Word of Salvation – Vol. 43 No. 09 – March 1998

 

Christ's Ascension – Our Comfort!

 

An Ascension Sermon by Rev. P. Abetz on Ephesians 2:6

Scripture Reading: Ephesians 2:1-10

            (other suitable readings include:
              Hebrews 3:1-6; Philippians 3:12-16; Acts 1:1-11)

Suggested Hymns: BoW 328; 373; 332; 519

 

Brothers and Sisters in our Lord Jesus Christ.

Introduction

If I were to ask you where you are sitting at this point in time, I guess most of you would want to say to me: Well, open your eyes!  Can't you see?  Here on the chairs in this church!  Stupid question, you say!  So why bother asking?

The reason for asking is that while all of you are seated here in this building, some of you, or hopefully, most, if not all of you – according to our text – are also seated somewhere else.  Those people who are also sitting somewhere else beside this church are not suffering some kind of schizophrenic illusion.

You may have noticed that our text says that those who believe in Jesus Christ are already now seated with Jesus Christ in the heavenly realms.

We normally talk of going to heaven as something that happens after we die.  But the fact is, our text speaks of us being seated with Christ in heaven, in the same way as it speaks of us being raised with Christ from the dead.  So...

1.  How did we get to be seated with Christ in the heavenly realms?

Our text is found in those well-known verses of Ephesians which stress the fact that we have been saved by grace.  The way Paul structures his words makes it clear that:

a.  being saved by grace...

            is the precondition by which we can be seated with Christ in the heavenly realms.  Our new relationship with God through Jesus Christ has become ours because we have been rescued by Jesus from our former way of life of addiction to sin and rebellion against God.

In Him, we have been made 'alive.'  As forgiven sinners, restored into a living relationship with the Father, we can really live.  This enormous change comes into a person's life entirely through grace.  The word 'grace' means, 'undeserved favour.'  In other words, a person cannot do anything to deserve to be seated with Christ in the heavenly realms.

Our having the privilege of being seated with Him in the heavenly realms is not due to our own efforts.  We are seated there on account of God's undeserved favour.  And he offers a seat there to anyone who will believe in His Son's saving work.  The glorious reality of being seated with Christ in the heavenly realms is a direct flow on from...

b.  being raised with Christ.
            The word that is used in our text for 'raised with’ conveys the idea that Christ is being raised from the grave after his death was also our being raised, as though we were right there with him and part of him.  It is written as though His being raised and our being raised were the one and the same event.

And the Bible repeatedly maintains that there is a very close identity between the believer and His risen Saviour.  Romans 6 speaks about us being united with Christ in His death.  It speaks of our old self being crucified with Christ so that the old sinful nature might be destroyed, and we might no longer be enslaved to sin.  Colossians 2 speaks of us having been buried with Him in baptism and raised with him through your faith in the power of God, who raised him from the dead.  We rose with Christ in that a new life has begun in us – a life lived in restored communion with our God.

Through our participation in the death and the resurrection of Christ, we, in a very real sense, become part of Christ.

The Bible speaks of all those who believe in Jesus as being the body of Christ.  We are one with Him – He is the head, we are the body.  That is how closely He is willing to identify with us.

The Bible, likewise, speaks of Jesus being the bridegroom and the church being his bride.  If anything happens to the bridegroom, it affects the bride.  If the bridegroom is seated in heaven, then he wants his bride to be there with him.  The only way we can be his bride is through faith in Jesus Christ.  But if we do not believe in Jesus Christ and his saving work, we have no part in Christ.

Now, our text makes it clear that not only did we rise with Christ, but that this one-ness with Christ also extends to our being seated with him in the heavenly realms.  So, we can see that this privilege of being seated with him in the heavenly realms is then also something which flows from God's grace towards us, and which becomes ours through faith.  And this is something which is true for all believers.  It is one of the many benefits which are ours in Christ.

This close identification of the believer with Jesus also applies to the ascension of Jesus into heaven.  And so we see that our being seated with Christ in the heavenly realms is in part ours....

C.  through the ascension of our Lord.

Just as we share in, or participate in Christ's death and resurrection, so, too, we participate in Christ's ascension.

The ascension of Jesus was not just a change of location for him from earth to heaven.  It was that... but it was far more than that.  It also involved a change in the human nature of Christ, for it now changed from all its limitations to the fullness of heavenly glory and was perfectly adapted to the life of heaven.

And our text implies that God not only raised us with Christ, but that we also ascended with Christ, and that this ascending with Christ led to God seating us with Jesus in the heavenly realms.

Let's then examine...

2.  The Significance of Christ's being seated in heaven.

Our text is truly an amazing statement: God has raised us up with Christ, and seated us with him in the heavenly realms in Christ Jesus.  This amazing statement, is packed with comfort and assurance for the believer.  As we undertake tasks in the church, whether it is as an elder, or Sunday School teacher, or as a mother in the home, we know that the church we serve is precious to Jesus.  So, our responsibility is huge and perhaps frightening.  But it is also comforting to know that we do not need to do it in our own strength, for as believers we are already now seated with Christ in the heavenly realms.  It tells us something about how close our Lord is to us.

In order to fully appreciate the comfort and assurance of this truth we need to spend a few moments looking at what is actually meant by the words 'heavenly realms.'

The word that is translated 'heavenly realms' is the same basic word that is used in a variety of settings in the New Testament to describe the place where God is.  We see it in the Lord's Prayer: Our Father, who is in heaven...  God's throne is said to be in heaven (Heb.8:1).  It is in Christ, who was in heaven, that God turns towards sinful man.  And the Son of God, with the Father and the Holy Spirit is said to have always existed in heaven since eternity.

The fact is also that God's wrath is said to come down from heaven in the form of the fire of judgment against sin (Luke 17:29, Romans 1:18).  Thus we can see that the heavenly realms is the place where God Himself is present.

The fact that Jesus is now seated in the heavenly realms is of great significance.  It points us to his...

a.  mediatorial role...

            by which he has broken through the barrier of our isolation from the Father.  When we consider the mediatorial role of Christ, that is, his role as the go-between between God and man, we find that He was THE high priest who offered Himself as a sin offering.  His resurrection from the dead implied that God accepted His payment on our behalf.

In Old Testament times, the high priest was allowed into the inner sanctuary, into the very presence of God, only once a year to make atonement for the sins of his people.  The sacrifice the high priest offered was not a lasting sacrifice.

But Jesus as THE High Priest was different.  His ascension and now being seated in the heavenlies meant that He had indeed earned the right to enter into the holy of holies, the inner sanctuary – the place where God dwells.  He was not only allowed in for a brief period each year, but as the God/Man he is now permanently seated at God's right hand!

This was clear proof that Christ has broken through the barriers which isolated man from God.

Christ's ascension is also...

b.  prophetic of our own ascension.

            His ascension is prophetic in the sense that His ascending into the presence of God was as a forerunner of the physical ascension of every believer.  In addition, Jesus' ascension is significant in that he did tell his disciples that he would go ahead of them to prepare a place for them.

Christ is still actively involved in his mediatorial work by...

c.  ruling his church and the universe by his Spirit.

            He has all the forces of heaven under his command.  All the angels are ready to do his bidding, and bring blessing to the church and to guard her from dangers.

And now that he is seated in the heavenly realms, in the very presence of God, Jesus is given the reins of government.  The Father has given him all authority not only on earth, but also in heaven, as Jesus said in Matthew 28.  He has been given the OK to rule until such time as he brings his kingdom to completion.  His exaltation to this high position signifies the fulfilment of his high priestly office.  He has passed through the heavens and has been raised higher than the heavens, since he has reached the very throne of the Father.

And it will be from heaven that Jesus will come and bring his kingdom to completion.  Notice, too, that in Hebrews 3:1 believers are spoken of as sharing in the heavenly calling.  We are called toward heaven.

Let us now look at...

3.  The Comfort of our being seated with HIM

Since our text says that we are seated with Christ in the heavenly realms, we need to grasp that the place we are seated is in fact the very same place where Jesus is seated.  Namely...

a.  In the VERY presence of God, NOW.

            Yes, you, a sinner, already now seated in the presence of God?!  Seems unbelievable!  But that is what it says!  And notice, too, that it says 'seated.'  It says nothing of grovelling in the presence of God, pleading for mercy.

You see, we are seated with Him in the heavenly realms, IN CHRIST.  Christ our head is there, and we, as part of His body.  Far too many Christians have a 'worm theology' – a theology that focuses on their sinfulness, but denies the reality of the victory Jesus won for us over sin, death and hell.  There is no place for grovelling before God.  IN Christ, we have been adopted into his family, and we are as precious and as pure as Jesus himself.

b.  For IN CHRIST we are perfect.

            If we were anything less than totally cleansed of our sins NOW, we could not possibly be seated with Christ in the heavenly realms.  To be seated with God requires total perfection.  God cannot bear to have sin in His presence.  If we still had our sin clinging to us, the Father would have to eject us from heaven!

Since we are perfectly righteous in Christ, we are...

c.  no longer subject to judgment.

            It is wonderfully reassuring that we are already now seated with Christ in heaven from whence this judgment would come, for in heaven we are totally safe, and will not be subject to the judgment.  Another comfort of being seated with Christ in the heavenly realms is that we are...

d.  already now enjoying the inheritance.

            Our inheritance is in heaven (1Peter 1:4) and our citizenship is there as well (Philippians 3:20), and we are already enjoying both.  Not fully – but in part.  This really means that even though it is our inheritance, we are already now enjoying it!  It is not just ours in the future.  Spiritually, it is already ours now.  And so, even if we go through a time of deep suffering and cannot feel the presence of God, or if the mind of a believer fails to function properly due to Alzheimer’s or some other problem, and he is no longer able to express anything of the things of God, we needn't fear.  For that person is already seated with Christ in heaven.  Spiritually, the believer is there already, and when called from this earthly life, we are fully in heaven.  As Paul wrote to Timothy, "The Lord will rescue me from every evil attack and will bring me safely to his heavenly kingdom" (2Tim.4:18).  Or, to the Philippians: "I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus" (Phil.3:14).  The fact that we are seated with Christ already now in the heavenly realms...

e.  Foreshadows and guarantees our glorious bodily resurrection
             and the associated glory that will be our portion when Christ's kingdom is completed.

The wonderful thing is that in principle, or in terms of our position before God, these things are true of the believer, for we are IN CHRIST.  Our being IN CHRIST is the basis of our present blessings.  The fact that we are spiritually already now seated with Jesus in heaven is truly a great comfort.  It means we can face a terminal illness, or look death in the face, knowing that death will not separate us from Christ.  We are already seated with him in heaven.

The challenge of the Christian life, the call heavenward that Paul speaks of is the call to narrow the gap between our position in Christ, and the reality we experience in this life.

The believer's position before God, in Christ, is that we are perfect.  We are called to work that through into practice!  That is the challenge, a calling for every person who is a Christian.  The reality of who we are in Christ needs to become visible to the world.

Conclusion

The truth of our text is a tremendously reassuring and comforting message.  It reminds us of the wonderful fact that, through faith in Christ, we are one with Christ.  if we are one in Christ through faith, we can say that with Jesus we ourselves were tried, condemned and crucified and buried, as well as made alive, raised to a new life, and ascended into heaven, and now are seated in heaven – in the very presence of God.

Whether you drive a bus, teach at school, are a student, a homemaker, or unemployed, or an invalid, or an elder, even with all our short comings, it does not change the fact that if we believe in Jesus Christ, we are already now seated with Christ in heaven.

While we do not enjoy this glory in full measure while still living on this earth, let's make no mistake about it.  The right to receive it has been fully won for us – the new life has already begun.  Even now our life is hid with God.  Our names are written in heaven (Hebrews 12:23).

And the wonderful thing is that Christ sends forth His Spirit so that our actual condition might more and more resemble our position before God.  Christ sends forth His Spirit that our lives might be governed more and more by heavenly standards and our motivation be increasingly from heavenly impulses, and in this way our actual condition increasingly becomes closer to our position in Christ.

The blessings of heaven constantly descend upon those who believe in Jesus, He empowers us to be more than conquerors.  As we consider the ascension of Jesus, remember that it was not just an historical event – it was far more!  It paved the way for you to be seated with Christ in heaven, now.  And our being seated with Christ now paves the way for God to show us the full dimensions of His grace in the life to come.

Hallelujah what a Saviour!

Amen.