Sermon Index
Christ’s Ascension:
The Seventh Sunday of Easter
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ACTS 1:1–11 In the first book, O Theophilus, I have dealt with all that Jesus began to do and teach, until the day when he was taken up, after he had given commands through the Holy Spirit to the apostles whom he had chosen. To them he presented himself alive after his suffering by many proofs, appearing to them during forty days and speaking about the kingdom of God. And while staying with them he ordered them not to depart from Jerusalem, but to wait for the promise of the Father, which, he said, “you heard from me; for John baptized with water, but you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit not many days from now.” 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.”
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APOSTLES’ CREED I believe in God the Father Almighty, creator of heaven and earth. I believe in Jesus Christ, his only Son, our Lord. He was conceived by the power of the Holy Spirit and born of the virgin Mary. He suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, died, and was buried. He descended into hell. On the third day he rose again. He ascended into heaven, and is seated at the right hand of the Father. He will come again to judge the living and the dead. I believe in the Holy Spirit, |
Christ’s Ascension:
Today is Ascension Sunday. Concerning the Lord’s Ascension, the Apostles’ Creed says,
He ascended into heaven,
and is seated at the right hand of the Father.
He will come again to judge the living and the dead.
There are three statements here, so today’s sermon will have three points. To each point we will ask, “What does this mean?” “What does it mean for me?”
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First, “He ascended into heaven.” It would seem that the opposite of this phrase would be the proceeding words in the creed that say, “He descended into hell.” Heaven and Hell certainly are opposites, but ascending and descending are not a matter of geography. When we say that Christ went to hell we do not mean that he was there to suffer hell. That was done on the cross. His descent is like an army descending upon an enemy. Christ has come to defeat the devil, he has come to announce victory over Satan, and he has come to rescue those souls that have been captive in hell. To use the words of Luther’s Small Catechism, it is not a matter of his state of humiliation, but rather of his state of exaltation. In other words, it is salvation. His ascension into heaven is a matter of geography and a change of address for Jesus. But it is more than that. It is like ascending onto a stage to receive an award for valor, or to receive a graduation diploma, or to receive a promotion.
But today, let’s focus first on the fact that Jesus is no longer physically upon this earth. What does that mean for you and me? For about three years Jesus was always with his disciples, but he could not be everywhere at the same time. People had to travel to meet him or they had to wait till he came to their town. If Jesus were still on the earth today, we would have to travel to Israel to meet with him, or wait till he came and visited our country. In the meantime, what would happen to our prayers? Would he come in time to save us? Remember the story of Lazarus who died before Jesus could come all the way from Galilee to heal him. Some people could be close to Jesus, but most would be far away from him. In the time of trouble, this could be very discouraging and without security. The Ascension means that now Jesus is equally close to us all, no matter where we live. We do not have to travel to Judea to talk to Jesus, we can pray and he will hear us. Jesus is with us. Just a couple of beautiful Bible passages:
The last verse of Matthew’s Gospel, 28:20, “And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.” And Matthew 18:20 “20 For where two or three come together in my name, there am I with them.” So, what does the Ascension mean for me? It means the victory of Christ over sin and the devil and it means that there is fellowship with Christ.
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The second phrase is “He is seated at the right hand of the Father.” What does this mean? It is not a matter of how the furniture is placed in the throne room of Heaven. For right-handed people the right hand is the hand which does most of the work. This has become an expression that means that if someone is your “right-hand-man,” then that person has the ability and power and authority to work for you. So Christ who is at the right hand of the Father has the power and authority and ability to work for God. And so, as our Savior who loves us so much that he died on the cross for us, Jesus has the power and authority and ability to work on our behave. As the Lord’s Prayer says, “He has the Kingdom and Power and the Glory forever. Amen.”
You know, sometimes we get discouraged in our prayers when Jesus does not answer when we want him to or as we want him to. Rather than prayer, we might want to start looking for some other way to get our needs answered. We might try it on our own, we might try cheating, or try stronger medicine, or try whatever might seem to help. But which of those things has power to save? Which of those things died on the cross and rose on the third day? If something cannot defeat death and sin and hell, then it will only lead us to death, sin and hell. That is why idolatry of all kinds is foolish.
“He is seated at the right hand of the Father.” What does this mean? It means that Christ knows the situation of the whole world. He hears all our prayers and can answer them in ways greater than we can imagine. This means we are bold to pray. We pray for ourselves, our family, our friends, our school, our workplace, our church, our community, our country, our world, our environment, our society, the weak in our society, the helpless, and whatever else needs our prayers. We pray for whatever needs our love. It means Christ has the power for me and for those that I love.
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The third phrase is “He will come again to judge the living and the dead.” This is Christ’s coming again at the end of the world, but what does it mean for you and me everyday of our lives until then? This is definitely a theme of the Ascension because when he had ascended the angels said to the disciples, “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.”
This might be the hardest teaching of the Christian Church. The cross of Christ and the forgiveness of sins and his resurrection are all based on historical fact. Jesus died and rose again. But the return of Christ is in the future. It is a matter of faith and hope; and of believing what Jesus said. We trust these words because other words of Jesus have come true. He said he would die and rise again, and he did. He said he would send the Holy Spirit, and on Pentecost he did. He said he would come again, and the angels at the Ascension confirmed his promise. And the church has been waiting nearly 2000 years.
No! We have not been waiting! We live every day as if Jesus has already come again and is daily judging the living and the dead. And this is another reason why this might be the hardest teaching of the Christian Church. It is hard because it is about judgment. Whereas many Christians look forward to the coming of Christ as salvation and rescue from this world of sin and disease and death and evil, many other believers fear the Day of the Lord. They know their sin and are afraid of the judgment of God. In humility and honesty, we should be afraid. But at the same time, in humble gratitude and faith that the death of Christ forgives our sins, the fear of the judgment of God is replaced with relief and assurance and peace. This is because in faith, we know that every day our sins are judged and forgiven through Christ Jesus who comes to us in his Word and in the Sacraments of Baptism and the Lord’s Supper.
“He will come again to judge the living and the dead.” What does this mean? It means that we plan a welcoming party! That is our Sunday morning worship. That is our daily prayers. It is the Lord’s Prayer, “Thy kingdom come.” Hosanna! Blessed is He who comes in the Name of the Lord! Hosanna!
Amen.
Michael Nearhood, Pastor