Acts 1:1-11  … ⁹ Now when He had spoken these things, while they watched, He was taken up, and a cloud received Him out of their sight.  ¹⁰ And while they looked steadfastly toward heaven as He went up, behold, two men stood by them in white apparel, ¹¹ who also said, "Men of Galilee, why do you stand gazing up into heaven? This same Jesus, who was taken up from you into heaven, will so come in like manner as you saw Him go into heaven."

It was a cold winter’s night in 1986.  My brother and I got in the car with Mom and Dad and drove away from town, away from all the bright city lights, out to the desert.  Dad parked the car along the side of the road.  We all got out and started looking toward the eastern sky.  Dad had the binoculars out, scanning the stars, until he found it.  He called my brother and I over and pointed us in the right direction and handed us the binoculars.  “Do you see it?”  He said.  “That’s Halley’s Comet.  It comes around once every seventy-five years.”  And through the binoculars we saw the faint white dot in the sky with a trail behind it.  And we were in awe. 

People look up to the sky for all kinds of reasons.  Today we look up to the sky for another awe-inspiring reason:  Christ’s ascension into heaven.  Christ’s ascension is important because it brought His mission full circle.  When He went up to heaven, He returned to the full glory that was His from eternity.  And as His mission takes Him from paradise to paradise, we’re reminded that we, too, will be with Him there.  We have a home in heaven with Him. 

Yet we haven’t reached heaven quite yet.  We are still left looking to the sky.  And so today we want to explore the curious question which the two angels asked Jesus’ disciples as He ascended into heaven:  Why?  “Men of Galilee, why do you stand gazing up into heaven?”  Why were the disciples staring into the sky?  Why were they so awestruck by what they saw? 

1. Why?  Because of our own weakness.

The disciples had been on quite the emotional roller coaster over the past couple of months.  They went from the high of Christ’s triumphal entry to the low of His trial and torture.  Then from the depths of crucifixion and burial they climbed to the dizzying joy and relief of Christ’s resurrection!   And now they had enjoyed forty glorious days with their risen Lord!  But the glory wouldn’t last.  Before their very eyes Jesus was taken up into heaven.  And there they were, staring up after Him, seeing Him go, longing for Him to stay.  Why did He have to go?  Why couldn’t things just stay the same? 

We can relate, right?  Life’s changes come so quickly and drastically.  Often faster than we would like.  The loss of a job or career; having to move to a new place; the onset of a sudden illness; the unexpected death of a loved one.  You catch yourself “gazing up into heaven”—looking to the sky:  longing for answers; wondering what to do; questioning the wisdom and power of God.  Some people even literally “look to the sky” searching for answers in signs and charts and astrological tables.  Many trust the horoscope—even though the predictions have no basis in fact. 

Why do you look to the sky?  The longing, the wondering, the questioning—isn’t it really just a lack of trust in God?  Isn’t it really our own weakness—our own selfish desires for things to “be the way they were before”?  For discipleship to continue, don’t those feelings and attitudes need to change?  It takes the Word of God to snap us out of it and bring us back to reality, to ask us, “Why—Why are you doing what you’re doing?” 

So often we get caught up in our lives here on earth that we forget that the ultimate goal of life is eternity.  One of our biggest challenges is living our lives with eyes of faith that see farther than just the here and now.  To recognize that everything God has given us—everything He allows in our lives—is because of His ultimate goal is for us to be with Him in heaven, trusting in Him.  This is the message of Christ’s Ascension.

2. Why?  Because of Christ’s strength.

When Jesus was taken back up into heaven, it wasn’t His retirement party.  He didn’t quit working to win souls for paradise.  This was the proof that salvation had been accomplished.  There was absolutely nothing more for Jesus to do visibly on this earth to seal the total forgiveness which He had won for the world. 

In his letter the church at Ephesus, St. Paul reminds us that Christ’s ascension was evidence of His power and authority: 

“He raised Him from the dead and seated Him at His right hand in the heavenly places, far above all principality and power and might and dominion, and every name that is named, not only in this age but also in that which is to come.  And He put all things under His feet, and gave Him to be head over all things to the church, which is His body, the fullness of Him who fills all in all” (Eph 1:20-23).

When Christ ascended to heaven, He once more took the reins of power over all things—visible and invisible, power and glory which had been His since before the creation of the world.  Instead of being present for His disciples only visibly, now He would be present everywhere, ruling over the entire world, for their benefit.  He would continue to be present for them sacramentally, as His body and blood would be in, with, and under the bread and the wine in the Sacrament of the Altar.  And, instead of being present for them in person, He would be present for them in the most intimate way possible—present in their very hearts.

And because of His ascension, that’s how Christ is present for us too.  There is no place where we can go where Jesus is not present—no height or depth that ever takes us away from Him.  There is no circumstance we can think of where Jesus is not in control, working all things for the good of those who love Him (Ro 8:28).  There is no time where those who believe in Jesus as their Savior are not also carrying Him with them in their hearts.  In the halls of power and justice; in doctor’s offices and emergency rooms; in kitchens and living rooms—Jesus is there.  In the recesses of our own hearts, through the preaching of His Word and the receiving of His Sacraments, Jesus is there.    

And in addition to being present everywhere for us in all His glory, He promises to return.  “This same Jesus, who was taken up from you into heaven, will so come in like manner as you saw Him go into heaven” (v. 11).  Christ is not gone forever!  Remember the goal!  “God our Savior…  desires all men to be saved” (1 Tim 2:3-4).  Everything Jesus does here is for the benefit of His church—His body, which He wants to be with Him in paradise!  And so He’s coming back to take us to be with Him.  Why do you look to the sky?  Because in His strength we’re waiting for Him to return! 

In the meantime, there is still plenty of work to be done.  Jesus told His disciples, “You shall be witnesses to me” (v. 8).  We also bear witness every day—we bear witness to the fact that Christ has accomplished our salvation and will return to judge the earth.  We bear witness with lives that are not tied too closely to the here and now, but are looking to the sky—to heaven, where we will be with Jesus someday.  We bear witness with words and actions that always have that final destination in mind. 

Don’t let sinful selfishness get the best of you—walking around without direction or hope.  Look up; look around.  Be awestruck by what the Lord has done and is still doing—and rejoice that you are part of His kingdom.  Amen.