to the glory of God. Now today's sermon is my final effort at the exposition of our journey through the Gospel of Luke. We began this journey on Sunday, October 19, 2008, and we've traveled far over the last nine years and ten months, and we have seen much. And I pray that your vision of Jesus has been expanded through my feeble efforts of going through every single verse over these 24 chapters. I pray that after visiting and revisiting this wonderful book, 355 different Sundays, you can see Jesus better and more clearly than before. That your reverential respect and admiration and awe of the Christ has risen. And that those three qualities have served to develop a real and deep and rich and profound love for this blessed Savior. to the end that your obedience to the God-man is based on your delight in Him. That more than ever before, you truly are finding the highest degree of personal joy in being fully submitted to Jesus. Next week, Lord willing, I'll begin an expositional journey through the book of Ruth from the Old Testament And then when we complete that, I'll tackle 1 and 2 Peter. Now, we began our journey nearly ten years ago by looking closely at this medical professional named Luke, this Gentile physician and close companion of the Apostle Paul, who was a historian, theologian, and pastor. We saw that Dr. Luke initially wrote this magnificent Gospel record in the diary of the first 30 years of the church that we now call the Acts of the Apostles to a Roman dignitary named Theophilus. And he began this Gospel record in Luke 1, verses 1-4 by telling him and us why he was doing this. inasmuch as many have undertaken to compile an account of the things accomplished among us, just as they were handed down to us by those who from the beginning were eyewitnesses and servants of the Word, it seemed fitting for me as well, having investigated everything carefully from the beginning, to write it out for you in consecutive order, most excellent Theophilus, so that you may know the exact truth about the things you have been taught. And then he repeated his purpose in the book of Acts chapter 1 verses 1 and 2 when he said, The first account, which is the Gospel of Luke, I composed Theophilus about all that Jesus began to do and teach until the day when he was taken up to heaven after he had by the Holy Spirit given orders to the apostles whom he had chosen. Now all during this journey, we have met the many people and events that Luke compiled many times by personally interviewing the people. And that when you put all them together, it brings the reader to only one honest conclusion. A man named Jesus from Nazareth was in fact God Almighty in human flesh. And as you carefully read the details of Luke's record, you cannot help but come away with certain amazing realities about this Jesus. He was prophesied about repeatedly in the Old Testament. He was announced by an angel. He was virgin born. He was beloved by God. He was perfectly sinless and thought word and deed. He had complete authority over the physical world. He had complete authority over the spiritual world. He forgave sin. He was the author of the Ten Commandments. He spoke divine truth with authority. He was the one and only of the Father. He was of the same substance with the Father. He was in perfect submission to the will and the Word of God. He was perfectly obedient to the will and word of God. He was perfectly led by God the Holy Spirit. He categorically denounced the religion of the religious leaders of his day. He was arrested by the Romans on trumped-up charges by the Jews. He was in complete control during his arrest, trial, and murder. He was beaten unmercifully. He was killed by crucifixion. While on the cross, God took all of the sins of all of God's elect and put them on Jesus. The full fury of the wrath of God against those sins was poured out on Him. He literally and physically died. He delivered all of those in Abraham's bosom to the bosom of the Father. He literally, physically, and bodily rose from the dead three days later in the very same body in which He died, and He instituted the New Covenant, bringing an end to the first And He appeared and disappeared repeatedly over the next 40 days. That's what you come away with when you read all 24 chapters. And now, Dr. Luke tells us in these final four verses that Brother Andy just read to you, that Jesus literally, physically, and bodily went up into heaven in full view of over 500 witnesses. Luke was moved along by God the Holy Spirit to tell Theophilus and us that Jesus, quote, lifted up His hands and blessed them. And then while He was blessing them, He parted from them and was carried up into heaven. And of course, this is what is now known as the ascension. Now, part of the reason I'm preaching about the ascension this morning is because it's the next passage in our journey through Luke. And almost ten years ago, I promised you that I would look at and analyze and investigate and exegete and preach through every single verse of all 24 chapters of this story of salvation. So this is the fifth biblical book that I've stood behind this pulpit and exposited. The book of Romans. the epistle of Jude, the epistle of 1 John, the epistle of Hebrews, and now the Gospel of Luke. And so the ascension is the final section in Luke's Gospel, and that's part of why I'm preaching it this morning. But part of the reason I'm preaching about the ascension this morning is to hopefully illustrate to all of you and to this church and to myself three aspects of the ascension of Jesus Christ. Number one, that it's true. That it really happened. Number two, that it is one of the most overlooked and neglected truths in the entire Bible. And number three, that we would repent of that neglect and change. My prayer is at beginning this morning that as a church body, we would recognize the ascension, and we would celebrate it, and talk about it, and think about it, and pray about it, and meditate on it, as being just as important and just as vital to the glory of God, to the fulfillment of Scripture, and to our own salvation as the incarnation, the crucifixion, and the resurrection of Jesus. So let me illustrate what I'm talking about. There's probably nobody in the sanctuary this morning that doesn't know that December 25th is the day that we take every single year to remember and celebrate the greatest miracle that God ever carried out. The moment when God Almighty inserted Himself into His own creation and actually became a part of that creation by taking on human flesh and becoming man. The Incarnation is of such great importance to us because it was the moment when God chose to magnify the glory of His grace by forgiving and making righteous, unworthy sinners by what He alone did for them. And this single event has had such a powerful effect on humanity that even our own pagan government, that for the most part operates solely on humanistic principles rather than biblical principles, has created a federal holiday to celebrate it. So the reason you get off work at Christmas time is not because it is a remembrance of the winter solstice, but because we take that day to remember that Jesus was born. Now, I have no idea when Jesus was actually born, and nobody else does either. All I know is that He was born. And so we join in with others to take December 25th to remember and to celebrate and to worship God for becoming man. Likewise, many of you will know that this past April 16th was the day in 2017 that we took to celebrate the literal, physical, and bodily resurrection of Jesus from the dead. and unlike the celebration of the incarnation, the remembering and the celebration of Jesus' resurrection falls on a different day every year. You notice that? And there's a lot we could say about that. Believe me, there's a lot I would like to say about that, but that's a different sermon. But suffice it to say that the Christian church changed the day of assembly from the Sabbath to the Lord's Day to commemorate the resurrection every single week. And in addition to celebrating the resurrection every Lord's Day, we take one day every year to especially center our minds and hearts on the fact that Jesus not only died, but that He also rose from the dead three days later. And on that day, we are not remembering the spring equinox. And we're not remembering rabbits who, for some reason, can somehow lay eggs We are remembering and we are celebrating that three days after He died, Jesus literally, physically, and bodily rose from the dead. You've got to be careful about bringing your children to this church because they're liable to find out that there's no such thing as Santa Claus or the Easter Bunny. Whoops. There I went again. Yet I doubt that anyone here today knows that Tuesday, May the 25th, of this year was the day that we should have been remembering and celebrating the ascension of Jesus. I am certain that while many of us met one another with greetings like Merry Christmas and Happy Easter or Happy Resurrection Sunday, we probably didn't say Happy Ascension Day or referenced it at all. Now look, I'm not advocating that we begin another tradition. I'm simply saying that most of us would not even know that the Christian church has historically taken the 40th day after the Resurrection Sunday to celebrate and to remember and discuss the Ascension at least in some way. And so there was at least some regular mention of the Ascension for most of the life of the church. That is until recently. And my question is why? What happened? that the ascension has become so de-emphasized, so outright forgotten by the people of the modern church. And is that a good thing? And if not, then shouldn't we fix that? Why do we concentrate on the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus and then skip right over to the Second Coming and just bypass the ascension and all that Jesus is doing for us right now as though it doesn't matter or has no bearing on either God's glory or our own salvation? I greet many of you on Sunday morning when I see you with this question, are you still saved? And I'm asking that question on purpose. I'm not just trying to be cute. Are you still saved? And you all tell me you are. And I'm wondering how that happens. How is it that we stay saved? How is it that our sin did not do away with our salvation? Are we to assume that our sin doesn't matter anymore? Are we to assume that sin, that God ignores our sin? So I'm just curious how you think you're still saved. Is it because you're such a great person? Such a close companion of Jesus? Or is there something at work right now? Like, well, I don't know, Jesus sitting at the right hand of the Father making intercession for us? Shouldn't we be talking about that? Shouldn't we be marveling at that? Shouldn't we be discussing it? Shouldn't we be praying about it and teaching it and rejoicing over it? I'm just asking. And I am humiliated to tell you that until I began to prepare for this very sermon, the ascension of Jesus was something that I didn't pay a lot of attention to either. So let me try to put this another way. The fact that the literal and bodily ascension of Jesus into heaven is not discussed much anymore among believers is not because we are more spiritual or more biblical than those who came before us. That's not the answer. The fact that the ascension is usually bypassed or neglected by many in the modern church is not because we love Jesus or because we're seeking to honor Him or because we're too busy winning souls or because we're trying to maintain the once-for-all handed-down-to-the-saints faith. And I don't believe that in order for us to correctly emphasize the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus and His second coming, that we have to neglect the ascension. No, the ascension is passed over way too much because of a gross lack of teaching and instruction about how this amazing event not only honors God, but fits in with our own salvation. The physical and bodily rising of Jesus into heaven is mostly ignored today because we are less biblical, less spiritual, less in tune with the things that matter the most to God. We neglect the ascension because we have grown far too comfortable with the issues and topics that other people have determined are far more important and crucial rather than what God has said. So I'm just wondering why we know so much about Obamacare and so little about the ascension. Because we're earthly minded and carnal. And we need to repent of that. I'm not saying that what's going on in the earth is not important. I'm saying nothing on this earth is as important as what the Bible talks about. And I pray that after this morning, we, the leadership and the congregation of the Covenant of Peace Church, will repent of this grave error. That we will begin to understand and then rejoice over and then remember and celebrate the great significance of the ascension of Jesus Christ both to God Himself and to us. Now let me begin by saying that the physical ascension of Jesus into heaven is entirely biblical. It is what the Bible declares to be true. It is a biblical truth and therefore it is part and parcel to the apostles' doctrine that we say we believe and that we say we teach. So the ascension is not a peripheral or secondary issue. It's not window dressing or fluff or something that believers can either take or leave. The ascension is also not something that some believers will hold dear while others who are equally saved choose not to. No, the ascension is part of the essential truth of Scripture. So Jesus not only was born of a virgin, Jesus not only lived a sinless life, Jesus not only was God Almighty in human flesh, Jesus not only performed astounding miracles to verify His full divinity, Jesus not only spoke perfect truth, Jesus not only was arrested, beaten, and tried, Jesus not only was killed by crucifixion, Jesus not only received all of the sins of all of God's elect by imputation while on the cross, Jesus not only satisfied the righteous justice of God, in absorbing all of God's wrath against those sins, Jesus not only physically and literally died, Jesus not only literally and physically and bodily rose from the dead on the third day in the same body in which He died, Jesus not only spent 40 days with the apostles after His resurrection, but Jesus also literally and physically rose up into heaven in the ascension where He is now seated at the right hand of God the Father, where He is very busy right now. Very busy, continually making intercession for us. And He is there expecting. Yes, He is. The Bible says He's expecting until all His enemies are made to be His footstool. And then this same Jesus will physically, literally return to this earth to present to Himself the church in all of her glory. And that means that Jesus did not ascend into heaven metaphorically, or figuratively, or spiritually, or esoterically, or mystically. Now the Bible is crystal clear about this. Jesus' ascension was literal. It was physical. It was bodily. Jesus really and truly rose up to heaven in His resurrected body, which was the very same body in which He died. Now, I ponder these things all the time. So I know Jesus, Jesus was God. Jesus, His flesh never sinned, therefore He had the same body. He didn't need another body. My body can't make the trip because my body's sinful. I got that down. I'm wondering about His clothes. Yeah, the clothes were borrowed. Joseph of Arimathea or Nicodemus put their clothes on Jesus when He died. Yeah. His clothes were torn and beaten and stolen from Him. He was naked on the cross. Yeah. And so they gave Him their clothes. And yet when He appeared and disappeared, He was wearing their clothes. And when He ascended, He was in their clothes. I'm just wondering how that happens. Now some of my questions are pretty goofy, because I went to public school. But what that tells you is that I'm thinking about this. And that's why I'm wondering why there's not more questions about stuff. Because if you're thinking about something, if you're pondering it, I promise you, you've got questions. I remember Paul went into the temple and he reasoned with them according to the scriptures. Now the word reason comes from a word that has to do with dialoguing. He dialogues questions and answers. That's why we have questions and answers on the first Sunday of every month. So I'm wondering, the more you read the Bible, the more you're trying to put the pieces together, it seems like the more questions you have, not fewer. Huh? Alright, I just want to know if I'm in the right church. And that means that those who teach that Jesus' ascension was figurative or spiritual or mystical or symbolic are wrong. They're wrong, aren't they? And they're guilty of denying a prime biblical truth. Now, it's not coincidental. They also deny his sinlessness and they also deny his virgin birth. They also deny his resurrection. See, that's all coincidental, right? Right. And so as the heirs of the Reformation, as those who make up the real and invisible church of the living God, as those who have been wondrously saved by grace alone, through faith alone, and the finished work of Christ alone, we then have a duty and a responsibility and a joy to read and understand and celebrate and teach and remember the ascension of our Savior. And let me begin by saying that it is Dr. Luke, the medical professional turned theologian and historian that wrote the most about the Ascension. The Gospel records of the Apostles Levi and John don't speak of it at all in connection to Jesus' resurrection. And all that John Mark wrote is this in Mark 16, 19, So then when the Lord Jesus had spoken to them, He was received up into heaven and sat down at the right hand of God. And there's a lot that I could tell you about the 16th chapter of the gospel of Mark, but that's another subject. Now the glaring omission of the ascension by two of the four gospel writers is curious. Because it was not because they didn't believe in it, because they did. Leaving out any reference of the ascension by Levi and John was also not because the apostles were supposedly divided about whether the ascension had occurred, as some false teachers have suggested. They were on the mountaintop with Jesus when He rose up in the air. They were completely in unity about this. The Apostle Paul taught extensively about the literal ascension and its connection to our own salvation. For example, in Romans 8, 33 and 34, he said, Who will bring a charge against God's elect? God is the one who justifies. Who is the one who condemns? Christ Jesus is He who died. Yea, rather, who was raised? Who is at the right hand of God? Who also intercedes for us? And in Ephesians 1, 18-23, the apostle said, I pray that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened that you will know what is the hope of this calling. So, we are to hope in God. But you are not to want, as Christians, here's the difference between a Christian and an unbeliever. A Christian is to hope in the promise of God. But we are to know our hope We are not to wonder or guess or be wishy-washy about the hope that we have in the promises of God. The hope is unseen because the promises are yet to come. So by faith we trust that they are true and by faith we believe them. But we are to know, we are to be rock solid in that which we hope in. There's the difference. And what is the surpassing greatness of His power toward us who believe? These are in accordance with the working of the strength of His might. Verse 20, which He brought about in Christ when He raised Him from the dead and seated Him at His right hand in the heavenly places, far above all rule and authority and power and dominion. And every name that is named, not only in this age, but also in the one to come, and He put all things in subjection under His feet, and gave Him His head over all things to the church, which is His body, the fullness of Him who fills all in all." Huh. So God put all things in subjection under Jesus' feet. Already did that. Yeah. Look at Colossians 3 verse 1. Therefore, if you have been raised up with Christ, keep seeking the things above where Christ is seated at the right hand of God. 1 Timothy 3.16, by common confession, great is the mystery of godliness. Here's a small little creed right in the pages of the Scripture of the New Testament. Here's the creed. He who was revealed in the flesh was vindicated in the Spirit, seen by angels, proclaimed among the nations, believed on in the world, taken up in glory. Hallelujah. Now this is the first reference we've had. Other ones, He's already there in heaven at the right hand of God. Here it says He's taken up. So there's a specific statement. And the Apostle Peter taught the ascension when he said this, 1 Peter 3, 21 and 22, corresponding to that baptism now, saves you not the removal of dirt from the flesh, not the water in other words, but an appeal to God for a good conscience. through the resurrection of Jesus Christ, who is at the right hand of God, having gone into heaven after angels and authorities and powers had been subjected to Him. So He's there. He went into heaven. He was taken into heaven. Then Jesus Himself taught about the ascension and actually used the Word three different times as recorded by the Apostle John. The first time was with Nicodemus in John 3 verse 13. No one has ascended into heaven but He who descended from heaven, the Son of Man. There it is right there. And again, in some of the deepest and most profound teaching that Jesus ever conducted over in John 6, Verses 60-65, when Jesus said, Therefore many of his disciples, when they heard this, said, This is a difficult statement. Who can listen to it? They're curious how people respond to the Word of God. The chosen people will say, Give me more. Give me the Word. The other people say, I can't. Too hard. Who can? Ah, man. What are you talking about? I've never heard that before. And they just turn around and walk and leave Jesus standing in the middle of the road. They just walked off. But Jesus, conscious that His disciples grumbled at this, said to them, Does this cause you to stumble? This is what's going to throw you? What then if you see the Son of Man ascending to where He was before? That'll really get you then. And it did really get them. Five hundred people saw Him rise into heaven. Five hundred people were told to go to the upper room. A hundred and twenty obeyed. Where's the three eighty? What happened to the 380 that were there that saw Him with their own eyes go into heaven? You're going to disobey that one? That's the man you're going to disobey? The one that rises up into heaven? That's the one you picked to disobey? Really? It is the Spirit who gives life, the flesh profits nothing. The words that I have spoken to you are spirit and life. But there are some of you who do not believe. For Jesus knew from the beginning who they were who did not believe, and who it was that would betray Him. And He was saying, for this reason I said to you that no one can come to Me unless it has been granted him from the Father. And finally with Mary Magdalene in the garden immediately after His resurrection in John 20, verses 11-18, but Mary was standing outside the tomb weeping and so as she wept, she stooped and looked into the tomb and she saw two angels in white sitting, one at the head and one at the feet. where the body of Jesus had been lying. And they said to her, Woman, why are you weeping? She said to them, Because they have taken away my Lord, and I do not know where they have laid Him. When she said this, she turned around and saw Jesus standing there and did not know that it was Jesus. Jesus said to her, Woman, why are you weeping? Whom are you seeking, supposing Him to be the gardener? She said to him, Sir, if you have carried him away, tell me where you have laid him and I will take him away. Jesus said to her, Mary. She turned and said to him in Hebrew, Rabboni. Jesus said to her, Stop clinging to me, for I have not yet ascended to the Father. But go to my brethren and say to them, I ascend to my Father and your Father and my God and your God. Mary Magdalene came announcing to the disciples, I have seen the Lord. and that he had said these things to her. But perhaps the most detailed account of the ascension is found in the book of Acts. I want you to go there with me. Acts 1. The first 11 verses of the very first chapter of the book of Acts. Acts 1-11. Now there is reason to believe that when Paul was arrested, that his companion, his close companion, Dr. Luke, wrote Luke and the Book of Acts as a legal defense of the apostle during his trial. That it was used in a court of law. It was so precise, so well done, so masterfully written, that it was used as evidence in Paul's trial to make sure that he was pronounced guilty of being a Christian. Amen. You thought I was going to say something else. And Luke begins it by saying, The first account I composed, Theophilus, of all that Jesus began to do and teach. The first account is the Gospel. Until the day when he was taken up to heaven after he by the Holy Spirit gave given orders to the apostles whom he had chosen. To these he also presented himself alive. Look at this. After his suffering, by many convincing proofs, appearing to them over a period of forty days, and speaking of the things concerning the kingdom of God." So, He appeared and disappeared repeatedly and spoke to them and taught them and counseled them and instructed them in the things pertaining to the kingdom of God over a forty-day period to these men alone. They had a special class with Jesus, the resurrected Savior, after He was glorified in His body and before He rose up into heaven. Now, I don't get into a lot about this because the Bible doesn't get into a lot about this. But their understanding of the Gospel, their understanding of what the Gospels mean by what the Gospels say as written in the epistles is astounding. And that's why they could have such insight. One of the reasons. gathering to get them together. He commanded them not to leave Jerusalem, but to wait for what the Father had promised, which He said, you have heard from Me. For John baptized with water, but you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit not many days from now." So when they had come together, they were asking Him, look at this, saying, Lord, is it at this time You're restoring the kingdom to Israel? They still didn't get it. They had no idea. At this point, they still didn't get it. They thought that everything was about the Jews and everything was about the nation of Israel. They had no idea what he was talking about it completely over their head. What was the final thing that happened to them that put it all together when they were in dude with power from on high on the day of Pentecost and they changed after that these men changed after that. And he said unto them, it is not for you to know the times or the epochs which the Father has fixed by his own authority. What is he telling them? It's none of your business. I'm not going to tell you. And that's what everybody wants to know. The Seventh-day Adventists and some other cults rent the Colosseum every year and they've got these full-color brochures they pass out all over the Gulf Coast trying to get you to go down there and find out about the Antichrist and the Mark of the Beast and all that. It's a cult. They get new members every year from that. They don't believe in the blood of Jesus. They don't believe in justification by grace through faith. What difference does it matter what they believe about the end times? They're wrong about how lost people get saved. Don't listen to people like that. They're wrong about the most important issue. Maybe they're right about the unimportant issue, but it doesn't matter. But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you shall be My witnesses both in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and even to the remotest part of the earth." And after He said these things, He was lifted up while they were looking on, and a cloud received Him out of their sight. Look at this. And as they were gazing intently into the sky. How do you do that? How do you gaze intently into the sky? You don't do this. You do this. Huh? Okay, I'm saying this for a reason. Those nice guys that come by your house and knock on your door. With the tie and they got the little badge on it that says elder so and so. They're about 12 years old. They don't even shave and they're called elder. Huh? You know what I'm talking about? Mormons. They don't believe this. I'm going to tell you something. Look what it says. They were gazing intently into the sky while He was going. Behold, two men in white clothing stood beside them. They also said, Men of Galilee, why do you stand looking into the sky? For years, I couldn't figure out why Luke was so specific about this. He's very precise. This Jesus who has been taken up from you into heaven will come in just the same way as you have watched Him go into heaven. See, Mormons teach that Jesus walked through a cloud and came over here to North America. That's right. That's what they teach. They don't believe He went up. The Bible says He went up. You see that up? It's two words. It's in verse 11. Up. They're gazing intently into the sky. They're looking up. When you think Jesus is coming back, are you looking over the horizon? Or are you looking up? Okay. Now, that's important. Jesus went up into heaven. Okay, now from this account, we know several things. Jesus appeared and taught the apostles things concerning the kingdom of God for 40 days after His resurrection. That's in verse 3. Now, other than that, I don't have a clue what they talked about. The Bible doesn't tell me. I can't find it anywhere else. And everything else is conjecture. So I'll leave it alone. At this time, they were still confused about what Jesus meant. They didn't have a clue. Jesus promised them supernatural power when the Holy Spirit came upon them after His ascension. This power would enable them to be witnesses of Jesus to the world. Jesus literally, physically, and bodily rose up into heaven. Jesus was lifted up. They saw Him go up into the sky. They were gazing intently into the sky. The two men asked Him why they were looking up. Jesus went up into heaven and will come back from heaven. All right, now I know the world's round and I know he actually went out. I understand that. They were over here on this side and he went that way. I understand that. Okay, I got that. But he didn't go through a cloud and come over here to North America and talk to the Cherokees. or the Chippewas or the Iroquois. Now this last issue is important to know because it refutes the false teaching of the 12 million Mormons who say that Jesus walked into a cloud and came over here to North America. The Bible says Jesus ascended up into heaven. So the ascension is tied up in what has historically been called the glorification of Jesus or the exaltation of Jesus. The humiliation of Jesus is not Him being on the cross. The humiliation of Jesus is Him coming down here on the earth and living with sinful men. And so leaving the earth is the glorification of Jesus or the exaltation of Jesus. So the ascension is really the culmination or the high point of Jesus' earthly ministry over a period of about 33 1⁄2 years. It's the crowning achievement of all that He did. And from that moment until He literally, physically returns to this earth, Jesus is in His heavenly ministry at the right hand of the Majesty on high, assuring that all who have been truly saved will stay saved until they either die or come back. Now, I asked this question one night in Bible study. Jesus is interceding at the right hand of God. Why? What's God wanting to do? God's wanting to destroy you. Why? Because you're sinning. And Jesus is interceding. And what is He telling God? Is He telling God, don't kill them, God, they're innocent? No! Because you're not. What's He telling God? What could Jesus tell God about me that would be so meaningful to the Father that God withholds His wrath? I died for Him! Your name is on Him! He's mine! You gave Him to me! And because the Father loves His Son, He spares me. That's why I'm still saved. Because the Father loves the Son. Hallelujah. Thank You, Jesus. So when you go and you stand there, the Bible says you're going to see the damnation of the wicked. You're going to watch them be damned by God. You're going to watch the judgment of the ungodly. And what it's going to be like, it's going to be like you're underneath that cliff. You see those things where they've got a cliff sticking out and those mountain climbers are underneath there? And underneath there, they're safe. And out here is a 200 mile an hour hurricane. And it's just right there. And you're going to be safe under the rock. You're going to be safe in Jesus. And you're perfectly secure. And just right out there is destruction. And you're going to be looking at that, and there's going to be two expressions. You're going to be going, whoa. And you're going to be going, thank you. Thank you. Because there's one reason why you're not out there. It's right there. One reason. that you're not being consumed. And that's because the Father set His love upon you and Jesus received you as a gift from His Father. My goodness. My goodness. We ought to praise Him. We ought to love Jesus. So Jesus is Okay, and from that moment until He literally and physically returns to this earth, Jesus is in His heavenly ministry at the right hand of the Majesty on High, assuring that all who have been truly saved will stay saved until they either die or He comes back. So Jesus is very busy right now interceding to God the Father on our behalf that none that God chose to be saved from the foundation of the world, none that Jesus died to save, none that God the Holy Spirit has drawn to Jesus and empowered to obey will be lost. Now we are those who believe in the concept of sola scriptura, which is the Latin term developed back in the fires of the 16th century Reformation that means by the Scriptures alone. This concept says that the Christian church is only authorized to believe and teach the Scriptures and the Scriptures alone. Therefore, all church doctrine, all godly reproof, all scriptural correction, all instruction in righteousness must come solely through a correct exegesis of the inspired words of the sacred text alone. And as you know, the issue of sola scriptura was the formal cause of the Protestant Reformation. So, as the modern version of those who began the protest against unbiblical beliefs and man-made teaching, we categorically reject the idea of papal infallibility, or pastoral infallibility, or the infallibility of any human being, no matter what position or office or role in the church he may hold. We also reject the infallibility of any utterance, whether supposedly from the Holy Spirit or not, or any statement or teaching or book or song or writing from any person outside the 66 books of the Holy Bible. So in a nutshell, we ascribe to the fact that the only place on earth where anyone may find inerrant and infallible and inspired divine and absolute truth is in the pages of the Bible. And that means that while church confessions, creeds and catechisms, church history and rulings by church councils and other writings by church leaders throughout history may be informative and instructive and useful in our ongoing sanctification, they are not in any way inspired. These documents are nowhere near being inerrant or infallible and therefore they make up a distant second in order of importance and always and in all cases take a back seat to the scriptures. Now having said that, it is useful to know that from the earliest days of Christianity, the doctrine of the ascension has been taught and believed by the church. So for example one of the earliest creeds the Apostles Creed says this in part and I believe in Jesus Christ is only begotten son our Lord who was conceived by the Holy Ghost born of the Virgin Mary suffered under Pontius Pilate was crucified dead and buried he descended into hell the third day he rose again for the dead he ascended into heaven. and sits at the right hand of God the Father Almighty. From thence he shall come to judge the quick and the dead." Likewise, the Nicene Creed is updated by the Council of Constantinople in A.D. 381. It says this, And I believe in one Lord Jesus Christ, the only begotten Son of God, begotten of the Father before all worlds, God of God, Light of Light, very God of very God, begotten, not made, being of one substance, with the Father by whom all things were made, who for us men and for our salvation came down from heaven, was incarnate by the Holy Spirit of the Virgin Mary, and was made man, and was crucified also for us under Pontius Pilate. He suffered and was buried. The third day he rose again according to the Scriptures and ascended into heaven, and sits on the right hand of the Father, and he shall come again with glory to judge the quick and the dead. His kingdom shall have no end." Now notice that in all of the verses and in both of the creeds, the ascension is always linked to what Jesus is doing now in heaven at what the writer of Hebrews called the right hand of the majesty on high. Now where did that phrase come from? Jesus used it repeatedly. In Matthew 22.44, Matthew 26.64, Mark 12.26, Mark 14.62, and again in Luke 20.42 and Luke 22.69, Jesus is quoting from Psalm 110 verse 1. and he is likening the fulfillment of that Old Testament prophecy to himself. So what does Psalm 110, verse 1 say? Well, that prophecy came from the pen of King David as he was moved along by God the Holy Spirit a thousand years before Jesus was born to say this, The Lord says to my Lord, sit at my right hand until I make your enemies a footstool for your feet. Now the phrase right hand is not speaking of God's physical or literal hand because God is immaterial. He is spirit and does not have a physical body. This phrase has to do with a place of preeminence, a place of honor, a place of great prestige, power and authority. It was the same David who also wrote Psalm 16 that I quoted at the beginning of my prayer. And in verses 8-11, David wrote, I have set the Lord continually before me because He is at my right hand. I will not be shaken. Therefore, my heart is glad and my glory rejoices. My flesh also will dwell securely for You will not abandon my soul to Sheol, nor will You allow Your Holy One to undergo decay. You will make known to me the path of life. In Your presence is fullness of joy. In Your right hand there are pleasures forever. I'm doing what I do every day because of that promise. I believe that in the presence of God is the fullness of joy. And for the joy that is set before me, I'm willing to do anything I need to do. And because I believe that it is right hand, there are pleasures evermore. So, I'm looking forward to that. And it is in Psalm 16 verses 8-11 that the Apostle Peter was quoting in his first sermon on the balcony of the upper room on the day of Pentecost. And as Peter stood to speak that day, God the Holy Spirit moved upon him to give him the ability to correctly interpret what Psalm 16 meant, even though for a thousand years no Jewish theologian was able to do this. When he said this in Acts 2, 23-33, this man talking about Jesus, now this is a dumb fisherman. He gets up on a balcony without notes. He doesn't have a concordance. He doesn't have a Strong's Concordance or a Matthew-Henry Commentary. He doesn't have Bible software. He doesn't have the Christian music playing on the radio all day. He opened his mouth and the Holy Spirit filled his mouth with the correct interpretation of about six different Old Testament passages in the first sermon. And from that moment till now, that's what those passages mean because Peter said that's what they mean. You talk about authority. Wow! Okay, this man Jesus delivered over by the predetermined plan and foreknowledge of God. Huh? I had three sermons on that. Delivered over by the what? The predetermined plan and foreknowledge of God. Is that what the Bible says? Then you have to believe in predestination. In some way. Right? You nailed to a cross by the hands of godless men and put Him to death. You've got evil men doing evil things and the predetermined plan and counsel of God working side by side on the crucifixion of Jesus. That ought to curl your hair. But God raised Him up again, putting an end to the agony of death since, look, it was, what? Impossible for Him to be held in its power. Why? Because David says of him, I saw the Lord always in my presence, for He is at my right hand, so that I will not be shaken. Therefore, my heart was glad, and my tongue exalted more over my flesh also will live in hope, because you will not abandon my soul to Hades, nor allow your Holy One to undergo decay. You have made me to know the ways of life. You will make me full of gladness with Your presence. Brethren, I may confidently say to you regarding the patriarch David, that he both died and was buried and his tomb is with us to this day. In other words, David wasn't talking about himself in Psalm 16. Huh. And so because he was a prophet and knew that God had sworn to him with an oath to seat one of His descendants on His throne, he looked ahead and spoke of the resurrection of the Christ. That he was neither abandoned to Hades, nor did his flesh suffer decay. This Jesus, God raised up again, to which we are all witnesses. Therefore, having been exalted to the right hand of God, and having received from the Father the promise of the Holy Spirit, He has poured forth this which you both see and hear. Hallelujah. Jesus said the Holy Spirit cannot come unless I go up. Now it is a bit more difficult for those of us who live in America in the 21st century to piece all of this together. But the phrase right hand meant a lot to the Jew of the first century who was schooled in the order or the first of the old covenant that was administered by the Levitical priests. So to understand all of this we need to turn to the epistle to the Hebrews and read from chapter one. It was very significant to say the word right hand. It was very significant for them to say that Jesus sat down. Because the Levitical priests never sat down. They were busy constantly offering incense and sacrifice from the time they walked in to the time they left. And then when one priest died, another one took his place. And they were constantly busy. They never stopped offering animal carcasses and blood to God as a sacrifice. Because the only thing that animal sacrifices did was hold the wrath of God back just long enough to kill another animal. It didn't forgive a single sin. And so it's very significant for Jesus to have died for sins one time and then sat down. And He didn't sit down because He's tired. He sat down because He's finished. Hallelujah! Glory to God! God, after He spoke long ago to the fathers and the prophets in many portions and in many ways in these last days, has spoken to us in His Son, whom He has appointed heir of all things, through whom also He made the world. I think it's on Sermon Audio, my teaching on Hebrews. You've got to get into this. He's both the cause of creation and the heir of all that has been created. Let me put it another way. He is the beginning and the end. He's the first and the... Yeah, He's the Alpha and the... Yeah, He's the Creator and the heir of all that has been created. That's what He's saying right here. And He is the radiance of God's glory and the exact representation of His nature. And uphold all things by the Word of His power. When He had made purification of sins, and there's a Greek clause that's not written there, and that Greek clause makes you say, when He made purification of sins all by Himself, He sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high, having become as much better than the angels, as He has inherited a more excellent name than they." Glory to God. That's why you worship Him. Don't you just want to worship Jesus right now? Hallelujah. Let's go to heaven right now. Now here's a crucial observation in the way that the writer... If I die while I'm preaching, don't raise me up. I'm serious. Let me go. Let me go. And here's a crucial observation in the way that the writer of Hebrews originally wrote this verse. It is one clause with one subject and one main verb. Everything else serves to shed light on that one main assertion. The subject is He. And actually, in the original, it's Who. That is the Son of God, Jesus Christ. The one main verb is sat down. So the one main clause of the verse is He sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high. And everything else in the verse serves the assertion and sheds light on it. So the way we need to hear this is, He, being the radiance of God's glory, set down at the right hand of the Majesty on high. He, being the exact representation of God's nature, set down at the right hand of the Majesty on high. He, upholding all things by the word of His power, set down at the right hand of the Majesty on high. He, having made purification of sins all by Himself, set down at the right hand of the Majesty on high." So what the writer wants us to see is what makes it fitting, what makes it proper, what makes it correct. for Jesus to sit down at the right hand of God's majesty, especially since no Levitical priest could ever sit down. And he mentions four things. He is the radiance of God's glory. That's why He sat down. He is the exact representation of God's nature. He upholds all things by the Word of His power. And He made purification of sins all by Himself. That's why He sat down. Let's look at these connections. And as we do, ask God to illumine your mind and heart to see the true greatness and the glory of Jesus Christ. Number one, the purification of sins. I want you to first consider the connection between the work of Christ in making purification of sins and His sitting down at the right hand of God. We can see the connection made explicit for us in Hebrews 10 verses 12 through 14. But He, having offered one sacrifice for sins for all time, sat down at the right hand of God, waiting from that time onward until His enemies be made a footstool for His feet. For by one offering He has perfected for all time, look at this, those who are sanctified. Now again, in the Greek, you have to understand this, He is perfected for all time those who are being sanctified. Now what is plain from these verses is that Jesus was seated at the right hand of God to honor Him for the total completeness of His sin-bearing work on the cross. He sat down at the right hand waiting until all His enemies are subdued, for by one offering He is perfected for all time those who are being sanctified. The word for in verse 14 means that Jesus sits in this place of honor, authority, and power because His offering on the cross accomplished exactly what God wanted it to. And that means that if a wicked rebel will put his trust and hope in Jesus Christ, the Son of God, as his Savior and Lord, Jesus will be united to you in a saving relationship. And you will be given His Spirit who will then begin a lifelong work of sanctifying you or making you holy. In other words, it is the life, death, and resurrection that initially brings forgiveness and righteousness to the sinner. And it is ongoing work in heaven at the right hand of God brought about by His ascension that keeps you saved by continually bringing your mind and heart and life more and more into conformity to Jesus Christ. That's what Hebrews 10.14 means when it says, those who are being sanctified. Those are the ones who are banking all their hope on Jesus and are being changed from one degree of glory to the next into His image by His Spirit. So what did the self-offering of Christ accomplish for them? By one offering, He has perfected for all time those who were sanctified. So in dying for us, Jesus covered our sins so completely that it can be said that we are perfected before God. That is, in Christ, we are forgiven for all of our sins, and to use Paul's language, we are acquitted and reckoned to be righteous. And not just for a while, but for all time. That is why Christ descended into heaven and was exalted to the honored place at the right hand of God. His sin-bearing work was perfect. The resurrection and exaltation and coronation of Jesus at God's right hand is a declaration and celebration of His perfect work of sin-bearing. Hallelujah. So all of our worship of the risen Christ is a reflection of the total sufficiency of the death of Christ to cover and cleanse and remove all the sins of everyone who trusts in Him and enters the road to life called sanctification. Now when the Bible says, when He had made purification of sins, He sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high, it means that the sitting down in this place of preeminence and honor and authority and power was a divine declaration of how perfect Jesus' work really was. So Jesus was fitted for this place of honor by the fullness and perfection of His sin-bearing work for us. And I pray that you will embrace this precious biblical reasoning. This is meant to make you strong and unshakable against the terrible temptation to doubt that your sins can be forgiven. The resurrection and ascension of Christ to the right hand of God is meant to make you confident in the hour of trial, in the hour of death, that the purification of your sins is sure and real and sufficient to give you an entrance into heaven. Part of my job, part of the job of the elders, part of the job of this church is to prepare you for the hour of your death. So you can enter that with joy. And you can enter it ready. Because it's coming. So don't take lightly this biblical reasoning. Christ ascended and reigns today in heaven because He made purification of sins once for all. Number two, the preservation of all things. There is another great work that Jesus does to fit him for this exalted place at God's right hand. Hebrews 1 verse 3 says, He upholds all things by the word of His power. And literally the Greek reads, He upholds all things by the word of His power. He sat down at the right hand of the majesty on high. Now why is this included here? Why mention that the whole universe hangs on the Word of Christ for its moment-by-moment existence? Because it would be a great mistake to think that we depend on Christ only for our purification and not also for our very existence. You see, there are actually two things that might keep you from entering heaven and enjoying the glory of God and all of His works. If your sins were not forgiven, and if you ceased to exist, If you were Jehovah's Witness, you can't go to heaven. Did you know that? They don't believe in heaven. Because of this, you cease to exist. So if you are to have a happy future in God's presence, two great works are needed. There must be a work of purification of sins, and there must be a work of preserving your existence. Now even though this may sound weird, it's very important that we hear it. Because the only reason it sounds strange is that most of us have absorbed a worldview that treats material existence and human existence as the foundational reality in the universe. What we can see and touch and smell is what is real. And that is the measure of what else is real. But the writer of Hebrews calls that whole approach into question. He says that the foundational reality in the universe is not us. And it's not material things that you can see and touch. This man was moved on by God the Holy Spirit to tell us that the foundational reality in the universe is Christ and His Word. So that which we think is so real is in fact very fragile and on the brink of extinction. It hangs by a slender thread. One word from Christ and it goes out of existence. Or one word unspoken by Christ and we go out of existence. So the challenge before us this morning from this writer is tremendous. Will we just sing along with the modern song of human self-sufficiency? Or will we listen to the Word of God and learn that Christ upholds all things by the Word of His power? If we will learn from Scripture how to see ultimate reality, we will see that we need Christ not only to make purification for our sins, but also to preserve our souls and our bodies. And that means that Jesus is doubly worthy of our dependence, trust, love, and worship. When we see Him sitting at the right hand of the Majesty on high, it is not only to honor the work of His purification in saving us, but also to honor the Word of His power in preserving us. We not only owe our purification to Jesus, we owe our entire being to Him. Number three, who He is. There's one final last reason that Hebrews 1 verse 3 gives for Christ sitting down at the right hand of the Majesty on High. Two more phrases in the verse to look at. He is the radiance of God's glory and the exact representation of His nature. Or as we saw from the original words, He being the radiance of God's glory and the exact representation of His nature sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on High. The difference between this qualification for sitting at God's right hand and the other two is that those describe the things that Jesus did, while this describes who He is. What He does is uphold all things by the word of His power. What He does is make purification for sins by the worth of His blood. But who is He? That's my last question this morning. That's the final question I have for the Gospel of Luke. Who died for sins? Who rose from the dead? Who ascended into heaven? Who upholds the universe by the word of His power? Who ascended into heaven? Who is sitting at the right hand of God? Jesus. The very radiance of God's glory and the exact representation of His nature. Now what does this mean? It's important that we take these two phrases together because they control one another and keep us on track. When it says that Christ is the exact representation of God's own personal nature, we are then to realize that for us to see Jesus is for us to see God. Jesus said, if you have seen Me, you have seen the Father. Colossians 1.15 says, He is the image of the invisible God. So to see what God is like, you must behold Jesus Christ. But that could be taken in an entirely wrong way. Suppose you take it to mean that Christ represents God the way a photograph or a painting represents a person. Or the way an unauthorized letter represents the king. Or the way a wax impression represents the golden ring. That would be totally wrong. And the other phrase here is meant to protect us from that misunderstanding. So Jesus is the exact representation of God's nature, not in the way that a painting represents a person, but in the way radiance represents glory. Verse 3 says He is the radiance of God's glory. In other words, Jesus is God. So Jesus relates to God the way radiance relates to glory, or the way rays of sunlight relate to the sun. Now keep in mind that any analogy between God and natural things is imperfect and is able to be distorted if you press into it. Nevertheless, consider for example, there is no time that the sun exists without the beams of radiance. They can never be separated. How about this one? The radiance is co-eternal with the glory. How about this one? Therefore, Christ is co-eternal with God the Father. So in this case, the radiance is the glory radiating out. It is not different from the glory. Christ is God standing forth as separate, but not different from the Father. Thus the radiance is eternally begotten as it were by the glory, not created by it or made. So if you put a solar activated calculator in the sunlight, numbers appear on the face of the calculator. But the numbers are created. They are made by the sun. They are not what the sun is. But the rays of the sun that shine forth are a true extension of the sun itself. So Jesus is eternally begotten of the Father, but He was not made or created. We see the sun by means of seeing the rays of the sun. So we see God the Father by seeing Jesus in His ascended glory. The rays of the sun arrive here about eight minutes after they leave the sun, and the round ball of fire that we see in the sky is the image, the exact representation of the sun. Not because it is the painting of the sun, but because it is the sun itself streaming forth in its blinding, brilliant radiance. So I close this morning and end this amazing journey through the Gospel of Luke by commending this great person, Jesus Christ, to you. That you might trust in Him and love Him and worship Him. Jesus is alive today. He is sitting at the right hand of God with all power and authority and will one day come back in great glory. And Jesus has that exalted place because He Himself is God the Son. And because He upholds you and me by the Word of His power. And because He made a perfect purification of sins. And this is why these men who were chosen by God to go into all the world representing the man who lived and died and rose again could do what Luke said in the last verse of the last chapter. They, after worshiping Him, returned to Jerusalem with great joy and were continually in the temple praising God. May we emulate them in our day and may the name of Jesus Christ forever be praised. Amen. Let's pray.