7 Easter, Yr A (2023) The Rev. Karen C. Barfield
7 Easter, Yr A (2023) The Rev. Karen C. Barfield
Acts 1:6-14 St. Andrew’s Episcopal Church
John 17:1-11
In the name of the one, holy, and living God:
in whom we live, and move, and have our being. Amen.
“Lord, is this the time when you will restore the kingdom to Israel?” (Acts 1:6b)
The apostles wanted to know.
They had hoped that Jesus would restore the kingdom,
but then he was crucified.
Now, having been raised from the dead and returned to the disciples…
now, perhaps, this was the time they had been waiting for…
the time when Jesus would finally restore the kingdom.
So they ask him, “Lord, is this the time….?”
But Jesus replies, “It is not for you to know….”
It is not for you to know.
But, they wanted to know…
they needed to know…
this waiting thing was hard;
and they were tired of trudging the journey when nothing really seemed to change.
Yes, some people were fed and healed and baptized and freed from demons
and even raised from the dead,
and that surely was worth celebrating, but….
But when would things actually change?
Like permanently change?
When would the oppressive systems stop oppressing,
and the poor not have to struggle every day to make ends meet,
and whole swaths of people not have to fear religious persecution,
and war and disease and famine have their final day?
“Lord, is this the time?”
Please let this be the time!
“It is not for you to know….”
“But,” Jesus says, “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.” (Act 1:8)
So, apparently not only was it not the time for the world order to be righted once for all…
but completing the new order of life was not up to Jesus either!
Listen again to what Jesus says:
“It is not for you to know the times…” and
“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 Jesus said all this and the apostles were watching,
Jesus was lifted up in a cloud and disappeared again!
The disciples must have known that this vanishing of Jesus was a permanent fixture
because they headed back to Jerusalem and went back to their upper room.
So…now what?
It’s déjà vu all over again!
I think the biggest clue comes from the two men in white robes asking them:
“Why do you stand looking up toward heaven?”
Jesus has just sent the apostles out to do the work of the kingdom…
to look horizontally at the road and the people and the needs in front of them…
It is for the disciples to bring about the kingdom…
the kingdom that Jesus has inaugurated!
Just like the disciples, I think we might prefer look elsewhere:
to politicians or civic leaders or
non-profits or businesses
to take care of others’ needs.
I often fall prey to that tendency.
Yet, I think Jesus calls us to be the healers…the ones to
clothe the naked,
feed the hungry,
visit the prisoner and those who are ill,
to be companions with the lonely,
to advocate for the needs of the vulnerable.
It seems to me that this community of St. Andrew’s does this well!
I really want to celebrate this…it is no small matter.
Folks here accompany others to doctor’s visits and chemo treatments,
provide meals for those who are ill or recovering from surgery,
give a phone call or personal visit to someone who cannot drive any more,
take Communion to those who cannot get to church,
gather every week to pack bags for children who are hungry,
cook and serve meals at the Community Kitchen and Pathways.
And in addition to these tangible ways of serving others’ needs,
we all hold each other in prayer.
I cannot tell you how often I have been strengthened these past months,
knowing that many are holding me in prayer in the presence of God.
Jesus knew the importance of lifting up his disciples in prayer before God!
Before Jesus was arrested and accused and scourged and put to death,
he knew how difficult that would be for the disciples.
So he prayed for them.
He prayed not only the God would see Jesus through these trials
but that God would uphold Jesus’ disciples as one Body…
that they would find their strength knowing that God offers eternal life
and that as a community of believers they would be strengthened
in love and prayer and protection.
It is this community and this faith that bind us together in love.
It is this faith and love and community that we are empowered to extend to our neighbors and the world around us, praying that we may all be one.
As we look around us and see a world filled with disease, violence, hunger, and suffering,
let us encourage each other to continue to step up and step out
to meet the needs that appear in front of us.
“Lord, is this the time when you will restore the kingdom?”
Please!
“It is not for you to know….”
“But…
you will receive power…
and you will be my witnesses.”
“People of Galilee…
people of St. Andrew’s…
why do you stand looking up toward heaven?”
We have received power.
We are Jesus’ witnesses.
In what ways do we and will we engage in restoring the kingdom of God?
The disciples devoted themselves to prayer as do we.
I invite you to ask God in what ways you as an individual with certain gifts and dreams and passions and energy can engage in restoring God’s kingdom of mercy and justice and peace…and in what ways we, as a community, can further God’s kingdom in this place.
Perhaps they are ways that you, or we, are already engaging.
Perhaps there are new ways.
Issues of racism, poverty, mental health, addiction, education, housing…there is much work to be done as well as taking time for our own healing and restoration for the journey.
My friends, through the witness of Jesus’ life, death, and resurrection,
the restoration of God’s kingdom has begun.
It is up to us to continue to witness to God’s love, mercy, and justice in this broken world.
Amen.
