Jesus chose a group of hard-working ordinary men as his disciples. They were Jews, uneducated commoners, simple men of faith who gave up everything to be followers of Christ; and life for them, with Jesus, could never be described as dull!

They have seen miracles, listened to his preaching, teaching and parables. witnessed his triumphant entrance into Jerusalem, his arrest and trial followed by his Crucifixion, his resurrection and they have spent 40 days hearing Jesus speak of the kingdom, preparing them for the time when he will not be with them. Quite a rollercoaster ride!

Anyone who has travelled with children will know very well, the words “Are we there yet?” sometimes uttered before you’ve hardly left the house!! And our Acts reading begins like that: the apostles kept asking Jesus, “Lord, has the time come for you to free Israel and restore our kingdom? Just as they have got used to having him around again, it is time for him to return to His Father.  His work on earth is complete.  The time has come for them to carry on the work that He had started.
He assures them that they will not be alone, he will send the Holy Spirit to guide them; but they must wait – it will come soon.
Waiting is so often a difficult thing to do, especially when you don’t know how long that waiting will be.
They are to be his witnesses; witnesses to what?
They are still locked into the idea of God somehow re-establishing the glory days of King David and Jesus’ reply doesn’t give them the clarity they want.  It’s not for them to know God’s timing, they have to wait. And the waiting is for baptism by the Holy Spirit – another thing they don’t understand.
All in all, they are left with a lot of questions as Jesus is taken from their sight. Their puzzlement isn’t helped by the encounter, moments later with two angels, who tell them to stop looking for their friend.
The disciples have one command: you will be my witnesses. What were they witnessing to if it wasn’t the restoration of Israel? What were they going to say when asked where Jesus had disappeared to? Who would believe them anyway?
We have the benefit of hindsight, the overview, the experience of faith lived through many generations.
Ten days later the Holy Spirit came at Pentecost and the disciples were transformed.
Christ’s ascension is a reminder of the Kingdom of God within our hearts, and of the ever-present Spirit of God, watching over and protecting us as we spread the light of Jesus’ truth throughout the world. Jesus completed his earthly mission of bringing salvation to all people and was physically lifted up from this world into heaven. The meaning and the fullness of Christ’s resurrection is given in the Ascension.  Having completed his mission in this world as the saviour, he returned to the God in heaven and raised earth to heaven with him!