Thoughts and Other Things

  I’m bothered by how Pentecost Sunday always gets more buzz than Ascension Day. I was seeing posters for Pentecost Sunday last week already (and I’m by no means throwing shade, I too only remembered Ascension Day late into the very day). I’m bothered because these two days are deeply connected. Ascension Day is to Pentecost Sunday what Good Friday is to Ressurection Sunday. Without Ascension, there is no Pentecost. Jesus puts it plainly to His disciples that unless He goes, the Holy Spirit cannot come (John 16:7).   This is no battle of Christian Holy Days, but I think it’s important for any Christian to understand the significance of Jesus ascending to heaven. In John 16:28 Jesus says: “I came from the Father and entered the world, now I am leaving the world and going back to the Father.” Yes, Jesus ascending to heaven is about Him returning to the Father but ‘here’s the thing’ (I’ve been watching too much Monk): Jesus isn’t returning the same way He left. Jesus is not j...