Good Morning Friends,
If you look in a church calendar you might see a notation that today is “Ascension Day”, but then it might not be there at all because “Ascension Day” is one of the neglected events of the Christian church year. Yesterday in preparation I considered some hymns that might relate to the event such as, All Creatures of Our God and King or All Hail The Power of Jesus’ Name, or Crown Him With Many Crowns, but instead delved a little deeper into one sung by English prisoners of war called The Day Thou Gavest, Lord, Is Ended. The text is included following the devotional for it connects the Ascension Day with the Day of our own death. And maybe that is why people are uncomfortable with the Ascension. But if you are uncomfortable with this reality, you are making a mistake ignoring the celebration, and an opportunity to reflect on the message of the Ascension. Maybe we do not like goodbyes or maybe we really do not want to acknowledge Christ as King or have trouble believe that Jesus defies gravity. But, if we gloss over its truth or worse deny it, we rob ourselves of an important doctrine, for without the Ascension, the work of Christ would be incomplete. So, What Can We Learn From The Ascension And Hymns?
Scripture: “A little while, and you will no longer see me, and again a little while, and you will see me.” Then some of his disciples said to one another, “What does he mean by saying to us, ‘A little while, and you will no longer see me, and again a little while, and you will see me’; and ‘Because I am going to the Father’?” They said, “What does he mean by this ‘a little while’? We do not know what he is talking about.” Jesus knew that they wanted to ask him, so he said to them, “Are you discussing among yourselves what I meant when I said, ‘A little while, and you will no longer see me, and again a little while, and you will see me’? Very truly, I tell you, you will weep and mourn, but the world will rejoice; you will have pain, but your pain will turn into joy.
John 16:16-20 (NRSV)
In the first book, Theophilus, I wrote about all that Jesus did and taught from the beginning until the day when he was taken up to heaven, after giving instructions through the Holy Spirit to the apostles whom he had chosen. After his suffering he presented himself alive to them by many convincing proofs, appearing to them during forty days and speaking about the kingdom of God. While staying with them, he ordered them not to leave Jerusalem, but to wait there for the promise of the Father. “This,” he said, “is what you have heard from me; for John baptized with water, but you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit not many days from now.” So when they had come together, they asked him, “Lord, is this the time when you will restore the kingdom to Israel?” He replied, “It is not for you to know the times or periods that the Father has set by his own authority. But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.” When he had said this, as they were watching, he was lifted up, and a cloud took him out of their sight. While he was going and they were gazing up toward heaven, suddenly two men in white robes stood by them. They said, “Men of Galilee, why do you stand looking up toward heaven? This Jesus, who has been taken up from you into heaven, will come in the same way as you saw him go into heaven.” Then they returned to Jerusalem from the mount called Olivet, which is near Jerusalem, a sabbath day’s journey away.
Acts 1:1-12 (NRSV)
I pray that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give you a spirit of wisdom and revelation as you come to know him, so that, with the eyes of your heart enlightened, you may know what is the hope to which he has called you, what are the riches of his glorious inheritance among the saints, and what is the immeasurable greatness of his power for us who believe, according to the working of his great power. God put this power to work in Christ when he raised him from the dead and seated him at his right hand in the heavenly places, far above all rule and authority and power and dominion, and above every name that is named, not only in this age but also in the age to come. And he has put all things under his feet and has made him the head over all things for the church ,which is his body, the fullness of him who fills all in all.
Ephesians 1:17-23 (NRSV)
I therefore, the prisoner in the Lord, beg you to lead a life worthy of the calling to which you have been called, with all humility and gentleness, with patience, bearing with one another in love, making every effort to maintain the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace. There is one body and one Spirit, just as you were called to the one hope of your calling, one Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God and Father of all, who is above all and through all and in all. But each of us was given grace according to the measure of Christ’s gift. Therefore it is said, “When he ascended on high he made captivity itself a captive; he gave gifts to his people.” (When it says, “He ascended,” what does it mean but that he had also descended into the lower parts of the earth? He who descended is the same one who ascended far above all the heavens, so that he might fill all things.) The gifts he gave were that some would be apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, some pastors and teachers, to equip the saints for the work of ministry, for building up the body of Christ, until all of us come to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to maturity, to the measure of the full stature of Christ.
Ephesians 4:1-13 (NRSV)
And he said to them, “Go into all the world and proclaim the good news to the whole creation. The one who believes and is baptized will be saved; but the one who does not believe will be condemned. And these signs will accompany those who believe: by using my name they will cast out demons; they will speak in new tongues; they will pick up snakes in their hands, and if they drink any deadly thing, it will not hurt them; they will lay their hands on the sick, and they will recover.” So then the Lord Jesus, after he had spoken to them, was taken up into heaven and sat down at the right hand of God. And they went out and proclaimed the good news everywhere, while the Lord worked with them and confirmed the message by the signs that accompanied it.
Mark 16:15-20 (NRSV)
When he had said this, as they were watching, he was lifted up, and a cloud took him out of their sight.
Acts 1:9 (NRSV)
Message: If you look at the calendar you will see that it has been forty days since Easter. But few people are thinking about this event. Perhaps it is because Ascension Day falls on a weekday that it does not get the notice it deserves. This is a pity because it is full of significance. It is important because of Christ’s continuing ministry for us in heaven in a glorified body. It is important because it empowers Jesus to be distributed everywhere. And as a weekday event, it reminds us that Christianity is not just something for Sunday but for all time in all places. So, in this way the Ascension of Christ to the throne reminds us that Jesus rules every day and everywhere. The gospel writer Luke, who also wrote Acts, is renowned as a careful historian. When he recorded the Ascension, he rooted it in its historical setting by recalling the place of the event – at Bethany…the place Jesus called home. It was a very real event in history, with witnesses, but also a mystery in the sense that it is beyond the scope of our human experience. The Ascension takes us into the realm of the supernatural and signals the ending of a chapter in his earthly life. Here the Resurrection and the Ascension are milestones in the process whereby Jesus finally enters the glory of God. The Jesus of Earth becomes the Christ of heaven. This is an historical event but also a spiritual one. Just as death and the grave could not hold Jesus, so the Earth could not hold him. When the time came for him to return to his Father the event is marked in history and mystery. But it is the beauty from the spiritual perspective of the Ascension of Jesus that helps us to see how it is possible for him to be close to each one of us in every part of our lives. And that is very practical and moves us to act in the Spirit we have been given and in the structure of what remains in our life together in service to our Lord. In a very practical way, the Ascension reminds us of the Second Coming of Jesus to judge the world and our need to be ready to give account of our stewardship. We are not to stand looking up to heaven all the time but are encouraged to continue the work of our Lord realizing Christ’s Spirit will never leave us.
And So, the Ascension is largely overshadowed by the Incarnation and Resurrection. Christmas and Easter are the ways our cultures celebrate, but Ascension Day goes by without a trace, barely recognized…yet it is no minor episode, it is the Coronation Day for Jesus and the promise of Jesus fulfilled that He would go and prepare a place for us. Though often overlooked, the ascension completes Jesus’s earthly mission and signifies his rule as heavenly king. It occurs forty days after the Resurrection and marks the completion of the Father’s mission assigned to Jesus. It is important because the Ascension marks the shift in Jesus’ role and the role of the disciples. For now, Christ has all authority and arbitrates with all sympathy as our mediator from heaven even as the gift of the Holy Spirit begins to empower the evangelistic actions of the disciples that Jesus emphasized just before he went up and they went out. The ascension of Jesus has similar implications for our lives. The Ascension grounds us in the coming of Jesus’ spiritual presence, even as we begin to grasp that we in time we will no longer be confined to the limitations of this life and may from time to time get glimpse of the new life we are to lead. Here it becomes clearer that the sacred and the secular can no longer be separated…the Holy of Holies has been opened. Things have forever changed. This message shares one of the most important truths in scriptures. Friends, we know He rose, but we also know which way He went during His departure, and we know the direction in which we have been pointed until his return.
Pray we realize that Jesus reigns now. Pray we acknowledge him as the Son of God and the King of Creation but also a man showing us the way. Pray we appreciate that he kept his Word. Pray we follow in the route and Way he has provided for us. Pray His Kingdom is established in our hearts. Pray we live boldly and confidently and strategically knowing that our labors in the Lord Jesus are not in vain. Pray we realize that we have hope of a glorious future. Pray that though Jesus’ throne is in heaven we still find him in our hearts. Pray we believe that Jesus came from above and will be coming back for us. Pray we be effective witnesses to Jesus who sits on the right hand of God the Father. Pray we realize that the Resurrection and the Ascension form two parts of one continuous movement resulting in the glorification of Jesus. Pray we be inspired by the Ascension of our Lord Jesus and what it means for our eternal happiness. Pray we believe in the power of Jesus Christ who lives and reigns in the unity of the Holy Spirit, and the Father as one God forever and ever. Pray on this Day of Ascension that our hope is magnified and shared to further God’s work. Pray we delight in the Lord and His Kingdom. Pray we keep singing in praise of God’s glory on earth as we will in heaven.
Blessings,
John Lawson
The Day Thou Gavest, Lord, Is Ended.
- The day Thou gavest, Lord, is ended,
The darkness falls at Thy behest;
To Thee our morning hymns ascended,
Thy praise shall sanctify our rest. - We thank Thee that Thy church, unsleeping,
While earth rolls onward into light,
Through all the world her watch is keeping,
And rests not now by day or night. - As o’er each continent and island
The dawn leads on another day,
The voice of prayer is never silent,
Nor dies the strain of praise away. - The sun that bids us rest is waking
Our brethren ‘neath the western sky,
And hour by hour fresh lips are making
Thy wondrous doings heard on high. - So be it, Lord; Thy throne shall never,
Like earth’s proud empires, pass away:
Thy kingdom stands, and grows forever,
Till all Thy creatures own Thy sway.
John Ellerton, 1870
Daily Devotionals 