Don’t Look Up

Scripture — Acts 1:6-11 (NRSV)

When the apostles had come together, they asked Jesus, “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.”

Devotion

Images from the life of Christ – The Ascension, Christ ascends into heaven above the apostles – Psalter of Eleanor of Aquitaine (ca. 1185) – KB 76 F 13, folium 026v

This is the last weekend of the Easter season before Pentecost (which will be May 28 this year), and thus it is the last time I’ll reflect with you this year about the lessons from Acts we read during the Easter season which introduce us to the story of the early church. These lessons have been progressing forward through the story: this year the second through the sixth Sundays of Easter had lessons from Acts 2 for three weeks, then Acts 7, then Acts 17. Now all of a sudden we jump backward to Acts 1. The reason is because of something that happened last Thursday – Ascension Day.

Forty days after Easter, Acts 1:1-11 tells us, the disciples gathered in Jerusalem with Jesus, who “had presented himself alive to them by many convincing proofs, appearing to them during forty days and speaking about the kingdom of God” (Acts 1:3). They asked when he would restore the kingdom to Israel.

Rather than give them an answer, he gave them a mission—“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” (Acts 1:8)—and then he disappeared, taken up into heaven in front of them. (Because he ascended into heaven, we call the day Ascension.) Some churches in my tradition will have had services this past Thursday—the day is considered one of the great feasts of the church—but the readings for the Seventh Sunday of Easter, tomorrow, also reflect on and remember the event.

There’s a long tradition of Christian art about the Ascension that shows only Jesus’ feet vanishing into heaven. (Here’s a Google search I did on the topic while writing this. You’ll see plenty of examples.) Invariably those witnessing the Ascension—the disciples, assembled crowds, often the Virgin Mary—are staring at the disappearing feet. But if you look closely at the text, this is exactly what the disciples were encouraged not to do.

For starters, Jesus implies that they have something else to do instead (Acts 1:8). Then, the angels in Acts 1:11 explicitly ask the disciples, “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.” (Charitably, we might imagine that the art is picturing the moment before the angels show up. . .)

In his own good time, Christ will bring everything to fulfillment. In the meantime, we should wait for the power, we should work for the mission, and we should not stand around staring at the feet.

Find all Life for Leaders devotions here. Explore what the Bible has to say about work at the unique website of our partners, the Theology of Work Project’s online commentary. Reflection on today’s Life for Leaders theme can be found here: Missional Community (Acts 1:6).

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