Ordinary people doing extraordinary things
Ascension Sunday is one of those holy days that we can breeze right over. It ends the Easter Season and sets us up for Pentecost, that fun fire burning holy spirit day. However, the Ascension of Christ is a pivotal point in our faith. It is a day that invites us into a deeper, more personal, form of faith. Ascension Sunday empowers us to activate our faith and prepare our hearts for what is to come- the Holy Spirit.
Forty days ago we journeyed to this very place on the Mount of Olives. However, on Palm Sunday we were processing in with Christ and his entourage as the crowd cheered for the arrival of their Messiah- the Savior. Instead of a crowd and loud welcoming cheers, Jesus seemingly unwinds, retraces, his footsteps in a somber tone with the disciples. And instead of welcoming Christ into the Holy City of Jerusalem, we prepare ourselves to watch Christ depart.
Despite Jesus’ predictions and telling the disciples all that would happen to him (his death, resurrection, and ascension) the disciples remain confused, mixed-up, and doubtful. They are stunned that Jesus would leave them, especially since he just conquered death. But that is what makes ascension so fun—because their confusion is the exact canvas where God does something entirely new.
Today- We are invited to allow God to open our hearts and minds so we may truly understand God’s word fully. And this word of God comes to us in the flesh through Jesus Christ, who invites us today to activate our faith and to see there is Good News in the Ascension. I know it seems weird to say Jesus’ ascending into heaven is good news.
For the disciples, it certainly didn’t feel like good news. It felt like abandonment. Christ died. Christ was buried. Christ resurrected. Yet, the world around them is still exactly the same. The resurrection didn’t instantly bring world peace, it didn’t fix the corrupt systems, and it didn’t bring immediate restoration to their broken lives. The disciples are trying to hold on the best they can because they believe Jesus is here to save them. But now, Jesus leads them back out of the city and tells them it is his time to go back to God.
It leaves the disciples stunned. For how can Christ just leave? It’s a good question: why does Christ have to leave?
The truth is, Jesus leaves to clear a path for the Holy Spirit so God’s love can multiply beyond belief. If Christ stays in Jerusalem, his physical body is limited by time and space. He can only be with a few people at a time. By ascending, Christ frees the divine presence to be everywhere, all at once. Christ leaves so that the advocate—the Holy Spirit—can fill each and every one of us.
This means the work of heaven is no longer just on Jesus’ shoulders; it is passed to us. We are being clothed with power from on high to become the hands and feet of God in a world that sorely needs it. So, Christ has to leave this world so that we can step into our own calling.
Jesus tells the disciples, “YOU are witnesses to these things, so now go do it.” Go now and do it, all that you have learned, all you have listened to, go proclaim it because you are followers of Christ. Following Christ is not about just sitting and listening, it is not just about relying on Jesus to fix the world’s hatred. Following Christ is about succeeding him. It is about taking up the mantle of love on our own behalf for the sake of God being made known in this world. God is handing over the mantle of love to us. The ascension is the moment where Jesus says, “I have shown you how to love. Now, go and do it.”
This invitation to see ourselves as witnesses isn’t just an ancient command—it’s something we must grapple with every week…
You see, along with serving in ministry, I also serve as an on-call chaplain. When the phone rings in the middle of the night, it usually means walking into a room full of sudden grief, crisis, or deep uncertainty. One evening, I was called into the hospital for an emergency. As I walked up to the staff entrance that I had passed many times… I paused at the sidewalk sign that greets the staff. It reads: “In walks ordinary people doing extraordinary things.” I don’t know why it stopped me so suddenly. It was meant for the nurses, doctors, and tech staff working each shift, but it perfectly captures the theology of the Ascension.
We often think that to do the work of God, we have to be spiritual superheroes. We think we need perfect faith, flawless theology, or an extraordinary platform. But the disciples were none of those things. They were confused, terrified, and full of doubt, standing on a hill staring up into the sky waiting for God to tell them exactly what to do. And yet, Jesus looked at those exact ordinary people and called them to do extraordinary things.
As wars rage and heartbreaking news spreads across our world, staying rooted in love right here means we have to be willing to get uncomfortable. We have to get our hands dirty holding compassion. The Ascension reminds us that we don’t have to look up at the sky waiting for a rescue mission. We are the rescue mission- the remains of God’s love and hope.
We are not here to save this world—God has already done the heavy lifting of salvation through the cross and the empty tomb. Our job is simply to witness to that salvation healing and peace. Our job is to walk into the ordinary spaces of our lives and bring extraordinary love. And that extraordinary love is simple. Sometimes we make it hard. We get in our own way. We get confused. But God’s love is extraordinary and simple.
It looks like showing up to teach a classroom full of children with patience. It looks like an accountant crunching numbers with honesty and integrity. It looks like historians, curators, and ordinary folks preserving wildlife, history, and the shared stories of our community. It’s the simple act of baking bread to share, sewing fabric together for someone in need, removing snow, or checking on a neighbor. It’s being kind to the faces you encounter on the street and listening deeply to a friend who is hurting. It is the completely ordinary things we do for the sake of compassion that makes it such extraordinary love.
Our faith doesn’t require a long to-do list from God for it to be extraordinary. Our faith means we are willing to be like Christ: to humble ourselves, hold compassion, and love fiercely. For all Christ did for this world was for the power of love to reign true every day.
Despite how difficult and heartbreaking this world gets, we must always choose love. Always choose to allow God to open our hearts and minds to things we do not always understand and stand in love for the sake of everyone experiencing the complete joy found in Christ.
For the Love of God is not one-sided, for one people. It is a multi-faceted love that encompasses all of the earth, from end to end, a love that lasts until the end of the ages and beyond. We, with the disciples, have been made witness to this great love and we must go live that very love in this world.
Christ leaves. But do not be afraid. Do not mourn. Christ is not dead; God is not entombed; receive the Holy Spirit that is to come. The mission of God is still alive and now rests in our hearts- so continue to love this world whole, pave the path towards peace, sow compassion in the achyness of this world. Know you are holy and beloved, and claim your calling from God.
May God give us the good faith and courage to go out, even in our disbelief, trusting that the hand of Christ is leading us in love and supporting us all our days long. For we have been made witnesses to all these things; now may we go and do the work of heaven on earth. Proclaim the good news that the kingdom of God is at hand! Remember you are ordinary, holy, and beloved, called to do the extraordinary. Be kind. Be love. Be a reflection of God in this world for the sake of love being made known.
Amen.