Heidelberg Catechism Week 18

46. Q. What do you mean by saying, "He ascended to heaven"? A. That Christ, while His disciples watched, was lifted up from the earth to heaven and will be there for our good until He comes again to judge the living and the dead.

47. Q. But isn't Christ with us until the end of the world as He promised us? A. Christ is truly human and truly God. In His human nature Christ is not now on earth; but in His divinity, majesty, grace, and Spirit He is not absent from us for a moment.

48. Q. If His humanity is not present wherever His divinity is, then aren't the two natures of Christ separated from each other? A. Certainly not. Since divinity is not limited and is present everywhere, it is evident that Christ's divinity is surely beyond the bounds of the humanity He has taken on, but at the same time His divinity is in and remains personally united to His humanity.

49. Q. How does Christ's ascension to heaven benefit us? A. First, He pleads our cause in heaven in the presence of His Father. Second, we have our own flesh in heaven - a guarantee that Christ our head will take us, His members, to Himself in heaven. Third, He sends His Spirit to us on earth as a further guarantee. By the Spirit's power we make the goal of our lives, not earthly things, but the things above where Christ is, sitting at God's right hand.

My reflections on the reading from the book...

The topic for these questions, Christ's ascension, rings in harmony with the sermon I heard in church this morning, to the extent that I wonder if the preacher has been reading the Heidelberg Catechism too! Our pastor was preaching from John 14:1-23 - an intense passage in which there is much tension evident: heaviness of heart on the part of the disciples because they did not understand what was going on, and heaviness on the part of Christ because He did know what was going on. The passage repeats the phrase, "I tell you these things, so that when they happen you might believe." Christ's death, and then His departure from earth after His resurrection, was sure to shake the faith of His disciples. And He knew this. He also knows my circumstances and heart's troubles, and this passage was a word in season amidst the sorrow that has been plaguing me.

Pastor's points were...
1) Trust in Jesus - His departure is for your good. "In a little while you will not see Me, but do not let your heart be troubled. If there is ever to be lasting communion with Me, I must depart from you."  Christ's way into the Father's presence is our way, because He is the Way, the Truth, the Life. He opens for us the way to God and lasting joy. A "dwelling place" signifies communion, presence. Christ prepares this for us by means of His death. One day we will see joy on Christ's face as He smiles at the joy on our faces - as He welcomes us home where we will enjoy eternal communion with Him.
2) Trust in Jesus - He did not abandon You when He departed. "It is better for you that I go." He gives His Spirit ("another Comforter") to us for the time between His comings. Hence the triune God makes us His dwelling place! God's promise has always been that He will dwell with His people.

So this afternoon as I meditated on these truths, I was struck by the fact that the disciples' faith must have been divinely strengthened after Christ's ascension - for the gospel then spread throughout the regions just as Christ commissioned them. If their faith had been weak, if they had wallowed in their sorrow over His departure, if they had given up hope, the light of the gospel would have been hidden from the generations to come.

DeYoung's comments on Questions 46-49 bring out the following truths:

• Christ's ascension benefits us in three ways:
• We have an advocate with the Father. Whenever Satan accuses us in our conscience or dares to lay a charge against us before the Father, Jesus Christ, God's own Son and our flawless advocate, stands ready to defend us and plead His own blood for our sakes.
• We now have our own flesh in heaven; our lives are hidden with Christ who dwells in glory above (Col. 3:3-4). Christ's flesh in heaven is a guarantee that ours will be there too someday.
• We get the Holy Spirit as a result. Jesus understood that as a man He was limited to one place at a time. But once He ascended to heaven, He could send another Helper (John 14:16) to give us power from on high and to be with us forever.

•  Christ's ascension means we are in heaven, right now. Through union with Christ, we truly are not citizens of this world. Colossians tells us to set our minds on things that are above, because our lives are hidden with Christ who dwells there.

DeYoung's reference to Colossians 3 stopped me in my tracks because that is the very chapter someone brought to my attention three weeks ago - an occasion and a chapter that has lodged itself in my mind as an almost daily reminder to "seek those things which are above." That very person who read Colossians 3 to me is one whose forthcoming departure saddens me more deeply than I could have anticipated. But this too the Lord knows...

And thus several strands weave themselves together in the narrative that is my life. I am so grateful for the providential "wafers of manna" that meet my daily need. Thank You, Father, for the ascended Christ and all the good that comes to me because of Him!