At the moment it’s all talk about who will get the place of political power in the nation. No one knows which way it will go, a real cliff-hanger! Perhaps that is a good moment to reflect on the fact that Ascension Day falls this week.
What is the connection? Well, Ascension Day is essentially about Jesus taking up a place of “all power and authority, in heaven and on earth”, about Jesus being received “at the right hand of the Father”, about the King receiving his rightful position on the throne of God. Ascension is all about the rule and government of Jesus. And there is a very human side to it, for the ascension was very much a human ascension. It was not a vision or a symbolic idea, but a real ascension by a fully human Jesus, albeit in a resurrection body, to a position of the utmost authority.
If you ask anyone about the “ministry” of Jesus they are almost certain to think of him walking about Galilee. That was the time when he was active in the world. Ask about his ascension and the more likely reaction is that that was the time when he retired from the scene, his ministry having finished. It is that response that cries out to be radically changed. The fact is that he is as active in ministry from his throne as ever he was on earth. The ascension, in fact, compels us to examine his present ministry. There is a desperate need for us to do that and to recognise Jesus is very much at work in our modern world.
One aspect of that present ministry is clearly conveyed by the book of Revelation. There we see him as the Lamb in the midst of the Throne (Rev. 5). There we see the purposes of God symbolised by a book of writing in the hand of God, and there we see that only one person has the authority to open that book and bring about those purposes – that is the Lamb. And that is precisely what revelation portrays: Jesus, the Lamb, unlocking the seals which kept the book closed. In other words he is unfolding the future history of the world; he brings about his Father’s will. That is his present ministry (or part of it).
The resultant scenarios are anything but pleasant; war, famine, death, persecution and natural catastrophe. One could hardly quarrel with such an incredibly accurate picture of the world’s progress! But he’s in control and conquering evil. We should not quarrel with that either. He will fulfil all prophecy, he will bring in his kingdom, he will restore peace and redeem humanity and its world. He will not default!
What is the connection? Well, Ascension Day is essentially about Jesus taking up a place of “all power and authority, in heaven and on earth”, about Jesus being received “at the right hand of the Father”, about the King receiving his rightful position on the throne of God. Ascension is all about the rule and government of Jesus. And there is a very human side to it, for the ascension was very much a human ascension. It was not a vision or a symbolic idea, but a real ascension by a fully human Jesus, albeit in a resurrection body, to a position of the utmost authority.
If you ask anyone about the “ministry” of Jesus they are almost certain to think of him walking about Galilee. That was the time when he was active in the world. Ask about his ascension and the more likely reaction is that that was the time when he retired from the scene, his ministry having finished. It is that response that cries out to be radically changed. The fact is that he is as active in ministry from his throne as ever he was on earth. The ascension, in fact, compels us to examine his present ministry. There is a desperate need for us to do that and to recognise Jesus is very much at work in our modern world.
One aspect of that present ministry is clearly conveyed by the book of Revelation. There we see him as the Lamb in the midst of the Throne (Rev. 5). There we see the purposes of God symbolised by a book of writing in the hand of God, and there we see that only one person has the authority to open that book and bring about those purposes – that is the Lamb. And that is precisely what revelation portrays: Jesus, the Lamb, unlocking the seals which kept the book closed. In other words he is unfolding the future history of the world; he brings about his Father’s will. That is his present ministry (or part of it).
The resultant scenarios are anything but pleasant; war, famine, death, persecution and natural catastrophe. One could hardly quarrel with such an incredibly accurate picture of the world’s progress! But he’s in control and conquering evil. We should not quarrel with that either. He will fulfil all prophecy, he will bring in his kingdom, he will restore peace and redeem humanity and its world. He will not default!
All this is a very necessary corrective to the earthly power scrambles we are obliged to witness. Stability is in Jesus.
Bob
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