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Ascended into the SacramentsBased on Acts 1:1-11 Preached on June 1, 2014[The Sunday After] The Ascension of our LordPastor Nathan FuehrerDid you ever notice that the seasons of the church year follow the structure of the apostle's creed? "I believe in Jesus Christ who was conceived by the Holy Spirit…that’s Advent! ...and born of the virgin Mary"...that's Christmas! "Suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified died and was buried"...that's Lent. “On the third day he rose again"...that's Easter! And he ascended into heaven, and is seated at the right hand of God the father almighty and he will come again to judge the living and the dead...all of that is wrapped up in a little festival called "The Ascension of our Lord." The Ascension of Jesus into heaven to be seated at the right hand of the Father...that happens forty days after Jesus rose from the dead. For forty days, Jesus walked the earth in his new glorified body, and people saw him, and he spoke to his apostles, proving, yes proving himself to be who he said he was, the God of all Creation in human flesh. As our reading from Acts today puts it, "He presented himself alive to them after his suffering by many proofs, appearing to them during forty days and speaking about the kingdom of God." And then he ascended into heaven.The ascension of Jesus is something that is easily overlooked. We preach and sing and meditate on the fact that the lord of life died and rose again, but those two central events are a matter of history. They don't tell us where Jesus went, and what Jesus is up to now. Where did Jesus go?...And what is he up to now? And will he return? Once again, our reading from Acts..."And when [Jesus] had said these things [to his apostles], as they were looking on, he was lifted up [ascended], and a cloud took him out of their sight.” And two angels said to them, "This Jesus, who was taken up from you into heaven, will come in the same way as you saw him go into heaven."There's our present and our future. Jesus ascended to heaven, which are not certain coordinates on a celestial map of the universe, but the very seat of glory of God. He ascended, and someday he will descend from heaven again and every eye will see him. Our question for today is, in the meantime…the time between his ascension and return, right now, how is he with his people?The ascension of Jesus is a lot like a funeral, minus the “death” part. You might think that a funeral is all about death, but not really. It asks, and hopefully answers, the same three questions asked about Jesus...where did this person go, what is this person up to now, will this person ever return? The three questions that frame a funeral, are the same three that frame Jesus’ own ascension.I've been to a lot of funerals, and it doesn't matter how secular our society becomes, it still has to make sense of death and attempt to put a positive light on it. And so to the godless—to those who believe that death is the end, and that is it--what kind of a positive spin can you put on death? Well, ladies and gentlemen, it’s a common phrase, a cliché and you've all heard it. It's that comment that people make, often mindlessly…"So-and-so will live on in our memories." We've been trained to think that this is an uplifting thought but it's not. In fact, to “live on in our memories" means precisely to not live on at all. In other words, the only existence "so-and-so" will have from this moment on, is in the minds of the living.Do you know what else can exist in the minds of the living? Unicorns, and fairies. Do you know what other fantasies can exist in the minds of the living?…a “free lunch” and a promise of “no new taxes.” Do you know what "lives" only in the minds of the living?...fictitious things, things that don't really exist. When you want to tell someone that they are making a fuss over nothing, you say, "Hey, it's all in your head", meaning, "Y'know...the thing you're making such a fuss over, it's really nothing; it doesn't exist, it's all in your head". And so, saying that someone will live on in our memories means precisely that they will live on in our heads, which implies that they won’t live anyplace else. But to the Christian, it is the opposite. "So-and-so" will not live on in our memories. "So-and-so" is living on in paradise right now, at Jesus' side. And so-and-so will live on in the resurrection of all flesh on the last day. In other words, the deceased lives on, not just in our heads, but in reality. All this to say that, when we consider that our Lord and Saviour has ascended into heaven, we need to be clear about what this means. This doesn't mean that he simply lives on in our memories, or that he is only present when we think about him. It means that he lives on outside of our heads, even outside of our faith, as the king of all creation, who sits at the right hand of power…meaning that in everything, from the sun rising in the morning, to criminals punished for their crimes, to mother's giving birth to children, Jesus is the legislator and executor of all things in heaven and on this earth. and on the last day he will come again as the judge. Jesus has ascended to heaven. That means he's not available to shake hands and kiss babies. But that doesn’t mean he’s gone. Jesus is still available to his people. He is not available to our eyes, but he is available to us. For he ascended, not to leave us as orphans, but to be with us in a different way. He has ascended into the sacraments, where his body and blood are given to us for the forgiveness of sins. Where he gives us the Holy Spirit and covers us with himself in baptism and makes us his own. Faith doesn't simply remember Jesus, Faith receives him, even today until the end of the age, in the place he promises to be, in, with and under the sacraments of the church, to whom, Paul, says, he has given himself.Ladies and gentlemen, rejoice, for your Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ did not ascend to heaven to get away from you, but so that he could be with you, and give himself to you in a different way, a new covenant. He ascended, as it were, into the sacraments, where we like the hemorrhaging woman, or like the conscience stricken Zacchaeus can go to him, and touch the hem of his garment and he will invite himself into our home. In the sacraments of Baptism, and Holy Communion, Jesus has promised to be with his church until the end of the age.Now I know, not all christians believe in Sacraments, it's true. But it is the clear testimony of the Scriptures that Baptism and Holy Communion ARE Jesus for you, today, until he comes again. “This is my body”...Jesus says. Those who are baptized have "put on Christ", Paul says. And think it through; if receiving these sacraments is how we receive Christ; what does it mean when we underestimate them, neglect them, or reject them?I have heard an argument that Baptism can't really “save you” for this reason. When Jesus was dying on the cross, he said to one of the thieves dying next to him, "Today you will be with me in Paradise." Now the thief had faith in Jesus, saying "Lord remember me in your kingdom", but he didn’t have baptism. And Jesus promised he would be with him in heaven without baptizing him. If baptism saves you?...how come this thief on the cross is saved without it? Think about that for a moment. Do you know the answer?Ladies and gentlemen, here it is: Jesus alone saves, it’s true. And this thief had him right there, pronouncing forgiveness, absolution, to him in his very presence, and preaching into his ear the promise of eternal life in him. The thief didn't need baptism because Jesus' body was right there with him.And it's the same today. Jesus alone saves; and baptism IS Jesus for you. Holy Communion IS Jesus for you. Don't reject him. Don't minimize him. Don’t be like the other thief and say to the sacrament, “If you really are the Son of God, prove it, show your power and take away my suffering.” Don't push Jesus in the sacrament aside as just a “formality” or some “ritual” or old stale “tradition”. By the power of the Word, Baptism and Holy Communion are Jesus for our faith, until he comes again for our sight. O blessed assurance, Jesus is mine! Oh, what a foretaste of glory divine! ................
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