Jesus: The Early Years: Luke 2:39-52 
Jesus: His Teaching: Mark 1:22 NASB 
Jesus: His Miracles: John 10:37-38 
Jesus: The Messiah John 12:12-16 
Celebrate Jesus: The Incarnation 2 Tim 3:16
Clebrate Jesus: The Resurection 2 Tim 3:16
Celebrate Jesus: Beheld by Angels 2 Tim 3:16
Believers' Response: Proclaimed Among the Nations 2 Tim 3:16
Seekers Response: Believed on in the World 2 Tim 3:16
Celebrate Jesus: The Ascension 2 Tim 3:16
 

"And no one has ascended into heaven, but He who descended from heaven, even the Son of Man."

1 Tim. 3:16 

And by common confession great is the mystery of godliness: He who was revealed in the flesh, Was vindicated in the Spirit, Beheld by angels, Proclaimed among the nations, Believed on in the world, Taken up in glory.

In the ancient Hymn we've used as our series text, (I Timothy 3:16) the Church sang of three acts of God and three responses of his creation. Notice the three responses: The angels beheld Him, (Beheld by angels) the believers proclaimed Him (Proclaimed among the nations) and the hearers believed on Him (Believed on in the world). These responses are made possible because of three acts of God. The Incarnation (He who was revealed in the flesh), the Resurrection, (was vindicated in the Spirit) and the Ascension (Taken up in glory.) Each of the actions of God focus on times of transition in Jesus' life.

The miracle of the incarnation is that the "eternal logos" became a man. It was a transition from eternity into time. 

During the advent and Christmas seasons, Christians celebrate his incarnation. He lived, suffered, and died, as all men do, but he did not remain dead. The second transition was from death to life. He rose again on the third day. We celebrate resurrection power at Easter, and for that matter, every week when we worship on Sunday instead of Saturday. 

But when do we celebrate the Ascension? The ascension is the third transition, from earth to heaven. Is it a lesser event than the other two, or have we lost a significant opportunity for celebration?

Dr. Luke begins his second treatise to Theophilus the same way he ended his first one, with a detailed account of Jesus' ascension into heaven. "And after He had said these things, He was lifted up while they were looking on, and a cloud received Him out of their sight." (Acts 1:9) This event was significant enough in Luke's eyes to occupy the most important positions in a writer's work-the beginning and the end. I fear that beside such events as His birth and His resurrection, we underestimate the importance of the ascension, nevertheless, it occupies an important part of our rich theology. This morning, let's explore the significance of this great act of God:

• •In the ascension, Jesus Closed the Books. He accomplished the fulfillment of the Sacrificial system

The writer of Hebrews calls Jesus the perfect sacrifice in Hebrews 9:12 "and not through the blood of goats and calves, but through His own blood, He entered the holy place once for all, having obtained eternal redemption." His sacrifice used perfect blood-His own, not the blemished blood of animals.

John, the beloved disciple uses the same imagery in Revelations 5:12 "saying with a loud voice, 'Worthy is the Lamb that was slain to receive power and riches and wisdom and might and honor and glory and blessing.'" According to John, Jesus was worthy to break the seals because he was "the lamb that was slain."

In his first epistle, John also calls Jesus the perfect altar. "and He Himself is the propitiation for our sins; and not for ours only, but also for those of the whole world." (1 John 2:2) The word translated "propitiation" has three possible meanings. It can mean that Jesus covered our sins. As the tide covers our footprints in the sand, so Jesus covers our sins with his blood. The English word "propitiation" best carries that meaning.

It can also be translated "expiation," meaning to "take away." I love the song, "Nothing but the blood of Jesus." Robert Lowry, the pastor of the Park Avenue Baptist church of Plainfied, New Jersey in the late 19^th Century wrote both the words and the music for the hymn. He based it upon Hebrews 9:22 "and without shedding of blood is no remission [of sins]." (Reynolds, Companion to Baptist Hymnal 238-9) It asks the question, "What can wash away my sins?" The response: "Nothing but the blood of Jesus!" The question and the response illustrate the principle of expiation-Jesus takes our sins away from us.

There is, however, a third way to translate the word-"mercy seat." Jesus is the altar upon which the perfect sacrifice is made. 

The imagery continues. Not only is Jesus the perfect sacrifice and the perfect altar, but He also is the perfect priest. Since then we have a great high priest who has passed through the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold fast our confession. (Hebrews 4:14) The writer of Hebrews draws an analogy between the great high priest who "passes through the veil" to enter the holy of holies on the day of atonement and Jesus Christ, the perfect high priest who "passed through the heavens" then presented the sacrifice to the Father. 

In Hebrews 1:3, the author of Hebrews pictures Jesus, the perfect high priest, offering His sacrifice then setting down. "And He is the radiance of His glory and the exact representation of His nature, and upholds all things by the word of His power. When He had made purification of sins, He sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high;" Because the great high priest never sat down until his work was finished, the very act of setting down shows the completed work of Jesus. 

The job was done, never needing to be repeated. The Day of Atonement rolled around every year. The sacrifice had to be made again and again, but not anymore. Because Jesus, the perfect High Priest "passed through the veil (heavens)" and made the perfect sacrifice (His blood) on the perfect altar (Himself) the books were closed on the sacrificial system. Hebrews 10:14 says, "For by one offering He has perfected for all time those who are sanctified."

But He did more than closing the books, he also:

• •Opened the door

He also tore the veil. "And behold, the veil of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom, and the earth shook; and the rocks were split," (Matthew 27:51) When He died on the cross, the veil in the temple-the veil that separated God from man, the Holy of Holies from the rest of the temple was torn in two. The veil was torn before the earthquake-only the hand of God could tear the 60-foot high (pulpit commentary, vol 15, p. 594) veil.

By "tearing the veil" and "passing through the veil (heavens)" Jesus opened the door for us to boldly approach God. "Let us therefore draw near with confidence to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and may find grace to help in time of need." (Hebrews 4:16) 

Jesus closed the books on the old sacrificial system and He opened the door for us to boldly approach the throne of grace-and He did it all through the ascension. "Great is the mystery of godliness" sang the early church. "He who was revealed in the flesh, Was vindicated in the Spirit, Beheld by angels, Proclaimed among the nations, Believed on in the world, Taken up in glory."

It is a mystery that sinful man could ever approach a holy God, but because of Christ did, we can. Have you? Why not today?

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