Calling off the Ascension and Squashing these Fishermen: The Patience of Jesus

Last week I was preparing a study in Acts chapter 1 with my small group leaders and I was really struck by a characteristic of Jesus that's always good for me to remember: how patient he is with us.

In Acts 1, Luke tells us that Jesus spends his days post-resurrection talking about the Kingdom of God. As he is sharing his final moments with his disciples just before his ascension into heaven, they ask him a rather different question: "Are you now going to restore the Kingdom of Israel?"

Okay, so if I'm Jesus here, I'm about ready to squash these little fishermen and start over again. Call of the ascension. Bring in the understudies! Let's get some new disciples in to replace these guys.

They still don't get it: the kingdom of God is not equivalent to the Kingdom of Israel--at least, not the way that these guys are thinking about it. And Jesus is literally moments away from leaving them for good.

But Jesus doesn't call off the ascension. He gently redirects them: "It's not for you to know the times or dates that the Father has set by his own authority. But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you."

Moments later, he's gone.

Jesus, in his last moments, is generous and patient with his disciples. He trusts that the Holy Spirit will make things clear to them, that they will get it in time. He is not angry with them here, he's never anxious.

Jesus trusts that the Father and the Spirit will help these guys sort out the difference between God's kingdom and Israel's kingdom eventually.

It should give us great confidence that Jesus is this way with his disciples. It is how he is with us. You and I also have a hard time differentiating between God's kingdom and our own picture of what the future "should" look like. We would like to have our own kingdoms come, rather than his.

And Jesus, in his infinite patience and wisdom, pursues us, invites us to repent. And he does so gently, persistently, doggedly. He will not quit on us. And there are times when his discipline feels painful. But his word to us is always yes, always love, always goodness and purpose and truth and grace and joy. Always, always, always.

That's not only good news for each of us. It's also instructive for how we need to be towards one another. We don't squash each other. We re-direct, speak truth, over time, and trust that the Spirit is also at work.

Easier said than done sometimes. It's harder for us to give one another grace than it is for Jesus to do so. For some of us, it's much harder to give OURSELVES grace than it is for Jesus to do so. For some of you, that's the toughest trick of all.