7th Sunday of Easter, Year A
May 17, 2026
Acts 1:6-14
This is the 7th Sunday of Easter, also the Sunday we remember the Ascension of Jesus, or as some refer to it, the day Jesus started working from home. The Ascension is celebrated on the 40th day after the Resurrection, which was last Thursday. The Resurrection by itself is not the completion of Jesus ministry. It is the Ascension that completes Jesus’ purpose of the incarnation.
The book of Acts, written by Luke, picks up at the end of Jesus’ 40 day post-Resurrection tour, and I am here to tell you we don’t know where all he went during those forty days! But he did make frequent visits with the disciples and today we see his last day with them in human form. The final farewell.
Right before our reading picks up, in verse six, Jesus instructs them not to leave Jerusalem until God sends what has been promised, a baptism of the Holy Spirit. Aaannnnndddd, some things never change, the disciples immediately defer to how they understand kingdoms. Deaf to the word of the Lord, the disciples remain committed to their original vision and ask, “Oh! So now? God’s going to come in and restore Israel?” Like kids in the back seat of a car, “Are we there yet?” Is this the moment? They naturally want answers about the immediate future, that seems to be part of our human nature. They are stuck on the idea that Jesus is here to be a King.
They still think God’s going to get them a nation. And it’s going to happen now. I mean, if Jesus has defeated death, can’t he defeat the Roman army? These folks have spent the last 40 days on and off with Jesus getting a tutorial on the kingdom of heaven with the resurrected Jesus. Not to mention the prior three years of ministry. But they still have concerns — about Rome, about the future of Israel, about the oppression of the people, and about what Jesus’ ministry meant. Something is still missing for them: a map, a plan, an outline, a detailed account of how the kingdom will be restored to Israel, a strategic plan. If that’s not what this is about, then why did they bother?1
Surely we can appreciate how human this is. We are, at times, not that different from these early disciples. We worry about the future, we are concerned about the oppression of the people in this country, we are wondering about what Jesus’ ministry even meant. We wonder what is the point of following Jesus? Why be a Christian?
Jesus does offer an alternative to these poor disciples, and to us, who just need a plan: one, the humble submission to not knowing (oh great.) He has just told them there are some things that are not for you to know, like the date of Jesus’ return. Two, the promise of receiving a gift–a gift of Spirit. The very breath of God will descend upon you. Think about that for a minute. The very breath of God–you inhale it, you breathe it out, it is wrapped around you, and in you, and through you. And then, finally, the work of being witnesses. Here is your three step plan, if you need one. And it begins with being ok with not knowing.
“You will be baptized with the Holy Spirit.” You will receive power, he tells them. The disciples are probably thinking, that’s exactly what we’ve been waiting for, POWER! Yes, but this isn’t the kind of power you’re used to. This is a different power. This is the power that makes enemies friends. This power doesn’t lead you to war, this power doesn’t seek revenge. This power is one that doesn’t come from humankind, but from the Spirit of God. This power unites. This is the power of love not hate. This power is what you will need to bear witness to God in the world for ALL people.
Far from establishing a kingdom wielding the world’s power, Jesus promises a community empowered to bear witness to the love of God. Jesus banishes from their minds the temptation of an earthly kingdom, a Jesus nation. God calls his followers from around the world, all to bear witness to the Gospel. No warring services, no zealous uprising, not even expulsion of the Roman occupying forces. The church is to be the embodiment of divine reconciliation. This assembly of Jesus followers was to be the communal witness of the Gospel at work in the world. The Ascension dispels any notion of an earthly kingdom. Jesus begins a new rule with more immediate power which is spread beyond the bounds of heaven and earth.2
The kingdom of God for Luke as he wrote this book of Acts is a critique of earthly rulers, including those of the Roman Empire. He is also challenging the claim of Israel regarding its perceived exclusive rights to God and the rest of the book which tells us of the movement of the church from an isolated sect unfolding to include the Gentiles. Including the Gentiles then was as unsettling to them as it is to us today to include those we don’t want to.
Jesus’ last words to his followers were, “You will be my witnesses, telling people about me everywhere—in Jerusalem, throughout Judea, in Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.” And then a cloud covered him–a cloud that connects their memory all the way back to Moses and the Exodus–a cloud that represents the presence of God going before and leading the way.
And the disciples just stand there and keep looking up. Probably trying to wrap their heads around what in the world is going on now? Trying to absorb those last words of instruction. So God sends a couple of messengers–which we always seem to need–to redirect them. “Why do you stand looking up toward heaven?”
The church can get stuck here, too. Looking up, instead of around us. Like we’re just going to stand around and not do anything until Jesus comes back because, quite frankly, that’s just easier. We either want a strategic plan or we want to disconnect from the world and just look up to heaven trying to will the Lord to come back. I have had those moments, too.
Throughout history in times of deepest insecurity, the church has practiced returning to a familiar, centering space, like these disciples returned to the upper room. When we are worried or afraid, we turn to familiar and meaningful patterns and rituals, seeking places that ground us spiritually and emotionally. The sacred places can provide stability and grounding when we’re swimming in a sea of chaos.
Waiting is now a tough task for the church in this technological and computerized world. The things that need doin’ are beyond our ability to accomplish on our own. We need a different kind of empowerment, so we wait for the Spirit. It is never an assured possession of the church, we can’t own the Holy Spirit. It is a gift that is sought again and again through prayer. The early disciples–and we–pray for understanding, guidance, and strength to go on. They–and we–pray in hope or fear, in faith and doubt, in obedience and in wonder.
If you’re an overzealous fix-it person or a cloud gazer, Jesus’ three step plan still leaves us…not in control. In order to do the work of witnesses, in order to fulfill our calling as the Body of Christ, we first have to embrace that ambiguity of not knowing. Our trust isn’t built on action alone, it is forged and formed through consistent communal prayer asking for the Spirit to guide. Otherwise, we will operate out of our knowledge of how the world works and skip the way of the paradox of how God works. This task of prayer wasn’t assigned to just the leaders, the church was birthed through the gathering of women and men, young and old, every face that represented their community–all who desired to follow the risen Christ.
Luke wants us to remember who all gathered in that upper room to pray and wait–letting us know that the birth of the church was far more than the prayers and work of just a few men. He lists the eleven by name and continues with, “All these were constantly devoting themselves to prayer, together with certain women, including Mary the mother of Jesus, as well as his brothers.” It is interesting that Mary, Jesus’ mother, is mentioned by name. As if Luke is pointing out to us that she was at the beginning of this whole thing–the incarnation, and she was there at his death, and she was there at his resurrection–and now, now she is there at his ascension and the birth of the church–helping to birth again the next phase of God’s divine plan. She is the ONE that has been there for it all.
What lay ahead for them they wondered? They had anticipated a kingdom restored in force and power. Jesus talks about the kingdom of God. They are not the same. They will not drive out Rome, “do in” the religious authorities that have sold themselves to power, overthrow the rich, and put their enemies in their place. The reign of God would–and will–come, yes, riding on their shoulders and the work of their hands, and the journeys of their feet. This kingdom was to be built on Love not earthly power, compassion and justice, not privilege, wealth, or might.
It’s exactly what the church is still called to do. We are to gather in prayer and listen to the guidance of the Holy Spirit for the particular call that St. Christopher’s Episcopal Church in Austin will bear witness to. We take part in our place here in the hills of Central Texas to carry out God’s desire that all nations and peoples be in communion with the Creator, the God of the Universe. We are the carriers of the good news of love in Christ to the ends of the earth. Christ came so we can meet the suffering of the world with love. One day, I pray, they will know Christians by their love.
Magdalena's Musings 