In Luke 24:50-53, we will see how, forty days after the resurrection, the time has come for Jesus to say farewell to his disciples and ascend into heaven. While Christians often talk about his death and resurrection, we usually don’t have much to say about his ascension. So what’s it all about? What’s so significant about this moment that the disciples walk away with breathless joy? For the eleven disciples and us, the ascension shows that Christ isn’t actually so far away and that heaven has a lot more to say about our lives than we tend to think.

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As the disciples wrestle with the reality of Jesus’ resurrection, Jesus arrives in their midst. His proclamation of peace and physical presence puts to rest the thought that our faith is merely a spiritual thing. Rather, Luke’s record of the great commission focuses on the validity of the scriptures, the eyewitness experience, and the proclamation of forgiveness in His name to all the earth.

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This week, we will see two disciples on their journey back to Emmaus following the passover celebration and all the events of Jesus’ arrest, crucifixion, and resurrection. Unknown to them, Jesus appears and engages them in conversation. He proceeds to explain to them how the entire Old Testament pointed to a Messiah who had to suffer. Once their eyes were opened, they recognized him and realized that he was the Messiah, the risen Lord. Then they hurried back to Jerusalem to tell the others.

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Jesus’ final moments on the cross reveal the intersection of divine judgment, perfect obedience, and human response. The darkness highlights the weight of sin and God’s judgment, while Jesus’ last cry demonstrates ultimate trust in the Father. In His death, the veil is torn, and the way to God is opened for sinners once kept at a distance. This is a turning point that demands a response, confronting us with the seriousness of sin and the sufficiency of Christ’s sacrifice.

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While the crowds mock and condemn Jesus on the cross, Luke records a conversation that occurs nowhere else in scripture. The story of the thief on the cross is one of the most poignant moments in Luke’s gospel. We see that suffering doesn’t make a saint. Rather, it takes the gracious gift of repentance and faith in a crucified King to open the path to paradise. Jesus, in his final moments, gives assurance to every sinner that His grace is available even to our final breath.

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This week, we arrive where Luke has been leading us toward for some time: the place that is called “The Skull.” It’s the scene we’re all familiar with and know all too well: The crucifixion of Jesus Christ. However, this familiarity can often be blinding and, as a result, we need the eyes of our hearts to be removed of the haze that often settles in. This week, we find Jesus doing just that, but this time it comes from Calvary’s hill.

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In the final phase of Jesus’s unjust and illegal trial, Pilate renders his verdict. Three times Jesus is declared innocent while Pilate vacillates, the crowds cry out, and the religious leaders demand His crucifixion. What are we to make of this travesty of justice? We long for life to work, for truth and justice to win the day and are often given to despair when it seems God is absent. We discover in the condemnation of Jesus that God does his best work, when it all goes wrong.

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The trial continues as the Jewish leaders present Jesus to Pilate and Herod with the intent of having him crucified. Jesus will endure false accusations, erroneous claims, ridicule, and mockery in the presence of these wicked politicians. With humility and resolve Jesus absorbs their scorn and injustice as he continues to make his way to the cross.

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