In a book written 60 years ago, C. S. Lewis quoted William Wordsworth as saying that he “would rather be a pagan, gleaning at least some heart-stirrings from ancient myths, than a soul-dead modern man, whose faith is only a gloss on a shallow life.”

Wordsworth’s scathing critique of the modern Christian was perhaps because the Christians had become more a product of his world than a product of the world to come. His or her life never ascended to where Jesus is. Christianity had become a nice story in the past that will affect his or her eternity, but the Christian can busy himself in accumulating capital, sports, entertainment, hobbies, etc, but Christ had functionally made very little present impact. Gerrit Dawson in his book, Jesus Ascended, asked what would a critic like Wordsworth of Christianity say today? Would he describe those who say they are Christians as those whose faith is but a “gloss on a shallow life?”

How can one whose life is wrapped up in the life of God experience and express but a gloss of the power and glory and love of God? My answer is that we have not learned that Jesus ascended into heaven and what that means for our place in this world and age. We’ll dive into what is perhaps the most necessary doctrine that the modern believer must recover and apply to his or her present life right now. Join us this Sunday as we worship at the Wesley at 10:30. We’ll open up the very last words of the Gospel according to Luke and study the event which was to become the guide to a Christian’s place in this world…not the birth, the miracles, the teaching, the great commission, the cross, nor the resurrection, the event to guide the Christian today is the ascension. A Christian united to Christ in his ascension cannot have a faith that is but a “gloss on a shallow life.” An “unascended life” will only bring sorrow and unintentionally drive others away from Christ to chase godless myths.

But our citizenship is in heaven, and from it we await a Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ, who will transform our lowly body to be like his glorious body, by the power that enables him even to subject all things to himself

Philippians 3:20-21

To listen in to last week’s service where we heard of the resurrected Christ’s message that he committed to the church, click here.