He was taken up before their very eyes, and a cloud hid him from their sight.

Acts 1:9

Christians often speak of the redeeming power of the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus. It seems to me there is more to the story than just these three elements. The incarnation and the ascension of Jesus are of vital importance and worthy of more than just a footnote to the life, death and resurrection.

God, somehow, became fully human while not losing any of his divinity. The bible tells us that Jesus holds all things together (Colossians 1:17 and Hebrews 1:3). How did that work? As an incarnate embryo, in the womb of his virgin mother, he was simultaneously unaware of himself (his human nature), and yet sustaining the cosmos and everything within it (his divine nature)!!!

The God-Son, who holds the entire cosmos in the palm of his hand, stepped down from his throne and became a fragile baby, utterly dependent upon the humans which he spoke into existence. This whole thing is hard to even attempt to put into words.

The incarnation, through Jesus, brought God’s kingdom to Earth. This is good news as God has entered into our world.

But through his ascension, Jesus brings Earth up into heaven. Or to put it another way, the Son of Man brought humanity up into the divine. There is an eternally flesh-and-bones human sitting at the right hand of the Father, in heaven, right now.

Because of this God-Man in heaven, God understands us. He feels pain, sadness, anger and frustration. He understands the temptations we feel. He can relate to our fear of death, the heartache of rejection, and the depravity of man.

He also knows joy and peace in a broken world. He knows it can be done in the midst of life and tragedy.

And…

We are seated at the right hand of God, in Christ, right now.

God raised us up with Christ and seated us with him in the heavenly realms in Jesus Christ (Ephesians 2:6)

He is for us, he comforts and consoles us, he heals and redeems us, and he loves us. Because that is his nature, but also because he has been there before, and is still there.