Thomas Griffin 4/9/24
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If Jesus was God and he defeated the powers of sin, evil and death – why did he ever leave earth? Why not simply stay on earth and continue to appear to people so that everyone could come to believe in him? Some might think that the Ascension of Jesus is illogical. A plan that maybe Christ did not completely think through before executing. We might think that we could have drawn up a better plan in order for everyone to come to know and love him.
The Ascension of the Lord is not about Jesus’ plan to save the entire world. He already accomplished that during the first Holy Week. The Ascension is about one thing: God wants you to help Him save the world.
When we hear a rallying cry to save the globe we might quickly think that we are speaking about the impossible. There are almost 8 billion people on earth. There are thousands of religions and millions of people who live in outright denial of God and the importance of faith. Small me, how can I save the world?
The Ascension is about the invitation from Christ for each and everyone of us to play our part in talking to others about the Risen Jesus. If Easter is for real. If Jesus actually rose from the dead, then that message must be at the front and center of our lives. That means that we are invited to speak to our web of relationships about the importance of faith, truth and sacrificial love. We are being asked to bring Christian values to the table when discussing life with our friends and families.
Even more so, however, we are being called to speak to other people about having a relationship with Jesus Christ. This is the key to the Ascension. Jesus said, “Go into the whole world and proclaim the gospel to every creature” (Mark 16:15). The good news is that Jesus is the savior of the world and that being one with him brings about salvation and redemption. Placing our relationship with him at the center of our lives will make us who we are made to be. He will give us the power to conquer our sinful tendencies and be heroic witnesses to love.
An obvious question to begin with then is: do you have a relationship with Jesus? In order to be someone’s friend we must spend time with the person and speak to the person. If that friendship is critical for our life then we are speaking to that person and spending time with that person every single day of our lives. We might attend weekly Sunday Mass and recite our prayers each day but how well would we say we know Jesus as a real living person?
In order to grow in this we are called to spend time speaking to Jesus as a friend. Tell him about your day. Share your ups and downs with him. Ask him for forgiveness when you lean towards gossip, anger and impatience. Give him thanks for your family and friends and your job. All of this might sound weird. It might make us uncomfortable to think about “speaking to Jesus.” However, we can see the impact on this practice when we look at the consequences of the Ascension.
Faith among the masses exploded following Christ’s entrance into heaven. Thousands came to be baptized each week. The Ascension allowed the Apostles and first disciples to approach Christ at every moment rather than simply when they were in his physical presence. Once they were empowered by the Holy Spirit at Pentecost they further knew that Christ was always with them. So we do not need to fear that we are inventing an invisible friend. The greatest of saints constantly refer to the need for intimacy with Jesus as a real living person.
All of that talk is rooted in the fact that Jesus rose from the dead and ascended into heaven. At this very second, he is longing for us to ascend our thoughts to him. Christ wants us to go to him with everything, that is why he ascended into heaven. Living from that knowledge will then push us forth to bring the truth of Christ to all that we meet.
So today, what do you need to get off your chest? What do you need help with in your life? What is a serious decision you need guidance? Is there a loved one in your life that is very ill or is enduring something that appears insurmountable? Bring all of that to him. Know that he is intimately with you and then share that fact with someone. That is what the early church was bred off of. They knew Jesus, personally, and they shared that relationship with others because they knew just how real he was.
At first, the disciples needed to be pushed to act this way. “Men of Galilee, why are you standing there looking at the sky?” (Acts 1:11), the angel said to them. Basically, the angel was saying: “Stop staring into the clouds and get to work. Share Christ and his message with others.”
Today Christ ascends into heaven. Speak to him today more than you normally would. Don’t get caught staring at the sky. Tell others just how alive he truly is.
Thomas Griffin is the chairperson of the religion department at a Catholic high school on Long Island where he lives with his wife and two sons. He has a masters degree in theology and is the Founder and Editor-in-Chief of Empty Tomb Project: The Magazine.
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