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Luke 24 focuses primarily on the immediate impact of Jesus’<br />
appearances to his disciples, but the chapter (and the whole Gospel)<br />
ends with Jesus being ‘taken up into heaven’ (v51). In his second<br />
volume, the book of Acts, Luke describes Jesus’ ascension in a bit<br />
more detail, concluding with two angels reassuring the watching<br />
disciples: ‘This same Jesus, who has been taken from you into<br />
heaven, will come back in the same way you have seen him go into<br />
heaven’ (Acts 1:11). Luke doesn’t unpack this, but what’s clear is he –<br />
like the other writers of the New Testament – focused on a future<br />
hope that is not centred on us going to heaven when we die to be<br />
with Jesus, but rather on Jesus returning (bodily) from heaven to<br />
earth.<br />
This has huge implications for our understanding of what it means to<br />
be ‘alive after death’ – something which we began to explore in the<br />
introduction. Rather than the three ‘popular’ alternatives of<br />
annihilation, reincarnation and spiritism or a ‘Christian’ focus on just<br />
‘going to heaven when we die’, the hope of Christianity is based on<br />
the physical resurrection of Jesus. The great hope of Christianity is<br />
that one day, Jesus will return and all his followers (dead or alive),<br />
will be somehow resurrected to enjoy eternal life in a new bodily<br />
existence in a new, perfect world!<br />
PAUSE AND PONDER<br />
As you think about what happens when we die, you might<br />
like to revisit the four alternatives that were mentioned in<br />
the introduction – annihilation, reincarnation, spiritism and<br />
going to heaven. Now take some time to ponder the living<br />
hope that is based on the resurrection of Jesus and the<br />
promise of a far greater future with him.
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