“So, what happened here?”

By Rev. Michael Stonhouse

Meditation – Thursday, May 26, 2022

Luke 24:44-53 (Forward, p. 28) CEV p. 1008

This day is enough to give any rationalistic researcher the absolute whillies. It is, in the church’s calendar, the Day of the Ascension, which Luke depicts as Jesus being taken up into heaven. Whoa: just how can any reputable scholar accept that as being literally true? D.A. Carson, in his timely book, The Intolerance of Tolerance, reports that a certain Biblical scholar, Ronald Hendel, resigned from the Society of Biblical Literature because the Society was willing to include in its membership those with a faith perspective, that is, with a willingness to entertain explanations that fall outside of a purely naturalistic explanation of everything. But isn’t this entirely the nub of what we are dealing with when it comes to the Bible: it is a faith-based work and many of its stories can only be addressed through a faith-perspective. Any attempt to do otherwise only distorts or changes the story.

But surely, one must say, aren’t there some precedents to this kind of thinking elsewhere in the Bible—though, this is, of course, not to say that they are true. Enoch, in the book of Genesis 5:24, is described as being taken away by God, and so too is the prophet Elijah, this time by means of a fiery chariot (2 Kings 2:11). There is even an ancient tradition that something similar happened to Moses. Again, in reality, it comes down to a matter of faith.

But it isn’t just something that was mentioned in the Bible. Elsewhere we read of the Roman emperor, Augustus, whose ascent into heaven was supposedly witnessed by a group of senators, or of a similar thing taking place with a prophet Mohammed, or of Romulus, the founder of Rome, being received into heaven in a cloud or of a something like that taking place with the Greek hero Hercules. Whether we believe in these things or not simply comes down, once again, to a matter of faith.

Again—not taking this present account as being true in any literal sense—we see that this motif was sometimes used in the ancient world to give credence to the idea of God’s approval of the person, or as an explanation as to how a specific individual became privy to certain otherwise unknown spiritual truths or secrets. But, again, this idea does not presume any actual factual basis to these stories.

Apart from the non-rationalistic, non-naturalistic problems with all this, any acceptance of such ideas also goes against prevailing modern ideas about the structure of the universe. Scientifically, we no longer think of heaven being ‘just’ up there. So, hearing that Jesus literally ascended up into heaven, somewhere up there, poses some problems for us—that is, if we pause long enough to even think about it. It is, as McGill University professor Douglas Farrow puts it, ‘something of an embarrassment in the age of the telescope and the space probe”.

Coming back to our original text, some will observe that the words ‘and was taken up into heaven’ are not in some of the earliest and most reliable manuscripts. However, Luke’s account of the same event in Acts most clearly tells us that this did indeed happen—and Luke is the same person as wrote that earlier account. And his witness is backed up by several references in the gospel of John, and indeed by pretty well all of the ancient church.

So, as an actual, literal event, what are we to make of this? Firstly, it tells that Jesus had pleased His Father and had accomplished all the work that His Father had set out for Him to do while on earth, and so, accordingly, was welcomed back. When Jesus said, ‘It is finished’ from the Cross, He was speaking the truth. He had totally and completely done His job. He was exalted and given His deserved place of glory and honour.

Secondly, it reminds us that Jesus was returning to His original home, and His original state, one that He had surrendered or put aside to become one of us during His earthly stay. Only by emptying Himself of His divine prerogatives could He truly be ‘one with us.’ But, it means that He now has this very real experience of what it is like for us here on earth, a personal experience that is not now lost with Him in heaven. Indeed, that experience now equips Him for a new and even greater ministry, as we will see in just a moment.

Finally, it reminds us that Jesus, while still remaining with us in other ways, is no longer with us in bodily form but is now in the nearer presence of God. This means that He is now there as our advocate and friend, as our friend and representative in ‘higher places’ as it were. Often, when it comes to our parliament in Ottawa or our legislatures in Regina or Edmonton, I have wished for someone who could, and would, speak for us common, ordinary people. Or failing that, that there was a way of our going there to make our own presentation. Well, we don’t have to, at least when it comes to heaven. Jesus is already there, continually speaking and making intercession on our behalf. Meanwhile, He bestows upon us His Holy Spirit and whatever other gifts are essential and necessary for our continuing lives here on earth. And, finally, in addition to all this, He promises to get everything ready for us to one day join Him there.

So, where Jesus is actually ‘located’ matters little. What matters is this, namely that He is alive, that He understands and cares, and that He is on the job—to help us His friends and followers, which is all that we need to know. Amen.

Forward notes: “And they worshiped him, and returned to Jerusalem with great joy; and they were continually in the temple blessing God” (verses 52-53).

“On the ranch, by the time we wean our calves, they have been vaccinated three times for a long list of pathogens to safeguard their health. To do so, we have to sort them from the mothers, herd them through a series of gates, then push them single file up an alley into the chute and catch their heads. They want no part of any of the manhandling, and novice helpers get equipped with shin guards. We are always careful to put mothers in front of the chute so that the whole process ends in great joy.

“After the Ascension, Jesus’s followers expressed great public joy about Easter. But their first reaction was uncertainty and fear. ‘Where have you taken my Lord?’ Mary Magdalene asked. Some disciples hid behind locked doors while others fled. They didn’t understand the crucifixion or the resurrection. Only after the joyful reunion with Jesus did it make any sense.”

MOVING FORWARD: “Every year, the church remembers the roots of our faith. When did you first know the joy of Easter?”