WEEK 3 — DAY 2
Morning Nourishment
Acts
2:34-36 "For David did not ascend into the heavens, but he himself
says, "The Lord said to my Lord, Sit at My right hand until I set Your
enemies as a footstool for Your feet." Therefore let all the house of
Israel know assuredly that God has made Him both Lord and Christ,this
Jesus whom you have crucified."
[The] word [inauguration] is not in the Scriptures, but the fact of the
Man-Savior's inauguration is there nonetheless....In Acts 2:36 the word
made can be understood to mean "inaugurated."... In His ascension God
inaugurated Jesus Christ into His heavenly ministry. This means that in
His ascension, in His inauguration, God made Him Lord and Christ.
(Life-study of Luke, pp.641-642)
Today's Reading
The Man-Savior, in His ascension, has been made the Lord to possess all
(Acts 2:36). He is now the Lord to possess the whole universe, God's
chosen people, and all positive things, matters, and persons. Christ is
the Lord not only of God's chosen people but also of the angels and of
all those who will be in the millennium and in the new heaven and the
new earth. Therefore, He is the Lord of the heavens, the earth, and of
everything and everyone He has redeemed.
Acts 2:36 reveals that in His ascension the Man-Savior was made not
only the Lord but also the Christ. He was made the Christ as God's
anointed (Heb.1:9) to carry out God's commission.
When some hear about the objective aspect of Christ's ascension, they
may say,"...This is wonderful, but it seems to be something too high for
me and too far away from me. What does this have to do with me?" In
answering such a question we need to realize that the very Christ in
resurrection, the pneumatic Christ, lives in us. According to John
20:22, in His resurrection Christ came back to the disciples to breathe
Himself into them. But according to Mark 16, Luke 24, and Acts 1, the
Lord ascended to the heavens so that something further could take place.
If His relationship with us ceased with His breathing Himself into us,
it would be difficult for Him to work out anything
for the accomplishment of God's New Testament economy. After breathing
Himself into the disciples, it was still necessary for Him to be
inaugurated into His heavenly office.
The President does not begin executing his presidency immediately after
the election. No, he must wait until...the day he is inaugurated into
his office. Then,after his inauguration, he may begin to carry out his
administration as President.Likewise, after the Man-Savior's
resurrection, He still needed to be inaugurated in His ascension. For
fifty days after the Lord breathed Himself into the disciples, they were
quiet. But after the Lord ascended to the heavens and was inaugurated
into His post, a great many things began to happen, starting on the day
of Pentecost.
Now the
very Christ who lives in us and works through us is not only the One in
resurrection but also the One in ascension. The One in resurrection is
full of life and power, but He still needs authority in ascension.
We need to see that, as believers, we have One living in us who has not
only life and power in resurrection but also authority in ascension.
The very Christ in resurrection and ascension lives in us and dwells
upon us. He lives in us as life, and He dwells upon us as authority.
Therefore, we are now one with this Christ in His resurrection and
ascension. As a result, we have life and power in resurrection and also authority in ascension.
In His ascension the Man-Savior was crowned with glory and honor. In
His ascension He was also enthroned to be the Administrator over the
whole universe. Furthermore, in His ascension He was made the Lord of
all and the Christ to carry out God's eternal plan to propagate Himself
on earth to produce a Body
to match Him for His expression....When we contact Him,we need to have
the realization of what He is, a realization of His status,position, and
office. (Life-study of Luke, pp. 646-648,651)
Further
Reading: Life-study of Luke, msg. 77; CWWL, 1973-1974, vol. 2,"The
Wonderful Christ in the Canon of the New Testament,"ch. 9
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