From the Christian Life Collection: The Incarnation Continued...

Jesus Ascended - The Meaning of Christ's Continuing Incarnation
By Gerrit Scott Dawson
P & R Publishing, 2004
(192 pages, $17.99, paperback)

reviewed by S.N.D.

At Inklings Bookshop, the Knowing Jesus shelf of the Christian Life Collection includes a work that I believe to be the second most significant study of the ascension of Jesus in recent years: Gerrit Scott Dawson’s Jesus Ascended – The Meaning of Christ’s Continuing Incarnation. While Farrow’s Ascension and Ecclesia is a deep scholarly study in historical theology aimed primarily at theologians (professional, pastoral, armchair, and wannabe), Dawson’s Jesus Ascended is a much more accessible work geared for a wider range of professional and lay Christian readers.

This is an exciting read. As the foreword notes, “it is specifically written with the life and mission of the local congregation in mind,” and I would add the life and mission of individual Christians also.

Part I answers the question “Why Recover the Ascension?” Basically it is because “the world is too much with us.” A correct and fuller understanding of Jesus’ ascension, and a deeper relationship to Jesus ascended, provide the local church and individual believers a much needed antidote against “the power of the world, the spirit of its literature, the temptations of business and pleasure.” (Here I quote one of Dawson’s many quotations of Andrew Murray, who wrote at length and eloquently about the ascension.)

In Part II, “Toward a Concise Theology of the Ascension,” Dawson addresses the historical aspects of the ascension, the triumph and enthronement of Jesus, His simultaneous presence in heaven and on earth, and His role as “the head and firstfruits” of God’s new creation. Dawson includes numerous quotations and excerpts from Holy Scripture and from the writings of the early Church Fathers and later theologians. This is rich and thrilling fare.

Finally, Part III explains “The Present Implications of Jesus Ascended,” which include the meaning of His continuing priesthood, the real citizenship of believers, and our mandated quest to ascend spiritually. Toward the end of this section, Dawson provides a chapter entitled “Models for Recovering the Ascension in the Life of the Church.” Here he describes several ways that the doctrine of the Ascension can be conveyed in preaching, teaching, prayer, and private and group devotions. The Appendix contains guides for two cycles of morning and evening prayers assembled entirely from Scripture.

If you want to know more about where Jesus of Nazareth is now, and why, and what He is doing there, I highly recommend Jesus Ascended.