The Great Commission

Then the eleven disciples went away into Galilee, to the mountain which Jesus had appointed for them. When they saw Him, they worshiped Him; but some doubted. And Jesus came and spoke to them, saying, "All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth. Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you, and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age." Amen.

- Matthew 28:16-20

Today is Ascension Day, and it is celebrated across denominations as Easter also fell on the same day this year - most will celebrate this Sunday. It is the fortieth day after Easter, ten days before Pentecost. Our reading reflects today's meaning and celebration. This is the last appearance that Christ made in physical form to his disciples. Often called "The Great Commission," Jesus' teaching here includes his final words to his apostles and disciples, and by extension, to the Church of the future.

Then the eleven disciples went away into Galilee, to the mountain which Jesus had appointed for them. When they saw Him, they worshiped Him; but some doubted. And Jesus came and spoke to them, saying, "All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth." This final meeting place is on a mountaintop, one which Jesus has appointed to the eleven, in Galilee. We must recall another occasion on which Jesus called his closest apostles to come with him to the mountaintop: the Transfiguration. There, they saw him glorified. My study bible has a note for this text: "This is the terminology of exaltation and glorification. It manifests the power of his Resurrection, and the authority to bring human beings back to life." We also recall other times "on the mountaintop" - Jesus' testing and battle with Satan during his forty days in the wilderness, and the times he would go off by himself to pray and commune with the Father. It is also reminiscent of Moses' meetings with God on the mountaintop. They are all of a type: Jesus has fought a battle, and now is declaring victory to his disciples, as he is about to ascend to heaven, to be with the Father.

"Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit..." My study bible notes, "If we observe this context for the Lord's command to make disciples of all the nations and to baptize them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, we see that making disciples cannot be done in the strength of man, but only in the power of God. The reality of the Resurrection refers not only to its historicity, apostolic witness, and necessity for faith, but also to its power in our Christian life and mission. The resurrected Son of God, living in us and energizing us, makes possible the salvation of all." Jesus' declaration here of his power and authority allows him to extend "the Great Commission" to his disciples. They will be working in His Name - and he himself will be allied to Father and Spirit, One God. This is the power he has received, the place he will occupy, and he prepares his disciples for this reality before his Ascension from the mountaintop.

" '...teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you, and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.' Amen." My study bible notes, "By saying he is with you always, Jesus means his Resurrection is neither of the past, nor of the future. It is always present in our lives through the Holy Spirit. We know him directly, here and now, in the present, as our Savior and our Friend. To the end of the age does not by any means imply that we are to be separated from him after that great consummation. He is with us now, and ever, and unto the ages of ages. Amen." Thus ends the gospel of Matthew, with these words. (Tomorrow we shall continue with the readings at the place we ended on Saturday, The Narrow Gate.) But for today's feast, Ascension Day, we must consider the meaning of these words on the mountaintop. Christ is to ascend from here into heaven, taking his place at the right hand of the Father, one God with the Holy Spirit. And what we are to understand by these words (and as the note in my study bible teaches us) is that this is to be not only an eternal kingdom - without time - but also an omnipresent reality - with us always. This is our preparation for Pentecost, the bestowal of the Spirit. It is the last appearance Jesus makes of a limited physical nature, in a body. "The Great Commission" is the inauguration of the future Church, with its priest ascending to heaven: he is both the acceptable sacrifice and the high priest. He takes our nature with him and ascends to his place in heaven, so that his nature may also be bestowed upon us. This picture, therefore, is a picture of all of the unification necessary, cosmic and intimate, for salvation - for the power that is given to us to become like him, to "be ye perfect, even as my Father in heaven is perfect."

In a sense, we are to understand that this figure of the day of Ascension is the picture of our own restoration to God. Jesus has come incarnate into the world to take on Adam's nature and to experience his life, man who has "fallen" - who is in a state of separation from God. And Jesus' Ascension is intended to take that nature and return it to its proper place, restored into relationship with the Father, in the kingdom of heaven. This relationship - this experience of Ascension - prepares the disciples, and us by extension, for Jesus' return in the form of the Holy Spirit, bestowed at Pentecost, which is always with us. Even in our most intimate moments, at the worst times of our lives, isolated and alone, he is omnipresent, He is always with us. Tradition holds that he descended to hell - to the abode of those who had passed - and raised Adam with him. So Christ is there even for "those in the tombs." We must reflect on Jesus' powerful images of his life that he has left us in the gospels, when he has gone to the mountaintop to pray. We may always meet him there, at the mountain, in our life of prayer. We have been following the lectionary through its readings as we departed from the Sermon on the Mount readings (see readings and commentary from Monday, April 26th through Saturday, May 8th, 2010 -- beginning with The Beatitudes and ending with The Narrow Gate), and read about the parable of the sower and Jesus' use of parables, and yesterday's reading in which Jesus bested the Pharisees in their understanding of the nature of the Christ himself, asking, "Whose Son is He?" Throughout the readings, at various places in Matthew's gospel, we return to relationship, to this place of prayer to our Father who is in secret (see Your Father who is in the secret place). Over and over again, we return to the theme of relationship, and as our understanding grows, we are reminded again and again of the need for spiritual eyes and ears that are open to this mystery, this relationship we cultivate in the secret place.

Jesus' bestowal of the Spirit will cement this relationship as our most intimate and personal; it exists within us. With its strength, we can "move mountains" with our faith - we can find the capacity to do things, to understand things, to have insights and gifts we otherwise could not call upon, and would live without. But first there is the Ascension. This prepares us for Pentecost. It is symbolic of the accomplishment of Jesus' Great Mission as incarnate Lord, his ascension into all power as he has proclaimed in today's reading - and at the same time he inaugurates our mission, the mission of the Church. What will we do with this mission he inaugurates here in what is called "The Great Commission?" How will you accept it? As we prepare to celebrate Pentecost, remember that we are always looking forward, our faces are set toward something that teaches us that there is more: more to live, to teach, to learn, to grow. Easter is often called "the eighth day" - and forty is a mystical number, a multiple of eight. Therefore we look to the kingdom among us, in the world. Look up to the mountaintop, and know that He is always with us, within us, waiting to work with you - for you to just open the door. This is the eternal reality we receive at Pentecost, to which He ascends in our feast day of Ascension today. It is for you. For me and for you.

"Here I am! I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in and eat with him, and he with me." Rev. 3:20