Almost 60 years ago, the Soviet cosmonaut, Yuri Gagarin, became the first human being to journey into outer space, orbiting once around the Earth on April 12, 1961. Just three weeks later, on May 5, 1961, Alan Shepard became the first American in space. Thus, began America’s journey into space which eventually took us to the moon. It’s obvious that whether orbiting the earth in a capsule or space station or walking on the moon, anything in space is “hostile” territory for human beings. And, it’s obvious that even though living and walking in space might be exhilarating or exciting, there is nothing quite like home! For our astronauts from any country, home has always been planet Earth.

But not so for Jesus. For Him, home was always in Heaven. It was planet Earth that was “hostile’ territory for Him. And yet, the Bible is clear that Jesus came into the world to “give His life a ransom for many” (Mk. 10:45), and to “reconcile the world to Himself” (2 Cor. 5:19), providing “eternal life to all those who believe in Him” (Jn. 3:16). And interestingly, He has always planned to make His home in Heaven the home of all those who are called “His children.” 

I think that it would be a good exercise for us to look at a rough timeline of events from Jesus’ crucifixion to His ascension into Heaven. The Jewish celebration of Pentecost occurs 50 days after Passover, and we know that this was the time when the Holy Spirit descended on all those gathered together in what is often called “the upper room.” Also, the first Pentecost after Jesus’ resurrection is often referred to as the “birthday of the Church,” when the Holy Spirit came to indwell Jesus’ followers. And so, if Jesus was crucified on Passover, as most Bible scholars believe, spent three days in the tomb, and then appeared to His disciples and over 500 people over the next 40 days (Acts 1:3), the approximate time for the ascension of Jesus into Heaven was 43 days after His crucifixion and 7 days before Pentecost. This means that the disciples waited in Jerusalem for a week for “what the Father had promised them” (Acts 1:4). In his final words to His disciples, Jesus let them know that they would,  

“…receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you shall be My witnesses both in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and even to the remotest part of the earth” (Acts 1:8).

And then Luke tells us that after these things,

“He was lifted up while they were looking on, and a cloud received Him out of their sight” (Acts 1:9).  

What kind of a “cloud” was this? There are only a handful of occasions in the Scriptures where the word “cloud” or “clouds” indicates the presence of rain clouds. In the overwhelming majority of cases, it has nothing to do with precipitation. The concept of the “cloud,” or “clouds,” found throughout the Old Testament, appears in two primary contexts: 1) The glory cloud, suggesting the presence of God; and 2) the clouds of judgment, suggesting the fact that God was preparing to bring judgment upon a nation, or nations. The “cloud” that appeared at Jesus’ ascension was not a “cloud of judgment” but the “glory cloud.” Let’s find out more.  

In the Old Testament, the Israelites were able to observe a physical cloud, a distinctive cloud that symbolized the presence of God. Whether the cloud was leading the people out of Egypt, surrounding Mt. Sinai, or covering the Tabernacle, the “glory cloud” suggested the very presence of God. And interestingly, this same “glory cloud” that appeared to the children of Israel in the Old Testament also appeared in the New Testament on the Mount of Transfiguration (Mt. 17:1-13). If you recall the incident, the cloud and the presence of Jesus, Moses, and Elijah was seen by the disciples. Furthermore, God’s voice could be audibly heard from within the cloud saying, “This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well-pleased; listen to Him” (Mt. 17:5). And, at Jesus’ ascension on the Mount of Olives, the disciples not only saw the “glory cloud,” but also saw Jesus ascending to Heaven in it (Acts 1:9-11). 

This is the biblical record of Jesus ascending to heaven, forty days after His resurrection. He left for Heaven dressed in His first century “robe and sandals,” but there was much more that would happen once He arrived in Heaven. For that, I invite you to join me next week.

But for now, I want to drive home the fact that we have a living Savior in Heaven today. He appeared for 40 days in His resurrected body, affirming the fact that He had risen from the dead, and then He ascended into Heaven. We serve a risen Savior who is alive and well and has all things under His control. Although tragedy may be happening in our world today, and regardless of what you may be experiencing with during this time, He is caring and interceding for you from His throne in Heaven. That’s something we can count on, because He is someone on whom we can count.