Reflections
"God mounts his throne
amid shouts of joy."
This Sunday we celebrate the
Ascension of our Lord, who was
taken up to heaven to be seated
at the right hand of the Father,
far above every principality, with
authority over every nation.
(Ephesians 1:21)
With such an awesome God on
his throne, what hope do we have
as mere human beings that we will
ever be able to approach Him?
How far above us can this Jesus be,
if He is taken up to heaven and has
all things put beneath his feet?
The words of a popular song say,
“Our God is an awesome God, He reigns
with power and love.”
Power is often associated with arrogance
and brutal treatment, but our God uses his
power to work miracles, and bring about
healing. And his power is expressed by
his love, by which we are raised up with
Jesus.
Fortunately for us humans, Jesus has a plan
for us – we can feel his power and presence
within us, so long as we repent from our sins
and believe in Him. He is risen, and is seated
at the right hand of the Father in heaven.
Knowing this, we shout with joy, and we praise
Him. He leaves with us a way to share
in his divinity, through the Holy Spirit which He
sends to us. That same promise Jesus made
to his disciples is available to us – the promise
of the Father, the gift of the holy Spirit. (Acts 1:8)
After Jesus' Ascension, the disciples begin
their active ministry empowered by the Holy Spirit.
That same power is given to us so long as we believe.
We too are called to ministry. And for that we are
inspired to praise the Lord. As the psalmist says,
“Clap your hands, shout to God with cries of gladness,
sing praise to God!”
Amen
Discussion Questions for Reflection
1. Over and over our psalmist calls for us to shout to God
This Sunday we celebrate the
Ascension of our Lord, who was
taken up to heaven to be seated
at the right hand of the Father,
far above every principality, with
authority over every nation.
(Ephesians 1:21)
With such an awesome God on
his throne, what hope do we have
as mere human beings that we will
ever be able to approach Him?
How far above us can this Jesus be,
if He is taken up to heaven and has
all things put beneath his feet?
The words of a popular song say,
“Our God is an awesome God, He reigns
with power and love.”
Power is often associated with arrogance
and brutal treatment, but our God uses his
power to work miracles, and bring about
healing. And his power is expressed by
his love, by which we are raised up with
Jesus.
Fortunately for us humans, Jesus has a plan
for us – we can feel his power and presence
within us, so long as we repent from our sins
and believe in Him. He is risen, and is seated
at the right hand of the Father in heaven.
Knowing this, we shout with joy, and we praise
Him. He leaves with us a way to share
in his divinity, through the Holy Spirit which He
sends to us. That same promise Jesus made
to his disciples is available to us – the promise
of the Father, the gift of the holy Spirit. (Acts 1:8)
After Jesus' Ascension, the disciples begin
their active ministry empowered by the Holy Spirit.
That same power is given to us so long as we believe.
We too are called to ministry. And for that we are
inspired to praise the Lord. As the psalmist says,
“Clap your hands, shout to God with cries of gladness,
sing praise to God!”
Amen
Discussion Questions for Reflection
1. Over and over our psalmist calls for us to shout to God
and sing praise to God, as God mounts his throne. Tell of how
you personally praise the Lord with 'cries of gladness.'
2. The verses of our psalm for this Ascension Sunday place
our Lord in his kingship and on his throne, and make it seem
that God is so far above us that we may not be able to approach
Him easily. How do you handle this apparent dilemma?
How do you approach our Lord?
“God mounts his throne amid shouts of joy.”
ReplyDeleteOur psalmist inspires us to clap our hands and shout to God with cries of gladness.
Why ? Our Lord is risen, taken up to heaven and seated on his holy throne in Heaven. He promises us to send the Holy Spirit, who leads us to the truth, way and life, to remain within us after his Ascension.
And also lately I came to realize why Jesus said He would not leave us orphans, "I shall be with you at all times.” He will send us his Spirit. What a comfort ! What does it mean ? “He will not leave me alone.“
His spirit reminded me of the thought that He will fill my heart through his Holy Spirit and He will give me the power to repent and so lift me up from the fall and renew my faith in Him. His self-giving, divine love encourages me to be able to share the good news, his words, and his love to people around me by being nice to them, and it motivates me to do good acts of charity towards people who are in need.
At least I try to pass on God’s caring love to my grandkids, about why Jesus sent his Spirit to remain within us. Even if He left me physically, but still His spirit lives within me in order to remind me of his saving power of love and promise towards sinful human beings until the end of time. This is how we could share in his divinity.
How grateful I am ! For He sent us the Holy Spirit, the spirit of truth. He will guide us to all truth. He is our Comforter, Counselor. I was walking along by myself one night when I heard that small voice whispering that I will not leave you out of my sight. He comforts me saying I am living within you.
For a time I was out of touch with Him. He seemed to be in the distance. I desperately wanted to feel his presence in my life again. I cried out to him. He says that’s why I sent you the Holy Spirit as I have promised you. He will set you free. I have come to recognize his saving grace and love which is
empowered by the Holy Spirit.
I thank and praise God and Jesus who sent us the Holy Spirit. The gift of the Holy Spirit is working on me and is making me become a better Christian.
Yes, we need the Holy Spirit to spread the good news around the World and in order to take a stand against sin and evil for the sake of people’s conversion and discernment of spirits. Without any help from Him I will be lost. Thanks be to God and Jesus in union with the Holy Spirit as one. I sing praise to Him our King!
Verse 8 of this powerful Psalm says, “God reigns over the nations; God sits on his holy throne.“ Indeed, the language paints the picture of an almighty Father who is to be feared and revered. Not one of us would be worthy to approach Him, with our own strength and abilities.
ReplyDeleteThe Apostles were with Jesus for three years of instruction, preaching, and miracles... and yet, even they were confused when the resurrected Jesus was with them. Just before His Ascension, they still ask if Jesus is finally going to overthrow the Romans and restore Israel to its former glory. Jesus does not rebuke them (and nor
should we).
Instead, He promises the Holy Spirit to come upon them — to counsel, offer wisdom, discernment, to be a teacher, the Paraclete. In our helplessness without the physical Jesus — who was bound by a physical body and could only be at one place at a time, He sends Himself in Spirit form to be with all people everywhere, all of the time.
Such tenderness! Such perfect design! From the beginning, God has known all of our shortcomings and provided His mercy. Romans 5:8 says, “But God demonstrates His own love for us in this: "While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.”
His detailed care for us allows us to approach the throne boldly and with the confidence of a child approaching his or her “Daddy” or “Abba Father.” We need to recognize how loved we are and praise Him forever for the gift of eternal life. God is pure love and desires an intimate relationship with each of us.
As the psalmist says, “Clap your hands, shout to God with cries of gladness, sing praise to God!” I have so many things to sing praise to God about. My life is truly blessed and especially during this time of the Coronavirus pandemic I see my blessings even more. There are so many people suffering whether it is being sick or losing their job. We have been very fortunate that our family has remained healthy and my husband still has his job and is able to work from home without any problems.
ReplyDeleteMy husband and I continue to pray every day and Thank God for all our blessings. The Holy Spirit has come upon my family guiding our twin sons who have recently graduated from college. At first we were not sure how and if they would be able to get jobs in the current economic situation. We prayed every day and continue to pray that the Holy Spirit guide our children in their next stage of life. Although they could not have a graduation ceremony, we are very grateful that they were able to find jobs during these tough times. We truly believe Jesus has a plan for us – we can feel his power and presence within us.