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Jesus Delivers on His Promises – By Father Andrew Bahhi

June 13, 2021
in The Word
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Today we celebrate the ascension of the Lord. I pray we can take a couple of spiritual lessons from this day.
It may be embarrassing to compare how much we think of ourselves on earthly things and one day, we won’t need it. Meanwhile the eternal thing – the second life forever and ever – we don’t pay that much attention. Or we don’t maybe even care about it.

That’s why this feast is a call for all of us. Maybe we think our life on earth is the end of everything. But when the Lord ascended to heaven, he told us “everyone who believes in me, also one day will be ascended and go to heaven.” That’s why this feast is very important.

In Bible verse we read today — in Acts 1, and Luke 24 — the Holy Spirit shows us how the Lord ascended to heaven. The Lord went to Mount Olives. Mountains have a lot of meaning, it is high to mean reaching our relationship with God, and it is also tough to walk so refers to the hardships that every Christian face in their life.

There are two scenes about the Mount of Olives. First, the Lord Jesus himself, before he went to the Cross, went to the Mount of Olives and suffered with agony. But now, as He took the disciples, He ascended to heaven and showed them his glory. “If you believe in me, you will be lifted up,” he told them.

So, we have these two scenes – first, when he went alone to suffer and take the cup of death. And then, when he went to Glory, he took his disciples. The feast of ascension means the feast of Glory.

How can we get spiritual benefit from this day in 2021? In order to do so, we must visit all the events prior to ascending. This was when Jesus provided many promises. He said he would die and rise after 3 days; he said the Jews/scribes and Pharisees would take him to death, and that was true. So, we must take His word seriously, because it will happen.

1. The Lord promised his disciples will receive the Holy Spirit. Before Jesus, in the whole history of the Bible, the father led the people. Then Jesus came, and from his birth to the ascension he led the world and by sacrificing himself, he saved the world. “Wait in Jerusalem until you receive a sign from above,” he said.

And the Pentecost will represent that through the receiving of the Holy Spirit. From the Pentecost to the Second Coming, the Holy Spirit will lead the whole world.

In the Book of Acts, “but shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you.”

These promises came through with the Pentecost. As it says in John 14: “I will ask the Father to give you another Helper, to be with you always” The helper is the Holy Spirit.

Our Lord is the groom, and people are the bride. And our heavenly groom keeps his promise. He never lies to his bride. If you struggle in your life and you pray, and feel you have a promise from the Lord, hold that promise! And always when you pray, tell the Lord “You promised you will give me…”

In our spiritual life, all the promises of the Bible, hold them, and He will give it to you.

2. The second promise the Lord made – He said, “I will not leave you as orphans. I will come to you.” Here Jesus said, “I will be with you. I am your father. If everybody will leave you, lie to you, no matter the circumstances, the hardships – don’t worry, I will be with you. I will never leave you as orphans, without comfort. “

Since the Lord fulfilled the first promise. I encourage you to hold this promise.

3. And then He promises, “if I am lifted up from the earth, I will draw all peoples to myself.” He will be like a magnet, “if you have a heart that believes in me, follow me day and night.”

The major reason people are unhappy is because they feel a lack of love or they feel lonely. Feeling forgotten. I encourage you all to pray for the lonely people who feel loneliness. We the Christians, the good believer, we feel lonely because He is above us. That is why the Holy Spirit lifts us during this time.

Above all, remember, your pain is not in vain. In order to have these promises fulfilled, we must have our thoughts on the Lord. If you have something else in your life, another love in our life, we are deceiving ourselves. We are fooling ourselves. For the Lord says, “For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also.”

Learn more in Father Andrew’s sermon video here.

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