Thursday, May 12, 2016
John 16:5-15 "But now I go away to Him who sent Me, and none of you asks Me, 'Where are You going?' But because I have said these things to you, sorrow has filled your heart. Nevertheless I tell you the truth. It is to your advantage that I go away; for if I do not go away, the Helper will not come to you; but if I depart, I will send Him to you. When He has come, He will convict the world of sin, and of righteousness, and of judgment: of sin, because they do not believe in Me; of righteousness, because I go to My Father and you see Me no more; of judgment, because the ruler of this world is judged. I still have many things to say to you, but you cannot bear them now. However, when He, the Spirit of truth, has come, He will guide you into all truth; for He will not speak on His own authority, but whatever He hears He will speak; and He will tell you things to come. He will glorify Me, for He will take of what is Mine and declare it to you. All things that the Father has are Mine. Therefore I said that He will take of Mine and declare it to you."
WHY DID JESUS ASCEND INTO HEAVEN?
HE ASCENDED TO SEND THE HOLY SPIRIT
It is hard to say goodbye to loved ones, whether separated by miles or by death. We can certainly understand why Jesus' disciples were sad when told that He was going away and they would not be able to go with Him. They could not see anything good about His going away.
If I promise my children gifts, it is necessary that I leave them and go and obtain those gifts. When Jesus told his disciples that He was going away, He reminded them that it was necessary for Him to go away in order to send the Holy Spirit with His gifts to them. So Jesus ascended for our good, to send back a very special gift from heaven, the Holy Spirit. How do we know that the Holy Spirit has come? How can we know He is present and at work? We know He is present, because in the Word of God He glorifies Christ. Whatever and whoever does not glorify Christ, but rather rejects Him, the same cannot be said to have the Holy Spirit.
The many things that Jesus wanted to say to His disciples then have been said and recorded for us in Holy Scripture by the Holy Spirit. It is for this very reason that we pray that God the Holy Spirit would bless our study of the Word of God, and impart to us true understanding. Jesus ascended to send us a gift, the gift of the Holy Spirit.
