Friday Read: The Ascension Begins Here
In thirty-four days, Jesus will ascend to heaven (Ascension Thursday, May 14, 2026). The risen Christ who appeared to his disciples repeatedly over forty days will return to the Father, leaving them with a mission and a promise. But the ascension isn't separate from resurrection - it's resurrection's necessary completion. You can't understand Easter fully without understanding Ascension.
After his resurrection, Jesus told Mary Magdalene: "Do not hold on to me, for I have not yet ascended to the Father. Go instead to my brothers and tell them, 'I am ascending to my Father and your Father, to my God and your God'" (John 20:17). Even on Easter morning, Jesus was pointing toward ascension. Resurrection wasn't the end of the story - it was the middle chapter. What comes after resurrection matters enormously.
The forty days between resurrection and ascension served crucial purposes. First, Jesus proved his resurrection was physical and real, not spiritual hallucination or wishful thinking. He appeared to over five hundred people (1 Corinthians 15:6), ate food, let Thomas touch his wounds, walked and talked with disciples. The empty tomb could theoretically be explained away, but repeated physical encounters with the risen Christ over forty days established beyond doubt that he had conquered death bodily.
Second, Jesus taught about the kingdom of God. His pre-crucifixion teaching focused on his identity, mission, and impending death. His post-resurrection teaching focused on what his death and resurrection accomplished and what came next. Luke writes: "After his suffering, he presented himself to them and gave many convincing proofs that he was alive. He appeared to them over a period of forty days and spoke about the kingdom of God" (Acts 1:3). These forty days were intensive discipleship preparing them for mission.
Third, Jesus prepared his disciples for his departure. They needed to process that resurrection didn't mean Jesus was staying on earth permanently. He had conquered death, but he wasn't establishing an earthly kingdom or taking his place as Israel's political ruler. Instead, he was returning to the Father and sending the Holy Spirit. This required significant mindset shift - from expecting Jesus's physical presence to trusting the Spirit's indwelling presence.
The ascension itself happened on the Mount of Olives. "After he said this, he was taken up before their very eyes, and a cloud hid him from their sight. They were looking intently up into the sky as he was going, when suddenly two men dressed in white stood beside them. 'Men of Galilee,' they said, 'why do you stand here looking into the sky? This same Jesus, who has been taken from you into heaven, will come back in the same way you have seen him go into heaven'" (Acts 1:9-11).
This scene is simultaneously triumphant and tragic. Triumphant because Jesus completed his earthly mission - incarnation, sinless life, atoning death, bodily resurrection, victorious ascension. He returned to the Father having accomplished everything necessary for salvation. The curtain was torn, access to God opened, reconciliation achieved. Ascension was coronation - Jesus taking his rightful place at the Father's right hand.
But also tragic from the disciples' perspective. The One they'd followed for three years, died with on Friday, celebrated with on Sunday - he was leaving. Again. They'd just gotten him back from death and now he was departing to heaven. No more physical presence, no more visible companionship, no more audible instruction. Even though Jesus promised the Holy Spirit would come, losing his physical presence must have felt devastating.
Yet the ascension was necessary for several reasons. First, Jesus's physical presence was localized - he could only be in one place at one time. His ascension and the Spirit's coming meant he could be present with all believers everywhere simultaneously through the Spirit. Jesus told his disciples: "It is for your good that I am going away. Unless I go away, the Advocate will not come to you; but if I go, I will send him to you" (John 16:7). Ascension wasn't abandonment - it was prerequisite for universal presence.
Second, Jesus ascended to serve as our high priest and advocate. "We have one who speaks to the Father in our defense - Jesus Christ, the Righteous One" (1 John 2:1). He entered the true heavenly sanctuary to intercede for us continuously (Hebrews 7:25). His ascended ministry on our behalf matters as much as his earthly ministry for us.
Third, Jesus ascended to prepare a place for us. He told his disciples: "My Father's house has many rooms; if that were not so, would I have told you that I am going there to prepare a place for you? And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with me that you also may be where I am" (John 14:2-3). Ascension was departure with purpose - preparing for our eventual arrival.
Fourth, the ascension established Jesus's cosmic authority. "God exalted him to the highest place and gave him the name that is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue acknowledge that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father" (Philippians 2:9-11). Jesus isn't wandering earth as itinerant teacher - he's reigning as exalted Lord.
So as you live in these days after Easter, remember you're in the forty-day period Jesus used to prepare his disciples for what came next. He's doing the same for you - teaching you about the kingdom, proving his resurrection is real, preparing you for Spirit-empowered mission. Ascension is coming, then Pentecost, then your own mission of bearing witness to resurrection. Easter isn't ending - it's unfolding into the next chapter. Pay attention to what Jesus is teaching you during these days. Ascension is coming.
