Great joy for us all

 

Lifting up His hands,
He (Jesus) blessed them.
While He blessed them,
He parted from them and
was carried up into heaven.
And they worshiped Him and
returned to Jerusalem with
great joy….

Luke 24:50-52

If you were paying attention, this past Thursday remembers the day Christ our Lord left. Yes, He left— He ascended and was carried up into heaven. Now the reaction of the disciples/ apostles may seem strange to us. Reportedly they were experiencing great joy and why was that in consideration that Christ was departing from them?

They had not often seemed to be filled with “great joy.” They at times had been filled with pride as they battled for prominence… seeking their own recognition… seeking to be the greatest. They at times had been filled with confusion and grief at the Lord’s words especially when He spoke of His death. They also had experienced fear as they fled from Christ’s enemies in the Garden of Gethsemane, confusion as they failed to understand the empty tomb, and doubt even after seeing the risen Christ. Now we read in the text from Luke’s Gospel that they returned to Jerusalem with great joy and it was on the occasion of Jesus’ departing ascension.

Some of this joy must have been joy for Jesus. Aren’t you happy for Him, when you see Him raise His hands? I mean, those nail prints are scars now. The cross is in the past. The suffering is over. The battle is won! Yes, my friends, Christ humbled Himself even to the point of dying on the cross for your sins. Now He ascends to the right hand of God. Now He will be given a name that is above every name so that every tongue may confess Him as Lord (see Philippians 2:9-11). Yes, they must have been filled with joy for Jesus.

Notice though that their joy for Him didn’t take the form of a “way-to-go” high 5 but a way of life for them. They didn’t just cheer for Him; they worshiped Him assuredly in their hearts, in their words, and in their life’s work too—even though the joy they had in Christ would carry each of them through difficult times, unwarranted persecution, and martyrdom.

The joy that filled them was a joy that satisfied them to share the love of God in Christ Jesus throughout their earthly life. And we, who weren’t there to see Him ascend are blessed too because we believe and therefore confess our short comings—for there is great joy in heaven when a sinner repents and receives the righteousness of Christ crucified and risen… when we hear Christ say: “I forgive you all your sins.” And as a result, “We have the joy, joy, joy, joy down in our heart” to freely, fully worship Him for the satisfaction He brings down to us.

As well as joy for Jesus, there is that unique joy the Christian has—the joy of salvation. Christ has won it for us and in His departure declares that He is going to prepare a place for us so that we may be with Him where He is (see John 14:1-3). And though we remain here for a while, we do with the joy set before us in that Christ has given new meaning and purpose to our sharing Him with our friends and neighbors. And by comparison, we find that His disciples/apostles departed from Him with the joy of salvation and were unstoppable because of it. They were transformed and the world would be transformed too by their message of Good News for all people. And for us who are in the world today, Christ lifts His hands to bless us and fill us with joy. So, look out world. Watch out for the Christian with the joy of salvation! It will mean great joy for us all.

Each month a member of the Cook County Ministerium will offer Spiritual Reflections. This week our contributor is Reverend Dean Rudloff, Life In Christ Lutheran Church in Grand Marais.