Dear Christian friends:

Usually when a good friend says goodbye and leaves we feel sad and depressed, especially if we know that we will not see that person again here on earth. But when Jesus said goodbye to his disciples and left and went up to heaven they did not feel sad and depressed. Our text tells us that "they worshipped him and returned to Jerusalem from Bethany with great joy." (verse 52) How could this be?

The disciples were happy about Jesus' ascension into heaven. Why? Let us find the answer to that question so that we, too, may have great joy in Jesus' ascension into heaven.


I. His ascension assures us that there is a glorious, eternal life after this temporal life of death on earth.

A. When Christianity was being introduced in England, there lived in that country a powerful king, Edwin of Northumbria. He was a heathen, but he had married a Christian woman. One day he called together the wise men of his kingdom to decide between the two religions, the Christian religion and the native, pagan religion. At the council one of the wise men said, "The life of man on earth, is like the flight of a sparrow through a room. It flies in one door, and then flies out at another door. So the life of man appears for a short space of time; but of what went before or what is to follow we are utterly ignorant. If, therefore, this new religion (referring to the Christian religion) contains something more certain, it seems to justify to deserve to be followed."

So it is; all the religions of man leave him in utter darkness about the hereafter, that which he really needs to know most of all. Pascal said: "All that I know is that I must soon die; but what I least know is something about this thing called death which I cannot escape."

B. "All that a man has he will give for his life," Jesus said. At the thought of dying and being laid in the grave the ungodly person shudders. Instinctively he knows that he has sinned against his Creator, although he may not admit it. He also knows deep down that death is a call from his Creator to open the books and give account. A religion that cannot rid a man of his sins cannot remove the fear of death nor give hope for the life after death. It can only leave him defiantly against God or in total despair.

C. Thank God there is a way of escape out of this iron cage of sin and death!

1. After his resurrection and before he ascended into heaven Jesus appeared to his fearful disciples to reassure them that there is forgiveness of sins in him. He said to them, "This is what I told you while I was still with you: Everything must be fulfilled that is written about me in the Law of Moses, the Prophets and the Psalms." Then he opened their minds so they could understand the Scriptures. He told them, "This is what is written: The Christ will suffer and rise from the dead on the third day, and repentance and forgiveness of sins will be preached in his name to all nations, beginning in Jerusalem." (verses 44-47)

2. No wonder that those first disciples worshipped the ascended Lord and then returned to Jerusalem with great joy. Their escape from eternal death is assured. A glorious eternal life is now theirs by faith in the crucified, risen and ascended Lord, who did not die by accident, but according to God's eternal, gracious plan revealed in the Law of Moses, the Prophets and the Psalms.

3. We, too, can be sure that there is a glorious, eternal life for us after this temporal life on earth. We, too, have the Law of Moses, the Prophets and the Psalms, and the Old Testament. We, too, have had our minds opened to the Scriptures. We, too, like these first disciples, are convinced that the Old Testament Scriptures testify to Jesus of Nazareth, that he is the Christ who must suffer, die and rise from the dead according to God's eternal, gracious plan, so that the preaching of repentance and forgiveness of sins in his name may be carried out to all nations!

We are living proof that this has been done during the 2,000 years since Christ's ascension. If it had not been done, I would not be standing here this morning, and you would not be sitting where you are! So, like these first disciples, we should have great joy in Christ's ascension. The risen and ascended Lord has fulfilling the Father's gracious plan during the past two millennia through his Church, and today he will to continue fulfilling this plan through us! As he said to those first disciples, so he says to us, "You are witnesses of these things." (verse 48) This is the second reason why we should have great joy in Christ's ascension.

II. His ascension assures us that we will be successful in our witnessing to the glorious life after death.

A. For this witnessing we need the encouragement that we will be successful. Unbelief, apostasy, indifference, materialism, ridicule and mockery of men discourages us. Perhaps we think that the gospel has accomplished all that is can accomplish. Perhaps we are ready to quit because the work is difficult and because we think that we shall have little or no success after all.

B. Those first disciples had a lot tougher job then than we have today, but they did not think negatively like that. They were convinced that they would be successful. They did not forget, nor should we, the power that's on our side, the power of the victorious ascended Lord. He ascended far above all heavens and is seated at the right hand of his Father where he rules. In the interim, between his ascension and his coming again, we live and work in the assurance that he will triumph through his Church on earth.

C. To this end he gives us his power through the Holy Spirit. Before he ascended Jesus promised the disciples: "I am going to send you what my Father has promised; but stay in the city until you have been clothed with power from on high." (verse 49)

1. The Spirit gives us power to witness, for that is whom Jesus refers to when he says, "I am going to send you what my Father has promised." That happened ten days later on Pentecost. Today the Spirit comes to us through the Word and Sacraments. These may seem weak or powerless to accomplish the tremendous task of evangelizing the world and men often ignore these, lowly means of grace and power, and so fail. But the lowly Word and Sacraments are the very means through which "power from on high" is made available to us. By the Word the Spirit convicts us of sin and helps us believe in the forgiveness of sins and rejoice in the "hope to which he has called us, the riches of the glorious inheritance in the saints."

The Spirits power is incomparably great, the same power God used when he raised Jesus from the dead and seated him at his right hand in the heavenly realms.

2. This is really why the disciples were not sad and depressed when Jesus ascended. They were on cloud nine because now they realized that by his ascension Jesus' presence and power would have no limits as before. The ascending Lord disappears only to be with his own all the more by His Word and Spirit.

He is also with us this morning as we hear his Word of forgiveness and eternal life and receive his body and blood in the Sacrament. We are even now being clothed with power from on high that we may be his witnesses of the glorious life after death.

Amen.