Riches of our inheritance in Christ

Old wealth families speak of inheritances from parents or forbears. Haciendas, ancestral mansions, business empires, jewelry, heirlooms, antiques, gold, silver – name it. One can add up to the list as possessions accumulate to equivalent millions. Children of these families are heirs and heiresses; and, of course, one day their materially rich parents will pass away and these almost uncountable assets will be theirs. So they look forward to having a lion’s share of these wealth. Some children claim their share even before their parents die and if they do not get what they are asking for, force the issue of inheritance by a law suit. Thus we have the sad spectacle of family battles in court – brother against brother, children against parents. One can see how passion runs high when it comes to possession of temporal goods. Those who battle for it forget that one day, they, too, will have to leave these material wealth because they cannot carry it to the grave.

How about those who cannot expect any inheritance because of some poverty? We do not need to enumerate them. For them there is simply nothing to inherit in terms of real material wealth. Let these know that there is an inheritance that belongs to the children of God. The poor apostles after Jesus was crucified and died on the Cross thought that was the end of everything. They felt devastated even after the Resurrection when Jesus took time out for forty days appearing to them very alive. "Lord, are you at this time going to restore the Kingdom of Israel." (Acts 1:6) And Jesus told them, they were not to know just yet; but He promised to send the Holy Spirit who will imbue them with power from on high and they will be His "witnesses in Jerusalem, Judaea and Samaria to the ends of the earth" (Acts 1:7). The apostles and the first Christians were to witness to an inheritance without which all inheritances no matter how materially great would be nothing.

Christ, going up, back to His heavenly home, calls us to follow Him on the same journey beyond this earth. We are all meant to take the same ascension heavenwards. But we are oblivious to this call to live up to this heritage of grace, the infinite riches of the inheritance that is ours. That is because we are more after pursuing or ambitioning earthly inheritances. There is a political heritage in the family so the children should inherit that by all means. Or there is that line of engineers, doctors of medicine, financiers, astute businessmen, bankers and all the prestige and wealth we can get out of it. Family pride in money, fame, fortune and all that can give life its luxury and glitter. Well and good if it is subordinated to the spiritual disciplines of detachment, poverty of spirit, of sharing and giving to the poor and needy. But it is easier for a camel to pass through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter heaven. That is Gospel warning.

So the apostle Paul exhorts: ". . . the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give you a spirit of wisdom and revelation, resulting in knowledge of Him. May the eyes of your hearts be enlightened that you may know the hope that belongs to this call, what are the riches of glory in his inheritance among the holy ones, and what is the surpassing power of His greatness for us who believe" (Eph 1:17-19).

Solemnity of the Lord’s Ascension, Acts 1:1-11/Mt 16:15-20.