Sunday: THE ASCENSION OF THE LORD Date: May 16, 1999 Year: A The readings: [Acts 1:1-11; Eph. 1:17-23; Mt. 26:16-20] The message: I AM WITH YOU ALWAYS. Prepared by: CATHOLIC DOORS MINISTRY Total words: 1323 |
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Today, we are celebrating the Feast of the Ascension of the Lord Jesus into Heaven! In all Three Readings, we find very powerful messages regarding the meaning of the Ascension of Jesus.
The First Reading begins with the Apostle Luke writing to Theophilus. He tells him that when he wrote the Gospel of Luke, in it he mentioned what Jesus had done and taught from the beginning until the day when He was taken up to Heaven, after giving instructions through the Holy Spirit to the Apostles whom He had chosen.
Now Luke was writing the Acts of the Apostles regarding what happened after Jesus died. Jesus presented Himself alive to the apostles by many convincing proofs, appearing to them during forty days and speaking about the Kingdom of God.
While staying with the Apostles, Jesus ordered them not to leave Jerusalem, but to wait there for the promise of the Father. This command was to fulfill the promise that is found in the Old Testament, that God would place His Spirit within His people to make them follow His statutes and be careful to observe His ordinances. [Jer. 31:33; Ezek. 36:27]
You might ask, 'Why Jerusalem of all places?' It was to fulfill the prophecies of the Old Testament, that the Kingdom of God was to begin in Jerusalem. In Revelation 3:12, we read of the new Jerusalem that comes down from Heaven. This represents the spiritual arrival of the Kingdom of God on earth, the establishment of the Mystical Body of Christ on earth.
In the Letter to the Galatians [4:26], Jerusalem is identified as the spiritual Church. It is where all the Christian come to Mount Zion and to the city of the living God, [Ps. 46:4]. It is the Heavenly Jerusalem where innumerable angels are in festal gathering. [Heb. 12:22] Jerusalem is the Holy City that is mentioned in the Book of Nehemiah [11:1]. It is the City of Zion [1 Kgs. 8:1, 2 Kgs 14:20], another name given in the Old Testament for Jerusalem. Jerusalem is where the Holy Catholic Church had its beginning. Although the Holy Catholic Church, a reflection of the spiritual Church of Jesus, is physically present and has its visible seat in Rome, the invisible, spiritual and Mystical Church of Jesus, the Kingdom of God, where Jesus is seated, has its Throne in Jerusalem.
Through the Sacrament of Baptism by water, Catholics enter into the Kingdom of God that has arrived on earth on the Day of Pentecost. Through the gift of the new heart and spirit, Catholics become members of the invisible Body of Christ that is on earth. Through the Sacrament of Confirmation, the completion of the Sacrament of Baptism, Catholics begin their spiritual journey towards Christ. They are equipped by the Holy Spirit with spiritual gifts for the growth of the physical Holy Catholic Church.
The establishment of the Heavenly Kingdom on earth does not conflict with the question of the Apostles who asked Jesus when He would restore the Kingdom of Israel. To that question, Jesus answered, "It is not for them to know the times or periods that the Father has set by His own authority." In their question, the Apostles, still thinking worldly, were asking about the physical Kingdom of God. At that time, they failed to perceive the full meaning of the Scriptures that were found in the Old Testament, that the eternal Kingdom of God was a spiritual Kingdom. The physical Kingdom is the Holy Catholic Church, the spiritual mother of God's spiritual children who have received the Sacrament of Baptism.
Many in those days were still waiting for the arrival of a physical Kingdom. That is why in the Letter to the Ephesians, we read, "I pray that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give you a spirit of wisdom and revelation as you come to know Him, so that, with the eyes of your heart enlightened, you may know what is the hope to which He has called you, what are the riches of His glorious inheritance among the saints and what is the immeasurable greatness of his power for us who believe, according to the working of His great power." [Ephes. 1:17-23]
The children of God who had received their new heart and spirit through the Sacrament of Baptism needed the spiritual wisdom that can only be revealed to those who have received the new spirit. Through the indwelling of the Holy Spirit, the newborn Catholics become enlightened in the truth, understanding and knowledge of what they have been called to as members of the Holy Catholic Church. They finally perceive the richness of their glorious inheritance that they have received through Christ as saints of the Holy Church. They perceive the working of God's great power, the greatness of a power that cannot be measured in its goodness by those who walk their living faith.
All of this was accomplished through the death and Resurrection of Jesus. God put this power to work in Christ when He raised Him from the dead and seated Him at His right hand in the Heavenly places, far above all rule and authority and power and dominion, and above every Name that is named, not only in this age but also in the age to come. And He has put all things under His feet and has made Him the head over all things for the Church, which is His Body, the fullness of Him who fills all in all.
Before departing from this world, Jesus commanded His disciples to go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing those who believe in the Name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, teaching them to obey everything He has commanded. Then, as witnessed by the disciples, Jesus was lifted up into Heaven, disappearing into the clouds. Since then, Christ has been ruling over Heaven and earth as the promised King of kings, the Lord of lords.
One day, Christ will return! His return will be according to the teachings of the one and only true Church, the Holy Catholic Church. It will not be according to the teachings of many of our separated brothers and sisters, their teachings having infiltrated the minds of many of our Catholic friends who are being misled from the truth. Some of our separated brothers and sisters continue to believe in premillennialism as was believed in the days of Jesus Christ, that He will return one day to rule on earth for one thousand years before the end of the world.
We Catholics believe that the thousand years, a symbol of an unknown number, has already begun on the Day of Pentecost. The reign of Christ is taking place now in heaven and on earth. The Holy Catholic Church is growing in its number of sanctified Catholics who have received the Sacraments of Baptism and Confirmation. Their number will continue to grow until they reach the fullness of God's Divine Plan. Then, and then only, will Christ return on earth in the same way as He was taken to Heaven, to come and get His Bride, His Holy Church, to present it as a blooming flower to the Heavenly Father.
This is the whole mystery of the death, Resurrection and Ascension of Christ. It is the building up of the Holy Catholic Church by the power of the Holy Spirit. It is the fulfillment of God's promises. It is the gathering of all the spiritual children of God, those of the past, present and future. Our hope my brothers and sisters is that when that moment comes, when Jesus returns to earth as He was taken into Heaven, we will be among those who are counted as living stones. We will be among those who have been called to built the Holy Catholic Church so we may be presented to God the Father. Having achieved this goal, we will inherit the final promise of being eternally adopted as the sons and daughters of God.
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The readings...
[The readings were taken from the New Revised Standard Version of the Bible (C) 1989 Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Church of Christ in the United States of America.]
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First Reading...
"In the first book, Theophilus, I wrote about all that Jesus did and taught from the beginning until the day when he was taken up to heaven, after giving instructions through the Holy Spirit to the apostles whom he had chosen. After His suffering he presented Himself alive to them by many convincing proofs, appearing to them during forty days and speaking about the Kingdom of God. While staying with them, he ordered them not to leve Jerusalem, but to wait there for the promise of the Father. This, he said, is what you have heard form me; for John baptized with water, but you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit not many days from now. So when they had come together, they asked him, "Lord, is this the time when you will restore the kingdom to Isreal?" 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." [Acts 1:1-11]
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Second Reading...
"I pray that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give you a spirit of wisdom and revelation as you come to know Him, so that, with the eyes of your heart enlightened, you may know what is the hope to which He has called you, what are the riches of His glorious inheritance among the saints and what is the immeasurable greatness of his power for us who believe, according to the working of His great power. God put this power to work in Christ when he raised him from the dead and seated him at his right hand in the heavenly places, far above all rule and authority and power and dominion, and above every name that is named, not only in this age but also in the age to come. And he has put all things under his feet and has made him the head over all things for the church, which is his body, the fullness of him who fills all in all." [Ephes. 1:17-23]
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Gospel Reading...
"The eleven disciples went to Galilee, to the mountain to which Jesus had directed them. When they saw him, they worshipped him; but some doubted. And Jesus came and said to them, 'All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to Me. Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything that I have commanded you. And remember, I am with you always, to the end of the age.'" [Mt. 28:16-20]
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