Keep looking up!
- Christine DiGiacomo
- 3 days ago
- 3 min read
Forty days after Jesus walks out of a borrowed tomb, he returns to his Father's side in Heaven - Today is the day we call Ascension Day.
Picture it with me: Suddenly, Jesus’ feet are lifting off the ground and he is going up in the air. . . those standing round him are immediately drawn to what is happening, rubbing the sand out of their eyes to make sure they are really seeing what they think they are seeing! Yes, Jesus is going up in the air, and then into the clouds, and just like that . . . he has vanished from the earth. Stunner.
Check out Luke's account:
So when they had come together, they asked him, “Lord, will you at this time restore the kingdom to Israel?”
He said to them, “It is not for you to know times or seasons that the Father has fixed 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 and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.”
And when he had said these things, as they were looking on, he was lifted up, and a cloud took him out of their sight.
And while they were gazing into heaven as he went, behold, two men stood by them in white robes, and said, “Men of Galilee, why do you stand looking into heaven? This Jesus, who was taken up from you into heaven, will come in the same way as you saw him go into heaven.”1
On their travel back to Jerusalem, what do you suppose they talk about as they eventually cross the Kidron Valley? Or are they silent? Probably both. They talk over each other about what they have seen, and then they are silent, thinking about it all.
And who is this eclectic group of people - the ones Jesus has chosen to see his ascension into Heaven, those who unite in prayer? Peter, John, James, Andrew, Philip, Thomas, Bartholomew, Matthew, James (son of Alphaeus), Simon (the zealot), and Judas (son of James)…plus Mary, Jesus’ mother, several other women, and Jesus’ brothers. [Interesting to note that this is the last time Mary, Jesus' mother is mentioned in Scripture.]
Jesus' observant friends and family talk about what they ought do next, and then they are quiet. And for once, they choose well. . . they obey the Lord, stay together and pray. They do not know what to expect, but Jesus has told them to tarry in Jerusalem until they receive the Holy Spirit. And they do.
Jesus is coming again, you know. As the devoted learn that day, someday he will return from heaven in the same way you saw him go. . . Jesus is coming again. Paul describes that great and glorious day of his return: For the Lord himself will come down from heaven with a commanding shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trumpet call of God. First, the believers who have died will rise from their graves. Then, together with them, we who are still alive and remain on the earth will be caught up in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. Then we will be with the Lord forever.2
Without a doubt, Jesus' ascension into Heaven was a mic drop.
But one day, he will do it again!
We will see him face to face... I simply cannot wait!
I know of several who are really hurting right now--a young dad struck by a hit-and-run driver a few nights ago in front of his Southern California home, fighting for his life in the hospital; a dear friend who lost her best friend and husband suddenly, still shocked by his disappearance ... and well, you know your situation. I want to remind you: our Lord will come again, and we will live with him forever in heaven; this world is not all there is.
What is more appropriate in response than praise? This song by Melody Noel, who traveled to Israel with us, leading us in worship in various places, including the glorious Mt. of Olives, from which Jesus ascended.
Glory, Honor, Power - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2x63bhSMEQk
Keep looking up!
Christine
1 - Acts 1.6-11
2 - 1 Thessalonians 4.16-17
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