Christ's Ascension


Psalm 47:1 Clap your hands, all you nations; shout to God with cries of joy. 2 How awesome is the LORD Most High, the great King over all the earth! 3 He subdued nations under us, peoples under our feet. 4 He chose our inheritance for us, the pride of Jacob, whom he loved. 5 God has ascended amid shouts of joy, the LORD amid the sounding of trumpets. 6 Sing praises to God, sing praises; sing praises to our King, sing praises.

This psalm reminds us of the glorious and joyful ascension of the Lord. Forty days after His resurrection, Jesus took His disciples to the Mount of Olives outside Jerusalem. (Forty days after Easter would be today.)

When He finished speaking His final words of instruction and comfort, the Lord spread His hands over them in a blessing. Then He began slowly and majestically to rise heavenward from the earth, higher and higher. Finally a cloud removed Him from the disciples’ sight.

In the ancient world, a king would often make his defeated enemies lie down before his thrown. After this the king would sit down on his throne and use his enemy’s head as his footstool to indicate that he was completely victorious.

Jesus began His triumphant procession from the Mount of Olives, ascending to glory. He then sat down at the right hand of God, using Satan and the powers of evil as His footstool to show that He had subdued all our enemies under His foot. (v3)

Christ’s sitting at the right hand of the Father means that He is controlling everything in the universe for the good of His believing brothers and sisters, His Church. He has the whole world in His hands.

The victory and triumph of Jesus is our victory. Everything that He did, He did for us. Therefore when we see Him, our victor divine, enthroned in glory, we know that our salvation is certain. He has given us the victory over sin, death and the devil. No one can say that our sins are too great to be forgiven or that there is no place for us in heaven. The Ascension makes all these things certain.

Because of Christ’s ascension, we clap. We shout. We shout. We praise Him with our trumpets and with our voices.

Join us tonight at First Evan Lutheran Church at 728 Villa St in Racine. Our Ascension Service is at 7:00 pm with trumpets and voices of choirs, adults and children.

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