The Surprising God

This year (2022), Ascension Day is May 26. On May 29, many churches will celebrate Jesus' ascension from  earth to the Father's right hand in heaven (see Luke 24:50-51; Acts 1:1-2 ). What does the ascension of Jesus to heaven mean for us today? "The Ascension" by Rembrandt (public domain via Wikimedia Commons) In the book  Royal Priesthood , T.F. Torrance notes that Jesus ascended "in the fulness of His humanity," remaining "bone of our bone and flesh of our flesh" so that in union with him, we are "bone of His bone and flesh of His flesh ( Eph. 5.30 )" (p. 43). Torrance exhorts the church to take this truth seriously: If Jesus Christ is not risen in Body, then salvation is not actualised in the same sphere of reality in which we are, and we are yet in our sins ( 1 Cor. 15.17 ). If Jesus Christ is not ascended in the fulness of His Humanity, then we have no anchor within the veil and there is no hope for us men and women of flesh and bl...

This post, which appeared originally in 2013, is excerpted from an article by Gerrit Dawson in the March/April 2001 issue of "Theology Matters," addressing Jesus' ascension and continuing incarnation -- a timely topic with Ascension Day drawing near.  In a time when the church is fiercely debating the uniqueness of Jesus...the ascension is an absolutely crucial part of the gospel story to recover. Through the ascension we discover that the incarnation continues. Jesus remains united to our human nature. Thus, he cannot be spiritualized into a principle of life, or collapsed into one manifestation of a God who is known many ways. Moreover, the presence of our brother Jesus in heaven dramatically affects how we see our lives and place in the world today. Jesus Ascending to Heaven by Copley (public domain via Wikimedia Commons) The Story The second article of the Apostles’ Creed is actually a narrative. In a highly condensed form, the Creed moves from the incarnation th...