01 Jun
2025

Ascended to Glory

Passage: John 17:1-5 & Acts 1:6-11

“For on this day not only have we been confirmed in our possession of paradise, but we have entered heaven in the person of Christ through his ineffable grace we have regained far more than we had lost through the devil’s hatred.”  –Leo the Great, early church father

SERMON OUTLINE:

Jesus’s ascension is an:

  • answer to prayer
  • essential provision for the church’s formation, witness, and joy

DISCUSSION QUESTIONS:

What has been your experience with celebrating Jesus’s ascension?

Read John 17:1-13 . What does this passage show you about God’s character and about being his follower? What challenges, encourages, or sparks questions for you in this passage?

When you think of “glory,” what comes to your mind?
Jesus brought together his glorification in the cross and resurrection/ascension. How does Jesus’s idea of glory shape our understanding of it?
Jesus’s prayer for himself is clearly answered. He spends 5 verses praying for himself and 21 verses in John 17 praying for the church. This reflects how crucial the church is to Jesus. We see clearly his prayer for himself is answered. How does John 17 impact your understanding and practice of praying?
Read Acts 1:1-11. What does this passage show you about God’s character and about being his follower? What challenges, encourages, or sparks questions for you in this passage?
We might like more details included on the description of the ascension, but it is brief. Telling us what we need to know. In light of that, what is important for us to know happened at the ascension?
Understanding the ascension as the enthronement of Jesus in heaven gives distinction to the formation, witness, and joy of the church. In what ways does your citizenship in heaven bear witness in your life politically, economically, and socially?
Those who believe in Jesus have the assurance of your place in the kingdom of God because Jesus is reigning there already – embodied and glorified. How does this assurance provide you with joy that is not dependent on our circumstances but still fully engaged in this life?

What from this passage and this discussion is something you want to put into practice or be more aware of this week?

PRAYER

Share with your group how they can be praying for you: what is weighing on you from this past week? What are you praising God for from this past week?

John 16:33 “I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.”