⤒🔗

14.1 Key themes←⤒🔗

• Heaven is a real place that God created.
• On the day of Jesus’ ascension, he went to heaven with his body.
• The disciples were glad when Jesus went up to heaven, because:
  - They knew that Jesus was not leaving them alone.
  - Jesus had explained that it was good for them if he went to heaven.
• It is good for us that Jesus is in heaven, because:
  - He is defending us in heaven.
  - He is preparing a place for us in heaven.
  - Through his Spirit he connects us to heaven.

14.2 Matthew 28:18-20 (NIV 1984)←⤒🔗

^18. Then Jesus came up and said to them, 'All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me.

^19. Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit,

^20. teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And remember, I am with you always, to the end of the age.'

© NET Bible

14.3 Luke 24:50-53←⤒🔗

^50. Then Jesus led them out as far as Bethany, and lifting up his hands, he blessed them.

^51. Now during the blessing he departed and was taken up into heaven.

^52. So they worshipped him and returned to Jerusalem with great joy,

^53. and were continually in the temple courts blessing God.

© NET Bible

14.4 John 14:1-3 (ESV)←⤒🔗

^1. Let not your hearts be troubled. Believe in God; believe also in me.

^2. In my Father's house are many rooms. If it were not so, would I have told you that I go to prepare a place for you?

^3. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and will take you to myself, that where I am you may be also.

© NET Bible

14.5 The ascension←⤒🔗

There is a real place called “heaven.” It is a place that God created (Genesis 1:1). It is the place where his presence can be seen (Revelation 4). From here he rules over his creation. The angels live here, together with the souls of all God’s people who have died (Hebrews 12:22-23).

This is the place where Jesus went, on the day of his ascension. His disciples saw how he was “taken up into heaven” (Luke 24:51). A cloud took him out of their sight (Acts 1:9).

How far did Jesus go? Where exactly is heaven? We do not know the answers to these questions yet. The only thing that we know, is that Jesus really went to heaven. He went there with his body. We know this, because there were eyewitnesses: the eleven disciples.

The disciples saw Jesus going up to heaven. Then they saw two angels who said to them, “Men of Galilee, why do you stand here looking up into the sky? This same Jesus who has been taken up from you into heaven will come back in the same way you saw him go into heaven” (Acts 1:11).

14.6 Away and with us←⤒🔗

For three years the disciples lived with Jesus. He was their Teacher and their Friend. Now he was gone. Were they sad about this? No! The Bible tells us that they were glad! They “worshipped him and returned to Jerusalem with great joy” (Luke 24:52).

The disciples were glad, because they knew that Jesus was not leaving them alone. Jesus had promised them, “I am with you always, to the end of the age” (Matthew 28:20). They knew that Jesus would be with them through his Spirit (Acts 1:8). They also knew that Jesus was going to come back again (John 14:3).

That is the situation of the church today. In one way Jesus is away from us. With his human body, he is in heaven. We miss him, as a bride misses her bridegroom (Revelation 22:17, Revelation 22:20). We long for the day when we will see him in glory (Titus 2:13).

But in another way, Jesus is with us. He is with us through his Spirit. He is still our Teacher, who teaches us through his Word (John 16:13). He is still our Friend, who loves and helps us (Ephesians 3:16-19).

14.7 He is there for your good←⤒🔗

In John 16:7 (NIV 1984) Jesus says to his disciples, “But I tell you the truth: It is for your good that I am going away.” These words are also true for you. It is good for you that Jesus is in heaven with his Father!

Here are three reasons why it is good for you that Jesus is in heaven:

1. He is defending you.←↰⤒🔗

In his first letter, John writes these words: “My dear children, I write this to you so that you will not sin. But if anybody does sin, we have one who speaks to the Father in our defense – Jesus Christ, the Righteous One” (1 John 2:1, NIV 1984).

Jesus is in heaven, to defend you and to pray for you. When you sin, Jesus is there to say to God, “Forgive him (or her), Father. I have already paid for this sin.”

When you realise that you have sinned, remember that Jesus is defending you in heaven! You can be sure that the Father will listen to Jesus. It was the Father’s own will, that his Son would become your defender (Ephesians 1:5-7)!

2. He is preparing a place for you.←↰⤒🔗

If you belong to Jesus, then Jesus gives you this promise: “There are many dwelling places in my Father’s house… I am going away to make ready a place for you” (John 14:2).

This is a wonderful promise! You have a place in the Father’s house. Your “citizenship is in heaven” (Philippians 3:20). That is why your heart must not be troubled (John 14:1). No matter what happens to you in this world, your place in heaven is safe. It is waiting for you.

In Lesson 3 we saw that Jesus is our King, who is united with us. The Bible also explains this unity in another way. It says that Jesus is our head, and we are his body (Ephesians 4:15-16).

One preacher explained it like this: Think of a man who is crawling through a fence or a bush. If his head is through, then his body will soon be through. We are the body of Jesus. We are not in heaven yet. But our head is already in heaven! So we can be sure that we will soon be there with him.

3. Through his Spirit he connects you to heaven.←↰⤒🔗

After Jesus went to heaven, he poured out the Holy Spirit on his church (Acts 2:33). This is what he had promised his disciples. He had said to them, “But I tell you the truth: It is for your good that I am going away. Unless I go away, the Counselor will not come to you; but if I go, I will send him to you” (John 16:7, NIV 1984).

The Holy Spirit is not only given to some believers. He is given to every believer. Through the Spirit a believer can already enjoy the blessings of heaven (Ephesians 1:3).

The Spirit helps you to live as a citizen of heaven. It does not matter where you are: in church, at home, at school, at work, in hospital… In all these places, you are connected to heaven. You are living for your Lord, Jesus Christ!