Jesus’ ascension: The center of our life, hope, confidence, and faith

Posted on June 10, 2025 by Pastor Foley

It’s important to know where a story ends. If you end the story too early, you can miss the point.

The Ascension of Christ by artist Hans von Kulmbach (1480-1522).

This is true with any story, but it is especially true with the Easter story. If we end it in the wrong place, it can make us sad, worried, or hopeless. But when we end the story of Easter in the right place, we will always be overjoyed. In fact, living a life of joy regardless of the circumstances and environment is proof that we have truly understood how the Easter story ends.

Interestingly, in the Bible, Easter does not end with Jesus coming out of the tomb and celebrating with his disciples. He appears to his disciples over a period of forty days and then ascends to heaven.

Jesus’ ascension to heaven is not just the end of the Easter story, it is actually the climax of the entire Bible and of all history. Jesus’ ascension is prophesied throughout the Old Testament and is also frequently prophesied by Jesus himself and recorded in the Gospels. Throughout the rest of the New Testament, Jesus’ ascension and entry into heaven is frequently found as a central topic.

Jesus’ ascension should be at the center not only of the Bible, but also at the center of our life, hope, confidence, and faith.

Why?

We can find the answer at the cross.

On the cross, Jesus defeated all of God’s enemies and has been given all power. We can see this clearly in Colossians and Revelation.

“He disarmed the rulers and authorities and put them to open shame, by triumphing over them in him.” (Colossians 2:15)

“She gave birth to a male child, one who is to rule all the nations with a rod of iron, but her child was caught up to God and to his throne, and the woman fled into the wilderness, where she has a place prepared by God, in which she is to be nourished for 1,260 days. Now war arose in heaven, Michael and his angels fighting against the dragon. And the dragon and his angels fought back, but he was defeated, and there was no longer any place for them in heaven. And the great dragon was thrown down, that ancient serpent, who is called the devil and Satan, the deceiver of the whole world—he was thrown down to the earth, and his angels were thrown down with him. And I heard a loud voice in heaven, saying, “Now the salvation and the power and the kingdom of our God and the authority of his Christ have come, for the accuser of our brothers has been thrown down, who accuses them day and night before our God.” (Revelation 12:10)

“who has gone into heaven and is at the right hand of God, with angels, authorities, and powers having been subjected to him.” (1 Peter 3:22)

“Then Jesus came to them and said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me.” (Matthew 28:18)

Jesus is not just “Lord of our hearts”. The Father has given the Son authority over all things in creation. Jesus has authority over the weather, economy, life, death, angels, human, present, future, and power over every molecule in all creation. All of these are now under the authority of Jesus Christ since his ascension. All of these things directly serve his plans and purpose, whether they want to or not.

“Then I looked, and I heard around the throne and the living creatures and the elders the voice of many angels, numbering myriads of myriads and thousands of thousands, 12 saying with a loud voice,

“Worthy is the Lamb who was slain, to receive power and wealth and wisdom and might and honor and glory and blessing!” And I heard every creature in heaven and on earth and under the earth and in the sea, and all that is in them, saying, “To him who sits on the throne and to the Lamb be blessing and honor and glory and might forever and ever!”” (Revelation 5:11-13).

The first thing Jesus does after receiving all authority is to send out four horsemen which affect the world’s economy, people’s health, and many other things in the world.

These days, more and more Christians are teaching and being taught that Jesus will defeat his enemies in the future and that, when he ascended, he departed and put the church in charge of the work. They wrongly think that it is the church’s job to defeat Christ’s enemies with Jesus merely providing help from heaven.

They wrongly understand Psalm 110:1

“The Lord says to my Lord: “Sit at my right hand, until I make your enemies your footstool.” (Psalm 110:1)

They teach that Christ is waiting for us to make his enemies his footstool and for us to elect Christian officials which will effect Christian laws and Christianize the nations so that Jesus can come back from heaven.

But Christ’s enemies being made his footstool does not mean that Christ has not already conquered his enemies. That is why Psalm 110:2 says this:

“The Lord sends forth from Zion your mighty scepter. Rule in the midst of your enemies!” (Psalm 110:2).

The reason there is a period of time between Christ’s ascension into heaven and his return to earth is because Christ is offering mercy to the enemies whom he has conquered. He invites them to surrender and acknowledge that he is Lord so that they might yet repent, believe, and be saved.

We ourselves were Christ’s enemies, but, as Paul says in Romans 10:9, “If you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.” And so we were saved.

The confession that saves us is not “I believe Jesus died for my sins so that I can go to heaven when I die.” The confession that saves us is “I believe that all power in heaven and earth is now in the hands of the living Lord Jesus. I believe that nothing happens except by his permission and according to his purpose. Jesus Christ is Lord.” This and this alone is the confession that saves, according to the Apostle Paul.

At the present time, even though the enemies of the Lord Jesus are trying to oppose him, they are actually carrying out his purposes just as effectively as the Lord Jesus’ friends. Even Satan and Satan’s angels are like attack dogs that are held on a chain that is held by the Lord Jesus. They are still able to deceive and are given power by the Lord Jesus to carry out their plans. But, no matter how much they try to deceive, destroy, and rebel against the will of the Lord Jesus, they only end up fulfilling the will of the Lord Jesus and end up destroying themselves in the process.

In scripture, we see the Lord Jesus working through shipwrecks, imprisonments, disciples losing their homes, jobs, and even their lives. Through all of these things, the plans and purpose of the Lord Jesus are never destroyed or even delayed by His enemies.

But doesn’t the Lord’s work get done more effectively when Christians are in charge of the government and can influence the law to be more in line with Christian values?

I would ask you this: Where is the church growing faster today; North Korea or South Korea? The answer is North Korea. Even though North Korea is the worst persecutor of Christians in the world, the church is growing faster there than it is in South Korea, where the church has not had a year of growth since 1989.

In fact, when we look at the places around the world where the church is growing fastest today, almost all of them are places where Christianity is restricted and Christians are persecuted or even martyred. And in places where there is the most religious freedom, like the U.S. and Europe, the church is in decline.

Does that mean Christian governments and religious freedom are bad? Of course not. But it does mean that the Lord’s work does not rely on states, governments, laws, and politics in order to be effective.

The scripture tells us that the present form of the world is passing away. Things like our bodies, governments, health, etc. are passing away. The Lord Jesus tells us not to put our trust in these things, but to trust in him alone. His plan is not to send us out as a Christian army to make this world live according to Christian values. He certainly does not promise us worldly wealth and prosperity in this life and heaven as a final reward.

Instead, he promises us something much greater.

He promises us a new heaven and new earth on which he will live together with us. He will live in his resurrected body and we will live with him in our resurrected bodies.

That is why the ascension scripture ends with this verse:

“Men of Galilee, why do you stand looking into heaven? This Jesus, who was taken up from you into heaven, will come in the same way as you saw him go into heaven.” (Acts 1:11)

He will return just as he left. He didn’t leave his body behind and ascend as a spirit. He ascended on the clouds. And these clouds are not ordinary clouds. These clouds are the presence of God in physical form.

Jesus ascended to the throne room in the highest heaven. He was given all authority in heaven and earth. And, when he comes again, he will bring the new heavens and new earth with him and make his home among us. That is the great and final promise of scripture and it is the promise that is guaranteed by his ascension.

Christians often wrongly say, “We are the hands and feet of Jesus and we complete the work that he left behind”. But he didn’t leave any work behind. So what do we do?

The Lord already provided the answer in Acts 1:8. We are His witnesses. And, as his witnesses, we testify to the world of who Jesus is and what he does. We testify to the rulers of this world that they serve only because the Lord Jesus permits them to. We testify to all people that the Lord Jesus holds all power in heaven and on earth now and forevermore. And we live a life that confidently reflects that belief.

Faith is not just that you believe that Jesus died for your sins. Faith means that you confess that the Lord Jesus holds all authority in heaven and on earth even today.

And, until his return, we should expect to suffer for our faithful witness. In Acts 14:22, the disciples encouraged each other, saying that, “through many tribulations we must enter the kingdom of God”.

The Lord Jesus does not promise that the enemies of God will not be able to harm or even kill us. Our testimony that Jesus is even now King of Kings and Lord of Lords may cost us our lives, but on the day when the Lord returns, our testimony will be revealed as true.

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96 Year-Old Persecuted North Korean Christian Says that Enduring Persecution is God’s Work

Posted on May 27, 2025 by tdillmuth

“Who’s in charge?” the Communist soldiers shouted as they brandished a sickle before a small group of North Korean believers. The believers were gathered outside of a small church in a mountainous village in South Pyongan Province, North Korea while other village members watched cautiously.

A young preacher stepped forward and the soliders instructed him to put his neck under the sickle. As the preacher bent down to put his head under the sharp blade, an elder of the church, with a white beard stepped forward. “This young man should not die. I will die in his place,” the elder said. The preacher objected, but the elder once again said that he should be the one to die.

The soliders were shocked. One of them said, “Everyone asks for their life. But both of you are willing to die. You are the only ones who are willing to die for what you belive.” Confused, the soldiers walked away.

One of the village members who witnessed this event, was a frightened 12 year old girl. Now 96 years old, Mrs. Lee will never forget what happened in the village that she lived before the Korean war. Although the Kim regime had not yet been established, Communist soldiers were already actively persecuting Christians across North Korea. The details are forever etched in her memory. 

Although not a Christian at the time of that persecution, the Lord continued to work in her heart in other ways. Her uncle, an NK Christian, gave her a Bible and a hymn book and told her that she must believe in Jesus. Her grandmother, also a Christian, preached the gospel over the mountain passes as she traveled through North Korea. The Lord used her family members to plant the seed of the gospel in her heart, which would eventually sprout to full maturity shortly after she came to South Korea.

Enduring Persecution in South Korea

Since Mrs. Lee wasn’t a Christian inside of North Korea, she was never persecuted for her faith in the ways that many North Korean Christians are.  But after becoming a Christian, she was persecuted in an unlikely place—South Korea—from an unlikely source . . . her husband.

Caption: When Mrs. Lee received her first Bible from her uncle many years ago, she couldn’t read well and became very frustrated. She’s thankful that the Lord opened both her physical eyes and spiritual eyes to be able to read and understand God’s Word. 

During the Korean war, like so many North Koreans, Mrs. Lee, her husband and her two children fled to South Korea. She was only 22 years old when she left North Korea, but she had already been married for 7 years. After coming to South Korea, she and her husband had five additional children.

But Mrs. Lee’s husband did not approve of her new faith in Christ. Not only did he not approve, he was willing to do almost anything to stop her from going to church.

Mrs. Lee recounts that her husband would cut off her hair, hide her clothes and severly beat her in order to discourage her from going to church. She remembers one particular time when she was sitting on the floor feeding their baby that he hit her so hard that she was knocked over violently. He did this so that he could grab her bag, where she was hiding her Bible. He threw the whole bag into the stove and burned it.

Her husband used to beat her so severely that her face was often extremely bruised and swollen. During those difficult times, Mrs. Lee reminded herself that if she suffered persecution, she would have a crown. In fact, every time she was beaten she would imagine another crown appearing on the spot where her husband had beaten her.

One night, when Mrs. Lee was participating in a late-night prayer meeting at her church, her husband came in, looking for her. But in his confusion, he mistook a different woman for Mrs. Lee and dragged this other woman out of the church and beat her in the church yard. The woman just happened to be the wife of the head of the village. When Mrs. Lee’s husband found out that he had just beaten the wife of the village leader, he was afraid of what would happen to him. But the woman he beat did not tell her husband, instead enduring the beating for the sake of Mrs. Lee.

This was the event that changed his life dramatically. Mrs. Lee’s husband immediately stopped beating her and even started going to church. He allowed Mrs. Lee and the children to go to church whenever they wanted. And after many years, he finally surrended his life to Christ shortly before he died.

Still in Ministry at 96 Years-Old

Mrs. Lee survived war, plague, and persecution. But she also experienced various personal tragedies incling the the death of 4 of her 7 children. She remembers that after the death of one of her children, someone asked her if she would still believe in Jesus.  Mrs. Lee replied, “My children were given to me by God, and God is the one who has taken them away. I will not leave Jesus no matter what!”

Even though Mrs. Lee is now 96 years old, she continues sharing about Jesus with whomever she meets. When we first met her, we expected our North Korean Underground University (UU) students to minister to her. Our students are training to be missionaries to their own people, so when they met Mrs. Lee their immediate thought was to evangelize and disciple her. But our students, even though they are in their 60s and 70s, became like children as they listened to Mrs. Lee share about her life.  And Mrs. Lee not only shared about her life, she also encouraged the UU students never to take their faith lightly.

Caption: Mrs. Lee leads the UU students in a hymn.

She charged them to tell their family members and neighbors about Jesus. And at one point, Mrs. Lee lurched forward, and pointed her finger at one of our UU students and said, “You have to evangelize your children!”  At Mrs. Lee’s admonition, the UU student’s heart was almost visibly pierced as she sat back and shouted in agreement, “Ahh! Okay!”. The UU student immediately thought of her son who is an animist and opposes Christianity.

Mrs. Lee reminded the students that when persecution comes, the only way we can endure hardship and persecution is by holding on to God. She said that we should pray, “God, do it!”.

Our UU students were both challenged and thankful to meet a 96-year-old North Korean great-grandmother, a living witness who has saw “tribulations, distress, persecution, famine, nakedness, danger, and the sword.” She was able to testify witness that nothing is “able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.” (Romans 8:35, 39).

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Christians are not saved from suffering. We are saved in the midst of suffering.

Posted on May 21, 2025 by Pastor Foley

The Christian life is a life of great tribulation.

You may be wondering, “Why would the whole Christian life be called that? Doesn’t persecution come and go, depending on what country you’re in and who’s running the government and whether there are protections for religious freedom and whether the culture upholds Christian values?”

No.

When the world rejected Christ–through the religious and political leaders and all the people putting Jesus to death on the cross—it was not because the world was confused or made a mistake or because there was a misunderstanding. The world is always hostile to the gospel. Christ was the first preacher of the gospel. The gospel is the message of who Christ is and what he does. Christ handed on the gospel message to his apostles, and then to us. Wherever that message is faithfully preached in this present age, the world will make sure that the one who preaches it will pay the price.  

“But wait!” you may be thinking. “Revelation 7 says that we are ‘sealed’! So that means we Christians are kept safe from trouble! The modern evangelist told me that God wants me to have a joyful and peaceful life!”

And indeed, beginning in the mid-19th century, a man named John Darby began to teach that the Great Tribulation would happen at the end of history and last for 3 and a half years, and that Christians would get taken up to heaven before it happened. This is the idea of the “rapture”.  Darby’s ideas have become popular with some groups of Christians, because of course people want to believe that God will spare them from big suffering if they believe in Jesus!

But God doesn’t seal Christians in order to protect us from suffering. God seals Christians in order to protect us in the midst of suffering.

So what are we being protected from?

From denying our testimony of who Christ is and what he does. Because that’s what the world hates. Despite what you may have been taught, the world doesn’t hate Christians. The world doesn’t even hate “Christian values”. What the world hates—and has always hated, and will always hate is the gospel—the faithful testimony of who Christ is and what he does. And the world will do anything to silence that message.   

We can understand what faithful Christians always have to endure in every generation when we read Revelation 7:16-17. Here, as John is seeing the Christians after they have made it through the Great Tribulation, one of the elders says to him:

Never again will they hunger; never again will they thirst. The sun will not beat upon them, nor any scorching heat. For the Lamb at the center of the throne will be their shepherd; he will lead them to springs of living water. And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes.”

Notice it says “never again”, meaning “In this present age, Christians will face hunger; and will experience thirst; and will be scorched by the heat; and will thirst; and will certainly cry many tears.”

If you want to see a really good example of what it means for Christians to be “sealed”, look at the story of the two witnesses in Revelation 11:  

And I will give power to my two witnesses, and they will prophesy for 1,260 days, clothed in sackcloth”…If anyone tries to harm them, fire comes from their mouths and devours their enemies. This is how anyone who wants to harm them must die. These men have power to shut up the sky so that it will not rain during the time they are prophesying; and they have power to turn the waters into blood and to strike the earth with every kind of plague as often as they want. Now when they have finished their testimony, the beast that comes up from the Abyss will attack them, and overpower and kill them.

We are “sealed” in order to be able to accomplish our purpose of testifying faithfully to the hostile world. Nothing can stop us from making the testimony Christ has appointed us to make! But after our work is complete, we can expect to pay the price.

So you may be thinking, “Well, where is the good news in that?”

And if you have been following Jesus because you were told he could bring you a joyful and peaceful life in this world—a life of prosperity and freedom from suffering—then this is bad news indeed.

But if that’s why you have been following Jesus, then what you were taught wasn’t the gospel.  

The true Christian life is a life of great tribulation in this present age. From the moment we are sealed in baptism we are called to stand and testify to who Christ is and what he does. As we do this, Christ shakes the whole creation around us, as he opens seal after seal in order to bring the present age to an end.

And we get shaken along with the whole creation. Christ warns us that when we are sealed with his seal, we will face hunger, thirst, rejection, the division of our own families, and even our death. 

But that seal, which you received at your baptism, is his promise that although everything else will be shaken and ultimately destroyed (which it will—he promised that, too), we are bound to him. And because of that, we will be able to stand through the Great Tribulation.

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