Tuesday, May 21, 2024

Going Up!

 DEVOTION

THE GOSPEL ACCORDING TO LUKE

GOING UP

Luke 24:50-53

50 When he had led them out to the vicinity of Bethany, he lifted up his hands and blessed them. 51 While he was blessing them, he left them and was taken up into heaven. 52 Then they worshiped him and returned to Jerusalem with great joy. 53 And they stayed continually at the temple, praising God.

NIV

Now this is the last thing in the record that Luke left for us. Next to the cross where all our sins were taken into account, and we have been forgiven and cleansed by the blood of Jesus so that we do not have to pay the penalty for our sins. Jesus paid it all on that old rugged cross. Then of course the fact that after he was in the grace those three days, he was resurrected, which also means that we too will not stay in the grave for we will also be resurrected. But then after we are raised from the dead what then? If that is all then are we destined to just live again in the fallen world? Do we have to continue to find a way to support ourselves? Surely because of our death, all our assets would be gone, and we would no longer have any social security, that would have stopped at our death. Praise God there is one more event that we have to look forward to when we are resurrected or hopefully even before we go through the valley of death. After Jesus had eaten that broiled fish to prove he was still flesh and bone, and they went out near Bethany, he lifted his hands and blessed them and at that very time, he was taken up, in bodily form, into heaven. Sure, there is more to come, but the truth of the matter is that because Jesus was taken up into heaven after we are resurrected, we too will be taken up into heaven. Of course, we know just as Jesus was in paradise along with that one thief that day, they both took their last breath. This means the day we take our last breath we will leave this body behind, and we will be in paradise with Jesus. Certainly, that will be in a spiritual form, although we do not know what that will look like. However, there will be a day that whatever condition the body we left behind will be resurrected and we will rejoin it so that we can rise into heaven in a bodily form, just as Jesus did. Oh, the glory of it all. It does not matter what the condition of our bodies will be, for eventually, it was dusk we were formed and to duck we will be. Our bodies will decay to dusk, or we might have been cremated, but none of that matters when it comes to the power of God. Our bodies will be reformed as they are resurrected so we can follow Jesus into the air and on to our heavenly home until we all come back to live in the new city of Jerusalem on the new earth, an all-new creation by the power of God and prepared for us by Jesus. Meanwhile, we live by faith and in the hope or anticipation of our resurrection and ascension, as we will live a glorious eternal life in the presence of our Lord. Yet, we wait for that word, “Going up!” Amen! 

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