Easter Series Pt 4
“Annotations From The Ascension”
Acts 1:1-11
Acts 1:9 And when he had spoken these things, while they beheld, he was taken up; and a cloud received him out of their sight.
10 And while they looked stedfastly toward heaven as he went up, behold, two men stood by them in white apparel;
11 Which also said, Ye men of Galilee, why stand ye gazing up into heaven? this same Jesus, which is taken up from you into heaven, shall so come in like manner as ye have seen him go into heaven.
First: What happened prior to the ascension?
I. The Occupation of the Risen Lord
A. He commands His servants
What commandments did Jesus give “…unto the Apostles whom He had chosen…” We certainly don’t know everything that Jesus told His disciples; John 21:25 “And there are also many other things which Jesus did, the which, if they should be written every one, I suppose that even the world itself could not contain the books that should be written. Amen” but we do know some things. For instance He told them:
Matthew 28:18 And Jesus came and spake unto them, saying, All power is given unto me in heaven and in earth.
19 Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost:
20 Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world. Amen.
B. His confirms His resurrection v. 3a
One of the things that the Lord focused on in the 40 day period between his resurrection and His ascension is the unbelief of His family and friends. Amazingly enough, some of the events recorded in Scripture occurred after Jesus has showed Himself alive!
Matthew 28:17 And when they saw him, they worshipped him: but some doubted.
John 20:25 The other disciples therefore said unto him, We have seen the Lord. But he said unto them, Except I shall see in his hands the print of the nails, and put my finger into the print of the nails, and thrust my hand into his side, I will not believe.
Mark 16:14 Afterward he appeared unto the eleven as they sat at meat, and upbraided them with their unbelief and hardness of heart, because they believed not them which had seen him after he was risen.
John 21:3 is the most puzzling passage of all for we have a passage that indicates that after a visit to the tomb and after several others testimonies concerning the Lord’s resurrection from the dead, Peter and the other disciples “…go a fishing…!”
John 21:3 Simon Peter saith unto them, I go a fishing. They say unto him, We also go with thee. They went forth, and entered into a ship immediately; and that night they caught nothing.
There are no less than thirteen different appearances of Jesus to his disciples recorded and the purpose seems to have been more to convince His own disciples than those outside who were non-believers. Barnes
C. He completes His revelation v. 3b
Luke tells us that Jesus was speaking of the “…things pertaining to the Kingdom…” The disciple not only saw that it was Jesus, they also heard Him speak and recognized that Jesus was teaching about the Kingdom just like He had before His death and resurrection.
Second: What did Jesus have to say?
II. The Oaths of the Risen Lord
A. The promise of the Paraclete v. 4-5
Acts 1:4 And, being assembled together with them, commanded them that they should not depart from Jerusalem, but wait for the promise of the Father, which, saith he, ye have heard of me.
5 For John truly baptized with water; but ye shall be baptized with the Holy Ghost not many days hence.
B. The promise of Power v. 8
Acts 1:8 But ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you: and ye shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judaea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth.
C. The promise of a Parousia v. 11
ILL - March 11, 1942. Corregidor, in the Philippines. I’m sure most of the WWII veterans in the congregation today can tell you what happened that day.
The Japanese forces were invading the Philippines, and on a day that marked the beginning of a dark chapter for the American and Filipino forces, General Douglas MacArthur prepared to leave, uttering what was to become probably his most famous statement: “I shall return.”
When he made the promise to return, many thought he was crazy. But his determination to free the Philippines from Japanese occupation would not be drowned by criticism and doubt.
Roughly 2 ½ years later, Gen. MacArthur landed once again on Philippine soil with the words, “People of the Philippines, I have returned!”
John 14:3 And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive you unto myself; that where I am, there ye may be also.
Acts 1:11 Which also said, Ye men of Galilee, why stand ye gazing up into heaven? this same Jesus, which is taken up from you into heaven, shall so come in like manner as ye have seen him go into heaven.
Finally: What do we know the ascension itself?
III. The Observation of the Risen Lord
A. His departure
The location of the ascension was east of Jerusalem near Bethany and I’ve often thought about what it must have been like to watch as Jesus was “…taken up…” into a cloud. I can’t help but wonder if on this occasion like so many others if the Father didn’t prepare a special “cloud” containing the shekinah glory of God to receive His Son back into heaven? What must it have been like for the disciples?
John 17:5 And now, O Father, glorify thou me with thine own self with the glory which I had with thee before the world was.
ILL - Parable of immortality ( A ship leaves . . . by Henry Van Dyke - 1852 - 1933
“I am standing by the seashore. A ship at my side spreads her white sails to the morning breeze and starts for the blue ocean. She is an object of beauty and strength, and I stand and watch until at last she hangs like a peck of white cloud just where the sun and sky come down to mingle with each other. Then someone at my side says: - ’There she goes!
Gone where? Gone from my sight - that is all.
She is just as large in mast and hull and spar as she was when she left my side and just as able to bear her load of living freight to the places of destination. Her diminished size is in me, not in her. And just at the moment when someone at my side says: - ’There she goes! ’, there are other eyes watching her coming, and other voices ready to take up the glad shout : - ’Here she comes!”
B. His disappearance
Forty days after His physical resurrection Jesus “was taken up” and disappeared into a cloud. Five times New Testament writers employ the Greek term analambano (to take up) of the Lord’s ascension (Mark 16:19; Acts 1:2,11,22; 1 Timothy 3:16). Each time the verb is in the passive voice, he “was taken up.” The passive voice represents the subject of the verb as being acted upon, thus, in this instance, indicating that the “taking up” was empowered from above, namely by God.
Luke 24:51 And it came to pass, while he blessed them, he was parted from them, and carried up into heaven.
D. His destination
Where did Jesus go? He went to heaven!
Mark 16:19 So then after the Lord had spoken unto them, he was received up into heaven, and sat on the right hand of God.
Luke 24:51 And it came to pass, while he blessed them, he was parted from them, and carried up into heaven.
52 And they worshipped him, and returned to Jerusalem with great joy:
53 And were continually in the temple, praising and blessing God. Amen.
Yes, Jesus went to heaven but more specifically He went to sit at the Father’s right hand!
“A thousand years before the Savior’s birth, David prophesied the ascension of Jesus when he announced the Lord’s enthronement at the Father’s right hand (Psalm 110:1). No other psalm is so frequently quoted in the New Testament – an indication of the importance of the event.” Christian Courier
Psalms 110:1 A Psalm of David. The LORD said unto my Lord, Sit thou at my right hand, until I make thine enemies thy footstool.
The ascension of Christ presents a problem for the opponents of Christianity. If Jesus was not raised from the dead, or if he somehow survived the ordeal of Calvary and died later (as Hugh Schonfield speculated in his infamous book, The Passover Plot), surely the Lord’s enemies would have vigorously sought to reclaim his body, thus nullifying the “resurrection” story. With such a “trophy,” Christianity could have been crushed in its infancy. Those efforts, however, if they occurred, were in vain. That lack of evidence indirectly supports the record of the ascension; there was no earthly corpse.
The apostles themselves witnessed the Savior’s ascension (Acts 1:9-11). Luke’s record of this event was under-girded by his careful research (Luke 1:3; 24:51), not to mention his guidance by the Spirit. Mark, who wrote under the tutelage of Peter (Eusebius, Ecclesiastical History, 2.15), also took note of the ascension (Mark 16:19), and the event was taken for granted in the balance of the New Testament (Acts 2:33; Ephesians 4:8-10; Philippians 3:20; Colossians 3:1; 1 Timothy 3:16; 1 Peter 3:22). At the time of his martyrdom, Stephen was permitted to actually see the ascended Christ, and petition him (Acts 7:55-60). Christian Courier
Gleaned from Wayne Jackson - The Abiding Significance
There are several significant doctrinal points connected with the ascension of Christ. Let us consider some of these.
1. The ascension of the Savior accentuated the Lordship of Jesus, that He was both Lord and Christ.
2. The ascension of the Savior authenticated the fact that the circumstances of that day, resulting in the establishment of the church of Christ, were divinely orchestrated. The Christian regime is from God, not man.
3. The ascended Christ empowered the early disciples with miraculous gifts, by which the Mind of God was revealed to humanity and subsequently preserved in a body of sacred literature we now call the Bible.
4. The ascension clarified the real intent of His mission to earth. He did not come to set up an earthly kingdom.
5. The ascension of Christ demonstrated the manner of Christ’s final return.
6. The ascension of Jesus provides us with the confidence that we have a heavenly High Priest who, having been “crowned with glory and honor” (Hebrews 1:13; 2:7,9), ever lives to make intercession for us (Hebrews 7:25; cf. 1 John 2:1-2).
7. The ascension of Christ underscores the fact that Christians are charged with the responsibility of implementing his will on earth, as he reigns from heaven. The Teacher’s parting words commissioned his people to make disciples of every creature among the nations throughout the earth (Matthew 28:18-20; Mark 16:15-16; Luke 24:47).
The ascension of the Savior is an integral part of God’s plan to “…seek and to save that which is lost…” In its simplest form without an ascent there would be no descent later!
