You will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you

Ascension of the Lord (C)

You may have noticed that we have read two accounts – both by St Luke – of the Ascension of the Lord. The first was from the beginning of his account of the Acts of the Apostles, and the second was from the conclusion of his Gospel.

Thus, we can say that the Ascension of the Lord is the transitional moment in his account of the life of Jesus and then his account of the establishing of the Church. And indeed it is.

The Ascension marks the conclusion of the mission of Jesus on earth. He now ascends to the Father. It marks the moment when the mission of Jesus is now to be continued in and through his disciples. He says in the first reading, “you will be my witnesses not only in Jerusalem but throughout Judea and Samaria, and indeed to the ends of the earth”.

His disciples are now to give witness to him to the entire world. This was his instruction to and expectation of his disciples. It remains his instruction and expectation today, two thousand years later. It is an instruction and expectation which is made to us, who are his disciples at this time and in this place.

We are expected by the Lord not only to live our faith, but to witness to it in the society around us. This is what the Lord expects of us.

However, there is another important element mentioned by Christ and pivotal to the fulfilment of his intention for the Church.

He tells them that they are not to leave Jerusalem but to wait for the promised gift of the Father to them. He explains what this gift is in these words, “It is what you have heard me speak about”, he says, “John baptised by water but you, not many days from now, will be baptised with the Holy Spirit”.  

This is an extraordinary statement – they are to be baptised with the Holy Spirit. To be baptised is to be immersed in water – this is what John the Baptist did. Here, however, Jesus is speaking about being baptised – immersed – with the Holy Spirit.

Let us reflect further upon this. The Holy Spirit is the third person of the Blessed Trinity. The Holy Spirit is God Himself. In other words, Jesus is saying that God’s own life will be poured into us.

St Gregory of Nyssa wrote a defence of Christian teaching on the Holy Spirit, saying in one place,

He is Divine, and absolutely good, and Omnipotent, and wise, and glorious, and eternal; He is everything of this kind that can be named to raise our thoughts to the grandeur of His being.

Contemplating the wonder of the Holy Spirit, St Gregory says later in this work,

Since, then, it has been affirmed, and truly affirmed, that the Spirit is of the Divine Essence, and since in that one word Divine every idea of greatness, as we have said, is involved, it follows that he who grants that Divinity has potentially granted all the rest — the gloriousness, the omnipotence, everything indicative of superiority.

In these words, we are invited to consider something of the extraordinary gift that has been granted to us as Christians. God’s divine life dwells within us. Jesus will ascend to the Father, but God has a further plan in mind for those who are the disciples of His Son.

So, St Luke recounts that the Lord, in speaking of this wonderful gift of the Holy Spirit, says, “You will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon you and then you will be my witnesses not only in Jerusalem but throughout Judea and Samaria, and indeed to the ends of the earth”.

The disciples, and so too ourselves, will be witnesses because of the power of the Holy Spirit given to us. The capacity to be a witness to Jesus will be accomplished through the gift of the Holy Spirit.

Is this just nice theology and pious hope, or is it real?

It is real, when we consider what happened at Pentecost – the feast we celebrate next week. It is what happened following the coming of the power of the Holy Spirit upon the Apostles at Pentecost. The disciples began fearlessly preaching the message of the Gospel. And so the Church was born and spread and grew across the globe and across the centuries.

It is true that throughout Christian history many bold preachers and great saints have been raised up. Many remarkable spiritual movements came to birth. And the Gospel has been taken to the very ends of the earth.

This promise has been fulfilled. And it will continue to be fulfilled in our time and in our place.  

Let us invoke the power of the Holy Spirit for the Church in our day:

O Holy Spirit,
The Father desires the salvation of all human beings
and for that purpose He sent You upon the Apostles.

Grant to all in the Church the fire of your love

that the Church may proclaim Jesus Christ to the world.

Send laborers into the harvest
who are truly animated by You
Who are the Soul of the missionary Church.
Amen.

Archbishop Julian Porteous

Saturday, 28 May 2022