Sunday Readings for May 16-17, The Ascension of the Lord
By Lyn Zahorik | For On Mission
The scriptural account this Sunday of Jesus’ Ascension, “He was lifted up, and a cloud took him from their sight,” seems to be lacking dazzle (Acts 1:9). Truly, couldn’t the apostles have taken better notes? Did Jesus rise like a butterfly, zig‑zagging on a warm breeze? Did he lift like a hot‑air balloon, steady and serene? Or was it more of a vanishing — like a jet‑stream star slipping into the bright sky before anyone can say, “Wait, what just happened?”
If we’re honest, we’re the ones who would enjoy the special‑effects version. We want to know “how” he went up. Was there a shimmer? A glow? A whoosh? Did anyone’s hair blow back? But Matthew doesn’t bother with any of that; he focuses us on the heart of this Scripture — Jesus giving a command.
“All power in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go, therefore, and make disciples of all nations … and behold, I am with you always” (Mt 28:18-20).
And that purpose is beautifully inconvenient. “Go.” Not “stay comfortable.” Not “admire the view.” Not “wait until you feel holy enough.” Go. Teach. Baptize. Love. Forgive. Lift up the ones who feel forgotten. Carry hope into places that have forgotten how to hope. The Ascension is not Jesus disappearing. It’s Jesus expanding, moving from one place to every place, from one moment in time to all time. He doesn’t leave us; he leaves us with purpose.
Then Ephesians steps in and adds a whole extra layer of sparkle. Paul prays that the “eyes of our hearts” finally focus so we can see the hope we’ve been called to. He reminds us that the same power that raised Jesus from the dead and seated him “far above every principality, authority, power, and dominion” is the power now at work in us (Eph 1:21). What an affirmation. Because some days we don’t feel “far above” anything, yet Paul insists: Christ is the Head, and we are his Body (cf. Eph 1:22-23), meaning the Ascension is Jesus pulling humanity upward with him, saying, “Come on, you’re part of this too.”
So when we hear “Go, therefore,” it’s not Jesus saying, “Well, off you go — and don’t forget to pack a lunch.” It’s Jesus saying, “You already have the power you need — you just don’t realize it yet.”
There’s a line often quoted at funerals, but it belongs here too: “The best way to remember someone is by living the way they did.” The Ascension is Jesus saying exactly that — live as I lived. Love as I loved. Heal, welcome, bless, and forgive in ways that make people tilt their heads and say, “You remind me of him.”
So maybe we leave the special effects of Jesus’ Ascension to an upcoming episode of “The Chosen,” realizing that how Jesus ascended is not as important as what he left behind — the direction we are to follow. And he promises, “I am with you always.” Steady as breath, close as heartbeat, present in every act of love we dare to offer the world.
The readings for Sunday, May 17, can be found at The Ascension of the Lord | USCCB.