God has ascended amid shouts of joy,
the Lord amid the sounding of trumpets.
Sing praises to God, sing praises;
sing praises to our King, sing praises.
For God is the King of all the earth;
sing to him a psalm of praise.
Psalms 47:5-7
During the forty days that Jesus spends on earth, between his resurrection and ascension, he appears before the women near the grave, the disciples on the road to Emmaus, all the apostles, and many others whose testimonies were written or went unwritten. Jesus shows that he can miraculously appear and disappear at his choosing and even share meals with his disciples. His disciples touch and feel his nail-pierced hands. We see through Jesus’s interactions that even after his death he continues to be very human in many ways. He speaks, eats, drinks, and above all showers his love on all the people. As we read and hear the testimonies of the disciples on the Ascension we marvel at the supernatural transition of the risen body of Christ from this world to the heavenly realms.
The gospel of Matthew ends with the great commission on the mountains in Galilee (Matthew 28:16-20) where Jesus empowers the disciples to go forth into the world as Apostles to preach, teach and baptize in the Name of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit. He assures them that he will be with them to the end of time. The Ascension is the miraculous transfiguration of Jesus passing from this physical dimension to the eternal spiritual dimension through a veil of clouds. The Book of the Acts of the Apostles begins dramatically with the Ascension at Bethany near the Mount of Olives Acts 1:9-11. Of the four gospels only two, Mark (Mark 16:19) and Luke (Luke 24:51) record the Ascension. Many Christians across the world do not observe this as a memorable anniversary like they do Christmas, Good Friday and Easter. The great transition of Christ physically from this world and the coming of the Holy Spirit on Pentecost is separated by the Ascension.
As they look up forlornly watching Jesus disappear behind the cloud of glory, two men dressed in white tell them not to keep gazing into heaven for a time will come when Jesus will return the same way he went into heaven (Acts 1:10-11). Ascension is a turning point in the life of the disciples as they transition to becoming Apostles of Christ who go out into the world to preach and teach the Gospel message all over the world. The Ascension is the precursor to the Pentecost ten days later, that Jesus foretells to his disciples as the time when they will be baptized by the Holy Spirit (John 16:7; Acts 2:33).
The entire New Testament after the gospels are the acts of the Spirit of Christ working in the lives of the Apostles and Disciples who present their bodies as living sacrifices to serve their Lord and Savior (Romans 12:1-2). St. Paul says that once Christ transitions to heaven, God exalts Him above everything in Heaven and on Earth (Ephesians 1:20-23; Philippians 2:9). The Ascension of Christ is a call for us to have a binocular vision where we see Christ enthroned above in Heaven while we live our lives on earth (Ephesians 2:6; Colossians 3:1-3). Christ, our High Priest, is in the presence of God assuring us of mercy and grace in our time of need (Hebrews 8:1; 9;24; 4-14-16; 7:25). Everyone who confesses the name of Jesus as Lord will be saved (Romans 10:5-13; Acts 2:21). As the Holy Spirit comes into our lives, the breath of eternal life renews and opens our hearts and minds to confess Jesus as our Lord and bear the fruits of the Spirit in our lives. The Holy Spirit helps us to use our own unique gifts to bring glory to God and His Kingdom.
Prayer:
Lord Jesus, King of glory, your name is exalted over all the Earth and Heaven. With great triumph you entered into your kingdom in heaven. Lord fill us with your Holy Spirit, comfort us when we are grieving, strengthen us when we are weak, and bear fruit within us to glorify your name through our lives. Amen
Soli Deo Gloria
7 comments:
No wonder that, with such hopes flowing over the top of their sorrow, like oil on troubled waters, the little group went back to the upper room, hallowed by memories of the Last Supper, and there waited in prayer and supplication during the ten days which elapsed till Pentecost. So should we use the interval between any promise and its fulfilment. Patient expectation, believing prayer, harmonious association with our brethren, will prepare us for receiving the gift of the Spirit, and will help to equip us as witnesses for Jesus.
But ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you: and ye shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judaea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth.
But ye shall receive power — and shall be witnesses to me - That is, ye shall be empowered to witness my Gospel, both by your preaching and suffering.
At His Ascension our Lord entered Heaven, and He keeps the door open for humanity to enter.
In his life Christ is an example showing us how to live in his death he is a sacrifice satisfying our sins in his resurrection a conqueror in his ascension a king in his intercession a high priest.
Ascensions into heaven are like falling leaves sad and happy all at the same time Going away isn't really sad especially when your going enables a new kind of presence to be born.
Through the Holy Spirit comes our restoration to paradise, our ascension into the kingdom of heaven, our return to the adoption of sons, our liberty to call God our Father, our being made partakers of the grace of Christ, our being called children of light, our sharing in eternal glory, and, in a word, our being brought into a state of all "fulness of blessing," both in this world and in the world to come, of all the good gifts that are in store for us, by promise hereof, through faith, beholding the reflection of their grace as though they were already present, we await the full enjoyment.
About the Second Coming we must remember two things.
First, to speculate when and how it will happen is both foolish and useless, Jesus said that not even he knew the day and the hour when the Son of Man would come. ( Mark 13:32 .)
Second, the essential teaching of Christianity is that God has a plan for man and the world. We are bound to believe that history is not a haphazard conglomeration of chance events which are going nowhere. We are bound to believe that there is some divine far off event to which the whole creation moves and that when that consummation comes Jesus Christ will be Judge and Lord of all. The Second Coming is not a matter for speculation and for illegitimate curiosity; it is a summons to make ourselves ready for that day when it comes.
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