Good-byes

“You will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth." After he said this, he was taken up before their very eyes, and a cloud hid him from their sight.

They were looking intently up into the sky as he was going, when suddenly two men dressed in white stood beside them.  "Men of Galilee," they said, "why do you stand here looking into the sky? This same Jesus, who has been taken from you into heaven, will come back in the same way you have seen him go into heaven."

Then they returned to Jerusalem from the hill called the Mount of Olives, a Sabbath day's walk from the city.  When they arrived, they went upstairs to the room where they were staying. Those present were Peter, John, James and Andrew; Philip and Thomas, Bartholomew and Matthew; James son of Alphaeus and Simon the Zealot, and Judas son of James.  They all joined together constantly in prayer, along with the women and Mary the mother of Jesus, and with his brothers (Acts 1:8-14).

America is a country that was built on ‘good-byes’. 

Back in the early days of our country, a trip across the Atlantic Ocean took months and was very expensive.  Unless you were a professional sailor, traveling to America was probably a one-way trip.  If a relative got on a ship heading to the 13 colonies, most European families never expected to see them again.

By the 1800s, transatlantic travel was common, although by no means cheap.  Still, many people in Europe said goodbye to family and friends and made a one-way trip to the United States.  People came here from England because they needed jobs.  People came here from Germany because the farm economy had collapsed.  People came here from Ireland because a potato blight had reduced the country to starvation.  Thousands upon thousands of people tearfully said good-bye to friends and family as they boarded ships in search of a new and better life.

The good-byes have continued right up through today.  During the Great Depression and the Dust Bowl of the 1930s, countless families lost their homes and had to move cross country in search of work.  Parents and lovers said goodbye as our youth shipped out to fight against Nazi Germany and Imperialist Japan, against North Korea and North Vietnam, against Afghanistan and Iraq.  Once the Interstate highway system was established in the 1950s, family members began to move hundreds if not thousands of miles away from each other, looking for the best colleges, jobs, and places to live.  These days, half of all married couples file for divorce, resulting in children who are constantly waving farewell to someone.  Saying good-bye has become a part of the American lifestyle.

It’s tough to say good-bye.  How many tears have been shed at airports, train stations, bus terminals, or the gangway of a ship?  How many times have you clutched someone in a final desperate hug, before they got into a car or van and pulled out of the driveway?  How many times have you waved to someone, wondering how long it might be before you see them again?

Long distance relationships are hard.  Sure, it is easy to keep in touch using email, cell phones and text messaging.  But communicating electronically can never take the place of walking on the beach hand in hand, or sitting on the porch together and watching a sunset.  There is no substitute for being with another person—smelling their hair, feeling the calluses on their hands, working side by side in the garden or around the house.  Even with modern communication, being apart is hard.  Because of that, it’s never easy to say good-bye.

The hardest farewells happen when no further communication is possible or likely.  Funerals are like that; although we know that we will meet again at Jesus’ side in heaven, it’s painful to know that it will be years, maybe even decades, before we’ll be able to speak again.  It can also happen when someone moves away.  Although they claim that they will keep in touch, you know how busy life can get.  You say good-bye, fearing that you will never hear from them again. 

There’s an old saying that goes, ‘absence makes the heart grow fonder.’  The more time that passes, the more eagerly we look forward to a reunion.  But that is not always true.  How many soldiers have come home from deployment, only to find that their lover has taken up with somebody else while they were gone?  How many friends from high school or college have you lost touch with since graduation?  The sad truth of the matter is that time apart can weaken our relationships.

Jesus has ascended into heaven.  Our Lord has gone to a place where we cannot see Him, touch Him or hear Him.  And it’s hard to stay in contact.  You know how many dead spots there are, where your cell phone doesn’t get a signal?  Our entire world is like that—because of sin, we have no reception, no way to call heaven and speak to our Savior.  Sin has severed every link between God’s home and ours—there’s no mail delivery, no Internet connection, no interstate highway. 

So how do you keep a relationship alive and healthy when communication is limited?  You do what our ancestors did.  150 years ago, there were no communication satellites, no transatlantic phone cables.  Even letters that were sent between Europe and America took several months to be delivered, if they got delivered at all.  So when people did receive letters, they treasured them.  They would keep each and every one, reading them over and over again until they almost had them memorized.  Memories slowly fade, but letters can speak to us clearly across the years. 

Our Lord has sent us letters.  From time to time, God has caused His words to be written down and preserved so that our relationship with Him can remain strong.   Those letters are collected between the covers of your Bible.  For thousands of years, Christians like you have been reading these letters over and over again, treasuring God’s words and committing them to memory.  They give us a look into the mind of God.  They tell us what His priorities are, along with His plans for the future.  They tell us what angers Him and what makes Him feel disappointed.  They speak of His love for us and his commitment to our welfare.  They tell us of many people who have been important to Him, and they warn us of the danger that His enemies represent.  God’s letters reveal His heart to us, and stir our hearts to love Him in return.

Of course, we know that Jesus is still with us—it’s just that we can’t converse with Him face to face like the disciples did.  But Jesus is present with us when we worship—He said, where two or three gather in my name, I am there with them (Matthew 18:20).  Our Lord touches each of us personally through the bread and wine of Holy Communion. While they were eating, Jesus took bread, gave thanks and broke it, and gave it to his disciples, saying, "Take and eat; this is my body." Then he took the cup, gave thanks and offered it to them, saying, "Drink from it, all of you.  This is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins” (Matthew 26:26-28). King David understood that God is with us everywhere; in Psalm 139 he wrote, O LORD…You know when I sit down or stand up…You see me when I travel and when I rest at home. You know everything I do…You go before me and follow me…I can never get away from your presence! If I go up to heaven, you are there; if I go down to the grave, you are there. If I ride the wings of the morning, if I dwell by the farthest oceans, even there your hand will guide me, and your strength will support me.

We hear our Lord speak whenever we read His letters, and He always listens when we open our hearts to Him in prayer.  Through the prophet Jeremiah (chapter 29), God gives this promise: call upon me, and come and pray to me, and I will listen to you. And there is no problem with time lag; in Isaiah chapter 65 our Lord says, Before they call I will answer; while they are still speaking I will hear.  It may not be as reassuring as talking with someone on the phone, but God does speak to us and listens when we pray.

Although Jesus has gone where we cannot see Him, He fills our lives with evidence of His love.  Have you ever been surprised by a little gift from a secret pal?  Christ fills our lives with such gifts—it’s just that much of the time we don’t notice them.  A puff of breeze carrying the scent of flowers when you’re hot and sweaty from cutting the grass.  A card or email that lifts your spirits on a day when you were feeling sorry for yourself.  Miraculously staying upright when your feet slip on a patch of ice.  The unexpected smile of a stranger.  Finding money in your wallet that you didn’t think you had.  In all sorts of little ways, Christ shows you His love and care.  Although He is in heaven, Jesus touches your life every single day.

Jesus ascended into heaven because He has important work to do there.  From heaven, Jesus sends us the gift of the Holy Spirit, as we read in Acts chapter 2: Exalted to the right hand of God, he has received from the Father the promised Holy Spirit and has poured out what you now see and hear.  Jesus has been given authority over all creation, so that He can protect and care for those who follow Him: God placed all things under his feet and appointed him to be head over everything for the sake of the church (Ephesians 1:22).  While He was on earth, access to Jesus was limited by the crowds who gathered around Him; now that He’s in heaven, everyone has free and easy access to Christ through prayer. 

Jesus is busy in heaven—busy because of our sins.  Every day we anger God by ignoring His laws and acting as if no one else matters.  Our behavior is worthy of death and hell.  But Jesus suffered God’s anger in our place so that we could be spared His awful punishment.  Jesus rose from the dead and returned to heaven, where He represents us every time we cry out for mercy.  Job says (chapter 16), Even now my witness is in heaven; my advocate is on high. My intercessor is my friend as my eyes pour out tears to God; on behalf of a man he pleads with God as a man pleads for his friend.  In Romans 8:34 Paul writes, Christ Jesus, who died--more than that, who was raised to life--is at the right hand of God and is also interceding for us.  And in 1 John chapter two the apostle tells us, My dear children, I write this to you so that you will not sin. But if anybody does sin, we have one who speaks to the Father in our defense--Jesus Christ, the Righteous One.  He is the atoning sacrifice for our sins, and not only for ours but also for the sins of the whole world.  Jesus speaks in our defense because He loves us—loves us so much that He was willing to die rather than see any of us condemned.  Because of His efforts, heaven is open to us.  Jesus said, There are many rooms in my Father's home. If this were not so, would I have told you that I am going to prepare a place for you?  When everything is ready, I will come and get you, so that you will always be with me (John 14:2-3). 

Jesus went into heaven, but He is coming back.  When the disciples said good-bye, He rose into the sky until clouds hid Him from their sight.  But Jesus will return as He left—the clouds will part and reveal His majesty.  Jesus said, At that time men will see the Son of Man coming in clouds with great power and glory.  And he will send his angels and gather his elect from the four winds, from the ends of the earth to the ends of the heavens (Mark 13:26-27).  Paul adds, After that, we who are still alive and are left will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And so we will be with the Lord forever (1 Thessalonians 4:17).

Remember how great it feels when distant loved ones come home for a holiday, a family reunion, a wedding or an anniversary?  Remember how the whole community rejoices when a military unit returns home at the end of a long deployment?  These moments can make people break down with tears of joy—but those tears also carry a bit of sadness, knowing that the reunion cannot last indefinitely.  But when Jesus returns, it will be different.  We won’t have to say good-bye ever again—not to Jesus, and not to each other.  When Jesus comes back, our joy will be complete.  He will lead us to a new home, one better than any immigrant could ever hope for.  There will be no more good-bye hugs, no more tears, no more looking in the mailbox for a letter or gazing at the horizon wondering how they’re doing.  Christ will make us one happy family, living in a perfect homeland, where no one will ever have to leave.