Near Jerusalem, if you pay a small admission fee, you can visit the “Chapel of the Ascension.” There’s not much to it, just a small round dome over a dent in the rock said to be the last footprint of Jesus on earth.

Talk about missing the point! The Ascension is not about what Jesus left behind but what he was going to do next.

Preparing. A long-time friend just wrote that she is now in a wheelchair, blind and unable to read or write, but she knows that her current state is only temporary because Jesus said, “If I go, I will prepare a place for you” (John 14:3).

Helping. Also, “if I go,” Jesus promised, “I will send the Helper to you” (John 16.7). On earth he could minister only to the people he was with at the time. But now that he has gone ahead, we all benefit daily from the presence of the Holy Spirit.

Interceding. Best of all, because he has gone, he now sits at the right hand of God on the throne of Heaven, ruling over all things and interceding daily for us. So many times, I have returned to that basic understanding: my life is in the hands of a sovereign God and his son who loves me.

I’ll take an ascended Savior sitting at the right hand of the Father over a phony footprint any day. You would, too. No wonder the disciples returned to Jerusalem with great joy, worshipping continually!

God, I pause now to simply thank you for Jesus who died, rose again, ascended into heaven and who will one day return.Thank you that he is now preparing a place for those who believe, that he sent the Helper and that he now intercedes daily for us. Help me to live today in light of these truths. Amen.

Throughout This Day: Is there a concern heavy on your heart today? Would you be willing to humbly bring it to God in prayer, knowing that you are not alone? Jesus cares and makes intercession for you.



Tags: Daily Devotional Luke 24
Photo Credit: Dorothy Garrovillo