If you are reading this on the 25/5, tomorrow is Ascension Day, the day we celebrate Jesus’ return to heaven to rule at the right hand of the Father. The risen man, Christ Jesus, is now in charge of the universe, and at His return all people will acknowledge it.

After appearing to his disciples for 40 days after His Resurrection (Acts 1: 3), Acts 1: 9 records: ‘ … he was lifted up, and a cloud took him out of their sight.’
Hebrews 1: 3-4 explains the significance of this: ‘after making purification for sins, he sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high…’ in the place of honour and ultimate authority. He is now there, in the presence of the Father, to plead the blood He shed for us in heaven.

As David Mathis puts it in his book Rich Wounds, ‘the whole first chapter of Hebrews pictures the climactic coronation ceremony of the universe: the Son, having ascended to heaven in his resurrection body, ascends to the throne and sits down. He has accomplished his work of redemption’.

Jesus’ ascension into the presence of God gets all that he accomplished ‘down here’ to count for us ‘up there’ with God.David Mathis adds: ‘Jesus was always the divine Son. In one sense, all authority was always His as God. But in another sense, God now has crowned him King of all kings, at the very apex of the universe, not just as God but as man. The man Christ Jesus sits in the very seat of God, and he must reign until he has put all his enemies under his feet (1 Corinthians 15:25)’.

What does this mean for Christians? It means that our future is secure. It means that we have good news to share and we should be praying for an opportunity to share it with our friends, and for the Holy Spirit to open their eyes to see Christ Jesus as he is: the Lord of heaven and earth. 

Your brother in Christ,
Ian