Near the end of World War II, Winston Churchill and Joseph Stalin were observing a procession of tank divisions. As they watched, they also discussed the prospects for post-war Europe. At one point Churchill made some comments about how he hoped the Pope would have a good influence in putting Europe back together. Stalin leaned over, gestured toward the procession in front of them, and cynically asked, "Really, how many divisions has the Pope got?"1
Stalin, like much of our world, could only conceive of power in one way: brute force. The only power which most people recognize is the one which comes from the barrel of a gun. Near the beginning of the film Grand Canyon a young street tough from south-central Los Angeles is roughing up a motorist whose car had stalled. When a tow truck driver tries to bargain with the thug, the young tough asks him, "Are you bargaining with me because you respect me or because I've got a gun?" The tow truck driver answers truthfully, "Hey, you don't have the gun, we aren't talkin'." "Heh," the kid replies, "That's what I thought. That's why I always carry the gun!"
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In a world where weapons mean power, is it any wonder that Jesus left many people cold? After all, he started out in a feedbunk, ended up on a cross, and in between attracted only a modest following of society's losers. On Ascension Day, we celebrate Jesus' ascension -- the crowning moment of His work. But even this was essentially a hidden act. The disciples saw it, but most people did not. Even people living near the Mount of Olives had no clue that something cosmic had just occurred in their neighborhood. From start to finish Jesus did not dazzle this world with power as the world reckons power.
Yet, as with so much else in Jesus' life, so too with the ascension: there is more here than meets the eye. In fact, speaking of eyes, if you see the ascension and understand it correctly, it will affect the way you look at everything else -- because, the ascension is how we see things.2 It is the lens through which we view our work, our families, our friends, our leisure, our worship. The ascension affects them all. To give an example of what I mean, let's go back to ancient Israel and to the words of the psalmist who composed the poem now known as
Psalm 47.
Psalm 47 is an "enthronement song" which celebrates the cosmic Kingship of God. Throughout the book of Psalms you can find numerous songs which sing out the belief that Yahweh is the universal King who has made Jerusalem (or "Mount Zion") His chosen dwelling place on earth.
Psalm 47 was probably a song which the people of Israel sang as they went to worship. Today we sing songs only after we get to church, but in early Israel people on the way to worship sang songs.