Ascension of our Lord
This week Christians all around the world will celebrate the Ascension of our Lord.
Jesus’ return to heaven is proof that He is God’s Son. Without Jesus’ ascent to
heaven, God and Jesus would have never sent the Third Person of the Trinity, the
Holy Spirit to us. The Ascension of our Lord is celebrated on May 13th this year.
How will you celebrate the Ascension of our Lord?
New Testament – Acts 10
Today’s reading actually starts at the end of the events Peter is speaking about.
So let’s start at the beginning of the event. Peter is napping and God sends him a
very strange dream. Peter follows the Jewish dietary laws which don’t allow him
to eat many things we eat. In this dream, Peter sees a sheet filled with all sorts of
things a Jewish person is not allowed to eat. God tells Peter to kill and eat these
things. Peter tells God that he has never eaten anything unclean or unholy. This
happens three times and then the sheet is taken back to heaven. Peter is
wondering what this all means. Then visitors come to the house where Peter is
staying.
The visitors are from a Roman centurion named Cornelius. They want Peter to
come and speak with Cornelius about Jesus. They tell Peter that Cornelius is a
God-fearing man who is very faithful to God. Wow! Imagine how hard it was for
a high-ranking Roman officer to be faithful to the one true God when he pledged
to be faithful to a king who worshipped idols. God tells Peter to go with them.
Peter leaves and goes with them.
When Peter arrives, Cornelius has all his family at his house. Peter then
understands God was telling him that everyone, Jew or Gentile, belongs to God’s
family. So Peter teaches them that Jesus died and was resurrected where now
Jesus sits at the right hand of God, the Father. Peter teaches them and us that
Jesus will come again to judge the living and the dead. Peter tells them only by
believing in Jesus can anyone be saved.
Everyone in Cornelius’ home accepts Jesus as their Savior. While Peter is still
teaching, the Holy Spirit descends on everyone there. Peter baptizes everyone
there including Cornelius.
Old Testament – Psalm 98
This is a very beautiful and joyful hymn of praise to God. Listen to it below.
New Testament – 1 John 5:1-6
Here John teaches us that those who believe that Jesus is our Savior belongs to
God. John also teaches those who love others love God and belong to Him.
Belonging to God means we will love Him, others and obey Him. John reminds us
whoever has Jesus as their Savior has overcome the world. What does this mean?
It means no matter how hard life is we never have to be defeated. Jesus gives us
victory over all life’s trials and temptations. All we need to do is to trust and obey
Him.
New Testament – John 15:9-17
Jesus teaches us in these verses He loves us and God loves us. Jesus tells us to
remember this. We are to love others as Jesus loves us. It’s easy to love those
who we like and hard to love those who are difficult. Hmmm…What are we to
do? First, we need to pray and ask Jesus to show us the way to love the
unloveable. He will help us to do this. It will take time. But, Jesus will make it
happen. Jesus promises when we love everyone as He loves us He will help us do
this. This week let’s close with the Lord’s Prayer. Aramaic was Jesus’ language.
Listen to the Lord’s Prayer below as Jesus would have prayed it.
Younger Children Lesson:
This week we will celebrate Jesus going back to heaven. This called the Ascension
of our Lord. Jesus going back to heaven shows us He is God’s Son. Once he went
back to heaven He sent us His Holy Spirit so we would know what to do when we
believe in Jesus.
Draw a picture of Jesus going back to heaven.
Every week we learn a song from the Bible. Songs from the Bible are called
psalms. There is a whole book in the Bible with Songs. It is called the Book of
Psalms. Today’s song is Psalm 98. Listen to it below and sing along with it.
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