Today we celebrate Jesus' ascension into heaven. Our gospel lesson from Matthew does not directly speak of our Lord's ascension, but it does provide some clues regarding its significance. It has to do with Jesus' great commission ("to make disciples of all nations [Matthew 28:19])" and its relationship to the Trinity. Somehow Jesus' ascension represents an internal divine commitment by God that he will not quit until everyone is wrapped up in his love.

Here is the story. According to Matthew's version, on that first Easter the angel instructed the women at the empty tomb to tell the disciples of Jesus that they should go to Galilee to meet the Risen Lord there (Matthew 28:7). Jesus repeated the request when he appeared to the women later that morning (Matthew 29:8-10). Of course, the region…