St. Aidan's Anglican Church, Kansas City - weekly talks

Fr. Michael articulates the life and ministry of Fr. D.O. Smart at Christ Church Anglican, Overland Park, KS

Fr. Michael articulates the life and ministry of Fr. D.O. Smart at Christ Church Anglican, Overland Park, KS

Today we celebrate the Feast of the Ascension. This feast I think may be one of the most underrated in the liturgical calendar and that's because the Ascension itself is arguably one of the most underrated of the mysteries in Jesus whole life. Why? Because it represents the climax of what we call the Paschal Mystery. We tend to think of the Paschal Mystery strictly in terms of Holy Week; that is to say his death and resurrection. However, His death and resurrection are not complete without his Ascension.

This understanding is woven into all of our Eucharistic Prayers:

“We celebrate the memorial of our redemption, O Father, in this sacrifice of praise and thanksgiving. Recalling his death, resurrection, and ascension, we offer you these gifts.”

In the Nicene Creed, we confess that “On the third day he rose again, in accordance with the Scriptures; he ascended into heaven and is seated at the right hand of the Father.”

He ascended into heaven … Who is he?

Today’s Gospel passage John 17 gives us glimpse of the mystery of Christ.

This human being, Jesus the Messiah, is fully-human, born within time and space. But in the mystery of his Incarnation, John tells us that in the beginning was the Word. Pulling from John’s Gospel, the creed tells us that he came down from heaven by the power of the Holy Spirit; he became incarnate from the Virgin Mary, and was made man … fully human and fully divine … two natures in one person.

Jesus is praying to his Abba, his Father. He is reflecting on his incarnation and completing his mission, the redemption of the whole cosmos, the entire created order: again the Creed … maker of heaven and earth, of all that is, seen and unseen (earth and heaven).

Today’s reading in Acts 1 let’s us know that Jesus will continue his ministry and fulfill his promise … I am always with you, to the very end of the age by the sending of the Holy Spirit.

The full plan of redemption involves not only Jesus’ death and resurrection … the climax is the Ascension. Why?

When we say that Jesus is Lord, we are speaking of the Ascension.

His ascension into heaven is speaking of his exaltation at the Father’s right hand. We’re speaking of another realm … not another place within time and space. We do not live in a two story universe … for he made all that is, seen and unseen. And in Jesus, he has united the seen and unseen … in his death, resurrection and ascension.

What does this mean?

What is the meaning of Christ’s Ascension into heaven? It expresses our belief that in Christ human nature, the humanity in which we all share, has entered into the inner life of God in a new and hitherto unheard of way. It means that man has found an everlasting place in God. Heaven is not a place beyond the stars, but something much greater, something that requires far more audacity to assert: Heaven means that man now has a place in God. The basis or this assertion is the interpenetration of humanity and divinity in the crucified and exalted man Jesus. Christ, the man who is in God and eternally one with God, is at the same time God’s abiding openness to all human beings.

Thus Jesus himself is what we call “heaven”; heaven is not a place but a person, the person of him in whom God and man are forever and inseparably one. And we go to heaven and enter into heaven to the extent that we go to Jesus Christ and enter into him. In this sense, “ascension into heaven” can be something that takes place in our everyday lives … For the disciples, the “ascension” was not what we usually misinterpret it as being: the temporary absence of Christ from the world. It meant rather his new, definitive, and irrevocable presence by participation in God’s royal power … God has a pace for man! … In God there is a place for us! … “Be consoled, flesh and blood, for in Christ you have taken possession of heaven and of God’s kingdom!” (Tertullian).

From the book Benedictus by Pope emeritus Benedict XVI

Today we celebrate the Feast of the Ascension. This feast I think may be one of the most underrated in the liturgical calendar and that's because the Ascension itself is arguably one of the most underrated of the mysteries in Jesus whole life. Why? Because it represents the climax of what we call the Paschal Mystery. We tend to think of the Paschal Mystery strictly in terms of Holy Week; that is to say his death and resurrection. However, His death and resurrection are not complete without his Ascension.

This understanding is woven into all of our Eucharistic Prayers:

“We celebrate the memorial of our redemption, O Father, in this sacrifice of praise and thanksgiving. Recalling his death, resurrection, and ascension, we offer you these gifts.”

In the Nicene Creed, we confess that “On the third day he rose again, in accordance with the Scriptures; he ascended into heaven and is seated at the right hand of the Father.”

He ascended into heaven … Who is he?

Today’s Gospel passage John 17 gives us glimpse of the mystery of Christ.

This human being, Jesus the Messiah, is fully-human, born within time and space. But in the mystery of his Incarnation, John tells us that in the beginning was the Word. Pulling from John’s Gospel, the creed tells us that he came down from heaven by the power of the Holy Spirit; he became incarnate from the Virgin Mary, and was made man … fully human and fully divine … two natures in one person.

Jesus is praying to his Abba, his Father. He is reflecting on his incarnation and completing his mission, the redemption of the whole cosmos, the entire created order: again the Creed … maker of heaven and earth, of all that is, seen and unseen (earth and heaven).

Today’s reading in Acts 1 let’s us know that Jesus will continue his ministry and fulfill his promise … I am always with you, to the very end of the age by the sending of the Holy Spirit.

The full plan of redemption involves not only Jesus’ death and resurrection … the climax is the Ascension. Why?

When we say that Jesus is Lord, we are speaking of the Ascension.

His ascension into heaven is speaking of his exaltation at the Father’s right hand. We’re speaking of another realm … not another place within time and space. We do not live in a two story universe … for he made all that is, seen and unseen. And in Jesus, he has united the seen and unseen … in his death, resurrection and ascension.

What does this mean?

What is the meaning of Christ’s Ascension into heaven? It expresses our belief that in Christ human nature, the humanity in which we all share, has entered into the inner life of God in a new and hitherto unheard of way. It means that man has found an everlasting place in God. Heaven is not a place beyond the stars, but something much greater, something that requires far more audacity to assert: Heaven means that man now has a place in God. The basis or this assertion is the interpenetration of humanity and divinity in the crucified and exalted man Jesus. Christ, the man who is in God and eternally one with God, is at the same time God’s abiding openness to all human beings.

Thus Jesus himself is what we call “heaven”; heaven is not a place but a person, the person of him in whom God and man are forever and inseparably one. And we go to heaven and enter into heaven to the extent that we go to Jesus Christ and enter into him. In this sense, “ascension into heaven” can be something that takes place in our everyday lives … For the disciples, the “ascension” was not what we usually misinterpret it as being: the temporary absence of Christ from the world. It meant rather his new, definitive, and irrevocable presence by participation in God’s royal power … God has a pace for man! … In God there is a place for us! … “Be consoled, flesh and blood, for in Christ you have taken possession of heaven and of God’s kingdom!” (Tertullian).

From the book Benedictus by Pope emeritus Benedict XVI

The Law of Love is discussed from the Gospel of John, chapter 15, verses 9-17. Aaron differentiates the many "loves" and points to God as a communion of love between the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. As this love is pouring into our hearts, we are able to let our cups run over to others.

The Law of Love is discussed from the Gospel of John, chapter 15, verses 9-17. Aaron differentiates the many "loves" and points to God as a communion of love between the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. As this love is pouring into our hearts, we are able to let our cups run over to others.

John 14:15-21

If you love me, you will obey what I command … (15-17)

First, he tells us that living a holy life, doing what he commands, is not law but love. Not any type of “love” … a love sourced not within ourselves … something we muster up, but sourced in the very nature of God himself.

He has already revealed that God’s very essence is love and that we are invited to share a love that is deep, interpenetrating and transforming.

We are invited to respond to a new kind of love that has been not only demonstrated (while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us), but has come to us in the essence of the indwelling Holy Spirit.

The Holy Spirit, the third person of the Trinity, is the steward who pours out the Love of the Father …

“And hope does not disappoint us, because God has poured out his love into our hearts by the Holy Spirit, whom he has given us.” Rom. 5:5

This pouring into our hearts … is a gift that must be nurtured as sacred.

We know how to take care of expensive wine … the great care we give to lay it down on its side in a rack slightly tipped towards the cork … and stored in a room with just the right temperature. Why? Because it will not remain fine wine if overly subjected to adverse conditions.

So it is with this inner life of God … this continual pouring into our hearts becomes an interactive dance that offers dialogue, response, rest, comfort, counsel.

And this fine wine is not meant to remain in the bottle! At some point, it will peak in complexity, flavor, bouquet, and become optimal for pouring and tasting. This is why the Holy Spirit is compared to both water and wine …

“Out of our inmost being shall flow rivers of living water.”

We must find time for this love communion, a slowing down of our busy selves to access indwelling love. Some moments of silence, solitude, reflection, reading devotionally, journaling … there are many ways to nurture the inner life of God. It all begins with slowing down to connect to the continuous flow of life, the Holy Spirit, who never disconnects from us.

Jesus ends the Sermon on the Mount with a metaphor of one who hears these words of his and puts them into practice … like one who built his house, his life, upon a Rock, a solid foundation. When adversity visits, catastrophes of varied kinds, the life remains solid.

But those who do not build their lives on the Rock, digging deep for Jesus to become their foundation, when adverse circumstances arise, the house, the person’s life is left unstable …

Therefore, Jesus says obedience to his commands is not sourced in one’s own will-power, but within the inner life of God, the indwelling of the Holy Spirit, the outpoured love of the Father.

Many live as orphans in their relationship with the Father.

“I will not leave you as orphans, bereft.” (18)

The Holy Spirit is the Spirit of Adoption … deep within our hearts there’s an eternal, divine voice crying “Abba, Father.” Galatians 4:6

We have come home to the Father’s house. We have been made sons and daughters through the Word made flesh, a sharing in the Son’s inheritance. Because I live, you also will live (19b)

Jesus describes our relationship in the Holy Trinity as interpenetration. (20)

“On that day you will realize that I am in my Father, and you are in me, and I am in you.” v.20

He circles back to the beginning … love for him will effect obedience to his commands … (the identical reality with his question to Peter, “Do you love me?”)

This precious inner life of God, receiving the pouring out of the Holy Spirit, receiving the unconditional love of the Father, causes one to life in a dependent union with God … Father, Son and Holy Spirit.

It is our marriage preparation … the bride is making herself ready for the marriage supper of the Lamb …

The love of Christ compels us, transforming us into his image from glory to glory.

John 14:15-21

If you love me, you will obey what I command … (15-17)

First, he tells us that living a holy life, doing what he commands, is not law but love. Not any type of “love” … a love sourced not within ourselves … something we muster up, but sourced in the very nature of God himself.

He has already revealed that God’s very essence is love and that we are invited to share a love that is deep, interpenetrating and transforming.

We are invited to respond to a new kind of love that has been not only demonstrated (while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us), but has come to us in the essence of the indwelling Holy Spirit.

The Holy Spirit, the third person of the Trinity, is the steward who pours out the Love of the Father …

“And hope does not disappoint us, because God has poured out his love into our hearts by the Holy Spirit, whom he has given us.” Rom. 5:5

This pouring into our hearts … is a gift that must be nurtured as sacred.

We know how to take care of expensive wine … the great care we give to lay it down on its side in a rack slightly tipped towards the cork … and stored in a room with just the right temperature. Why? Because it will not remain fine wine if overly subjected to adverse conditions.

So it is with this inner life of God … this continual pouring into our hearts becomes an interactive dance that offers dialogue, response, rest, comfort, counsel.

And this fine wine is not meant to remain in the bottle! At some point, it will peak in complexity, flavor, bouquet, and become optimal for pouring and tasting. This is why the Holy Spirit is compared to both water and wine …

“Out of our inmost being shall flow rivers of living water.”

We must find time for this love communion, a slowing down of our busy selves to access indwelling love. Some moments of silence, solitude, reflection, reading devotionally, journaling … there are many ways to nurture the inner life of God. It all begins with slowing down to connect to the continuous flow of life, the Holy Spirit, who never disconnects from us.

Jesus ends the Sermon on the Mount with a metaphor of one who hears these words of his and puts them into practice … like one who built his house, his life, upon a Rock, a solid foundation. When adversity visits, catastrophes of varied kinds, the life remains solid.

But those who do not build their lives on the Rock, digging deep for Jesus to become their foundation, when adverse circumstances arise, the house, the person’s life is left unstable …

Therefore, Jesus says obedience to his commands is not sourced in one’s own will-power, but within the inner life of God, the indwelling of the Holy Spirit, the outpoured love of the Father.

Many live as orphans in their relationship with the Father.

“I will not leave you as orphans, bereft.” (18)

The Holy Spirit is the Spirit of Adoption … deep within our hearts there’s an eternal, divine voice crying “Abba, Father.” Galatians 4:6

We have come home to the Father’s house. We have been made sons and daughters through the Word made flesh, a sharing in the Son’s inheritance. Because I live, you also will live (19b)

Jesus describes our relationship in the Holy Trinity as interpenetration. (20)

“On that day you will realize that I am in my Father, and you are in me, and I am in you.” v.20

He circles back to the beginning … love for him will effect obedience to his commands … (the identical reality with his question to Peter, “Do you love me?”)

This precious inner life of God, receiving the pouring out of the Holy Spirit, receiving the unconditional love of the Father, causes one to life in a dependent union with God … Father, Son and Holy Spirit.

It is our marriage preparation … the bride is making herself ready for the marriage supper of the Lamb …

The love of Christ compels us, transforming us into his image from glory to glory.

The congregation of St. Aidan's and family of Fr. D.O. Smart share their memories of this amazing priest. He went home to be with the Lord Jesus at 12:45 a.m. on Saturday, April 25th, 2015. We grieve our loss and rejoice in heaven's gain! His blessed wife, Anne Hoy Smart, is pictured here during a trip to Wheaton, IL, our first Diocesan Assembly of the Anglican Diocese of the Upper Midwest. Fun times.

The congregation of St. Aidan's and family of Fr. D.O. Smart share their memories of this amazing priest. He went home to be with the Lord Jesus at 12:45 a.m. on Saturday, April 25th, 2015. We grieve our loss and rejoice in heaven's gain! His blessed wife, Anne Hoy Smart, is pictured here during a trip to Wheaton, IL, our first Diocesan Assembly of the Anglican Diocese of the Upper Midwest. Fun times.