Ephesians 4.9-10

Today I am thankful for His descension AND ascension. 

Ephesians 4.9-10:

“(What does ‘He ascended’ mean except that He also descended to the lower, earthly regions?  He who descended is the very one who ascended higher than all the heavens, in order to fill the whole universe.)”

This is the foundation of the love of my life.  He descended; He knows me.  Truly.  He gave everything up for me.  He understands.  Everything I go through, everything I think and feel.  He descended, in order to. 

He descended all the way to a manger, a feeding box, in a smelly cave-like environment, in obscurity and humility.  Through the blood and tears of human childbirth.  Born to give us second birth.  A generation – nay, a world – living dead.  He descended, to resurrect us all.

But this Christmas I pray I remember that He didn’t stay in the manger.  He didn’t stay in the “lower, earthly regions.”  He didn’t stay on the dirt to which He came for us.  Glory to God – He ascended!  He fully came; He fully left.  Upward, even to the point of “higher than all the heavens!”  He who came to know me and feel me and resurrect me, left.  So that I don’t just have a love affair.  I have eternal life and supernatural power.  I have position above every circumstance, trial, tribulation, bad news, death, disease, pain, disappointment, hurt feelings, betrayal, and failure of this little life… I am IN HIM, and guess where He is.  Not the manger.  Not the streets of a dirty town in the Middle East.  Not a bloody deadly cross.  He is HIGHER THAN ALL THE HEAVENS.  He came so I could forever be IN HIM.  He left so I could forever be… Alive.  Safe.  Secure.  Well.  Whole.  Above.

In Him. 

So, although I’ve never read it before for Christmastime, Ephesians 4.9-10 is my advent meditation today.  Parenthetical, yet so, so powerful.  He is coming back for me.  But even until then, He has secured my life, my soul, my all, higher than all the heavens… and I get to live today – even today – there, IN HIM. 

Let Him fill your whole universe today.  He didn’t ascend in order to just keep time and wait for the alarm to sound that it’s time to come pick us up.  He ascended in order to FILL THE WHOLE UNIVERSE.  His Spirit is alive in you and alive in me, if we have trusted Him as our Savior and Lord.  We are seated in the heavenlies.  We have been blessed – or in other words, “good-worded” – with every blessing (“good word”) in Him.  Everything wonderful that could ever be said about anybody has been said about us.  Because we are in Him.  Let’s let Him fill our universe this season.  With security and confidence, let’s let Him splash out onto the others in our paths so that they, too, can be good-worded and free.  That is the only reason He waits. 

Come, Lord Jesus.