| The Apostles' Creed, Part 13: “He ascended into heaven and sitteth on the right hand of God the Father Almighty” |
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| Written by David Lawrence |
| Monday, January 09 2012 00:00 |
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The ascension of Christ marks his return to the glory He enjoyed with the Father from before the world began (John 17:5). It was the final step in the redemptive process involving Christ. His work was complete, and now the Father raised Him, and the Father exalted Him. We cannot imagine the joy that God the Father, God the Son, God the Holy Spirit, and the heavenly host experienced in witnessing this culminating event in the eternal purpose of God. What glory God had gained! The immeasurable joy in heaven would now be shared by those for whom Christ died and Christ redeemed. It foreshadows our own consummation in glory when God calls us home to be with Him. Where is heaven? Is it a real place? These questions people ask continually. The Jews spoke of three heavens: the atmosphere, the realm of the sun, moon, and stars, and a realm beyond that belonged to God. Yes, it is a real place. No, my finite mind cannot grasp it. But Christ is there, God the Father Almighty is there, the Holy Spirit is there (as He is with us even now here on this earth, for He shall never leave us), the heavenly host is there, and the redeemed of all ages are and will be there. The first part of the creed, as we discussed earlier, deals with the nature of God. We saw that He is the God, that He is Father, and that He is Almighty. Now the Son takes His place at His right hand. To sit on the right hand of the ruler was the greatest position of honor next to the ruler himself. Jesus takes his place in a position of the greatest honor, for He had completed the work given to Him by the Father, He had granted eternal life to all those whom the Father gave him (John 17:2). Paul states this truth in Eph. 1:20 in words that must have provided the very wording for this part of the creed: God “…raised him from the dead and seated him at his right hand in the heavenly realms…” However, we should note that because we are in Christ, incorporated into Him, joined indissolubly to Christ, spiritually we are now raised to sit also with Christ at the right hand of God, as Paul teaches in Eph. 2:6: “And God raised us up with Christ and seated us with him in the heavenly realms in Christ Jesus in order that in the coming ages he might show the incomparable riches of his grace, expressed in his kindness to us in Christ Jesus.” What we enjoy now spiritually we shall realize fully in glory. It is important to understand that the work of our final salvation and exaltation, from God’s point of view, is already accomplished, and not all the forces of the world, the flesh, or the devil can undo what God has done! Amen! |
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