Second part of Sermon XLII. for Ascension Day.(for the first part of the sermon,
on the Epistle.) And He led them out as far as to Bethany, and He lifted up His hands,
and blessed them. And it came to pass, while He blessed them, He was parted
from them, and carried up into heaven. —ST. LUKE
xxiv. 50, 51.
THE Scripture appointed for the Epistle to-day, and likewise the Gospel,
consist of the narrative of our Lord’s ascent into Heaven. And this
is well for that event itself suggests all doctrine and all reflection
connected with it. The ordering of His Church, and the fact of His
Ascension, contain everything....
In like manner the Gospel for the day is taken from St. Mark’s narrative
of the same event, and the circumstances preceding our Lord’s Ascension.
It may be observed that St. Mark’s account of these forty days of our Lord’s
stay upon earth after His Resurrection differs from those of the other
Evangelists in this, that he does not enter into any point in detail, either
of our Lord’s appearing to Mary Magdalene, or to the two disciples going
to Emmaus; nor to St. Thomas; nor of His manifestations of Himself by the
sea or on the mountain of Galilee; nor of His leading forth His disciples
from Jerusalem to Bethany, before He was parted from them. But, instead
of describing any one of those occurrences, St. Mark, in a short and summary
way, comprises the whole, touching slightly on particulars, and giving
a general statement. His account, therefore, is most suitable for
this day’s Gospel.
Jesus appeared unto the eleven, he says, as they sat at meat,
and upbraided them with their unbelief and hardness of heart, because they
believed not them which had seen Him after He was risen. This
probably alludes to our Lord’s first appearing, after the Resurrection,
to the whole of the eleven assembled together with St. Thomas. It
was on the Sunday after that of the Resurrection. And His “upbraiding
them with their unbelief,” which St. Mark here mentions, may apply chiefly
to St. Thomas, to whom more especially He spoke on that occasion; or it
may also include those to whom on the Sunday before He appealed, saying,
“Why are ye troubled, and why do thoughts arise in your hearts?" [St.
Luke xxiv, 38.] The general statement, however, in St. Mark,
here implies that the disciples were slow to believe of their Lord’s Resurrection,
so that it was to Him the occasion of reproof. And this their incredulity
adds to our faith. “For, on account of their doubting,” says St. Gregory,
“the resurrection was shown by many proofs; so that, by their doubts we
are the more strongly established. For Mary Magdalene, who believed
more quickly, hath done less for me than Thomas, who doubted long.”
[In
Ascen. Dom., Par. Brev.]
To this St. Mark adds the establishment of Christ’s spiritual kingdom,
which He now made by His mission below to the whole world; thus, while
He sat at the right hand of God, receiving “the utmost parts of the earth
for” His “ possession.” And He said unto them, Go ye into all
the world, and preach the Gospel to every creature. As St. Paul
afterwards testified of “the Gospel being preached to every creature under
Heaven.” [Col. i. 23.] It is like the sounding
of the trumpets, the sending forth of the heralds, the gathering together
of the elect from the four winds, against the day of His appearing.
Meanwhile, during this its publication, it is the savour of life in every
place, and also unto death. As it is added, He that believeth
and is baptized shall be saved; but he that believeth not shall be damned.
The Church visible and invisible combining together, stretching forth
the cords of their tent to the ends of the earth, and the condemnation
of them that receive not the witness of God. “‘Whosoever shall not receive
you, nor hear your words,”— “it shall be more tolerable for the land of
Sodom and Gomorrah in the Day of Judgment, than for that city.” [St.
Matt. x. 15.]
And these signs shall follow them that believe: In My Name shall
they cast out devils; they shall speak with new tongues; they shall take
up serpents; and if they drink any deadly thing, it shall not hurt them;
they shall lay hands on the sick, and they shall recover. Our
Lord is here speaking of the first miraculous planting of His Church by
the gifts poured down upon it on the day of Pentecost, that it might be
established “as a witness to all nations ; “like a carrying on of His own
wonder-working mission on earth; and like a visible sign to men of His
sitting at the right hand of Power till all enemies are put under His feet.
“In My Name ;“ it is His own mantle falling in power from above on them
who behold Him after His departure, [2 Kings ii. 10. 14.]
when ascended on high; “His Name—through faith in His Name “—working without
what it was doing far more wonderfully in the souls and hearts of men;
casting out evil habits; giving a new tongue to praise Him; turning death
into life, suffering into joy, sickness into spiritual health.
Such is St. Mark’s narrative of what our Lord did during the forty days,
in which He was speaking to them of the things concerning the Kingdom of
Heaven, and this he sums up by saying, in the same general mode of statement,
So then after the Lord had spoken unto them, He was received up into heaven,
and sat on the right hand of God. Here then we have, in the Ascension
and Session at the right hand of God, the confirmation and substance of
all our faith. Our High Priest entering into the Holy of Holies, to appear
in the presence of God for us; “On the right hand of the throne of the
Majesty in the heavens.” [Heb. viii. 1.] Here
is all our strength, all our confidence, while in prayer we wait without
for His again appearing. [Ecclus. I. 19, 20, and St. Luke
i. 9, 10.]
And they went forth and preached everywhere, the Lord working with
them, and confirming the Word with signs following. Thus did
He supply His Church with this threefold testimony; the witness of those
who often saw His risen Body upon earth; the witness of those who saw Him
ascend; the witness of the Holy Spirit that went forth in power below.
“That salvation,” says St. Paul, “first spoken by the Lord, and confirmed
unto us by them that heard Him, God also bearing them witness, both with
signs and wonders, and with divers miracles and gifts of the Holy Ghost.”
[Heb. ii. 3, 4.]
“And I, if I be lifted up from the earth,” said our Blessed Lord, "will
draw all men unto Me;" [St. John xii. 32.] these
words, although they may have been spoken of His Crucifixion, may apply
in some sense to His Ascension also. And when the disciples understood
not of eating His Flesh and drinking His Blood, He said, “‘What and if
ye shall see the Son of Man ascend up where He was before,” as if the power
of His Ascension was connected with the Holy Communion. And, in speaking
to Nicodemus of the other Sacrament also, He makes the like allusion to
His Ascension. “No man hath ascended up to Heaven, but the Son of
Man which is in Heaven.” Thus, my brethren, it is a great mystery, and
far more than a figure of speech, when it is said of Christians that they
are ascended, and are made to “sit in heavenly places together in Christ.”
What great constraining power to raise us thither? This same
Jesus, Whom ye see ascend—He bears in Heaven this Name. Thus
St. Gregory well applies to His Ascension the words of the Canticles, “because
of the savour of Thy good ointments, Thy Name is as ointment poured forth.”
“Draw me; we will run after Thee.” [Song of Sol. i., 3, 4.]
They saw Him ascend to Heaven, and we, by faith, may see Him now
ascended thither. “We see Jesus, Who was made a little lower than the angels,
crowned with glory and honour.” [Heb. ii. 9.]
We may see Him there with that prevailing Name. They that see Him
shall have power, and the pure in heart shall see Him. Thus St. Augustin
well says, in a sermon on this day, “Thou sayest unto me, Show me thy God.
I answer, Attend a little while to thine own heart; remove from thence
whatever thou seest displeasing unto God; and He has promised to come and
make His abode with thee.” [St. John xiv. 23. Ser. Aug. cclxi.]
If the taint of earthly affection be removed, the soul and spirit
of man will, as the flame, again aspire and rise heavenward; and the body
too, when it hath put off the old man and the burden of this corruption,
will ascend also, together with Christ’s Body, to the God Who made it,
and fashioned it anew like unto Himself. ["Facile corpus
levabitur in alta. coelorum, si non permat spiritum sarcina peccatorum."
Aug. Serm. cclxiii.]
I will conclude with the words of an ancient Bishop, once spoken on
this day, “Let us therefore exult, most beloved, with spiritual joy; and
rejoicing unto God with worthy thanksgivings, let us lift up the free eyes
of our heart unto that height where Christ is. Let no earthly desire
depress those minds which are called to things above; let not the things
that perish occupy those who are pre-elected to things eternal, nor deceitful
allurements impede those who are entered upon the way of truth; but let
faithful Christians so run through the course of things temporal, as knowing
that they are but travellers in this valley of the world.” [S.
Leo. Sermon. 72. De Ascen. Dom. Brev.]
