Why Does the Ascension Matter?
A. The work of salvation is now complete. Since God has accepted Christ, nothing more can be added to what he did when he died on the cross and rose from the dead. Hebrews 10:11 reminds us that there were no chairs in the tabernacle because the priests were not allowed to sit down. They stood to perform their work because their work was never done. Every day the priest would kill another animal—signifying that the price of sin had not yet been paid. But when Christ returned to heaven, he sat down because he had offered himself as the one sacrifice for sin forever. Thank God, Jesus is seated in heaven. It means we have a sit-down salvation.
B. We have a friend in heaven. Hebrews 4:14-16 calls Christ a great high priest who has gone into heaven. Because he walked on this earth with us, he knows what we are going through and is able to sympathize with us in our struggles. Because he is now in heaven, he can help in all our troubles. When we go to the throne of grace, we don't have to worry about being turned away because Christ himself is there to meet us. He has grace to help in the time of need.
C. The ascension also means that Christ prays for us in heaven. Romans 8:34 tells us that Christ is now at the right hand of God interceding for us. In Hebrews 7:25 we learn that because Jesus lives forever, "he is able to save completely those who come to God through him, because he always lives to intercede for them." The word "intercede" means to speak up on behalf of someone else. That means that Christ is now in heaven praying for us.
D. 1 John 2:2 adds the encouraging truth that Christ is our attorney in heaven. He is our advocate who speaks to the Father in our defense. When the devil comes and makes a claim against us, Jesus speaks up on our behalf and pleads his own blood in our defense. The Father looks at the Son, sees his pierced hands, and says, "Case dismissed." Let me tell you the best part of this truth: He's never lost a case yet.
E. Let me mention one aspect of this truth you may not have considered. When Jesus ascended into heaven, he took his glorified humanity with him. The physical body of Christ is now in heaven, which means that someday when we are raised from the dead, we won't be raised as spirits but as real people with our physical bodies glorified just like Jesus.
Excerpted from "He Ascended Into Heaven: Why It Still Matters Today" by Keep Believing Ministries (used by permission).
Originally published May 28, 2010.
