Acts 1:6-14; Psalm 68; 1 Peter 4:12-14,5:6-11; John 17:1-11

O Lord, we pray, speak in this place, in the calming of our minds and in the longing of our hearts, by the words of my lips and in the thoughts that we form. Speak, O Lord, for your servants listen. Amen. Last words are important words... In a court of law deathbed statements, even though they are unsworn and the person no longer present to validate them, are admissible as evidence. And in the arena of our lives what we last said to someone before they leave us, and in turn what they may have said to us, are very often the occasion of much joy and encouragement - and sometimes, unfortunately, of much regret and remorse. We normally take very seriously the last words that our loved ones have uttered to us; - we turn those words over in our minds, - we consider them carefully - we store them up in our hearts and ponder them - much as Mary stored up the words of the angel and of the shepherds and of the magi in her heart after her encounters with them. If the last words of a loved one to us are uttered in the form of a declaration, if they are uttered with any seriousness - in the knowledge that soon time and space will separate us, if they ask of us anything, we are inclined to do everything in our power to both remember those words and to do that which was asked of us. Last words are important words. Knowing that - today I want to consider with you the last words of Jesus. If you ask most people what the last words of Jesus were, chances are they might tell you that his last words were: "Father, forgive them, they know not what they do" - or perhaps - "Father, into thy hands I commend my Spirit". When most people think of the last words that Jesus spoke here on earth we tend to think of those words that he spoke upon the cross - those words he spoke just before his death - and not of the words that he spoke to his disciples, and to all of the church, after his resurrection, on the day that he ascended into heaven. The last words that Jesus uttered while still on earth in physical form while still walking about in his resurrection body were these: "It is not for you to know the times or dates the Father has set by his own authority. But you shall 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." You shall receive power, you shall be my witnesses... The story is told of a man who was called to the witness stand in a local court case. The lawyer was questioning the man about the events surrounding the crime... What time was it? Who were you with? Where were you going? The questions went on and on and finally the lawyer asked... "did you see the accused enter the store...?" "No". "Did you see a man with a gun enter the store... " "No." Becoming exasperated the lawyer shouted, "Well, please tell us what you did see..." "Nothing." "Nothing?" shouted the lawyer. "No. Nothing." said the man. "When I saw the man with the gun, I was afraid and I put my hands over my eyes..." In a court of law a witness is one who has seen the event in question and can tell the story. The court is not usually interested in the character or personal attributes of a witness. All the court wants to know is what the witness has seen and heard. We use the word witness in a two-fold sense. A witness both witnesses an event and then, when that witness tells someone about the event, he or she witnesses to others about the event. "You shall be my witnesses, in Jerusalem, and in Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth." "You shall be my witnesses, in Jerusalem [right at the centre], and in Judea [out among the family in the hinterland], and Samaria [the land of our distant cousins], and to the ends of the earth." The Christian Gospels themselves are early Christian preachers' attempts to witness to what they have seen and heard. The Gospel, as a literary form, was unknown before Mark invented it. And as gospels, as attempts to witness to the person and life of Jesus Christ, they are not so much history, poetry, or fact - as they are stories. In the Gospel, we aren't just getting information and data about Jesus - we are hearing a story about Jesus and how his life touched the lives of the people around him. And as with any good story we find we are drawn into it, just by listening. Our lives become caught up in his life and his in ours... "You shall be my witnesses, in Jerusalem, and in Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth." Not... you may be... or you might be... "you shall be" "Look, I really like you, really like you. You make me feel feelings that few women have made me feel. Let's stop by my apartment," he said. "No, I really don't think we're ready for that. After all, we just met. We've got to spend a lot more time together before getting that close," she said. "Is there anything wrong? Have I said something wrong?" he asked. No, its just that I am not going to your apartment," she said. "Why?" "Well..." she said, without really thinking, "well, because I'm a Methodist." "What's that?" he asked. "Well, a Methodist is a kind of Christian," she said. "And what's that?" he asked. "A Christian? Well, its somebody who believes that some things are right and some things are wrong, that God has plans for each of us and we ought not violate God's plans," she said. And he, having never had anyone lately say "No", in a society in which everyone is encouraged to say "Yes"; having never met anyone with such self-possession and presence of mind; asked if he could go with her to the Methodist place called "church" sometime. And he did. Witnessing - telling others of our faith in God, need not be loud and boisterous to the point where it threatens and offends others... in fact, this is not witnessing at all - but proselytization... Witnessing is most often done through loving care and personal story telling, through the kind of thing that you do all the time... - A phone call when a friend loses a loved one... - a cup of coffee with a neighbour who is going through a difficult time... - a visit with a relative who is in a nursing home or hospital... And in the course of the visit, over that cup of coffee, you express your concern, you offer your prayers...you share the hope that you have found in God... As believers in Christ - as people baptized by water and by the Spirit we have the power, a power given to us by God above, to make a difference out there: to bring people to the knowledge and love of God through what we say and do in their presence, through the story we have to share - in love. "It is not for you to know the times or dates the Father has set by his own authority. But you shall 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 Jesus had said this, he was taken up before there very eyes, and cloud hid them 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." Why do you stand looking into the sky? That same question might just as well be put to us...Why do we stand looking up to the heavens...Why do we consider so much those things over which we have no control - the times and seasons of Christ's return, the future of the world, the economic crisis? Why do we spend so much time among those who are already a part of the family of God when there are many to need to hear the story of God's love for the world when so many need the hope and the healing that we have found in Christ, when so many need not only a kind deed, but what has been revealed to us through Jesus Christ. Paul Harvey, the well known radio broadcaster, once said, "Too many Christians are no longer fishers of men but keepers of the aquarium." I take that to mean that we are more concerned about the Church than we are about touching the lives of other people, more concerned about preserving our "religion" than we are about helping people discover the source of wholeness, the fountain of living water that wells up to eternal life. "You shall 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." Again I say, as believers in Christ, as people baptized by water and by the Spirit, we have the power - a power given to us by God above - to make a difference out there - to bring people to the knowledge and love of God through what we say and do in their presence. One final story, An artist, seeking to depict on canvas the meaning of evangelism, painted a storm at sea. Black clouds filled the sky. Illuminated by a flash of lightning, a little boat could be seen disintegrating under the pounding of the ocean. People were struggling in the swirling waters, their anguished faces crying out for help. The only glimmer of hope appeared in the foreground of the painting, where a large rock protruded out of the water. There, clutching desperately with both hands, was one lone seaman. It was a moving scene. Looking at the painting, one could see in the tempest a symbol of humankind's hopeless condition. And true to the Gospel, the only hope of salvation was "the Rock of Ages", a shelter in the time of storm. But as the artist reflected upon his work, he realized that the painting did not accurately portray his subject. So he discarded the canvas, and painted another. It was very similar to the first: the black clouds, the flashing lightning, the angry waters, the little boat crushed by the pounding waves, and the crew vainly struggling in the water. In the foreground the seaman was clutching the large rock for salvation. But the artist made one change: the survivor was holding on with only one hand, and with the other hand he was reaching down to pull up a drowning friend. That is the New Testament picture of witnessing - that hand reaching down to rescue the perishing. Until that hand is extended, there is no Gospel - and there is no hope for the world. Let us ponder seriously the last words of Christ, let us store them up in our hearts and let us go forth as witnesses to the faith - let us go forth and tell our story so that others might believe. Blessed be God, day by day, Amen