We don’t know for sure what the apostles made of these mysterious sayings, which probably didn’t fit neatly with their ideas about the coming kingdom. For example, “Do not leave Jerusalem, but wait there for what my Father promised…For John baptized with water, but you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit not many days from now” ( verse 5). Sure, Jesus was still making some hard-to-interpret comments. Maybe now all their hopes for the coming kingdom of God-all the deepest desires of the people of Israel wrapped up in Jesus the Messiah-would finally come true! But the resurrection changed everything-in more ways than any of them realized. In the book of Acts we read that for 40 days Jesus “presented himself alive with many convincing proofs,” and he “spoke about matters concerning the kingdom of God” ( Acts 1:3, NET).Ĭan you imagine the atmosphere of anticipation and excitement? The apostles’ hopes about Jesus had been dashed when he was arrested and crucified as a criminal. And then we’ll uncover some of the story’s meaning and provide some truths to meditate on this Ascension Day. Let’s go back to the story itself, as recorded in Scripture. And we know how Jesus’ life culminated with the world-shaking significance of the cross and the resurrection.īut then he just…leaves. I wonder if our tendency to let Ascension Day slip past uncelebrated has more to do with the simple fact that it feels anticlimactic? The Christmas story tells us that God purposed to be with us, joining himself to human nature and walking among us as a man. Let’s be honest-disappearing into the sky is sort of par for the course given that kind of context! A man floating into the sky, never to be seen again…what’s this all about? But remember, this is the same man who was born to a virgin, calmed storms with a word, rose from the dead, and who, post-resurrection, could pass through walls and locked doors. Maybe it’s because the Ascension seems a little strange. But for many Christians, Ascension Day passes by with hardly a murmur of recognition or excitement.
Christmas and Easter are major cultural events, even outside of Christian circles. This episode doesn’t get as much attention as Jesus’ birth, crucifixion, or resurrection. Forty days after Jesus rose from the grave, another miracle marked the completion of Jesus’ earthly ministry: the Ascension.
0 kommentar(er)
