Gazing into Heaven

 Reflection on Today’s Reading, 7th Sunday of Easter, May 29th, 2022

Texts: Acts 7:55-60; Psalm 97:1,2b,6,7c,9; Rev. 22:12-14.16-17.20; John17:20-26

Stephen expressed in his life what every Christian should do: we are to gaze into heaven. Unless we gaze into heaven, we cannot see Jesus. Our gazing into heaven is the function of the Ascension of Jesus. We cannot claim to believe in the Ascension of Jesus when our gaze is on the earth. If we believe that Jesus has ascended into heaven, we will gaze into heaven. Any man who takes his eyes off whom he is following should be sure of missing the road, going astray or getting stuck on the way. Jesus is our leader and our gaze should be on him if we are not to miss the road, going astray or getting stuck on the way. Since Jesus is in heaven, we are to gaze into heaven for Him. Hence, it is said of Stephen thus: “Stephen, full of the Holy Spirit, gazed into heaven and saw the glory of God, and Jesus standing at the right hand of God”. It was by gazing into heaven that he saw Jesus. We cannot see Jesus when we gaze into the earth.

We must also know that Stephen was able to gaze into heaven because he was full of the Holy Spirit. We need the Holy Spirit to be able to gaze into heaven and see Jesus. The Holy Spirit clears the vision of our inner eyes by leading us into the truth. Having known the truth, we will gaze into heaven for Jesus. The people of this world have blocked their ears from hearing the Holy Spirit and so they refuse to gaze into heaven. Today’s first reading affirms this when it says, “But they cried out with a loud voice and stopped their ears and rushed together upon him.” The world have rejected the Spirit of truth, they do not want to hear Him. They create so much noise to drown out the voice of the Holy Spirit. Apart from the noise on the outside, there are so much noise inside us that we can no longer hear the voice of the Holy Spirit. We can no longer meditate and reflect on sacred things because of so much noise around us and within us. We also stop our ear from hearing the Holy Spirit.

We see in Stephen that when we gaze into heaven, we become like Christ. This is clear in the attitude of Stephen towards his executioners. He prayed for them as Christ did for His executioners. He asked pardon for them. It is said, “And as they were stoning Stephen, he prayed, ‘Lord Jesus, receive my spirit.’ And he kneeled down and cried with a loud voice, ‘Lord, do not hold this sin against them’” We cannot be like Christ while we gaze into the earth. We become like Christ when we gaze into heaven. He who gazes into heaven receives Christ. Being like Christ, these words in today’s second reading are true about us: “Blessed are those who wash their robes, that they may have the right to the tree of life and that they may enter the city by the gates.”

What does it mean to gaze into heaven? It means our hope is in Him, we trust firmly in His promise. It means that we hope for the reward of our labour to come from Him; we no longer seek to get our reward here and now. This means we firmly believe in His words, as we are told in today’s second reading, “Behold, I am coming soon, my recompense, to repay every one for what he has done. I am the Alpha and the Omega, the first and the last, the begin and the end.” That He is the Alpha and Omega, the first and the last, the beginning and the end, tells us that He has the full knowledge of everything, our thoughts, our actions and our words. He knows the beginning and the end of everything. Whatever we do and say, they are done and said in His presence.   

We see in today’s gospel reading the prayer of Jesus for us. He prayed for us that we might be one. The prayer is for those who believe in Him through the word of His heralds. Our oneness is a means of bearing witness for Him that He is the Christ, the one who is sent by God to save the world. We are not only to be one, we are to be in Him and  in His Father. We are in them by keeping their words, for it is said, “but whoever obeys his word, truly the love of God has reached perfection in him. By this we know that we are in him” (1 John 2:5). It is also said, “all who obey his commandment abide in him, and he abides in them” (1 John 3:24). The prayer to be in Him is answered in us who keep His commandments.

Graciously hear our supplications, O Lord, so that we, who believe that the Saviour of the human race is with you in your glory, may experience, as he promised, until the end of the world, his abiding presence among us. Amen (Collect)

Fr. Andrew Olowomuke