The Forgotten Psalm (3)

Week 3 — "Where He Was Before"

Series: The Forgotten Psalm: Recovering the Reigning Christ of Psalm 110 Date: Sunday, October 26, 2025 Text: John 6:62; Luke 24:50–53; John 20:17 Big Idea: The resurrection was not the end of Christ's work but the beginning of His visible enthronement. He returned not to rest, but to reign.

Recap

We are now in Week 3 of our 13-week series: The Forgotten Psalm: Recovering the Reigning Christ of Psalm 110.

In Week 1, we watched Jesus silence the Pharisees with a single line from Psalm 110: “The LORD said to my Lord…” He exposed their small view of the Messiah and revealed that the Christ would not just be David’s Son, but David’s exalted Lord.

In Week 2, we stood in the courtroom where Jesus declared His enthronement using Psalm 110 and Daniel 7. His words, “From now on…”, marked the beginning of a new reality. He wasn’t just identifying Himself—He was revealing the throne.

Now in Week 3, we turn to the ascension itself—where Christ returns to where He was before. This is no retreat. It is the visible coronation of the King. His seat at the Father’s right hand is not symbolic—it is sovereign.

Reading — John 6:62 (LSB)

"What then if you see the Son of Man ascending to where He was before?"

Reading — Luke 24:50–53 (LSB)

"And He led them out as far as Bethany, and lifting up His hands, He blessed them. Now it happened that while He was blessing them, He parted from them and was carried up into heaven. And they, after worshiping Him, returned to Jerusalem with great joy, and were continually in the temple blessing God."

Reading — John 20:17 (LSB)

"Jesus said to her, 'Stop clinging to Me, for I have not yet ascended to the Father; but go to My brothers and say to them, "I ascend to My Father and your Father, and My God and your God."'"

Context & Background

The resurrection is not the end of the Gospel. It is the turning point that confirms Jesus' identity, vindicates His mission, and transitions the narrative from cross to crown. Many Christians treat the resurrection as the finale. But Jesus Himself speaks of what comes next: His return to the Father.

The ascension is not a footnote to the Gospel—it is the enthronement scene anticipated by Psalm 110. Jesus is not only alive; He is installed. He is not only risen; He is reigning.

He is returning to where He was before. But now, He returns as the risen Son of David, the High Priest in the order of Melchizedek, the conquering King who has crushed the serpent and now takes His seat to rule until every enemy is beneath His feet.

Exposition

The ascension is not just a transition—it is a triumph. It is the moment when the victorious Christ is publicly and cosmically exalted, returning not just to the glory He once shared with the Father, but now crowned as the risen King, the head of a new creation, the High Priest of a new covenant, and the Lord of a people redeemed by His blood. The path to the right hand of the Father was not lined with fanfare and gold—it was paved with suffering, vindicated by resurrection, and sealed in ascension. This is not just theology. This is reality. The throne is not waiting to be claimed—it is already occupied. And this changes everything.

1. What If You See the Son of Man Ascending? (John 6:62)

In John 6, long before the cross, Jesus was already pointing beyond the resurrection. To those grumbling over His claims, He asks a provocative question: “What then if you see the Son of Man ascending to where He was before?” This is not hypothetical—it is a preview. Jesus is telling them plainly that His mission will not end in death. It will not even stop at resurrection. It will culminate in His return to the Father—in glory.

That phrase—“to where He was before”—is monumental. It means that Jesus did not begin in Bethlehem. He came from glory. He was with the Father before the foundation of the world (John 17:5), and now, after completing His mission, He would ascend—not simply to rest, but to reign.

This is the fulfillment of Psalm 110:1. “Sit at My right hand until I put Your enemies beneath Your feet.” The King is going home—not to retire—but to take the throne.

His words were not meant to shock only those present—but to prepare the Church to understand His heavenly ministry. His return was never intended to signal absence—but exaltation. And that exaltation would fuel the mission of His people from Pentecost forward.

2. The Blessing and the Lifting (Luke 24:50–53)

Luke’s Gospel ends not with mourning or mystery, but with clarity and joy. Jesus leads His disciples out to Bethany. He lifts His hands to bless them—not just as a friend or teacher, but as the eternal High Priest. While He is blessing, He is taken up—visibly, bodily, gloriously.

He does not vanish. He ascends.

This is a royal procession upward, from earth to heaven. The disciples watch their Lord rise—not as an exit, but as an exaltation. And their response says everything: they worshiped Him.

Psalm 110 is unfolding before their eyes. The enthronement is underway. The King has passed through death, defeated it, and now rises to the throne prepared for Him from eternity past.

And notice—they don’t leave mourning. They leave rejoicing. Why? Because they finally understand: He is reigning now.

This was not loss. This was coronation. This was not abandonment—it was installation. And the joy they carry back into Jerusalem becomes the joy that will sustain their mission to the ends of the earth.

3. I Am Ascending (John 20:17)

After the resurrection, Jesus tells Mary Magdalene: “Stop clinging to Me, for I have not yet ascended to the Father.” He is not rebuking her love—He is redirecting her focus.

This is not the time to hold on to Him physically. It is the time to prepare for what comes next: His heavenly enthronement and their Spirit-filled mission. Jesus' physical presence will give way to His cosmic authority and His spiritual indwelling through the Holy Spirit.

He does not merely go back to heaven as before. He returns as the crucified, risen, vindicated King, carrying our humanity into the presence of God. He ascends not as a visitor, but as the Victor.

His words to Mary are tender, but firm: “Go and tell My brothers…” This is covenantal language. He is bringing them into something new. A new creation. A new Kingdom. A new reality. His Father is now their Father. His God is their God. And His throne is their source of hope and power.

This is not the end of intimacy—it’s the beginning of indwelling. The Son ascends not to leave us behind, but to reign in such a way that He fills all in all (Ephesians 1:23).

Gospel Connection

The Gospel does not end with an empty tomb. It ends with an occupied throne—a throne that was promised in Psalm 110, anticipated through every covenant, and now declared openly in the ascension of Jesus Christ. The empty tomb proves He lives, but the ascension proves He reigns. And from that throne, He directs the course of nations, builds His Church, subdues His enemies, and intercedes for His people. It is not just that Christ rose—it's that Christ rose to rule. The Gospel proclaims not only that death was defeated, but that the Victor has taken His rightful seat over all things.

The ascension is not a curtain call or a disappearance act. It is the visible declaration that Jesus Christ—the crucified Son of God—has been vindicated, glorified, and installed as King. He now sits at the right hand of the Father, not as a passive observer, but as a reigning High Priest and Sovereign Lord.

Jesus did not merely defeat death. He ascended to administer that victory across the nations. He pours out His Spirit, intercedes for His people, builds His Church, and subdues His enemies.

This is the Gospel: not just that Jesus saves, but that Jesus reigns.

Six Application Points

1. Worship the ascended Christ. Do not reduce Jesus to the suffering servant only. He is the exalted King, worthy of reverence, awe, and joyful allegiance.

2. Proclaim a complete Gospel. The good news is not just that Jesus died and rose—it is that He is reigning now. Preach and live as if the throne is occupied.

3. Find your courage in His exaltation. The disciples’ joy at His ascension fueled their boldness. The same confidence belongs to you.

4. Let go of dead religion and step into royal mission. Stop clinging to old forms. Cling to the risen and ruling Christ who fills His people with power and purpose.

5. See history as His footstool. The world is not spiraling out of control. It is bending toward the feet of the reigning Christ.

6. Live as one sent by a sovereign King. You are not alone, not powerless, and not waiting for authority. You’ve been sent by the King who reigns.

Summary & Call to Repent and Believe

This moment—the ascension—is the hinge point between Gospel proclamation and Gospel participation. It is where Christ's personal mission becomes the Church’s corporate mission. Where the crucified Savior becomes the exalted Lord of history. Where His victory over death becomes His visible authority over all things.

And the implications are staggering. If He is seated at the right hand of the Father, then our faith is not in vain. Our worship is not aimless. Our mission is not optional. He is not absent—He is enthroned. And that throne is not symbolic—it is sovereign.

This is the Gospel many have never heard: that Jesus is not just your personal Savior—He is your cosmic King. And if He is reigning now, then neutrality is not an option.

You will either bow joyfully or be made His footstool.

So repent. Believe. Bow. Rise. And serve your ascended, reigning, and returning King.

Jesus asked, “What if you see the Son of Man ascending to where He was before?” That wasn’t a rhetorical question—it was prophecy.

They would see it. The disciples saw Him rise. The apostles saw Him exalted. And we see it by faith today.

The Son has returned to glory—not to hide, but to reign. Not to pause, but to pour out His Spirit. Not to disappear, but to direct all things until every enemy is subdued.

And yet for many, the ascension remains a theological footnote. But this moment—the lifting, the blessing, the rising—is not the afterthought of the Gospel. It is the climactic fulfillment of the Father's decree: “Sit at My right hand…”

We must not let our theology stop at the cross or the tomb. The King is enthroned. The throne is occupied. His enemies are being placed under His feet, and His people are being filled with His Spirit to carry out His reign on earth.

Psalm 110 is not waiting to be fulfilled—it is being fulfilled.

He has gone up with a shout. He has taken His seat. And His Kingdom is advancing.

So do not treat His enthronement as distant. Don’t live as if the throne is still empty. He reigns now. He intercedes now. He calls now.

So rise. Worship. Believe. Bow. And live under the rule of the King who has returned to where He was before—so that you may one day be where He is now.

And now, as we come to the Lord’s Table, we do so not as people in waiting, but as citizens of the Kingdom—already under His reign. The bread and the cup do not merely point us back to the cross, but also upward to the throne. This is the Table of the ascended King.

He is not absent from this meal. He presides over it from the right hand of the Father. And He has invited you to feast in faith, remembering His body given, His blood poured out, and His glory revealed.