Jesus Ascended into Heaven
Luke 24:50-53

I. Jesus’ ascension means Jesus rules the world.

A. In verse 50 Luke writes that Jesus led the disciples out to Bethany – a village on the eastern side of the Mount of Olives. There Jesus raised his hands over His disciples like an Old Testament priest would and pronounced a blessing over them. The disciples then watched Jesus float away from them up in the sky. If you had observed this scene, you would be asking after it was over, “What just happened here? What is the meaning of this event?” We don’t find the meaning of the ascension at the end of Luke, but we do find it in other parts of the Bible.

B. In Luke 22:69 Jesus said at his trial, “But from now on the Son of Man shall be seated at the right hand of the power of God.” Jesus would ascend back to heaven from where he came. And he would sit at the right hand of God. This is the place of ultimate power in the universe. From his throne right beside God Jesus rules over all the world. And in one sense we have ascended with Jesus into heaven. Ephesians 2:6: “(God) raised us up with (Christ) and seated us with him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus.”

II. Jesus’ ascension means joy for His followers.

A. The response of the disciples to Jesus’ ascension is found in vs. 52: And they worshiped him and returned to Jerusalem with great joy. For the very first time in the Gospel of Luke we read that the disciples of Jesus actually worshiped Jesus. This makes sense. No Jew would worship a mere human being. Only God is worthy of our worship. So we see at the end of the Gospel of Luke the disciples began to worship Jesus as God. After His crucifixion, resurrection, and ascension, they saw Jesus for who He really is. And they worshiped with great joy.

B. The more time you spend with Jesus the greater is your joy. Joy is the gift that Jesus wants to give you. Psalm 16:2: “My good is not additional to you.” This is not very smooth English. But what is King David saying about God here? And what are we saying about Jesus when we tell Him that my good is not additional to you? We are saying to Jesus, “You are all I want. You are all I need. You are my joy. You are my delight. As long as I have you, I have all the joy and satisfaction I could possibly want.”

III. Jesus’ ascension means His mission fills our hearts until Jesus returns.

A. In Luke 24:52 we read that the disciples returned to Jerusalem after Jesus ascended. Why did they go there instead of back to their homes in Galilee? Because they were obeying Jesus’ words in vs. 49. Jesus makes the connection between the sending of the Holy Spirit and the mission of the church in Acts 1:8: “But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.”

Application:
Don’t leave Jesus behind as you live your life. Jesus is everything to us.

Sources:
The Gospel of Luke
Commentary on Luke by Darrell Bock
Sermon by R. Kent Hughes