![]() This reminds us that Jesus and his kingdom aren’t disconnected from this world. The angelic messengers were clear that he’d return in the same way. Instead, in continuity with the stable, the cross, and the tomb, with the flesh and blood and grime and texture of everyday life, Jesus ascended bodily, in full view of the apostles. He didn’t become “one with the Force,” like Obi-Wan Kenobi leaving behind an empty robe as his consciousness ascended to a higher plane. He didn’t dissolve away into the spiritual ether. ![]() The way that Jesus departed tells us something. The Ascension reminds us of the kind of hope we have in Jesus. Let me suggest three things to ponder this Ascension Day, things that make a huge difference for every Christian.ġ. The Meaningīut what do we make of this odd interlude between the resurrection and the establishment of the church through the power of the Holy Spirit? Only a few days later, the Holy Spirit was poured out in an unprecedented way on God’s people, and the church was born. So, the apostles stayed in Jerusalem and waited, just as Jesus had instructed. But it was long enough that two angels eventually showed up to call their attention back to earth: “Why do you stand here looking up into the sky? This same Jesus who has been taken up from you into heaven will come back in the same way you saw him go into heaven” ( verse 11). ![]() We don’t know how long they stood staring. Then, before their very eyes, Jesus physically floated up into the sky, disappearing from view behind the clouds as the apostles gaped in amazement. But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the farthest parts of the earth” ( verses 7 and 8). “You are not permitted to know the times or periods that the Father has set by his own authority. Instead, Jesus signaled that his plans for the kingdom were even bigger and better than the apostles had imagined. “Lord,” the apostles asked, “Is this the time when you are restoring the kingdom to Israel?” ( verse 6). But even so, expectations were running high. We don’t know for sure what the apostles made of these mysterious sayings, which probably didn’t fit neatly with their ideas about the coming kingdom. For example, “Do not leave Jerusalem, but wait there for what my Father promised…For John baptized with water, but you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit not many days from now” ( verse 5). Sure, Jesus was still making some hard-to-interpret comments. Maybe now all their hopes for the coming kingdom of God-all the deepest desires of the people of Israel wrapped up in Jesus the Messiah-would finally come true! But the resurrection changed everything-in more ways than any of them realized. In the book of Acts we read that for 40 days Jesus “presented himself alive with many convincing proofs,” and he “spoke about matters concerning the kingdom of God” ( Acts 1:3, NET).Ĭan you imagine the atmosphere of anticipation and excitement? The apostles’ hopes about Jesus had been dashed when he was arrested and crucified as a criminal. And then we’ll uncover some of the story’s meaning and provide some truths to meditate on this Ascension Day. Let’s go back to the story itself, as recorded in Scripture. And we know how Jesus’ life culminated with the world-shaking significance of the cross and the resurrection.īut then he just…leaves. I wonder if our tendency to let Ascension Day slip past uncelebrated has more to do with the simple fact that it feels anticlimactic? The Christmas story tells us that God purposed to be with us, joining himself to human nature and walking among us as a man. ![]() Let’s be honest-disappearing into the sky is sort of par for the course given that kind of context! A man floating into the sky, never to be seen again…what’s this all about? But remember, this is the same man who was born to a virgin, calmed storms with a word, rose from the dead, and who, post-resurrection, could pass through walls and locked doors. Maybe it’s because the Ascension seems a little strange. But for many Christians, Ascension Day passes by with hardly a murmur of recognition or excitement. Christmas and Easter are major cultural events, even outside of Christian circles. This episode doesn’t get as much attention as Jesus’ birth, crucifixion, or resurrection. Forty days after Jesus rose from the grave, another miracle marked the completion of Jesus’ earthly ministry: the Ascension.
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