When I hear of the Ascension of our Lord, I can’t help but think of the feelings that the Apostles must have experienced. He had already told them, that if they really loved Him, they would be glad for him to be going to the Father, and yet, there is also that human inclination to miss those whom we have grown close to by having them around us each day. I have no doubt that when they really thought about it, His disciples were indeed happy for Him, even if they would miss having Him there with them. This is part of the same kind of selfless love that He displayed for all of us when He dies on the cross for us.
Yet there is much more to this in terms of why we should rejoice that our Lord returned home to the Father. First of all, without doing so, He would not have been able to send us the Advocate, or Holy Spirit. He was quite specific in what He told us about this, and for each of us, the Holy Spirit is the grace that allows us to both endure life’s challenges, but also lets us grow as followers of Christ by working within each of us to allow us to mature as members of the body of Christ. Each time we are able to move a bit closer to our Lords example, is the Spirit at work within us.
There is one aspect though, that is perhaps a bit less talked about, and yet we innately know how important it is. That is, that when Jesus ascended to the Father, He did so to take His place at the right hand of the Father, so that He might continually intercede on our behalf, and ask the Fathers graces and forgiveness for each one of us. There is literally no other way that we have any hope of entering the Kingdom of Heaven, it is only through Christ who is the narrow gate that we must pass through. If we were to live our lives in as perfect a manner as is humanly possible, focusing on nothing else but our faith, it still would not be enough. We must understand that it is only possible for us to enter Gods Kingdom through Jesus, who both mediates for, and expiates our sins – all of them, those we were born with, and those we accumulate through life. So, you see we have a very good reason to rejoice that our Lord ascended back to the Father. I think the disciples were keenly aware of this, and it must have provided them with some consolation. Yet they also awaited with eagerness the gift of the Spirit with Jesus promised them, as they knew that they were to be charged with a great task, but were still very much afraid at that point, and were in fact in hiding for fear for their lives. This would all change ten days later, and they would undergo a radical metamorphosis that is only possible through the Spirit of God working in them. We too have access to this same Spirit, and if we allow the Holy Spirit into our lives, the change can be just as profound.
It is tempting to think sometimes how wonderful it would be to have Jesus here among us each day, and yet in light of what we know from His teachings, I think we have more reason to be glad that He is with the Father, and that for that reason we have hope. Our Lord, as always, has the better plan.
The Deacons Bench 
The story of Jesus Ascension is one of those stories that seems to go unnoticed for many believers. We typically celebrate the Christian holidays of Christmas and Easter and pay little attention to other holidays.
As years go by, I have found myself reflecting more on these other holidays, and in particular, this one of the Lord’s Ascension.
Meditating on the reading of the events that transpired, it amazes me how unready the Apostles where at the time of the Lord’s Ascension. Yes, they were joyful for seeing the Lord resurrected, though they still doubted to a certain degree what their senses were telling them. They were struggling with “their own inherited theology” on how things should be and what was actually happening. They still expected a Messiah that would rule on the throne and restore Israel to it’s rightful place among the nations. In their minds, to preach the Gospel starting in Jerusalem, then in Judea, Samaria and ultimately to the ends of the world, meant to all Jews everywhere. They had no clue that the Gentiles would soon come in into God’s Kingdom and in a very short time, vastly outnumber their Jewish brethren and pretty much take the reigns after the first century. Their understanding of the liturgy and their roles as priests of the new covenant was also in their infancy. Nevertheless, the seeds had already been planted, and just like a small mustard seed, things would begin to grow. The centuries that followed the Apostolic era would only show that the Church as a whole needed to mature and is still maturing to this day. With confidence, I can say that I believe that the Church has matured and grown a lot in these past 2000 years. Yet, there is still more growth to be achieved in the centuries to come. The Church today still has some serious issues that need to be resolved, and it won’t be easy nor painless (I recall how painful were the first 7 Ecumenical councils). And just as those 11 Apostles and other disciples at the Lord’s Ascension, so today, we are very unready for the challenges we are facing and for the work to be done. But there is hope, help is on the way, just as it was then, so it is now.
And to quote Deacon Chuck in his article; “It is tempting to think sometimes how wonderful it would be to have Jesus here among us each day, and yet in light of what we know from His teachings, I think we have more reason to be glad that He is with the Father,” I must say I couldn’t agree more.
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