“This Jesus hath God raised up, whereof we all are witnesses. Therefore being by the right hand of God exalted, and having received of the Father the promise of the Holy Ghost, he hath shed forth this, which ye now see and hear.” (Acts 2:32–33, AV)
Years ago, when I ran my own business, I often had to go away from home for extended lengths of time. One trip was to California, where I worked for three straight weeks, night and day, on a project. Needless to say, I was exhausted by the end of the trip. The worst part about these trips was the separation from my family. I did not like it, and my family did not either. However, there was a bright spot in these trips. The customers paid me a lot to do the work. This was essential to keep the family in food, clothing and shelter.
The disciples, from the time of the Passover, when Christ was crucified, until the Day of Pentecost, went through a rollercoaster of emotions. They went from tragedy when Jesus was arrested and crucified, to elation when they saw Him raised from the grave. The also were bewildered when Jesus did not establish His Messianic Kingdom, but instead ascended into heaven (Acts 1:6-11). The disciples must have experienced a plethora of emotions as they watched Jesus, their Lord and closest friend, ascend from their sight.
However, amidst their varied emotions, there were many positive blessings of which they would be beneficiaries. The exaltation of Jesus, being seated at the right hand of God, achieved infinite blessings for them. One of these blessings was the Holy Spirit. Jesus had previously explained to the disciples that it was necessary for Him to go to the Father so that He could send the promised Spirit to them (John 16:7). The Holy Spirit was their “Helper” in life and ministry. They would never be able to live the Christian life and serve the Lord apart from the power of the Spirit.
Yet, we know that there were even more blessings. Jesus, being at the right hand of God, is seated in the position of power and authority. In this place, He continuously serves as our eternal great high priest (Heb 6:20). He constantly intercedes for us (Rom 8:34). He is our advocate before the Father (1 John 2:1). He provides constant access for us to the most holy place since we are “in Christ,” and in this sense already seated with Him in the heavenly places (Eph 2:6).
Well, I could go on but I think you get the point. The resurrection and ascension of Jesus to the right hand of God has granted to all of us who believe, much more than we can even imagine. We are seated with the King of kings and Lord of lords and here on this earth, we already are blessed with great power and the assurance of Christ interceding for each one of us every minute of every day. We must respond to these blessings by praising and worshipping Him. For apart from the grace of God we would be destined to live in the weakness of our own flesh. Praise be to God for His infinite grace.
Renewing the Heart 