It’s easy to forget what Jesus is doing. Don’t get me wrong, as a kid, stories were told of what Jesus had done (his life, death, and resurrection) and yet, the story would get fuzzy once Jesus vanished into the clouds. We read in the scriptures that during the forty days between his resurrection and ascension, Jesus was seen by numerous people, shared meals with others, and had intimate discussions concerning the Kingdom of God. It was during those forty days that Jesus also gave his disciples a command to wait for the Holy Spirit to come. The disciples were to prayerfully and expectantly prepare for God the Spirit.

Picture this: Jesus has just made a mockery of the powers and principalities through his resurrection. For the past forty days he’s been gathering crowds while teaching about the Kingdom of God which has the disciples’ hope for the restoration of Israel at an all-time high. Then something unexpected happens. While pondering questions of their movement’s next steps, the disciples witness the astonishing ascension of Jesus. Jesus leaves and the disciples find themselves sitting in an upper room.

Just weeks earlier, the disciples had already gone through a period of waiting. During Jesus’ arrest and crucifixion the disciples had scattered and eventually regrouped in another room—though this room was different. The disciple were hiding. They hid themselves behind locked doors out of fear of the Jewish Leaders.

The disciples’ hiding after Jesus’ death stands in stark contrast to the image of their prayerful and expectant preparing in the upper room. But even in that state God would show up by entering into the disciples’ locked room and beckon them toward the upper room.

Jesus’ ascension and his ongoing role are connected. Traditionally, the ascension is viewed as Jesus’ enthronement to the right hand of God in which he assumed his role as King over his people and creation. However, I think it is safe to say that the disciples did not have these things in mind when Jesus left. In fact, two angels finally came and had to shake them out of their cloud fixated trance. Just when things were supposed to get interesting, the disciples find themselves waiting in the upper room. They were waiting for God to do something and, strangely enough, I find that I can relate. Then again, it could just be a lot of transference.

Much of my Christian life has felt like ‘waiting.’ There have been long periods of waiting for something to happen, for God to move, and it can start to give you cabin fever. As the fever sets in, the panicking begins to happen. That is when I begin to do the upper room equivalent of flinging windows open in hopes of catching some fresh air and, occasionally, use a “holy language” to describe my discontentment. Sometimes my waiting is more akin to the disciple hiding in fear after the death of Jesus then the prayerful preparing for God the Spirit in the upper room. It is in these moments of frustration, fear, and failure that Jesus as King comes as a fresh reminder.

The Gospels make it clear that the Kingdom of God is important. Jesus' ministry is filled with 'Kingdom' language and imagery. In fact, the term basileia means “kingdom, reign, rule, domain” and is used over 126 times in the four gospels. Yet, our lives often do not reflect that priority. We fill our minds, homes, workplaces, bank accounts, and time with clutter then leave little room for God to work. Like the disciples hiding behind locked doors we wait for God to clear our lives rather than expectantly preparing and praying for his “thy Kingdom Come.”. We invite you to join for our Uncluttered series as we ask, “What would it look like to expectantly unclutter our lives for the Kingdom?”

Pastor Corey