Christ’s accomplishments in His all-transcending ascension (cords of a man)

All the processes the Lord Jesus as the first God-man passed through are the cords of a man that God used to draw us in His bands of love. He became a man, lived a perfect human life, died an all-terminating death on the cross, and entered into an all-conquering resurrection.

Today we were appreciating all the various aspects of Christ’s all-transcending ascension. In His ascension Christ was made the Lord of all, the king, the ruler, the Head of the Body, the Leader, the Savior, and now He is so much to us as our High Priest!

If you read the New Testament looking for what it says concerning Christ’s ascension you will be impressed with the many rich aspects of what He accomplished in His ascension.

Christ’s all-transcending ascension

Christ did not just “die and was resurrected”, but He also was ascended to the highest place in the universe! Right now there’s a Man in the Glory that is at the highest peak of the universe, at the right hand of God, ruling and reigning over everything!

More precisely, this is what Christ’s all-transcending ascension involves:

• Christ transcended Hades, the place below the earth where dead people are held (Eph. 2:20-21). He defeated the one who has the power of death, took the keys of death, and walked out of Hades in victory. Now the gates of Hades cannot prevail against Him!
• Christ transcended the earth, the place where the fallen men are moving against God (Eph. 4:8-10). He arose from the dead and He didn’t stay on earth – He ascended from the earth, from the fallen situation, up to the heavens! Hallelujah!
• Christ transcended the air, where Satan and his power of darkness are struggling against God (Heb. 4:14). Christ ascended through the air all the way to the highest point, transcending Satan and his powers of darkness in the air.
• Christ transcended the heavens, who are good but Satan still has access to them (see John 1:6-12, 2:1-6; Heb. 7:26). Christ ascended above the heavens all the way to where God is, to the highest point! What an all-transcending ascension, far above all these four layers!

Christ’s accomplishments in His ascension

This morning I was so impressed with the many verses in the Bible which speak concerning Christ’s ascension and what He has accomplished in His ascension.

When a victorious general returns home or when an Olympic contender wins a gold medal there are articles written about him, describing his accomplishments and singing his praises.

But no victorious general, Olympic gold medalist, Nobel prize winner, governor, president, king, or any other person in human history can compare with this One, Christ, and His accomplishments!

If we are impressed with the things these earthly people attained to in their capacity, how much more should we impressed with and appreciate Christ in His accomplishments! Hallelujah for such a Christ!

Here’s a short list of what Christ accomplished in His all-transcending ascension:

• In His ascension Christ is the Head of the Body, the church, having the first place in all things (Col. 1:18). Through His resurrection we all were regenerated to be the many members of His Body, but it was in His ascension that Christ poured out the Spirit upon the Body and formed the Body (Acts 2:1-4, 16-18, 33; 1 Cor. 12:13). As the Head of the Body He gave gifts to the Body: apostles, prophets, evangelists, shepherds and teachers, for the perfecting of the saints unto the building up of the Body of Christ (Eph. 4:8; 11-12).
• In His ascension Christ was made both Lord and Christ (Acts 2:36) and the Leader of all the kings, and Savior (Acts 5:31). As the Lord and Leader of all the Kings He arranges everything, managing our environment and the outward situation that we ma be saved. He is the Leader of the Kings of the earth, arranging all things that He may be our Savior and Lord! Hallelujah!
• In His ascension Christ is our High Priest in God’s New Testament economy to bear us in God’s presence and to care for all our needs (see Heb. 4:14; 7:26; 9:11).
  # As the High Priest, Christ is the Mediator and the Surety of the new covenant (Heb. 9:15; 7:22) making sure that all the bequests and riches of the new covenant are given to us and applied to us daily.
  # As the High Priest, Christ is the Minister of the heavenly Holy of Holies (Heb. 8:2) to minister heaven into us! He continually ministers the condition of the life of heavens into us that we may have the heavenly life and power to live a heavenly life on earth, just as He did!
  # As the High Priest, Christ is the Paraclete, the Advocate, of the New Testament believers (1 John 2:1; John 14:16, 26; 15:26; 16:7). Christ is our Attorney, and He takes care of our case before God; we just need to confess our sins and repent!
  # As the High Priest, Christ is our Intercessor both at the right hand of God and within us (Rom. 8:34; 26). Christ is right now interceding for us according to God, praying for us with prayers we cannot utter, because He knows what we really need.

What can Separate us From the Love of God?

When we read the New Testament and see all the cords of a man in the humanity of Christ and in the process He went through, what can we say? All we can do is join the apostle Paul as he asked in Romans 8:31-39,

v. 31 What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us?
v. 32 Indeed, He who did not spare His own Son, but delivered Him up for us all, how shall He not also with Him freely give us all things?
v. 33 Who shall bring a charge against God’s chosen ones? It is God who justifies.
v. 34 Who is he who condemns? It is Christ Jesus who died and, rather, who was raised, who is also at the right hand of God, who also intercedes for us.
v. 35 Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation or anguish or persecution or famine or nakedness or peril or sword?
v. 36 As it is written, “For Your sake we are being put to death all day long; we have been accounted as sheep for slaughter.”
v. 37 But in all these things we more than conquer through Him who loved us.
v. 38 For I am persuaded that neither death nor life nor angels nor principalities nor things present nor things to come nor powers
v. 39 Nor height nor depth nor any other creature will be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.

God really really loves us. What can separate us from His love? Nothing on earth, under the earth, or above the earth can separate us from His love!

God Himself travelled throughout the universe, coming down from eternity and from the third heavens to the earth, living as a human being, dying and visiting Hades under the earth, then He passed through the earth, the air, the heavens, and the heaven of heavens, the third heavens!

He passed through all the levels of the universe to fill them and own them, and now in His ascension He ministers the heavens into us continually as we just OPEN to Him to love Him back!

We are One with Him in His incarnation, human living, crucifixion, resurrection, and ascension! Right now, we are one with Christ in His ascension! Hallelujah!

Lord, we just love You. Thank You for loving us and doing all these things so that You may be everything to us. Lord, how we treasure Your all-transcending ascension. Thank You for being the Head of the Body, the Lord and Christ, and the Ruler of all the kings! Lord, You are our heavenly High Priest rendering us an all-inclusive care right now! You made us one with You in Your ascension, sharing all You have attained to and accomplished!

References and Further Reading

• Sharing inspired from, The Practical Way to Live a Life according to the High Peak of the Divine Revelation in the Holy Scriptures (pages 18-20), as quoted in, the Holy Word for Morning Revival on, Crystallization-Study of the Minor Prophets, week 3 (entitled, Three Implications concerning Christ).
• Hymns on this topic:
  # There’s a Man in the glory / Whose Life is for me. / He’s pure and He’s holy, / Triumphant and free.
  # Christ the Savior hath ascended / To the heavens far above, / Crowned with glory and with honor / By the Father God in love.
  # One with Thee in Thine ascension, / In the heavens now with Thee; / Here a pilgrim and a stranger, / My true life is hid in Thee.
• Picture source: sun shining bright.