Acts 1:9-11 Jesus ascends into
heaven. The angels give the promise that Jesus will return in exactly the same
way that He ascended. We have other promises of the return of Jesus. Perhaps we
should wonder why heaven should be visualized as being above us, in the clouds,
or perhaps in the stars. After all, all of Jesus' teaching regarding the
Kingdom of God emphasized that He had come to bring it to earth, here and now,
among people who would believe in and obey Him. And He had also explained that
after He left, He and the Father and the Holy Spirit would continue to be
present with His people. So why did He ascend into heaven? Most likely, it was
a concession to human frailty. The worship by the angels in heaven is unveiled
in Revelation, as well as various Old Testament prophecies. But the cry of the
heart on earth is often 'where is God when I hurt?' or 'where is God when I
need Him?' This passage suggests He is in heaven and will return one day.
Contrast this with John 16:5-7 promises the coming of the Holy Spirit to be
with the disciples (and us). John 14:16-18 promises both the Holy Spirit and
Jesus Himself will be with us. John 14:23 promises that the Father Himself will
come with Jesus to abide with us. So why this ascent into heaven? It seems to
be intimately bound up with the preparation of the coming of the Holy Spirit,
which is described in Acts 2. As long as the disciples were physically with
Jesus in the flesh, they could never enter into Holy Spirit-empowered lives. To
transcend the limitations of mere bodily existence, to live in the realm of the
Spirit of God, they had to be deprived of the crutch of Jesus' physical
presence.
This
creates a challenge for many having an intense desire to touch Jesus physically
today. He tells us that everything that He is, is present in the Holy Spirit.
(John 16) But we still live in physical human bodies. Especially in times of
trial, emotional distress, and loss, we want the comfort of physical touch.
God's provision in that case is the church - the fellowship of His people - to
provide that physical ministry. But the key bottom line is that in order for us
to become His people, we must become people of the Spirit - those who value and
depend on the Holy Spirit and recognize the primacy of Spiritual things over
natural things. (Philippians 3:3) And it appears that this can only be learned
through trials and tribulations.
The
ascent of Jesus into heaven made it possible for the Holy Spirit to be sent
(John 16:7). So although it seems to us that His departure leaves us wondering
if we are forsaken, Jesus' plan and purpose was to send the Holy Spirit and
thereby give us the means of spiritual life.
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