WHY THE THOUGHT OF CHRIST'S ASCENSION SHOULD BRING US GREAT JOY

I have two texts for us. Our first text leads us to the consideration of our second text: 

Luke 24:50-53

Then he led them out as far as Bethany, and lifting up his hands he blessed them. While he blessed them, he parted from them and was carried up into heaven. And they worshiped him and returned to Jerusalem with great joy, and were continually in the temple blessing God.

Taking leave of our loved ones is never easy. Sometimes there are goodbye’s where we even have to say to one another,  “see you in heaven!”  The thought of parting always fills us with sorrow.  It was now  time for Jesus to  go back  (to ascend)  to the Father and amazingly,  we read  here that this parting   was not characterized by grief  or sorrow – in fact,  it was characterized by  great joy. We read that they worshiped Him and returned to Jerusalem with great joy! What made the disciples so joyful  at Christ’s ascension?  And what implications might the thought of the ascension have on our joy?  

There are at least  four  reasons  why Jesus’ ascension, should bring us joy, and for this I refer you to our next scripture reading :

John 17:4 -11   (Context: Christ’s high priestly prayer)  

[4]“I glorified you on earth, having accomplished the work that you gave me to do. [5] And now Father glorify  me in  your own presence with the glory that I had with you before the  world existed. [6] “I have manifested your name to the people whom you gave me out of the world. Yours they were, and you gave them to me, and they have kept your word. [7] Now they know that everything that you have given me is from you. [8] For I have given them the words that you gave me, and they have received them and have come to know in truth that I came from you; and they have believed that you sent me. [9] I am praying for them. I am not praying for the world but for those whom you have given me, for they are yours. [10] All mine are yours, and yours are mine, and I am glorified in them. [11] And I am no longer in the world, but they are in the world, and I am coming to you. Holy Father, keep them in your name, which you have given me, that they may be one, even as we are one.“

FOUR REASONS  WHY THE THOUGHT OF CHRIST’S ASCENSION SHOULD BRING US JOY

 (i)         The thought of His finished work

(ii)        The thought of His present heavenly ministry

(iii)       The thought  of  our empowerment for effective ministry  in this world

(iv)       The thought of His return,  and the prospect of our finished work

1.         The  Joy that comes at the thought that Jesus’ Work is truly finished.  [John 17:4]

I don’t know about you, but my present work as a pastor never feels as if it is finished. There is always more to do; more people to visit and to attend to; more  counsel and help to offer; more church admin, and emails, what-apps  and writing to do ; more  preparation for many different kinds of meetings; more prayer, more preparation for the Bible studies and Sunday sermons. Our work never seems to have an end. There are aspects  here and there  where I can say, “Well, thank God  that  this is  now finished”, but then when I look at the bigger picture,  there is still so much that is not finished, and it won’t be finished   until Jesus returns.  The Lord Jesus, however at this moment can truly say that His work on earth was   now finished! He had accomplished what He had come to do. He could now  go back to the Father  knowing that He had glorified Him on earth, having accomplished the work that the Father  had given Him to do. The night before He died, He told His disciples: “I came from the Father and  have come into the world and now  I am leaving the world  and going to the Father” (Jn. 16:28). His work was now truly finished! 

How can this fact make us joyful?   Let us think about this for a moment.   He accomplished His work for us on the cross.  By this work He made atonement for our sin, in two ways. 

Firstly, He fully dealt with the consequences of our sin by substituting His life for ours (expiation), and secondly He fully bore the just wrath of an offended, holy God (propitiation). Jesus therefore   perfectly accomplished His work  as Mediator between God and men.   From our perspective in particular  the joy comes  as a result of knowing  that  we have been freed to go  to heaven, knowing that there is no condemnation awaiting us there  (Rom. 8:1).   

Your sins are forgiven in His name.  

You are ready for heaven. 

You  can worship Him and rejoice in Him because His earthly ministry for you and for all His church  is  now completed. Nothing more needs to be added on your part to Christ’s finished work. 

The only thing that you can do  is to be obedient to His commission   for you  in terms  of sharing this good news in your generation,  so that people may hear, believe  and be saved from their sin and go to heaven!

2.  The Joy of  thinking about   Jesus'  heavenly ministry.  ( John 17:5)

In  John’s gospel Chapters 13 – 17 (The Upper room discourses)  the Lord  Jesus had told His disciples on a number  of occasions  that He was going to leave them.  At that  stage their hearts were troubled  and He needed to remind them,  “If you loved Me, you would have rejoiced because I go to the Father, for the Father  is greater  than I” (John 14:28). He is reminding them here that they did not need to grieve, for  in  returning to the Father, He would be restored to that  place of glory and power that was His before  He became the incarnate Son of God.    

How does the fact of Jesus’ ascension, and session  in  heaven help us to be  joyful? 

Consider  these 4 facts:

(i)         We are joyful because we have a glorious, enthroned King in heaven.  He is our representative and guarantee before the Father.  Jesus is our man in heaven. He is our Advocate before the Father.  He is our brother in heaven (Hebr. 2:11). He is the firstborn from the dead (Col. 1:18) and therefore He is the hope of our resurrection (1 Thess. 4:14-18).   When we shall receive our resurrected bodies one day, we will also share in His glory (John 17:22-24). But think also about this: He is now  worshiped, loved and adored by our    departed brothers and sisters gathered before the throne, saying “Worthy is the Lamb who was slain, to receive power and wealth and wisdom and might and honour and glory and blessing.”  They also say, “To Him who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb, be blessing and honour and glory and dominion forever and ever” (Rev. 5:12, 13).

(ii)        We are  joyful   that He represents us  and intercedes  for us in heaven. (Rom. 8:34; Heb. 7:25). This  prayer involves not only presenting our prayer petitions and needs before the Father. Hebrews 9:24 tells us that He appears in the presence of God on our behalf.  1 John 2:1, 2 tells us that He is our Advocate in heaven. We have  continual access to God through  Jesus our Advocate. 

(iii)       We are joyful knowing that He is preparing a place for us,  knowing that we may be where He is. (John 14:1-3).

(iv)       We are joyful   knowing that that at the ascension Jesus has declared His  dominion over heaven and earth.  Peter tells us that Jesus is now “at the right hand of God, having gone into heaven, after angels and authorities and powers had been subjected to Him” (1 Pet. 3:22). Paul says that Jesus is seated at God’s “right hand in the heavenly places, far above all rule and authority and power and dominion, and every name that is named, not only in this age, but also in the one to come. And He put all things in subjection under His feet” (Eph. 1:20b-22a). There is, of course  a sense in which all things are not yet subject to Him (1 Cor. 15:27-28; Ps. 110:1; Heb. 10:13). But when He comes again in power and glory, He will conquer every  enemy and reign forever and ever. So,  it is as good as done, and this knowledge fills us with joy.

3. We may be joyful because we may effectively continue His work in the world until He comes.  (Jn. 17:14)

"I have given them your  word..." 

Why did the Lord Jesus not take His followers with Him into heaven when He ascended? The answer is simple. He has work for them to do in His name.   Future generations still have   to be reached. The church’s mission   is to continue to proclaim the saving work of Jesus to every generation and to all nations.  However, the Lord Jesus also knew that in our own strength  we could not do  it. So He promised  us to send the Helper- the Holy Spirit.  He told the disciples, “It is to your advantage that I go away;  for if I do not go away, the Helper shall not come to you; but if I  go, I will send Him to you” (Jn 16:7).  Jesus had promised,   “I will not leave you as orphans; I will come to you.” (Jn. 14:18) He had to provide His church with power and authority.  For this reason the church had to wait until it was endued with His power (Lk 24:49 ; Acts 1:4,8).  When Christ ascended, the Holy Spirit descended. It is essential that we are clothed with the power of the Holy Spirit if we want to succeed in that mission. So, joyfully thank God that  we  have the Holy Spirit who effectively enables us   to do this work.  

We need Christ’s blessing in order   to be effective representatives for Him in the world. Note that He blessed the disciples before He left (Lk.  24:51; Acts 1:12). “He lifted up His hands and  he blessed them. While He was blessing them, He parted from them and was carried up into heaven” (Lk. 24:50b-51). The picture is that of the Old Testament priest blessing the people after offering the sacrifice for them (Lev. 9:22).  Jesus wasn’t just wishing the disciples well when He blessed them. His blessing was absolutely essential for them and for us, if we are to carry on His work. Without Jesus’ blessing, we are reminded   of Psalm 127:1, “unless the Lord builds the house, those who build it labour in vain”.  In God’s work, His blessing means everything.  Thank God that we are empowered  to do this work by our ascended Christ.

4. We may be joyful at the thought of His return and the prospect of our finished work

The promise of Christ’s ascension is also the promise of His descension, that is, His second coming. No man knows the day or hour (Matt. 24:36). We are to be prepared at all times (Matt 25:1-13). But this we know, that when He comes, our work will be done and then we too shall ascend with Christ to heaven (John 14:3; 1 Thess. 4:17). Then too all suffering, challenges, tears, sorrow, sadness, sickness, pain etc. will be over and our work will be done, and our eternal rest (Hebr.  4:9-16)   will have begun.

The ascension of our Lord Jesus began the final step of His great plan of salvation. 

It is the pen ultimate step. 

The next step will be his descension, His second coming. 

What a day that will be!

I trust that this brief meditation on the ascension of our Lord Jesus Christ has helped you too, to worship our Lord Jesus  with greater expectancy and  with greater joy!  

We thank and bless our God for the remembrance of this day. Amen

What to do between Ascension and Pentecost?

 

TEXT :  Acts  1:12-2:1

TITLE:   What to do between Ascension and Pentecost?

Date :  20/05/2012

Chronologically,  we are  now between  the Ascension of  the Lord Jesus Christ  and Pentecost (the coming of the Holy Spirit – the promise of the Father -  Acts 1:4). This ‘in between period‘ corresponds  to  Acts  1:12-26. This is the text we shall  consider today.

Next week D.V. on Pentecost Sunday I would like to consider with you  the message and meaning of Pentecost (Acts  2). We  would like  to follow   this up  by  spending  3 days in  prayer (Monday 28^th May- Wednesday 30^th May), seeking  the LORD  for   personal and national  revival  and  renewal.  By then we  will also be  half way through the year. We shall  need   God’s  help  to be all that He wants us to be in these challenging  days. God has called  us to be  primarily His holy worshipping  people,  His body on earth  and  His  witnesses to the ends of the earth. We need His help  to be that and to do that  by prayer. Prayer is the language of dependence upon God. Prayer give us perspective for life. Being too busy to pray robs us of such  perspective.   Therefore prepare your hearts now  for  focused prayer.

Acts  1:12-26  : Survey

What  was  the most important activity  of the disciples   between   the Ascension of Christ and Pentecost as they were told to wait for the promise of the Father? According to Luke, ( author  of the Gospel and of Acts) they  were continually in the temple  blessing God  (Lk 24:53) and  here in the book of Acts  they  were devoting[1] themselves also to prayer,  together with  the women and Mary , the mother of Jesus, and His brothers (v.14), while they were waiting for the promise of the Father.  They worshipped  God in the temple and they  had prayer meetings in their home. John Stott says: “It was  a healthy combination: continuous praise in the temple, and continuous  prayer in the home.”[2] 

One of the things they  dealt with was  the matter of  Judas’ desertion and tragic death  and  destiny. The apostle Peter  speaking  from v. 15 onwards, giving perspective to all this,  also sees  from  the Scripture   in Psalm  109:8  that another one must take the place of Judas. “Let another take his office (ESV)  / his place of leadership (NIV)“. This is important  since the testimony  of the resurrection of Jesus  Christ (v.22)  must be  authenticated in the face of many skeptics and challenges. The  criteria set for the election  of a new apostle are  simple. He must have  accompanied the disciples during all the time that the Lord Jesus  went in  and out among them-  and specifically,   from the days of the baptism of John until the day when He was taken up from us  - one of these men must become with us a witness to His resurrection”. Two men were selected Joseph (Barsabbas i.e. Son of Sabbas) also known as Justus  and Matthias.  After   committing this matter  to prayer,  lots were  cast and the lot fell to Matthias, and so he became the 12^th member on the apostolic team.  This then was one of the important things they prayed  for in their  prayer meetings. They prayed for a completion  of their leadership team.  I will come back to this  in conclusion  because our church has presently great need in this  very same area.

Worship, prayer, witness! These things  are  the   key activities  of the church , and whatever we fail  to do, we must not  fail in  these  areas. In the context of our text  in Acts , I want to zoom in on one of these core  activities – prayer. Verse 14 says that, with one  accord, they were devoting  themselves  to prayer. 

Verse 14  :  Notes on Prayer  

1.  They were  there with one accord . They were of one mind. There was unity.  They had a common  goal and purpose. Nothing was dividing them now. We were created for unity . It is sin that separates us . It is our desires that drive us apart. A united, praying  church is a powerful church. She has the ear of God. She portrays  heaven on earth. Psalm 133 testifies to this. No wonder that Satan  continuously works to divide us. He fears  the united, praying church more than anything else upon the face of  the earth. 

2.   They were  continually  devoted to the work of prayer.  Prayer was a major  work in this congregation.  In one sense we can say that the Holy Spirit was sent at Pentecost as the sovereign  promise   of God and on the other hand  we can say that the Holy Spirit came  because   He was  prayed for. When God intends to do a work in our midst, He first  gets His people praying. We see this here. A season of devoted  prayer precedes the coming of the Holy Spirit. Never underestimate  the importance of  the prayer meeting in the life of the church, and be very concerned when the prayer meeting of the church is  attended by the minority  and not the majority!  If  a large percentage of the body is absent  from public prayer, this generally points to divided priorities,  divided hearts  and therefore a lack of  spiritual  unity  and purpose. You are probably asking : do  these people in the Bible  never work? Answer : They do , but they are not firstly known by what they do. They are firstly known as worshippers of the living God!  Unfortunately our Protestant work ethic  so easily substitutes  work for worship , when in reality our work should be driven by our worship. Let me therefore encourage you to consider the prayer meetings of your church in that light.

Now, it is not that we have to ask for a new Pentecost. It is not  that  the  Holy Spirit  needs to come again  from heaven. Pentecost is  a unique, unrepeatable   historic  occasion. He has come, and He has not been withdrawn. Jesus has promised that He would continue  to  be with us   as our Comforter, Counselor  and Convicter of sin.  However, consider this, that in the New Testament  period God  wants us  to seek the help of the outpoured Holy Spirit by asking !

         a.God commands His people  to  pray  without ceasing. 

    In the OT corporate  temple prayer  was  a daily  occurrence (see Acts  2:42; Acts  3:1). The early church  was  continuously devoted to prayer, and although the church at this time had not yet received the Holy Spirit, they were  waiting, until He had been given. We  today  have the Holy Spirit, but  we need to continually  ask  Him to be involved in all that we do, remembering  that without God’s help we really can do nothing  of everlasting value (see Jn 15). So, the life of  the Christian and of the Christian church should be driven by continual prayer. 

          b. God commands  the church  to  ask for  the Holy Spirit. 

    He promises to give Him in response to  our asking: “If you then, who are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will the heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask Him.” The gift  of the Holy Spirit is always associated with conversion  (Jn 3:1-8 ; 1 Pet 1:12) and empowerment for effective ministry  (Lk 4:1; 1 Cor 12 ; Hebr 2:4)   and joy (Lk 10:21 ; 1Thess 1:6).  And so, although the Spirit has been given ,  every new NT generation needs to continually   seek God  in prayer and ask  for  the help and power of the Holy Spirit   in terms  of everything that we do.  James points out   that  a worldly church  “does not have , because it does not ask, and  when it does ask,it does not receive because it asks wrongly to spend it on  its passions.” (James 4:2,3). There can be no doubt that we must ask . It is an exercise of our faith! It is a logical extension  of our faith!  In this  act of faith  we must believe and not doubt  (James 1:5-8). God is  for us when we pray in the Holy Spirit.  John  14:12-14,  Jesus tells  His disciples: [12] “Truly, truly, I say to you, whoever believes in me will also do the works that I do; and greater works than these will he do, because I am going to the Father. [13] Whatever you ask in my name, this I will do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son. [14] If you ask me anything in my name, I will do it.( see also 15:16 ; 16:23-24). 

       c.God commands the church to pray in the Spirit in all occasion (Eph 6:18; Jude v.20). This does not mean  ‘speaking in  tongues’   so much as  praying in and by and under  the power of the Holy Spirit  i.e. effectively  and with confidence  (1 Jn 5:14,15).

       d.We are  warned not to grieve the Holy Spirit (Lk 12:10; Eph 4:30), for if we do so, He may be withdrawn, and  our prayers  rendered ineffective. It is ultimately the Holy Spirit that intercedes for us  and makes our prayers intelligible before the throne of God (Rom 8:26,27). If  we are not helped by Him in prayer,  God will be silent, something which the Psalmist dreaded (Psalm  28:1; 35:22; 83:1)

So , with all  this in mind , what  was this church praying for  between the Ascension and Pentecost ?

We cannot say  with  certainty, but  the following three aspects   for which they prayed  may be deduced from   Acts 1 and 2. 

1  (i)      They were  praying for the promise of the Father: the descension of the Holy Spirit  in accordance with the promise of Jesus in John 14 :15-31  and  16: 4-15. This would soon happen in Acts  2.   For us this would mean that  we should pray  that the  promised Holy  Spirit  would  be pleased  visit our city and country . Although the Spirit  of   God has always been at work in the world and in Namibia ( Missionary biography proves this) , we are currently   in a precarious  moment in our history :  the church at large is backslidden, and  it shows in our national morality and the lukewarmness of the  Christian church. Worship is often  man-made, prayer meetings are empty and  our witness  is feeble. The fear of God  is  absent. Thoughtlessness rules  as man made philosophies  and ways of thinking about politics, education, gender, sexuality  etc.  prevail. We need   a new reformation in our society  in regard to these things.

  

     (ii)  They  were praying for power  to be  effective witnesses  to the whole world  (Acts 1:8). This would have included  prayers for personal courage  in the face  of fearful challenges. The   commitment of the Namibian  Church   to   the  great commission  of Christ (Matt 28 :18-20), when  compared, for instance  with the South Korean Church)  is by and large  non existent. We lack power and conviction to this end.  We have been  receiving help  for far too long. We  need to pray that the Holy Spirit would stir many into   mission and evangelistic labour.

    (iii) They were praying  for  leadership. The  church  throughout the ages  has  always  depended on godly and God-given leadership. It is God ‘s means of  leading His church on earth. Where shall  we  get  the pastoral leadership,  the evangelists and the missionary force  from?  Jesus  said: “The harvest is plentiful, but the labourers are few. Therefore pray earnestly  to the  Lord of the harvest   to send out labourers into His harvest.” (Luke  10:2). The disciples in the upper room were therefore acting in accordance with this instruction from the Lord, and  He was not slow in providing them with a replacement called Matthias.  We too are calling you  to pray  for leadership  on various fronts in our church –  for elder’s  and  deacons ,  and labourers  in the harvest field. But you must help us in this regard , brothers and sisters ( 2 Cor 1:10,11).

What to do between Ascension and Pentecost?  The early church was  praying  for God’s kingdom to come; for God’s glory to advance; for His Name to be known  in all the earth; the church was praying for leadership. Let’s join them in this.  Amen !

---

[1]  The present participle denotes an ongoing action. The NIV therefore translates “ They all joined together constantly in prayer”

[2] John Stott : Acts , p 52

Why Ascension Day is still important for us - 17th May 2012

Many people  are asking themselves  today, on Thursday,  17^th May 2012 :  “Ascension Day. What on earth is that?” Christmas we know  , Easter we know – but Ascension day, what is that ?

The simplest answer we can give to them   is that Ascension Day marks that day when our  dear Lord Jesus  Christ, having completed His work on earth,  visibly  ascended ( he was lifted up by  a miraculous force) into Heaven to take up His  glory once more  : “ And now , Father , glorify me  in your presence with the glory  that I had with you before the world existed.” (John 17:5 ). He is now seated in heaven.  This all  happened  40 days after His resurrection from the dead.

Every year    I  observe  that  it  is an amazing fact that Ascension day still  forms  part of our  national calendar [1].  I say that this  is quite remarkable , for after all our country’s  constitution  claims  to be secular [2]. Technically we  should not  observe  religious  holidays.  But not only that!  It is amazing to think that against the background of so little   actual interest shown  in this day by the  general public   (and sadly even by the church)  it should   still  occupy  a  place on the list of national  holidays!   The fact  that  this day is  publicly  still  recognized  among us  singularly honours  the Lord  Jesus , and therefore I say :  “God bless Namibia !”  In  remembrance  of this event then  I  wish  to  read   a few  texts  from Scripture that speak  about this  historical happening , and  draw some applications  from this  .

SELECTED TEXTS:

1.      Acts 1:6-11[6] So when they had come together, they asked him, “Lord, will you at this time restore the kingdom to Israel?” [7] He said to them, “It is not for you to know times or seasons that the Father has fixed by his own authority. [8] 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 end of the earth.” [9] And when he had said these things, as they were looking on, he was lifted up, and a cloud took him out of their sight. [10] And while they were gazing into heaven as he went, behold, two men stood by them in white robes, [11] and said, “Men of Galilee, why do you stand looking into heaven? This Jesus, who was taken up from you into heaven, will come in the same way as you saw him go into heaven.”  This  text from the book of Acts  describes the  actual happening . Jesus had  appeared to many of His disciples during the 40 days following His resurrection. On the 40th day, He appeared again to the apostles and led them out to the Mount of Olives where He instructed them to wait for the promise of the Holy Spirit in Jerusalem.  Then the  11 disciples  saw  Him ascending  into  the clouds, disappearing from their sight . As they continued to watch, two angels appeared and assured  them that  just as He ascended in visible form , He would also  return in  visible glory. ( see also Revelation 1:7)

2.      John 14:1-3[14:1] “Let not your hearts be troubled. Believe in God; believe also in me. [2] In my Father's house are many rooms. If it were not so, would I have told you that I go to prepare a place for you? [3] And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and will take you to myself, that where I am you may be also. This  text from John’s gospel tells us  what He is doing  in heaven  for us. He’s preparing a place for His people.  Heaven  is waiting for those  who  love Him now  and believe in Him now ( 1 Peter  1:8,9)

3.      In Romans 8:34 we read of another work of the Lord Jesus for us . He is  at the right hand of God… interceding for us . The ascended Lord Jesus prays for  His people even now !

4.      1 Peter 3:21-22[21] Baptism, which corresponds to this, now saves you, not as a removal of dirt from the body but as an appeal to God for a good conscience, through the resurrection of Jesus Christ, [22] who has gone into heaven and is at the right hand of God, with angels, authorities, and powers having been subjected to him. This  text from  Peter’s epistle tells us  something about  the amazing authority  of  our  ascended Christ . He occupies a realm of power that  would dazzle us!

5.      History  :  Has  the church in history   observed such a day in her calendar ?  Yes! According to Augustine  the bishop of Hippo in North Africa (354-  430 AD) ,  the Feast of Ascension originated with the apostles. John Chrysostom and Gregory of Nyssa, contemporaries of Augustine, refer to this  as one of the oldest feasts of the Church, possibly going as far back as AD 68.   The older  denominations of the  modern church  have generally   kept this day as a holy day. Namibia’s  largely Lutheran   influence  has, I believe , secured this day  for us in our national calendar . 

So why should we  continue  to  remember this day  ?  8 reasons

1.  We remember  that Jesus is our  man in heaven !  He ascended to heaven as a man , and  He is seated at the right hand of the Father as a man  while also at the same time being ‘true God of true God’ ( Nicene Creed)! As a man  He is able to relate to us, and therefore the writer to the Hebrews calls Him our sympathetic  High priest ( Hebr 4: 14 -5:10). Thank God that we are so well represented  before God the Father  by  our Advocate – Jesus Christ the righteous , who is the propitiation for our sins ( 1 Jn 2:1)

2.We  remember  that  the  ascension  is also the promise of His descension. This Jesus, who was taken up from you into heaven, will come in the same way as you saw him go into heaven.  So,  we not only remember today that  Jesus  ascended  to heaven . We  also remember today  that He will return  as the coming Judge.

3.We remember  that  according to our  text  in John 14:1-3  our future  lies  where He is now,  as our ascended King .  This helps us to  maintain perspective on  our life , which does not consist only  of these feeble 70 or 80 years here on earth   , but it focusses our perspective on eternity ! Our  home is with Him!

4. We remember  this day that  Jesus  is  our ascended King  with great authority. (He) … has gone into heaven and is at the right hand of God, with angels, authorities, and powers having been subjected to him. ( 1 Pet 3:22)  He has left His humble state  and is  now  exalted and enthroned at the right hand of God the Father, Almighty.  We remember  that He still rules this world and the Universe from  there . He  is above every other name and authority. He is the King of kings and the Lord of lords. Ascension day is  a bold declaration  about ultimate  authority.  Jesus is in charge of all  things . Every knee must bow before  Him.  Abraham Kuyper  (1837 – 1920) ,  one time  prime minister of the Netherlands  and also  University professor and  pastor,   at  the turn of the 1900’s  declared : “There’s not an inch of this universe of which Jesus  does not say “Mine!”.  The  contemporary theologian  R.C. Sproul  says that “ there is not a  maverick molecule in the universe”.  Everything is under the sovereign control of our King Jesus. He rules. Oh how we need to hear this  truth in our fear  riddled society!   Currently the world is undergoing a huge financial crisis  , and no one knows how this is going to end.  What  fears  such  news  brings to the heart of  men . People  worry  :  How will  I eat , how will I drink ,  how  will I clothe myself ( see Matthew 6 ) .Ascension Day  affirms ultimate   authority in Christ , and my heart is therefore at peace!  Jesus authority in heaven  is not an abstract authority   simply related to heaven. The Bible tells us  that  from where He is  “ knows how to rescue the godly from trials  “ ( 2 Peter 2:9) .  From His heavenly throne He  has empowered  His church. So when she lives in His strength , and in obedience and submission  to Him , she shall have  His power and authority. Pentecost  ( remembered on Sunday , in 10 days time) proved this .

5. We have confidence  that our Great Commission  from Jesus must succeed ! This is why Jesus, knowing all this, could say to His disciples on the eve of His departure,  “All authority in Heaven and on earth has been given to Me. Therefore go and make disciples of all nations . . . teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you . . .”( Matt 28:18-20.).  Our ascended, glorious , all powerful Lord guarantees the  success of the church’s mission!

6. We remember this day  because it  proclaims the Lordship of Christ everywhere  on earth and in all areas of life. Jesus has all authority  over every continent , country and city. He has authority  over every people group.  For  reasons known only to Him  some people  groups are presently more favoured with the gospel than others . Others have been more favoured in the past  (e.g.  North Africa ; Middle east ) . The reason why the gospel  is scarce in Iran  and Saudi Arabia  is not because  Jesus is powerless and helpless in those countries . They may rage  against Him now , but according to Psalm 2  He has the last say.  Mockers must tremble , and Christians  must be bold in  prayer.

Jesus  is  the King of the Universe. He  possesses  the hearts of the kings of the nations .  He  must rule over every area of our  life. Does Jesus  care what we see , and what we listen to ?  Is He not also concerned about our  business ethics, our legal  practices?  Is He not also  the Lord of  business, sports, entertainment, and government?  Is He not also  concerned  about  what is taught in our schools ? Does He not care  about how the sick are being looked after in our hospitals?  Is He not concerned about the decisions  that our  parliamentarians make? 

Indeed , there  is no area of life that is outside of the authority of Christ. Every doctor, teacher, policeman, parliamentarian, businessman, factory worker, mother, father, magistrate  etc.   will have to individually stand before  this ascended , enthroned  King and coming Judge, on the Day of Judgment. All will have to give  an account to Him (see Matt 25) .

7.  We remember this  day  because  it   reminds us  that  the ultimate  victory  over all  evil  belongs to Christ.  Many   rulers  think that they  have power  and authority in themselves . But where are they now ? Swept away in death.  Think of Caiaphas, the high priest, Herod  the king and Pontius Pilate the Roman governor,  who  thought that they were very important and powerful people. Where are they ? I tell you where they are. They are in hell  awaiting the coming final judgment  reserved  for all the enemies of God  at His  descension. They were so blinded by their self styled  notions of grandeur, that they  didn’t recognise that they were condemning their  Creator to death.   It did not occur to them  that  they who judged Him, would one day have to stand before  the righteous  Judge.  The Emperor Augustus who issued the decree that a census should be taken of the entire Roman world, requiring everyone to return to their town of birth,  did not  realize  , that this  baby born under his rule  to  lowly  peasant class  people  in Judea would one day judge him.

8. The Ascension is a great comfort to believers who suffer persecution. “Therefore, since we have a great High Priest Who has gone through the Heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold firmly to the Faith we profess.” Hebrews 4:14. Jesus will  soon judge our enemies. “For He must reign until He has put all His enemies under His feet.” (1 Cor 15:25).There will be a day of accounting.  Your suffering is  only for a brief period.  Your future  joy shall be everlasting.  Do not  fear evil men,   governments or evil systems.  Don’t fear them that can destroy the body… fear Him who can destroy of body and soul  in hell . Do not  bow before idols. Do not  compromise the essential principles of your faith.  Remember  that Jesus rules. Remember  that “. . . the earth will be filled with the knowledge of the glory of the Lord, as the waters cover the sea.” (Habakkuk 2:14)

Remember who is on the throne  of the universe right now : “Therefore God exalted Him to the highest place and gave Him the Name that is above every name, that at the Name of Jesus every knee should bow in Heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father” Phil 2:9-11.

9. We remember  this day , because  it is presently entrenched in our national  calendar  as  a great testimony  to  our Lord Jesus  Christ!  It gives us gospel opportunities . Whenever people , or our children  ask, “ What day is this ?”  we have  an opportunity to share  about the person and work of the Lord Jesus Christ.  ( See the example of the  Passover as a   day to be remembered  in Ex 12:26  ) . Such days are like  the erecting of a memorial  ( e.g.  the stones  in Joshua  4:6)  for future generations . The Lord commanded  Israel to observe  a number of  important  days in Israel. The most regular one was to be the Sabbath  (the 7^th day). We have other such memorials  in our year : Christmas , Easter , Ascension  and  Pentecost , and although the NT does not insist that we shall keep them ( for  fear  that we make the day greater than  the person of Christ – Col 2:16,17) , we do well to see Christ  in them . 

Whatever  glorifies our Lord Jesus  must  be upheld by the Christian Church . So thank God for Ascension Day , when we can remember the Lord Jesus as He is now :   Our glorious coming King! Amen !

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[1] The other Southern African countries  that still have this day are   Botswana , Swaziland  and Lesotho

[2] The Constitution of the Republic of Namibia , Preamble , p.1