Why the Ascension Still Matters for the Church Today
Today is Ascension Day, the day set aside in the church calendar to remember when Christ returned to the Father’s right hand in glory 40 days after His Resurrection. Ascension Day is still a public holiday in several European nations and marks the end of the Easter season. Most American Christians think of Easter as only a day and of Ascension Day as barely a blip on the calendar.
However, in different times and places, Christians put a high priority on the Ascension. In the first few centuries of the Church, it was celebrated, along with Pentecost, as part of the Easter season. By the late fourth century, some believers observed it on its own with celebrations that included prayer and processions, as well as visual representations and reenactments.
More importantly, Ascension Day is a pivotal event in the biblical story, foretold throughout Scripture. At the Ascension, Christ completed His work begun at the Incarnation, and promised long before to Adam, Abraham, David, and Isaiah. The Ascension wasn’t merely Jesus leaving the Earth, but the God-man sitting in authority and power on His eternal throne. The Ascension is the coronation of Christ as King of heaven and earth.
The Ascension also fulfilled prophecy, including Psalm 2 and Psalm 110, where the Anointed One of God, David’s Greater Son, puts His enemies under His feet. In the Apostle Peter’s Pentecost sermon, recorded in Acts 2, the Ascension is the ultimate proof of Christ’s superiority. In Ephesians 4, the Apostle Paul described the Ascension as when Jesus equipped His people for their work.
All of this makes the Ascension critical to the biblical narrative of how God redeems the world He created. The focus of Genesis 1-11 is the Creation, Fall, flood, and division of this world. Genesis 12 turns the attention of Scripture to one nation through whom redemption comes. Jesus Christ is sent to that nation, and His ministry offers glimpses of His redemption going outside of Israel, for example to the Syrophonecian woman, the Samaritans, and the Roman Centurion. Just before He ascended to heaven, Jesus turned the attention of the Apostles and the biblical narrative back to the whole world when He said, “you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.” The book of Acts follows that outline. In his Pentecost sermon, recorded in Acts 2, Peter describes the Ascension as proof of Christ’s reign and the source of His blessing.
Ascension Day is a wonderful time to remember essential aspects of Christ’s work that are too often neglected. Yes, Jesus came to save people from their sin, and we should never allow the reality of that gift to be lost in our church teaching and practice. We should also remember that Christ’s work is cosmic in scope, with public implications that extend beyond the personal and private. The Christian life is not some kind of extended waiting room for the real action of the End Times. As theologian NT Wright has described:
The mission of the Church is not about preparing for Jesus to become king. It is implementing the fact that he has become king, even if that new kingship doesn’t look like the sort of thing people had been expecting. … This is why the disciples, faced with Jesus going away, are not sorrowful, but joyful. Jesus is now lord of the world! He is now in charge! That’s the good news! The one whose resurrection has launched the new creation, following his defeat of evil on the cross, is now ruling the world!
Whatever specifics the End Times entail, there is an already-ness to Jesus’ rule, even as we wait for what is yet-to-come. We’re not waiting for His kingdom to begin. It has begun. He is the King; His rule is in place; and He is making all things new. That’s why the Ascension matters.
Photo Courtesy: ©Getty Images/Catherine Leblanc
Published Date: May 29, 2025
John Stonestreet is President of the Colson Center for Christian Worldview, and radio host of BreakPoint, a daily national radio program providing thought-provoking commentaries on current events and life issues from a biblical worldview. John holds degrees from Trinity Evangelical Divinity School (IL) and Bryan College (TN), and is the co-author of Making Sense of Your World: A Biblical Worldview.
The views expressed in this commentary do not necessarily reflect those of CrosswalkHeadlines.
BreakPoint is a program of the Colson Center for Christian Worldview. BreakPoint commentaries offer incisive content people can't find anywhere else; content that cuts through the fog of relativism and the news cycle with truth and compassion. Founded by Chuck Colson (1931 – 2012) in 1991 as a daily radio broadcast, BreakPoint provides a Christian perspective on today's news and trends. Today, you can get it in written and a variety of audio formats: on the web, the radio, or your favorite podcast app on the go.
