We are now two weeks away from ascension Sunday. According to the Bible, the ascension of Jesus happened forty days after the resurrection. Do you know what the ascension of Jesus is? It’s when he went back up to Heaven after he rose from the dead. A lot of Christians forget about Jesus’ ascension but it is actually a really important event in Jesus’ life and our life.
Ascension and resurrection.
Luke 24:50-51. 50And he led them out as far as Bethany, and lifting up his hands he blessed them. 51While he blessed them, he parted from them and was carried up into heaven.
Luke 24 tells us that Jesus appeared to many people after he rose from the dead: The women at the grave, Peter, the two disciples going to Emmaus, the ten disciples in the upper room. Luke ends with the story of Jesus’ ascension – he parted from them and was carried up into heaven.
Can you imagine standing there watching Jesus float up into Heaven on a cloud? I can’t. How many questions would you want to ask?
One of the questions that people still ask is that happened to Jesus when he went up into Heaven? Did he stop being a person? What happened to his body? Did it disappear or evaporate? Does Jesus still have a body? Is he still a human being? Can a human being live in Heaven with God?
Can you think of any other questions?
One of the most important answers we must give is yes, Jesus did go to Heaven as a person with a body. Yes, a human being not only lives in Heaven but rules all of Heaven and Earth. When Jesus became a baby at Christmas time (the incarnation), he became a human being forever. Jesus is still a person with a body, and he will be forever. When Jesus rose from the dead, he rose with a glorified version of his same body, complete with the nail holes in his hands and feet. And when Jesus ascended into Heaven that same body went up in a cloud to be with God.
This is a pretty amazing truth and it has pretty amazing implications for all Christians. We will discuss many of these in more details in the days ahead. Things like…
Because of the ascension, Jesus can be with us forever by the Holy Spirit.
Because of the ascension, Jesus is still at work saving us and changing us.
Because of the ascension, a person is ruling over all creation at the right hand of God.
Because of the ascension, we can know that God loves and wants to fix the entire creation.
Because of the ascension, we can better understand how we will live forever.
Because of the ascension, how we live on Earth today is very different.
Because of the ascension, we can know why and how Jesus will return for us.
Jesus did not just die; he rose from the grave. Jesus did not just rise from the grave; he ascended into glory to rule and reign. The ascension of Jesus is not just a nice add-on story or something we can just skip over. Without the ascension we could not be saved by God. We could not be one with Jesus. And we could not go to Heaven to be with God in his glory.
You: what questions do you still have about the ascension of Jesus into Heaven?
You with Jesus: Why do we need Jesus to not just come back to life, but to also go back to Heaven to rule? What difference does it make to you personally that Jesus is in Heaven ruling again?
Prayer: Father, the ascension of Jesus can be confusing to me, but I know I need it in order for me to be one with Jesus and for him to come back for me. Help me to want to understand the ascension better and trust you more because it is true. Amen.
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