nursing home, the one who struggles with depression or a lost sense of worth and value, those who are sick, all who are in difficult transitions in life.

    All of human life, at the ascension, moves even more emphatically to God's side!

    1. We stand with the disciples as "Up He Goes!"

      1. We have the same concerns.

      2. We have the same questions.

      3. We receive the same response.

      4. We follow through on the instructions that have been given.

      5. We are witnesses.

      6. We are witnesses so that the whole world may come hear the good news of the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

    Amen.

    1. Retrieved from: http://www.famousquotes.me.uk/nursery_rhymes/for_want_of_a_nail.htm

    2. Gene Mims, "Leading your church through change," LifeWay Web Site, lifeway.com. Retrieved December 5, 2002.

    3. David P. Scaer, "Jesus Did Not Leave - He Reigns Through Us," Christianity Today, 21 May 1982.

    4. John S. McClure, "The ascension--a promise of great things to come," Presbyterians Today, May 2002, 20.

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