Sermon Text: Acts 1:1-11
Jesus Taken Up Into Heaven
1 In my former book, Theophilus, I wrote about all that Jesus began to do and to teach
2 until the day he was taken up to heaven, after giving instructions through the Holy Spirit to the apostles he had chosen.
3 After his suffering, he presented himself to them and gave many convincing proofs that he was alive. He appeared to them over a period of forty days and spoke about the kingdom of God.
4 On one occasion, while he was eating with them, he gave them this command: “Do not leave Jerusalem, but wait for the gift my Father promised, which you have heard me speak about.
5 For John baptized withwater, but in a few days you will be baptized withthe Holy Spirit.”
6 Then they gathered around him and asked him, “Lord, are you at this time going to restore the kingdom to Israel?”
7 He said to them: “It is not for you to know the times or dates the Father has set by his own authority.
8 But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.”
9 After he said this, he was taken up before their very eyes, and a cloud hid him from their sight.
10 They were looking intently up into the sky as he was going, when suddenly two men dressed in white stood beside them.
11 “Men of Galilee,” they said, “why do you stand here looking into the sky? This same Jesus, who has been taken from you into heaven, will come back in the same way you have seen him go into heaven.”
Morning Message
As I was deciding what to focus on this week it dawned on me that we don’t spend very much time talking about the Ascension of Jesus. Christ’s work in redemption rests primarily on four pillars of truth: His incarnation, His crucifixion, His resurrection, and His ascension. The ascension was the exclamation point, completely and finally demonstrating that His atonement had forever solved the problem that sin created. We celebrate His incarnation, His birth at Christmas. We realize, or at least we should, that it took an amazing love for God to step out of heaven and become a mere human in the form of a baby for us. We sing, living He loved me, and nothing could be more true. Just imagine leaving glory to come here.
We celebrate the life of Jesus and His journey to the cross. We remember during Lent how Jesus set His face toward Jerusalem and went there even though He knew that it would lead to His crucifixion. Dying He saved us, buried He carried our sins far away! As Christians we acknowledge that Jesus sacrificed himself in our place.
On Easter morning we celebrate His resurrection because we understand that because the grave could not hold Him it will not hold us. Because He lives, we also shall live forever. Rising He justified us, freely, forever! We have the promise of eternal life so we no longer have to fear death.
Next week is Pentecost, a wonderful celebration of the gift of the Holy Spirit to believers. Before we get to that celebration let’s remember the Ascension, it’s a very important part of our faith. Although the Ascension is only talked about three times in the New Testament, it was prophesied in the Old Testament. In Ephesians 4:8, Paul quotes from Psalm 68:18, interpreting the words in the Psalm as a predictive reference to Jesus’ ascension: “When he ascended on high, he took many captives and gave gifts to his people. Jesus freed the captives from sin and promised the gift of the Holy Spirit. Psalm 110:1 is another reference that Luke believes was fulfilled by the Ascension. Luke 2: 33-35 says, speaking of Jesus: “Exalted to the right hand of God, he has received from the Father the promised Holy Spirit and has poured out what you now see and hear. For David did not ascend to heaven, and yet he said, The Lord said to my Lord; Sit at my right hand until I make your enemies a footstool for your feet.” The Ascension of Jesus was important enough to be prophesied long before it took place.
The disciples should not have been surprised when Jesus returned to heaven. He made mention of this coming reality many times. We have accounts of Jesus being in heaven after His ascension, confirming that His destination was the throne of heaven. Remember Stephen, as he was being stoned to death, he looked up to heaven and saw Jesus standing at the right hand of God.
Paul encountered the risen Jesus on the road to Damascus and was converted, changed from a persecutor of the church to a disciple of Jesus and his life was forever changed because of that encounter.
In the visions of heaven given to the apostle John on the island of Patmos, John saw a Lamb, looking as if it had been slain, standing at the center of the throne. This was the same Lamb whom John had known personally on earth.
Why is the ascension important to us today? Two very important reasons: Because we are promised that Jesus is the first and that we, as believers in Him will follow, then the ascension means that we will not just have eternal life but we will have life in heaven. Jesus said that He was going to prepare a place for us and that where he was we would be also. And most importantly, the angels said, “This same Jesus, who has been taken from you into heaven, will come back in the same way you have seen him go into heaven.” We celebrate the ascension because we are assured that Jesus is coming back for us. One day that cloud that hid him from sight will be removed and we will see him coming to take us home. The song says: One day he’s coming—O glorious day!
In Christ’s Love and Peace
Pastor Bob
Views: 2
