Hi First Presbyterian,
I wrote our Mid-Week Meet-Up before I left for study leave and scheduled it to be sent to you while I am away. I hope it finds you in peace.
One of my favorite New Testament theologians is University of St. Andrews professor N. T. Wright. I once heard him give a lecture at Princeton University after which someone in the audience asked him a question along the lines of: “In addition to studying Jesus of Nazareth from an academic perspective, you obviously believe in him personally. What would it take for you to recant your belief in him?” N. T. Wright thought for about 3 seconds before responding: “The bones of Jesus.” In other words, N. T. Wright’s faith in Jesus is founded in the historicity of the resurrection of Jesus. As long as there is reason to believe that Jesus actually rose from the dead, then having faith in him is reliable and life-changing. If you heard my Easter sermon, you know I couldn’t agree with N. T. Wright more.
If I were to rank Christian beliefs by order of theological importance, I would put the resurrection of Jesus at number one. In my opinion, the ascension of Jesus must be number two. Think about it. If Jesus actually did rise from the dead, then where is he now? As far as I can see, there are only three options for answering that question. 1) After his resurrection, Jesus lived a while longer and then died again, let’s say, of natural causes. In that case, Jesus was not actually “resurrected” but was “resuscitated,” because resurrection means being raised to life without end. If Jesus was merely resuscitated, then he is not who Christians profess him to be. 2) Jesus continued to remain on the earth after his resurrection and is still alive somewhere on the earth right now. Maybe he’s on the same island where some people believe Elvis is hiding out! 3) Jesus actually physically rose from the dead, and then, as the book of Acts tells us, “he was lifted up, and a cloud took him out of their sight” (Acts 2:9).
Christians obviously choose option #3.
I’m not sure what happened to Jesus once he was out of the sight of the disciples. The book of Acts tells us he was taken “into heaven.” Where exactly is heaven? I’m not sure how to locate it physically. Up above the clouds is more of the Earth’s atmosphere, and continuing to follow in that direction will take you farther into an ever-expanding and seemingly endless universe. Is heaven outside the universe? Maybe. Heaven is wherever God is, and, since God is everywhere, I prefer to think of heaven as an unseen world all around us. When you think of heaven that way, the ascension of Jesus takes on a slightly different meaning, at least it does for me. What if the resurrected Jesus didn’t go away to some far away location but, instead, simply slipped out of sight to the unseen realm where God is? If that’s true then the physically embodied, yet unseen, Jesus of Nazareth is as close to you as anyone.
Tomorrow is Ascension Day. I encourage you to spend some time tomorrow reflecting on the resurrected and ascended Jesus. Maybe you can talk with a friend about it, and reflect on the fact that Jesus said, “Where two or three are gathered in my name, I am there among them” (Matthew 18:20). Do you feel his presence nearby? I assure you he is there.
Peace to you,
Pastor Neff