THE ASCENSION OF CHRIST

The ascension of Christ into a glorious heaven has been a cause of great joy upon earth and in heaven. All those, who know and love this King, shall rejoice in His exaltation. The great joy of the church already in olden times is expressed in these words: “Sing praises to God, sing praises: sing praises unto our King, sing praises!” Oh, that presently many souls, whose harps hang so often on the willows, may join the song of praise and exclaim: “I will extol Thee, my God, O King; and I will bless Thy name for ever and ever.” There is a time to mourn, and there is a time to rejoice and be glad. Such times, however, are in the hands of a sovereign Lord. This is the experience of God’s people. Almightiness can change things, as was wonderfully seen and experienced when Jesus was risen from the dead. What can helpless worms do?

The state of Jesus’ humiliation was followed by a state of exaltation, as was foretold. Jesus went down to the depths of hell in His intense suffering, but after His finished mediatorial work on the cross He was exalted to the right hand of God in the highest heaven. There we see Christ crowned with honor and glory.

“Thou hast ascended on high.” This was accomplished forty days after Jesus’ resurrection. In those forty days He gave many proofs that He lived. He brought great gifts with Him when he arose from the grave, and distributed them graciously amongst His dear ones, as He still does from His heavenly throne. May the living church of Christ meditate on these blessings and see therein their blessedness. Perhaps some may ask, “Which are they?” Do consider what our fathers have recorded in our Heidelberg Catechism: “First, by His resurrection He has overcome death, that He might make us partakers of that righteousness which He had purchased for us by His death; secondly, we are also by His power raised up to a new life; and lastly, the resurrection of Christ is a sure pledge of our blessed resurrection.”

On the appointed time we find Christ with His disciples on the Mount of Olives. From there He will leave this earth, which has been for the Man of Sorrows a vale of tears and suffering. How much will He leave behind when His Father will take Him into the heavenly glory, and He shall ascend in His divine power. And if you, dear reader, have been a follower of the Lord Jesus by grace, through honor and dishonor, through good report and evil report, then the last day of your brief life here upon earth shall be your ascension and crowning day also. Oh, wonder of eternal, free love and sovereign grace! What a shining instance of this sovereign grace and love, that even the penitent thief on the cross may hear from Jesus’ lips: “To day shalt thou be with Me in paradise.”

Jesus ascended on high after He had instructed His disciples (Acts 1) and promised to send the Holy Ghost as their Comforter, yea, after He blessed them: “And He lifted up His hands, and blessed them.” Luke 24:50. Blessed High Priest! Jesus is always ready to hear the cries of the needy and to bless them.

“When the needy seek Him,
He will mercy show;
Yea, the weak and helpless
Shall His pity know.”

Corporally Jesus ascended on high and entered into heaven. The disciples did not see Him bodily in their midst any more; but He remained in their midst and in their hearts with His Godhead, Spirit, majesty and grace. Oh, to behold the King in His beauty by faith! this makes all things well. To taste His never-changing love, makes a soul glory in afflictions.

Jesus also ascended visibly. The disciples saw Him ascend until “a cloud received Him out of their sight.” Acts 1:9. Reader, has a dark cloud ever hidden Christ from your view, when your heart was enlightened to see Him in gospel and ordinances; when your soul was burning within you? Do you know what that is? If so, you will understand more or less what was in the hearts of the disciples when a cloud obscured the ascension of their Lord.

Christ ascended victoriously, as was foretold in Psalm 68: “Thou hast ascended on high, Thou hast led captivity captive: Thou hast received gifts for men; yea, for the rebellious also, that the Lord God might dwell among them.” Here is a heaven of good things to admire: Christ victorious, and all His dear ones victorious in and through Him; the rebellious saved, wherein the grace and love of Christ are greatly magnified, for it is through Him alone that their enmity is broken and that they are changed from enemies and rebels into the meek lambs of Christ; “that the Lord God might dwell among them,” who, in Christ “are builded together for an habitation of God through the Spirit”; and that they themselves might dwell forever with Him and eternally rejoice in the great works of the Father, Son, and Holy Ghost.

Christ ascended amidst the shoutings of great joy in heaven, as we find in Psalm 47: “God is gone up with a shout, the Lord with the sound of a trumpet. Sing praises to God, sing praises.”

The Lord Jesus also ascended on high with great majesty and glory, as we read in Psalm 24: “Lift up your heads, O ye gates; and be ye lift up, ye everlasting doors; and the King of glory shall come in. Who is this King of glory? The Lord strong and mighty, the Lord mighty in battle The Lord of hosts, He is the King of glory. Selah.” Oh, that Israel might rejoice and learn to trust in Him Who is the victory of His Israel; but woe unto those that are against Him, the hordes of Satan, who will not submit to this King of glory … it will be hard to kick against the pricks!

The ascension of Christ redounds to the glory of God, the exaltation of this Redeemer, and the benefit of His whole church, which He has ransomed. The Man of sorrows is in the heavenly rest, and sits upon His throne to rule supremely over all things. He is surrounded by all His angels and saints, who bow and give glory to Him. O do hear the heavenly song: “Blessing, and honour, and glory and power, be unto Him that sitteth upon the throne, and unto the Lamb for ever and ever.” O hearken unto His voice, ye afflicted and poor people, who are left in the midst of a wicked world and backsliding church, and who shall trust in His name (Zeph. 3:12): “All power is given unto Me in heaven and in earth.” Christ the Lord has unlimited power.

Christ has gone to heaven and has made a clear way for His people to their heavenly fatherland and eternal life: to be with Him forever. And has not many a pilgrim exclaimed as Paul: “Having a desire to depart, and to be with Christ; which is far better.” The Good Shepherd has gone up, and the sheep may and will follow.

Christ is now in heaven to continue there for the interest of all His needy and helpless people, yea, till He shall come again to judge the quick and the dead.

Consider also the three points as we find them in the answer to the 49th question of our Heidelberg Catechism regarding the benefits of Christ’s ascension: “First, that He is our advocate in the presence of His Father in heaven; secondly, that we have our flesh in heaven as a sure pledge that He, as the head, will also take up to Himself, us, His members; thirdly, that He sends us His Spirit as an earnest, by Whose power we seek the things which are above, where Christ sitteth on the right hand of God, and not things on earth.”

May God bless these thoughts about the glorious ascension of Zion’s King to the hearts of the readers. Oh, that those who are yet in a graceless, lifeless, and Christless state, may yet be led downward into the depths of their sin and misery, that the cry might be raised to the ascended King of kings: “Out of the depths do I cry unto Thee, O Lord. Lord, hear my voice: let Thine ears be attentive to the voice of my supplications.”

May the people of Zion, in their different stages of spiritual life, be excited by the operations of the Spirit to raise their eyes continually heavenward in the present dark times of this world, and say: “Behold, as the eyes of servants look unto the hand of their masters, and as the eyes of a maiden unto the hand of her mistress; so our eyes wait upon the Lord our God, until that He have mercy upon us. Have mercy upon us, O Lord, have mercy upon us: for we are exceedingly filled with contempt.” Ps. 123.

NO REASON TO FEAR

(Continued)

And the angel answered and said unto the women, “Fear not ye: for I know that ye seek Jesus which was crucified.”

Matthew 28:5

The women have drawn near to the grave. Arriving at the grave, they notice that the stone has already been rolled away.

There was an earthquake and an angel had descended from heaven. Surely it is holy ground there. All is full of majesty and glory. No, that angel did not turn back when he saw the watch of soldiers standing at the grave. The angels, as also the blessed spirits before the throne, are indeed filled with deep reverence before the Lord of hosts, but they did not fear the wicked keepers and because they did not leave their first estate, therefore they need not fear anything.

The keepers feared, they were terrified, and became as dead men when they saw the angel, but the women feared also.

It is easy to explain why the keepers feared. They had every reason to fear. They stood there to prevent the resurrection of Christ, and now they receive, against their will, an impression of the Divine Omnipotence. Their conscience began to speak, and they could not stand before God; they could not bear that celestial sight. O, how afraid they were. It was as if they were suddenly placed before death and judgment. No, it did not enter into their mind to remain there, but they took to flight. Whatever was involved, and whatever the consequences would be of their running away, they could not remain one moment longer. There it was certainly fulfilled,

“His haters haughty though they be,
Shall at His august presence flee
In utter consternation.”

Of the wicked it is written in Psalm 73:9, “They set their mouth against the heavens and their tongue walketh through the earth,” but as soon as God begins to speak, then it becomes manifest how cowardly man is. With all his pride and enmity, man, when God comes, melts like wax before the fire.

Truly, the enemies of God and of Christ have reasons to fear because it shall be a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God. That judgment shall be terrible for all who would not that Christ should be King over them. And we may rest assured that when we dare to oppose the Lord, that then God Himself will remove us out of the way. We will surely lose out, and it shall surely be terrible to lose out forever.

The women feared too, but they had no reason to fear. To be sure, when a child of God looks upon self, upon his life and his behavior, yea, then it is no wonder that his heart trembles. David had to cry out in Psalm 130, “If Thou, Lord, shouldest mark iniquities, O Lord, who shall stand?”

Sins constantly make a separation, and we shall have to experience unto the day of our death what we have brought upon ourselves in the fall of Adam.

But on the other hand, those people need not fear. God has loved His people from eternity. They are dealing with a faithful and immutable God Who has loved His people freely and tenderly. It is the Father’s good pleasure to give them that Kingdom. The Father has laid on the Surety all their iniquities, and Christ has been made sin in order that they would become the righteousness of God in Him. That Blessed Surety of the Covenant has perfectly satisfied for all their sins and iniquities, and by virtue of that, God sees no sin in His Jacob, nor any transgressions in His people Israel.

They are viewed in that perfect righteousness of Christ Jesus, and that Blessed Mediator makes haste to remove all groundless and slavish fears out of their hearts.

The first thing then which that angel tells those women is, “Fear not ye.” The keepers have all reasons to fear, but not ye. The resurrection of Christ is for you a reason for the greatest joy. O women, for you I have a very joyous message. And what is that founded upon?

The angel does not hesitate, but spake with a definite assurance, “For I know that ye seek Jesus, which was crucified.” No doubt these women before walked upon the earth and in their home, yea even that morning, with all their spices thinking,

“Then muses the soul, ‘Is it true, does God
Also know of my sorrowful lot?
Does the Most High have knowledge of all
My complaints, as bitter as gall?’ “

Psalm 73

They were not understood by the people, neither could they believe that in heaven notice was taken of their condition; but now everything was made clear. Not only the Lord Himself, but the angels, too, have knowledge of their inward life. The angels are not omniscient, but neither are they ignorant. Our confession tells us that the knowledge of angels far surpasses ours. True it is a limited knowledge, but yet they know much. The names of God’s children are written in heaven in the Lamb’s Book of Life, but God’s eye is ever upon them, and He knows what is in their heart; He knows the desires and longings of their soul; God knows what those people want. What a great comfort it was to those women to hear that out of the mouth of the ministering spirit. Because those women had been sought by Christ, therefore they now sought Him.

They found Him here when they were favored to walk with Him, and His communion had become their life. And now they had lost Him for a few days. They had their share of the grief of that sorrow, but that sorrow had not killed their love.

Love had remained active and had impelled them to go to the grave. They sought the Living among the dead, but the principal from which this emanated was from God. They sought Jesus. They could not only not die without Him, but to those women it was impossible to live without Him. They sought the Savior Who had to deliver them from the greatest evil and restore them to the highest good. That Name was to them as an ointment poured forth, and for that reason they loved Him. Within their hearts it was,

Give me Jesus or I die.
Without Jesus is no life,
But an eternal ruin of the soul.

They sought Jesus which was crucified. They had learned to love the crucified Christ. We are lost on account of sin, and on account of transgressing the law, we are damnable before God and under His curse and wrath. But now Christ has atoned for sin. And because He died that cursed death, He has delivered all His people from the curse of the law, and through the cross, the power of sin has been destroyed.

Christ was crucified, and by His death on the cross, He has obtained salvation for all His people, but has also triumphed over sin, over the law, and over death. That Divine Mediator has trodden the winepress alone, because the day of vengeance was in His heart, and the year of His redeemed had come.

He was crucified; He rendered satisfaction; He has finished all. He was crucifed. It came to pass. It happened once, and it is unnecessary ever to repeat it.

For in that He died, He died unto sin once, but in that He liveth, He liveth unto God. For by one offering He hath perfected forever them that are sanctified.

The angel reminded those women of the death of Christ on the cross, also now that Christ was risen from the grave. God’s justice demanded that cursed death, but that cross was also for Christ the way to the crown, and for the church the way to obtain eternal salvation. That cross is an offence to the Jews and foolishness to the Greeks, but to them that are called, the power and wisdom of God. I Cor. 1:23. Christ was crucified for all those that shall believe in Christ. O, God teaches His people not to glory in anything else, but only in the cross of the Lord Jesus Christ. Blessed are those souls who may be favored to do so.

In the next verse the angel continues to show and to assure those women that their fears were groundless, but we hope, D.V., to consider that some other time.

To fearing people, heaven says, “Fear not.” Time and again we find it in God’s precious Word. At one time the Lord spoke to Abraham who had been called out of Ur of the Chaldeans. “Fear not Abram, I am thy shield and thy exceeding great reward.” In Isaiah 41:14 the faithful Covenant Jehovah calls to His people, “Fear not thou worm Jacob and ye men of Israel, I will keep thee saith the Lord, and thy Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel.” The shepherds in Luke 2 were sore afraid, but the angel called to them, “Fear not, for behold I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people.” Yea, in Luke 12:32 Christ Himself declares to His fearing people, “Fear not, little flock, for it is your Father’s good pleasure to give you the kingdom.”

During the terrible storm, while on the way to Rome, Paul, too, had to struggle with fear, but an angel told him, “Fear not Paul, thou must be brought before Caesar, and, lo, God hath given thee all that sail with thee.” Acts 27:24.

Even John while on Patmos was plagued with fear when he beheld the glorified Immanuel, but was comforted by Christ Himself with these words, “Fear not, I am the first and the last.” And that same John writes to his spiritual children, “There is no fear in love, but perfect love casteth out fear; because fear hath torment. He that feareth is not perfect in love.” I John 4:18.

With those women faith was weak, and love was mixed with fear, but now the angel called to them so comfortingly, “Fear not ye.” That included a mild rebuke, but the comfort was much greater. Ah, the Lord knows what He may expect of us. He knows very well how they are tossed to and fro, and that they cannot help themselves. Therefore the Lord Himself comes to remove that fear, and that is what those people long for. They can put themselves deeper into misery and incline their ear to those voices within them and entangle themselves more and more in the snares of unbelief and doubt, but they are unable to deliver themselves out of those bands and shackles. But that great King Who is given unto them by Israel’s God, hastens at the appointed time to deliver His people, and then they may trust under His wings.

That angel told them emphatically, “Fear not ye.”

There are many people in the world, yea by far the most, who do not fear; and there are also others who do fear, but to whom that comforting word has never been directed. How necessary it is then for all travelers to eternity, to examine themselves very closely. Thousands travel to eternity without fear. Like the keepers, at times their consciences are startled, but for the rest they sleep on.

There are also people who make their ground of the fear for eternity which constantly occupies their mind. There are also those who spend their whole life in slavish fear, but who all the time remain strangers to that childlike fear and for whom the case is never solved. Moreover, there are so many in our days who help themselves, and put themselves at ease, with an assumed but stolen Christ, and who never complain about doubt and fear. They are never confused, they are always cheerful, and are never filled with fear, “Am I not deceiving myself for eternity?” They are the ones that are at ease in Zion, and the assured on the hill of Samaria. The devil not only goes about as a roaring lion seeking who he may devour, but he also reveals himself as an angel of light to allure and to tempt.

0, how does man’s state of death manifest itself in all things, and how very miserable he is in himself. By nature we only live to deceive ourselves. When Adam, the father of us all, had broken the covenant of works, he was busy covering himself but was not concerned to receive the forgiveness of his sins. And now while living under the proclamation of the gospel in the light of the truth, man refuses to come to Christ. The enmity is so great that Christ told the Jews, John 5:40, “And ye will not come to me, that ye might have life.”

It becomes manifest in everything that we have forsaken God, never again to return to Him. God looked down from heaven to see if there was one that did seek God, but there was not even one.

The demand is there to seek God and to turn to Christ, Isaiah 45:22, and it remains our responsibility, but if there shall ever be a true seeking of the Lord and His strength, then God Himself must first seek us. By the enlightening and discovering of the Holy Spirit we must be made sensible of what we lack, and then have the necessity bound upon us that we cannot do without God. By grace those women had sought Christ already before He died, and now they still sought Him after His resurrection.

They did not follow Him because they had eaten of the loaves, neither because of the outward benefits which they had received from Him, but they sought that blessed Person, because they could not live without Him.

They needed Him to save and redeem them, and as their Prophet, Priest and King. They had to possess Him as their property, and they could find no rest for their soul before they could say, “My beloved is mine, and I am His.” O young and old, examine yourself. What is our purpose, and what are we seeking in this life? To know Christ, that is eternal life; and the personal union with Him by faith is indispensible unto salvation. Without that union we must perish forever.

Christ is all and in all to a people which is nothing anymore in self, but which also lacks everything, and which can be satisfied with nothing anymore but only with Him.

Laban came to Eliezer for the benefits of Isaac, but Rebekah wanted the person. And our soul desires that last part, when it has been made naked and bare by the Holy Spirit. The upright people do not desire the gift but the Giver. O, let everyone examine themselves before the face of the Lord. Only in Christ are we righteous before God.

My fellow traveler to eternity, it shall be terrible if we in our short life here upon earth have only sought after that which is of the world. If our life is with the world and in the world, then our end shall only be to perish forever with the world. But also, if we have only sought to establish our own righteousness, and to be wrapped up in that, and to put ourselves at ease, that shall prove in the end to be a bed too short and a cover too narrow. Everything outside of Christ shall fall away and disappear, and it will be terrible to have to appear alone in the judgment.

It is still the acceptable time and the day of salvation. God is still knocking at the door of our heart, and we may still escape from the wrath to come.

O, that by the irresistible and powerful operation of the Holy Spirit an urgency was born to seek the Lord while He may be found and to call upon Him while He is still near. By and by we shall lament eternally that we have wasted our precious time of grace and have made ourselves busy only with things which have no value for eternity. O, that God may yet open your eyes to see your guilt and sin, your lost condition, and to teach you, that by the works of the law no flesh shall be justified before God, but that only by the death of His Son we may become reconciled with God, and eternal salvation is assured to us in His resurrection.

Only the knowledge of that Christ, and also the possession of Him can perfect our salvation. O, it is necessary to perish with everything in order that He alone shall be our life. O, it is such a blessing when God’s Spirit contends with us and we are driven out of self, and are constrained by the love of Christ to seek Him, Who allows Himself to be found of them who desire Him in truth.

It is such a bad sign when the love grows cold and when there are no issues of heart to Christ, for then we rob ourselves of the saving revelation of Him, Who is the resurrection and the life.

Seeking and expectant people, you have not all the blessing those women had about whom we wrote, that after such a short time of waiting they were surprised and delighted. But let it be to your comfort that the Lord Himself has declared, “Though He tarry, wait for Him, because He will surely come; He will not tarry.” At His time He will fulfill all your desires. Your fear that He will never come is unfounded, and all those fears shall be put to shame. Whenever that blessed morning and day shall dawn for you, then all your spices shall fall away and that exalted Christ shall say unto you, “Behold, here I am.”

“Wait on the Lord: be of good courage, and He shall strengthen thy heart; wait, I say, on the Lord.” AMEN.

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