Happy Ascension Day
Why the Ascension Matters
Acts 1:1–11
The Ascension is one of the most overlooked events in the life of Christ.
Christmas gets our attention.
Good Friday grips our hearts.
Easter fills us with joy.
But Ascension Day? Many Christians barely think about it.
And yet Luke writes about it twice—once at the end of his Gospel and again at the beginning of Acts. The Church confesses it every week in the Creed:
“He ascended into heaven and sits at the right hand of God the Father Almighty.”
So why does it matter?
Because if Jesus had simply risen and disappeared, we would be left wondering:
Where is He now?
What is He doing?
Does He still reign?
Is He still with us?
The Ascension answers all of those questions.
The King Returns to His Throne
Imagine a military commander leaving for battle. If he simply vanished, the soldiers would panic.
“Did we lose?”
“Has he abandoned us?”
“Who is leading us now?”
But imagine instead that word comes back:
“The battle is won. The king has returned to his throne. He reigns victorious.”
That changes everything.
That is the Ascension.
Jesus does not ascend because He is absent.
He ascends because His saving work is complete.
The cross was not defeat.
The empty tomb was not temporary.
The Ascension is Christ’s coronation.
Ephesians says that the Father seated Christ:
“far above all rule and authority and power and dominion.” (Ephesians 1:21)
Jesus now reigns over all things.
Not someday.
Now.
The world may look chaotic.
Nations rage.
Cultures drift.
The Church suffers.
Christians grow weary.
But the Ascension reminds us that history is not spiraling out of control.
Jesus is still on the throne.
The nail-scarred hands of Christ now rule the universe.
That matters.
The Ascension Means Jesus Is Not Gone
When the disciples watched Jesus ascend into heaven, I imagine there was a temptation toward fear.
After all, they had spent years walking beside Him.
Listening to Him.
Watching Him heal.
Watching Him calm storms.
Watching Him raise the dead.
And now He was leaving.
But notice what Jesus says before He ascends:
“And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.” (Matthew 28:20)
The Ascension is not Jesus abandoning His Church.
It is Jesus filling all things.
Because Christ ascended, He is no longer confined to one geographic location.
He rules and works through His Word and Sacraments across the entire world.
He is with His people in Minnesota.
He is with believers in Africa.
He is with persecuted Christians in Asia.
He is with the shut-in listening to Scripture alone in their living room.
The Ascended Christ is still active.
Still reigning.
Still forgiving.
Still strengthening.
Still saving.
The disciples no longer walk by sight.
Now they walk by faith.
And so do we.
The Ascension Means Jesus Finished the Work
In the Old Testament Temple, the priests were always standing. Their work was never done. Sacrifice after sacrifice had to be offered because sin was never fully removed.
Always offering sacrifices.
Always working.
Always repeating the same rituals day after day because the work of dealing with sin was never truly finished.
Hebrews says:
“And every priest stands daily at his service, offering repeatedly the same sacrifices, which can never take away sins.” (Heb. 10:11)
But this highlights what Jesus does in the Ascension:
“When Christ had offered for all time a single sacrifice for sins, he sat down at the right hand of God.” (Hebrews 10:12)
Jesus sits because the work is finished.
The debt of sin has been paid.
The wrath of God has been satisfied.
Death has been conquered.
Earthly priests kept standing because their sacrifices could never fully save. But Christ offered Himself once for all.
The Ascension is not merely Jesus going somewhere else. It is the victorious Son returning to His throne after accomplishing salvation.
That means your forgiveness is not uncertain.
Jesus is not still trying to save you.
He already has.
The Ascended Christ sits enthroned because there is nothing left to complete.
“It is finished” was not wishful thinking on Good Friday.
The Ascension proves it.
Why Do the Disciples Stand Staring?
One of my favorite moments in Acts 1 is almost humorous.
Jesus ascends into heaven.
The disciples are standing there staring into the sky.
And suddenly two angels appear and basically say:
“Men of Galilee, why do you stand looking into heaven?” (Acts 1:11)
In other words:
“Why are you still standing here? You have work to do.”
The Ascension is not an excuse for Christians to withdraw from the world.
It is motivation for mission.
Jesus sends His Church into the world with confidence because He reigns over the world.
The disciples are about to carry the Gospel into hostile nations.
They will face persecution, imprisonment, suffering, and martyrdom.
And yet they go boldly.
Why?
Because Christ reigns.
The same is true for us.
The Ascension reminds us that evangelism is not hopeless.
The Church is not abandoned.
The mission of God is not failing.
Christ rules over His Church.
And the gates of hell will not prevail against it.
Ascension Changes How We Suffer
Sometimes we look around at our lives and wonder if Jesus is still in control.
The diagnosis comes.
The marriage struggles.
The grief settles in.
The prayers seem unanswered.
The future feels uncertain.
And in those moments it can feel as though Christ is distant.
But the Ascension reminds us that Jesus reigns even when we cannot see what He is doing.
The disciples watched Jesus disappear into the clouds.
And yet heaven was not empty.
The throne was occupied.
That means your suffering is not meaningless.
Your life is not random.
Your future is not uncertain in the hands of Christ.
The One who died for you now reigns for you.
And one day the same Jesus who ascended will return.
That is the promise of the angels in Acts 1:
“This Jesus… will come in the same way as you saw him go into heaven.”
Ascension Day always points us forward.
The King who ascended is the King who is coming again.
Happy Ascension Day
Ascension Day is not the story of Jesus leaving.
It is the story of Jesus reigning.
It is the declaration that:
Christ has conquered sin.
Christ has defeated death.
Christ reigns over all things.
Christ intercedes for His people.
Christ is with His Church.
Christ will come again.
The Ascension means there is never a moment where the Church is abandoned.
Never a moment where history slips from His hands.
Never a moment where your life falls outside His rule.
Jesus Christ reigns.
The crucified One now sits at the right hand of the Father.
The risen One governs heaven and earth.
And the returning One will come again in glory.
So today the Church lifts her eyes upward. Not in fear, but in confidence.
Christ is ascended.
Christ is reigning.
Christ is coming again.
Happy Ascension Day.
