He ascended into Heaven -Various

Question: What’s the difference between a piano, a tuna and glue?

You can tune a piano but you can’t piano a tuna. At which point someone will ask (hopefully): What about the glue?

To which the reply will come: “Ahh, I knew you’d get stuck on that.”

This is a good example of logical thinking and logical outcomes conspire to logically end in a certain way. In fact if it doesn’t we get worried.

So shouldn’t it be logical (and a natural) outcome of Jesus who came from Heaven to earth, and then dying and being resurrected, of then returning to Heaven?

Among many of the most remarkable statements in the Apostles’ Creed the ascension is also one of the most neglected areas of Christian doctrine. Even though we (along with all Christians) believe in the ascension of Christ, we tend not to think about it very much, at least when compared to the death and resurrection of our Lord.

Although we would never say it this way, perhaps it doesn’t seem quite as important to us. We know that Jesus died for our sins and rose from the dead for our salvation, and we know that we couldn’t be saved without Good Friday or Easter Sunday but where does the Ascension fit in?

To many people it seems like a P.S. to the main message of the gospel—perhaps a convenient way for Christ to go back to heaven. The event itself is only briefly mentioned in Mark, Luke and Acts.

By contrast both the crucifixion and the resurrection are described by all four gospel writers in detail. And because the event itself is so unusual, it is difficult for us to visualize exactly what happened. Yet it is rare to find someone who doubts the ascension of Christ.

Vigorous apologetic debates have raged around the resurrection, but the ascension is not a topic of much discussion. Perhaps most people don’t think about it enough either to doubt it or to debate it.

But a quick glance at church history tells us that there is more here than meets the eye. For one thing, every major Christian creed includes the ascension of Christ. You find it in the Apostles’ Creed, the Nicene Creed, and the Athanasian Creed.

The liturgical calendar always includes Ascension Day—always on a Thursday—always 40 days after Easter. This year Ascension Day fell on May 5^th.

Here are just a few verses about the ascension to consider:

>Luke 24: 50-52 “When he had led them out to the vicinity of Bethany, he lifted up his hands and blessed them. While he was blessing them, he left them and was taken up into heaven. Then they worshiped him and returned to Jerusalem with great joy.”

>Acts 1: 9 “After he said this, he was taken up before their very eyes, and a cloud hid him from their sight.”

>John 3: 13 “No one has ever gone into heaven except the one who came from heaven—the Son of Man.”

>John 16: 10 “I am going to the Father, where you can see me no longer.”

>John 16: 28 “I came from the Father and entered the world; now I am leaving the world and going back to the Father.”

>Ephesians 4: 10 “He who descended is the very one who ascended higher than all the heavens, in order to fill the whole universe.”

>I Timothy 3: 16 “He appeared in a body, was vindicated by the Spirit, was seen by angels, was preached among the nations, was believed on in the world, was taken up in glory.”

>Hebrews 4: 14 “We have a great high priest who has gone through the heavens, Jesus the Son of God.”

>Hebrews 7: 24-26 "Because Jesus lives forever, he has a permanent priesthood. Therefore he is able to save completely those who come to God through him, because he always lives to intercede for them. Such a high priest meets our need—one who is holy, blameless, pure, set apart from sinners, exalted above the heavens.”

I Peter 3: 21-22 “Jesus Christ has gone into heaven and is at God’s right hand—with angels, authorities and powers in submission to him.”

There are many other verses that speak of Christ’s exaltation at the Father’s right hand in heaven, and what this truth means for believers. I find it striking that the Creed gives as much space to the ascension as it does to the cross/resurrection.

The earliest Christians believed that the ascension stood on an equal basis with the events of Good Friday and Easter. The truth of Christ’s ascension answers three important questions:

What happened to Jesus?  

Where did he go?                

What is he doing now?

FIRST: He Ascended into Heaven. We can state what we know about the event itself in very simple terms. While Jesus is speaking to his disciples in Bethany (several miles east of Jerusalem), he blesses them, and is taken up into heaven before their eyes. They were there, they saw it, it really happened.

We can summarize the life of our Lord this way: In Heaven; On Earth; and In Heaven once again. By means of the ascension, Jesus’ triumphant return to heaven signaled that the days of his suffering were over at last.

SECOND: The “Unlimited” Christ. Because Jesus has returned to heaven, he is now liberated from all time and space limitations. As long as Jesus stayed on earth, he was bound by the limitations of time and space.

THIRD: He Sits at the Father’s Right Hand The New Testament uses three words to describe Jesus’ status in heaven: He is exalted. He is glorified. He is enthroned. Now at last Jesus receives what he truly deserves.

He did not deserve to be mistreated.
He did not deserve to be mocked and humiliated.
He did not deserve to be betrayed.
He did not deserve to be beaten and savagely scourged.
He did not deserve the hammer and the nails.
He did not deserve a criminal’s death.
He did not deserve to be buried in a borrowed tomb.

But now at last, our Lord receives what he deserves—glory, laud and honor.

Philippians 2: 5-7 tells us that Christ “emptied himself” of the outward trappings of deity in order to take on the form of a man. He humbled himself by leaving the palaces of heaven to be born in a stable in Bethlehem. He veiled his glory and lived a life of humiliation.

All of us feel it was unfair for the King of Kings to be treated so rudely by those he came to save. Do you recall that as he hung on the cross, onlookers jeered as his life ebbed away? They laughed at his pain and cried, “If you are the Son of God, save yourself” (Mark 15: 29-30).

The ascension means that Jesus has been vindicated in all that he came to do and his days of humiliation are over forever.

In 1871 Frances Ridley Havergal wrote an ascension hymn called “Golden Harps are Sounding” that captures this truth:

Golden harps are sounding, angels voices sing,
Pearly gates are opened, opened for the King;
Jesus, King of glory, Jesus, King of love,
Is gone up in triumph, to His throne above.

He Who came to save us, He Who bled and died,
Now is crowned with glory at His Father’s side.
From the grave arisen, nevermore to die;
Jesus, King of glory, is gone up on high.

Pleading for His children in that blessed place,
Calling them to glory, sending them His grace;
His bright home preparing, faithful ones, for you;
Jesus ever liveth, ever loveth, too.

All His suffering ended, joyfully we sing,
Jesus hath ascended! Glory to our King!

FOURTH: He Intercedes for the Saints. The most significant truth of Christ’s ascension touches everyday life.

First, because he lived on the earth and endured deep suffering, he knows what we are going through. Second, because he is now in heaven, he intercedes for us with the Father. The word “intercede” means to speak up on behalf of someone else.

Christ is now in heaven praying for us. What a marvelous thought this is—and what a balm for troubled souls.

When I am down in the dumps, Jesus prays for me.

When I falter under the load, Jesus prays for me.

When my faith gives way, Jesus prays for me.

When I fight a losing battle against temptation, Jesus prays for me.

There’s even more than that. Often when I am asked to pray for someone, I can’t seem to find the appropriate words and I feel as if my prayers are in vain. Jesus in heaven comes alongside, takes my pitiful prayers and transforms them into powerful petitions before the throne of God.

FIFTH: Our Man in Heaven. Hebrews 4: 14-16 calls Christ a great high priest who has gone into heaven. Because he walked on earth with us, he knows what we are going through and he is able to sympathize with us in our struggles. Because he is now in heaven, he can help in all our troubles.

When we go to the throne of grace, we don’t have to worry about being turned away because Christ himself is there to meet us. He has grace to help in the time of need. “Who do I know who can help me out?” If you know someone at City Hall, suddenly your problems begin to vanish. Or you may know someone who knows someone, and if your friend will make a phone call, everything will be OK.

In order to survive in today’s world, you need some friends in high places—a man on the inside, someone who knows you and is willing to help you out. Just try doing business in Baltimore without a few friends in high places. You’ll drown in a sea of red tape.

Let me mention one final aspect of this truth you may not have considered. When Jesus ascended into heaven, he took his glorified humanity with him. The physical body of Christ is now in heaven, which means that someday when we are raised from the dead, we won’t be raised as spirits but as real people with our physical bodies glorified just like Jesus.

He not only redeemed your soul, he also redeemed your body. If you are in Christ, you have His promise that your flesh will be renewed and gloriously raised in the resurrection. Then we all shall see him as he is, and we will be with him forever.

The ascension guarantees our Christian destiny. Because he was raised, we too will be raised. Because he ascended, we too will ascend. Because he is in heaven, we will join him there someday. We will be where he is, and we know where he is because he ascended into heaven.

At the moment of death the children of God can rest assured that the Christ who ascended bodily into heaven will take them to be with him—and will one day raise their bodies immortal and incorruptible 

(see I Corinthians 15: 52-53).

LAST: The Tug of Heaven. Let me close with this thought. Because of the ascension, we may rest assured that the religion of Christ is true. God has accepted him and because God accepted him, he will accept all those who trust in him. Because he is safe in heaven, we will someday be safe in heaven. We will be where he now is.

The ascension shows us how we should spend our life—looking up.

The story is told of a little boy who went outside on a windy spring day to fly his new kite. As the wind blew, the kite flew higher and higher until it finally disappeared from view in the clouds far above.

After a few minutes a bystander asked, “How do you know the kite is still attached to the string?” “I can feel it tugging on the string,” the boy replied.

The same is true for us today. Christ is pulling us toward heaven. He is pulling us away from the earth toward our eternal home. We may not see him with our eyes but we feel his tug in our hearts. We know where he is and we know that where he is, we will someday be.

Every day Jesus tugs on our hearts, pulling us up toward heaven so that when we finally get there, we won’t feel like strangers. One day soon the Lord will give us one final tug and we’ll end up in heaven forever.

Until then, let the people of God rejoice. Christ has conquered! He has won the victory and defeated every foe. This is what we mean when we say, “He ascended into heaven and sits at the right hand of God the Father Almighty.” Amen.