file: /pub/resources/text/Our.Daily.Bread: db940719.txt
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OUR DAILY BREAD                    Tuesday, July 19, 1994
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READ: Acts 1:1-11

                 "ASCENDED AND ENTHRONED"

       He who descended is also the One who ascended
               far above all the heavens.

                     - Ephesians 4:10

Call the roll of some of the statesmen and dictators who for
a brief time dominated the global stage in this century:
Woodrow Wilson, Franklin D. Roosevelt, Winston Churchill,
Kaiser Wilhelm II, Adolf Hitler, Joseph Stalin.  Where are
they now?  Dead and buried!  But where is Jesus Christ, the
rejected and crucified first-century Galilean?  He is alive
forevermore, enthroned in celestial glory.

After dying on the cross to redeem us, Jesus rose from the
grave.  Forty days later, He dramatically departed from our
sphere of time and space by ascending into the clouds as His
disciples looked on.  He returned to the indescribable
splendor and joy of His heavenly home.

Although we don't often think about Jesus' ascension, it was
a pivotal event in His ministry.  It marked the beginning of
His high-priestly ministry in glory.  No longer limited to
being in one place at a time, He could be present anywhere
as our invisible Intercessor, constantly praying for us
(Heb. 7:25).  And since our High Priest is also the almighty
Sovereign (Matt. 28:18), He controls all things and can make
even life's worst evils work out ultimately for His praise
and for our good.

What a comfort!  Jesus lives on high!

Author:  Vernon C. Grounds

        He who came to save us, He who bled and died,
        Now is crowned with glory at His Father's side,
        Nevermore to suffer, nevermore to die,
        Jesus, King of Glory, is gone up on high.

                       - Havergal

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY
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Jesus came into the world to intervene for us;
   now he is in heaven to intercede for us.

The Bible in One Year:  Isaiah 37-39

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