Jesus Ascended: The Meaning of Christ's Continuing Incarnation - Gerrit Scott Dawson

Christ's ascension is not a footnote to Jesus' death and resurrection. What happened after he rose from the dead? According to Christian tradition, after forty days, Jesus ascended into heaven to sit at the right hand of God the Father. What is the significance of this? Most importantly, the resurrection and ascension are not a reversal or undoing of the incarnation. It is as a human being that Jesus rises. Our humanity is resurrected. Our salvation depends upon our continuing union with Christ through the Holy Spirit. "We cannot be united to him in the Holy Spirit if he is no longer flesh of our flesh and bone of our bone" (6). Thus, one of the greatest blessings of the ascension is Christ's gift of the Holy Spirit who manifests the personal presence of Christ in, to, and through us. Dawson offers important insights on the significance of Christ's glorified humanity, and particularly, how it relates to Christ's present ministry of intercession. Great book!