THE Last Sunday IN THE SEASON OF EASTER,
Ascension Sunday
INTRODUCTION;;Luke-24: 44-53, ACTS 1:11 There are many days of the church year WE CELEBRATE, CHRISTMAS, EASTER, PENTECOST.
YET, There are ALSO days of the church year the we fail to recognize, and these days and events reveal to us the nature of God. Trinity Sunday, the Sunday of God revealed to us as Father, Son, Holy Ghost... Transfiguration Sunday...Jesus’s transfiguration..the day in which Jesus reveal his glory to us he is transfigured.’‘
And one of my favorites...All Saints Day...
TODAY we will be exploring a day entitled Ascension Day.
THE Gospel OF LUKE, REMINDS US IN THE last chapter of the ascension as well as the first Chapter of Acts of the Ascension.. Luke’s records IN CHAPTER, that "JESUS led them out as far as Bethany, and lifting up his hands, he blessed them. While he was blessing them, he withdrew from them and was carried up into heaven..
Thus we meet a day called Ascension Day.
ACTS 1; CONTINUES WITH THE STORY WHICH shares that JESUS REMAINED WITH THE APOSTLES FORTY DAYS AFTER THE RESURRECTION.
For forty days after the Resurrection, Jesus walked and talked with the disciples. Relating to The kingdom of God was the major topic of consideration.
Jesus reiterates the philosophy of life..not the average Christian life but as Watchman Nee says the normal Christian life...
He reminds them that they are....
the salt of the earth. a city on a hill a candle that lights up their community.
He speaks about the new creation,"That which is born of the flesh is flesh"; and, "that which is of the spirit is spirit..
After Jesus shares with the apostles and his hopes were clarified. Commands were given that they become "witnesses" in the world. With these thoughts completed, Jesus ascends ,,rises, lifts into the clouds.
The Ascension of Jesus placed the continued work of God’ in the hands of God’s people.
In verse 8 of Acts ,,,,, we read that the apostles were to become "witnesses" of Jesus to people everywhere. Jerusalem, Judea, Samaria, the ends of the earth-
The word witnesses translates the Greek marturia, from which we also derive the word martyr. The verse could well read, "And you will become my martyrs."
Which Jesus meant when he said that to be his followers we must first die to ourselves.
THEN Jesus was gone. Into thin air. Then in verse 10 we read while they were gazing up, two messengers came and questioned them, and set them straight back to the city to wait.
Sent them with a promise. The Jesus they were still looking for, as they looked up into thick air, would come again.
But they were told something, verse 8 ,,they would receive power from on high? Something?
Someone? ...will come to you from beyond the boundless sky, and fill you with power OF THE HOLY GHOST.... Yet beyond that day , a lifetime beyond that day, half a world beyond that place, a man named Paul sat in Rome. Under arrest. Waiting in prison to stand before Caesar’s,,and there to make the final defense of the Gospel, before certain death.
Paul’s was surrounded by stone walls, with A young scribe at his side, to record his last thoughts and prayers for the people of the churches IN ASIA IN CLUSIVE OF Ephesus, THUS WE HAVE PAULS LETTER TO THE CHURCH COMMUNITY CALLED THE EPHESIANS.
SO PAUL GIVES his scribe SOMETHING to write: WHICH IS THAT God has put all things under Christ’s feet and has made Christ the head over all things for the church, which is Christ’s body, the fullness of the One who fills all in all.
Paul wrote,
A.......I pray that you may have the power to comprehend what is the breadth and length and height and depth... OF GOD LOVE,
B.......I pray that you may have the power to comprehend OF what God can, and will do, in you and through you, together.
C.......I pray that you may understand the power of God.
Power to respond to every fearful change and challenge.
Power to respond with ministry that renews and transforms a hurting world.
Power to declare the name of Jesus, who has been lifted up above all powers and authorities in this world, above and beyond all forces of darkness.
Power that transcends the breadth and length and height and depth of any problem.
This epistle of Ephesians was written by the Apostle Paul , about the year 62 AD from Rome while he was imprisoned.
In this passage that we’ll consider this day, Paul offers us a recurrent theme of prayer...
WHICH WE READ IN VERSE 16, AS I REMEMBER YOU IN MY PRAYERS..
Paul writes to them, AFFIRMING that "God is not finished with them yet," SO he prays that they will have the wisdom to know God better,
IN VV: 17 His prayer, The Wisdom to Know God Better (v. 17),
WHICH MEANS TO surpass, OR improved, ENHANCE WHAT IS CURRENTLY POSSES..
AND HE PRAYS that their eyes will be opened in appreciation of God’s grace....vv. 18- 19)
Because normally church,, The blessings of God in our lives are so constant and boundless, PLENTIFUL, ABUNDANT OVERFLOWING, that we almost forget to acknowledge them.
PAUL PRAYS THAT GOD, might give to us "a spirit of wisdom and of revelation in the knowledge of Him," so that "..the eyes of our heart may be opened, ..VERSE 18
a....We might know what is the hope of His calling,
b.....WE MIGHT VALUE the riches of the glory of His inheritance,
c....WE MIGHT ACKNOWLEDGE The surpassing greatness of His power toward us who believe."
This is Paul’s prayer for those he loves. This is also my prayer for you, those I love and pray for continuously.
I have arrived at some conclusions that burden my heart.
I am convinced that most of the followers of Jesus are beaten down and living defeated from day-to-day.
Satan is beating up on the Body of Christ one-by-one.
He has convinced scores of believers that they are losers, inept, and ineffective in their Christian walk.
As a result they have taken a seat on the sidelines of life.
Knowing that if they do nothing then they won’t have to face failure ever again.
A.......Those who have suffered the break-up of their marriage vow to never go through "that" again.
B........Those who once shared a deep friendship only to have their heart BROKEN PROMISE to never get that close to another person again.
C........Those who tried to start a business WHICH DID NOT WORK promise themselves that they will quit as soon as they can find someone to SELL IT TO...
d.....Those who decided to attend a COLLEGE class only to find they have gotten behind in their lessons decide that they just can’t do it and never go back again.
Satan is having a field day with the foot soldiers of the Kingdom! God’s desire for you and for me is that we would unleash the power He has provided for us in order that we might live each day to His glory and honor. God’s desire for each of us is that we might live in the fullness of His presence and come to understand the unmeasurable grace and power that He has for us as we seek His heart.
Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. {29} Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. {30} For my yoke is easy and my burden is light. (Mat 11:28-30 NIV)
I want us to focus on unleashing the power of God in our lives through prayer.
Firstly, Pray seeking intimacy.
When we humble ourselves before God we should seek first and foremost to come to know the Father in a deeper way.
Because If our prayer time is full of our words then our prayers are merely full of us.
SECOND...The aim of prayer is to deepen our knowledge of him and our fellowship with him through contemplating his glory, confessing our dependence and need, and consciously embracing his goals.
THIRD...When we come to know God in a deep, personal way, THROUGH PRAYER, we will be able to live free in His grace.
Intimacy with the Father will lead us to a desire to know Him more and more in a deeper way than we’ve ever experienced before.
God never intended for us to become enslaved by the things that plague us. HE NEVER DESIRED FOR US TO THROUGH UP OUR HANDS AND GIVE UP,...
What He does intend is for us to throw up our hands in surrender to His holy power; power that is able to deliver us from the shackles of sin’s slavery.
God wants us to know in our hearts that we are completely dependent upon Him for everything -
the air we breath,
our ability to get out of bed in the morning,
the continued blessing of our relationships,
our material possessions
and the ability to make a living,
and most importantly, our salvation.
We have trusted in all kinds of things and people to help us make it through this life - none of them have or will worked except for humbly submitting ourselves to our King and Lord.
We must now trust in whom we know he who will prove himself, to provide what we need.
Jesus said in John’s Gospel,
{5} "I am the vine; you are the branches. If a man remains in me and I in him, he will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing. (John 15:4-5 NIV)
The ascension of Christ into heaven was one of the greatest events in the history of redemption.
I wish to remind you about Jesus’ triumphal entry into Jerusalem. The crowds cut down branches and spread them on the ROAD.
Many went ahead of Him shouting, (Matthew 21:9)
"Hosanna to the Son of David. Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord! Hosanna in the highest!" But that entry was nothing compared to His entry into heaven.
How much more so was His entrance into heaven after His work had been accomplished!
He entered heaven in order to sit down at the right hand of the Father.
SO WE FIND Paul TODAY, WHO PRAYS THAT THE CHURCH MAY RECEIVE Spiritual insight and wisdom into the deeper things about knowing God because there are some incredible truths that are revealed to us that can only be RECOGNIZE with spiritual hearts and eyes.
To know God better means to have fellowship with God,
The knowledge Paul had in mind was not merely theoretical, abstract, or academic. He wanted these people to have a real meeting with the Living Person of God in prayer.
He wanted them to have the sense of wonder and privilege of knowing God as a person- - as the Divine, Glorious King, Creator, Savior.
The end result of this heart- enlightenment has three goals or three aspects. Paul prays that these Christians- - and we should pray this often for others- - will have God’s floodlight illuminate and light up three areas:
Hope of God’s Calling
Riches of God’s Inheritance
Incomparably great Power of God
The hope of God’s calling (v. 18). The first aspect Paul wants these people to realize is the mighty scope and compass of God’s
calling.
When God calls people to himself, he’ll keep them until Heaven.
For Christians there is a future--more than tomorrow or ten years from now. In our future is a divinely ordered plan in which Christ will return and afterwards we’ll play a vital and strategic role.
We all need to have our eyes opened to that hope to which God has called us.
The word hope is always used in Scripture to mean certainty or in reference to future events that will happen come what may.
Hope is about the unpossessed future tense certainty that God has promised and will certainly bring about.
Hope is the soul’s firm anchor in the infallible promises of God, moored to the very throne of God."
Hope is the basis of all Christian living.
So I pray for you what Paul prayed for the Ephesians so that you in turn can pray this for other Christians:
That God will open your eyes to the glorious hope that lies ahead of you.
2....The riches of his glorious inheritance (v. 18). Secondly Paul prays that we’ll be enlightened and appreciate the riches of what God has done for us and what he’ll keep on doing for us.
This inheritance is of God’s grace and will never be taken away.
GOD has made us heirs of a gloriously rich and waiting inheritance. He prays that we’ll know this in depth and pray this for others.
ALSO A INHERITANCE OF RESTORATION.
SIN AND THE FALL BROKE OUR RELATIONSHIP WITH GOD . THE FIRST ADAM, YET THE SECOND ADAM BRINGS RESTORATION, TO US, AND WE ARE RESTORED TO SONS AND DAUGHTERS. OUR GREATEST INHERITANCE FACTOR IS OUR RECONCILIATION TO GOD, THROUGH JESUS CHRIST..
THIRDLY, ..His incomparably great power (v. 19a) for us who believe.
God’s great power has already been shown by the dethronement of self and enthronement of Christ in these people.
The Almighty arm has reversed the sinner’s direction and left the impress of Divine workmanship on these Christians.
When we know the greatness of this power, nothing will ever disturb our hope."
Paul prays that these people become confident of God’s omnipotence. And we should pray this for other Christians.
Our eyes need to be opened to the reality of God’s power.
Two thousand years ago the disciples’ eyes were opened briefly as the immeasurable power of God removed a stone from a cave and raised the Son to resurrection life.
And now HE SITS enthroned above all universes, all gods, dominions, hierarchies and potentialities, sits the risen, exalted Christ. . . .
AND this immeasurably great power is in believers. The problem is that most believers do not really grasp it.
Their eyes need to be opened not only to the hope awaiting them, and the love of God toward them, but to the power at work within them. One glimpse of this great power can revolutionize us and our church.
A......THE need Know, the riches of his glorious inheritance in the saints When we think of God’s kingdom, we often think of the great inheritance God has prepared for us.
B...THE NEED TO Know the incomparably great power that is working in us I pray that out of his glorious riches he may strengthen you with power through his Spirit in your inner being, so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith.
And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, may have power, together with all the saints, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, and to know this love that surpasses knowledge-- that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God.
According to Paul’s prayer, he wants us to be strengthen with God’s power, which gives us the inner strength to allow Christ to dwell in our hearts through faith.
It is through prayer God gives the power to know the deep things of God.
"In Pilgrim’s Progress, Interpreter shows Christian a small fire burning against a wall. Although a man continuously pours water on the flame, it only burns hotter. Interpreter tells Christian that the man pouring water is the devil.
Then he reveals why the fire doesn’t go out. On the other side of the wall stands another man, who is secretly pouring oil on the same fire. ’This is Christ,’ explains the Interpreter. ’With the oil of His grace, He continually maintains the work already begun in the heart of His people.’"
[15] For this reason, ever since I heard about your faith in the Lord Jesus and your love for all the saints,
[16] I have not stopped giving thanks for you, remembering you in my prayers.
[17] I keep asking that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the glorious Father, may give you the Spirit of wisdom and revelation, so that you may know Him better.
[18] I pray also that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened in order that you may know the hope to which he has called you, the riches of his glorious inheritance in the saints,
[19] and his incomparably great power for us who believe.
Paul is speaking of here, of the sufficiency of Christ and ,,,
THAT IT IS Gods desire that you know
His power,
His grace and
His glory., IN A GREATER REVEALED WAY.. And his prayer was that we may know what we have. Not what we may someday have, but what we will have today.
AMEN.................AMEN......................AMEN
