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7 Sunday of Easter –A the Feast of Ascension of Our Lord a Beautiful Story Tells About How Jesus, After His Ascension Into

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7 Sunday of Easter –A the Feast of Ascension of Our Lord a Beautiful Story Tells About How Jesus, After His Ascension Into 7 Sunday of Easter –A The Feast of Ascension of our Lord A beautiful story tells about how Jesus, after his ascension into heaven, was surrounded by the Holy Angels who began to inquire about his work on earth. Jesus told them about his birth, life, preaching, death and resurrection, and how he had accomplished the salvation of the world. The angel Gabriel asked, “Well, now that you are back in heaven, who will continue your work on earth?” Jesus said, “While I was on earth, I gathered a group of people around me who believed in me and loved me. They will continue to spread the Gospel and carry on the work of the Church.” Gabriel was perplexed and asked, “You mean Peter, who denied you three times, and all the rest who ran away when you were arrested? Do you mean to tell us that you left them to carry on your work? And what will you do if this plan doesn’t work?” Jesus said, “I have no other plan- it must work.” Truly, Jesus has no other plan than to depend on the efforts of his followers! The ascension focuses on the heavenly reign of Christ as an everlasting king, judge, and a loving father. Christ goes to heaven to sit at the right hand of his Father and intercede for us forever. That’s why today’s responsorial psalm mentions the universal kingship of Jesus who rules his people forever. Fact of the Ascension -Today’s first reading from the Acts of the Apostles states, “While the disciples were still staring into the sky as he was going, the angels appeared and said to them, ‘Men of Galilee, why are you standing here looking at the sky?’ ” The ascension of our Lord conveys a message of hope and a message of challenge. First, the message of hope is about his second coming since the angels say, “Jesus, who has been taken up from you into heaven will return in the same way as you have seen him going into heaven .” (Acts 1:11) The actual occurrence of the ascension recalls what Jesus had taught his disciples. As a summons to faith, Jesus had once said, “What if you were to see the Son of Man ascending to where he was before?” (John 6:62) He had also encouraged them by saying, “You will see heaven opened, and the angels of God ascending and descending upon the Son of Man .” (John 1:51) So, his ascension is a glorious reality and a fulfillment of what he had said would happen. Second, the message of challenge is that the angels ask us to be his witnesses. “You will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon you. You will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, throughout Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth .” (Acts 1:8) The angels may probably ask us the same question they asked the apostles on this feast day of ascension: “Why are you standing here looking at the sky?” Perhaps the angels are asking us to start looking at the earth, our people, ourselves, our hearts. They are telling us that we are supposed to continue the ministry which Jesus entrusted to us. We are to live a life of hope and to be witnesses of the risen Christ. Fellowship of the Ascension –The ascension is the enthronement of Jesus in heaven. Today’s psalm explains that Jesus mounts his thrown in heaven to shouts of joy. It was the gift of God the Father to God the Son Jesus for having fulfilled his Father’s will so wonderfully well. We believe that the risen and enthroned Jesus has not gone, but is still among us, only in a different way than when he was in his human nature. He is with us through the Word of God, the sacraments, and in living our faith, both individually and together as a community. For example, we believe that Jesus is truly and completely present in the Eucharist when we receive Holy Communion. We believe that Jesus is accessible to us through prayer because he dwells in our hearts and souls. We also believe that Jesus is within us when we make him present through our good attitudes, activities, and edifying lives. Today, the fellowship of his ascension commissions each one of us with a great task of evangelization, and gives us a message of consolation. The task of evangelization is: “Go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Teach and observe all that I have commanded you .” The message of consolation is that Jesus says, “I am with you always, until the end of the age. ” Therefore, we are told to fulfill the ministry entrusted to us by Jesus, consoled and strengthened by his loving presence in our life. Fruitfulness of the Ascension – The ascension of Jesus fills our hearts with five special blessings today. The first from the ascended Lord is his promise to send the Holy Spirt to be with us and guide as a great advocate, since he says, “It is to your advantage that I go away, for if I do not go away, the Advocate will not come to you; but if I go, I will send him to you .” (John 16:7) The second blessing is Jesus’ promise of our own participation in his ascension, since it was not just the spirit of Jesus that ascended to the Father, but it was the whole body of Jesus; the body the disciples had touched; the body that had eaten and drank with them; and the body bearing the marks of nails and a spear, that ascended to heaven. So, if we live a good life here on earth, his ascension gives us hope that we, as followers of Jesus, can also participate in his ascension into heaven. The third blessing is his eternal intercession for us before God, since St. Paul teaches us that, “ He is able all time to save those who approach God through him, since he lives always to make intercession for us .” (Heb 7:25) The fourth blessing of the ascended Lord is his to answer our prayers, because he tells us, “He who believes in me will also do the works that I do; and will do greater works than these, because I am going to the Father. Whatever you ask in my name, I will do it so that the Father may be glorified in the Son .” (Jn 14:12) The final blessing is his promise to prepare a place for us in heaven, as he says, “If I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive you unto myself; that where I am, there you may be also.” (Jn 14:2ff) so that we may live with Him, the Father, and the Spirit forever. Each of us has a role in Jesus’ plan for salvation. He has given us his ministry to continue, and has provided us with an advocate to provide guidance as we do so. He continues to console and strengthen us with his constant presence in our lives. And, he offers us the promise of a great reward of heaven. We have no reason to “stand around and look at the sky,” but we have every reason to fulfill our role in completing his plan. We must work together to continue his work, for Jesus has no other plan but us. .
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