This Sunday is Pentecost Sunday. How many of us Protestant Christians know what Christian holiday was celebrated 10 days ago? It was Ascension Day, the day we commemorate the ascension of Jesus Christ. Evangelical Christians celebrate Christmas, Easter, and even Pentecost, but not many of us have even heard of Ascension Day. In fact, growing up in the church, I have never heard a sermon preached on the doctrine of ascension. Incarnation, atonement, and resurrection – these are important doctrines surrounding the life and ministry of Jesus Christ. However, is there even a Christian doctrine about ascension?

Lest we think that ascension was an inconsequential event, both the Apostles' Creed and Nicene Creed contain our confession of faith in believing: "He [Jesus] ascended into heaven." The church father St. Augustine expressed his opinion about Ascension Day like this: "This is that festival which confirms the grace of all the festivals together, without which the profitableness of every festival would have perished." Paul affirms that the greatness of our faith is found in Jesus who "was manifest in the flesh... taken up in glory" (1 Tim 3:16).

I believe the reason why the significance of ascension is neglected is partly due to our narrow view of the gospel. If we think that the essence of the gospel is about the principle of getting to heaven through believing in Jesus, then ascension would not need to be included in the calculus of salvation. However, the gospel is the good news of what God is doing through Jesus the Messiah; it is essentially a story. This story traces the act of God restoring the broken world marred by sin, which culminates in the sending of His Son to instate His kingdom. Yet His kingdom is not the kingdom of this world. Its ways are ways of peace and suffering. Its love extends even to those who hate it. Christ fully embodies this upside-down kingdom. As the king, He bears our sin on the cross, and was resurrected on the third day, conquering death's power. Nevertheless, the story does not just end with His death and resurrection.

From the royal angle, Christ's ascension is the triumphal coronation of the messianic king. Jesus did what good kings in the ancient world were expected to do: He saved His people from oppression. He defeated the powers of sin, Satan, and death, and now He makes His ascent to the throne – just as the Davidic kings in the Old Testament made their ascent back to Jerusalem after a successful military campaign (see Ps 24, 47). Ascension is the necessary completion of the story.

The ascension also sets the stage for the grand finale of God's redemptive drama. The final consummation of God's kingdom will occur when Christ returns. This is guaranteed in the words of the angels to the disciples: "This same Jesus, who has been taken from you into heaven, will come back in the same way you have seen him go into heaven" (Acts 1:11). The ascension will be followed by the return of the King to restore all creation. This is indeed good news!