Ascension Day
- Terry Sweeney
- May 1, 2008
May 1, 2008
The Rev W Terry Sweeney
Acts 1.1-11
Ascension is one of the least celebrated days in the church year. Its often transferred to the next Sunday - after the fact - and with little fanfare.
I contend that just considering that Jesus analambano - was take up - ascended - into the sky where we say "He is seated at the right hand of God the Father" is on par with the incarnation and the resurrection.
All three require great amounts of faith and all three are inextricably tied to the full gospel account:
For us and for our salvation
he came down from heaven:
by the power of the Holy Spirit
he became incarnate from the Virgin Mary,
and was made man.
For our sake he was crucified under Pontius Pilate;
he suffered death and was buried.
On the third day he rose again
in accordance with the Scriptures;
he ascended into heaven
and is seated at the right hand of the Father.
He will come again in glory to judge the living and the dead,
and his kingdom will have no end.
I also make this assertion: Modern people should have less trouble believing this part of the gospel narrative then people in ages past. I'll get to that in a few minutes.
Luke has now written his second volume - both dedicated to Theophilus (Friend of God) an educated person probably of the ruling class who is a God-fearer, a gentile, who worships in a synagogue but is more than likely uncircumcised.
Luke's account in Acts is a continuation of what said and did in the Gospel.
Now - Luke is the only Gospel writer that gives us an account of the ascension.
He ends the Gospel with a brief account of the ascension - then 1.1-2 pick it up again and 1.9-11 adds more detail.
Obviously for Luke this was an important moment to develop continuity with the two volumes. The ascension is like a hinge that binds the two books together.
Luke also tells us that for forty days Jesus met with various people and "through the Holy Spirit" taught them and gave them proofs that He was alive.
In other words, the H.S. led Jesus in to who to teach and what to teach them. This was a pattern throughout His ministry - likewise - it must be a pattern for the Church.
One other point - Jesus taught "the Apostles whom He had chosen".
These men are know clearly elected as His ambassadors to further His ministry. They've been chosen and empowered to perform this function.
Now - over the forty days He appeared to many including The women at the tomb (Mat. 28.9-10); Mary Magdalene (Mark 16.9-11); The two men on the way to Emmaus (Luke 24.13-32); Peter in Jerusalem (24.34); The ten then a week later the eleven disciples (John 20.19-29); the seven disciples fishing in Galilee (John 21.1-23); The eleven disciples in Galilee (Mat. 28.16020); Five hundred persons presumably in Galilee (1 Cor. 15.6); and James, the brother of the Lord (1 Cor. 15.7).
Of course the last appearance is just before His ascension and then later Jesus appeared to Paul on the road to Damascus (Acts 9.3).
In Acts Jesus remains the focus as does the Kingdom of God - that is the rule of God in men's hearts and lives; who as citizens of His Kingdom receive remission of their sins and eternal life.
He is preparing them for His departure and the coming of the Holy Spirit!
v. 6-7 deals with the question of the restoration of Israel in which Jesus says only the Father knows the answers of when and how.
v. 8 He jumps back to the consequence of His departure: the Holy Spirit will empower them and send them as witnesses to Jerusalem, all Judea and Samaria and to the ends of the earth.
There is a pattern here: Jesus is baptized and the Holy Spirit descended upon Him and guided and empowered His ministry. . . . . before the apostles' are able to exercise their ministry they too must be baptized in the Holy Spirit.
They cannot assume the tremendous responsibilities of building the church and tearing down satans strongholds on their own power . . . . . . .
Let me read v. 9-11, " 9After he said this, he was taken up before their very eyes, and a cloud hid him from their sight. 10They 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."
"Before their very eyes" . . . . . they saw what they saw and could be credible witnesses.
Flash back to the Mount of Transfiguration in Mark 9 - there Peter, James and John saw with their very eyes Jesus transfigured before them. . . . .
Radiant, exceedingly white garments - and Elijah who had been taken up in a chariot - and Moses who had died and received into the bosom of the Lord . . . . .
They were terrified and yet a cloud overshadowed them and a voice came to them saying: THIS IS my beloved Son, listen to Him!
NOW what are we too make of this? You see there is hardly anything in God's plan of salvation that isn't a miracle:
Creation and fall; the covenant with Abraham; the establishment of the promised land; the protection of it and division of the kingdom; deportations and again restoration; the coming of the long expected Messiah through a virgin mother; His miraculous and sinless life; the miracles that John says that if they all were written down there wouldn't be enough room to hold them all. . . . . His death - resurrection and NOW He has ascended into heaven.
And even then there's more because He's coming again! So what are we too make of this? Is this a believable story?
In John 20 Mary Magdalene is standing outside the tomb weeping - as she was crying she stooped down to look in to the tomb and saw two angels sitting where Jesus had been lying. They asked her why she was crying and she said because she didn't know where they had taken Jesus. . . . . . . .
Just as she said that she turned and Jesus was standing behind here but she didn't know it was Jesus. Why? His resurrected body was different.
In 1 Corinthians 15.42 Paul is talking about the resurrection and says this about resurrected bodies: It (the body) is sown perishable and rises imperishable' sown mortal and rises immortal; sown a seed and rises something new. He goes on to say in v. 49 they we have borne the image of the earthy, we shall also bear the image of the heavenly.
How could Jesus sustain "LIFE" as He was taken up? His resurrected body is immortal and He is immortal - he is ascending into the very creation whether its earth - sky or outer space that He Himself created.
He is no longer bound by any fact of creation that we are bound by -
Take us 30,000 feet into the air without protective pressurized clothing and oxygen and we will die - in outer space we would last a millisecond.
Not with the resurrected body of Jesus - it is simply not the same as his body prior to death even though his earthy body is used as the seed for His resurrected body. We cannot deny the importance of the ascension lies in the coming in 10 days of the Holy Spirit.
But lets not forget the Lord ascended to His rightful place - on the Cross He said IT IS FINISHED - His mission accomplished - through His obedience of shed blood God and Man could be reconciled.
Now He returns to His heavenly father where He assumes His rightful place at the Right Hand of God and intercedes for His people.
The account of salvation of man is a story of God who does nothing without purpose and everything in parables and miracles . . . . . .
He demonstrates in word and deed that He is God and we are totally dependant upon Him. Nothing is impossible with God.
Acts 1.9-11, " . . . . After he said this, he was taken up before their very eyes, and a cloud hid him from their sight. They were looking intently up into the sky as he was going, when suddenly two men dressed in white stood beside them. "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."
Amen
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