Audio: #40 Why Did Jesus Leave?

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Del Tackett

May 24, 2025

This is the audio for #40 Why Did Jesus Leave?

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If Jesus Rose from the Dead, then (#40) Why Did Jesus Leave?

Today is Ascension Day. For most, that might provoke little more than “huh?” It is rare to find it on a calendar in the United States. Catholics celebrate it as the “Feast of the Ascension” by attending mass. And, surprisingly, it is an official public holiday across Indonesia and in many European countries like France, Germany and Sweden.

In Germany, it has evolved into herrenpartien, which literally means “men’s games” so the men use the holiday for an “outing”. In Sweden, people go out into the woods very early in the morning to hear the birds at sunrise. If one hears a cuckoo from the east or the west, that is supposed to be good luck for them. This trek into the woods is called gokatta or “early cuckoo morning”. In England, some celebrate Ascension Day by beating boundary markers with sticks. Don’t ask.

Maybe it is good we don’t celebrate Ascension Day here. Who knows what it would look like now.

But, I think we should celebrate it, or at least commemorate it, because it is a very important event. For those who want to do so, it is traditionally numbered as the fortieth day of Easter. We don’t know exactly when Jesus ascended. But, we understand from Luke, in Acts 1, that Jesus appeared to the disciples “over a period of forty days”. He then led them to Olivet and ascended, telling them to wait in the city for the Holy Spirit, which came on Pentecost, fifty days after the Resurrection. So, with these boundaries, most assume that the Ascension was on the fortieth day.

You can read about the Ascension (and I encourage you to do so) in Luke 24:44-53 and Acts 1:4-11. It must have been quite an event for those present. For us, this is the day that Jesus left and basically said “over to you”.

I think it is an extremely important day. In the Truth Project, we begin with the question, “Why did Jesus come?” and in the Engagement Project, we begin with the question, “Why did Jesus leave?”

We won’t fully answer this question here because I am hoping you will go through the Engagement Project in a small group. That will lay before you both why Jesus left and what He left for us to do, which is, I believe, the only way forward for the Body of Christ in our times. However, in the context of our examination of the Resurrection, it is an important question to ponder, for it has great implications for us today.

The Ascension certainly was no surprise. Jesus said He wasn’t going to stay. Speaking to the Jewish leaders, He said this:

I am going away, and you will seek me, and you will die in your sin. Where I am going, you cannot come. John 8:21

This is in the middle of that very difficult dialogue between Jesus and the Jews when He told them they were of their father the devil (John 8:44). Of course, this is not because they were Jewish, but because they were still in their old sin nature, part of the seed line of Satan. Unless one is born again through Christ, all men are in that seed line.

He also gave notice to the disciples:

You heard me say to you, ‘I am going away, and I will come to you.’ If you loved me, you would have rejoiced, because I am going to the Father, for the Father is greater than I. John 14:28

It is clear that Jesus was telling them that He was going to leave. But He also said that He would “come” to them. What does this mean? He had said virtually the same thing earlier:

I will not leave you as orphans; I will come to you. John 14:18

Here again we have the “leaving” and “coming” pair. Is this talking about the coming of Jesus at the end? No, look at the context of this whole chapter. This is what Jesus had said earlier:

I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Helper, to be with you forever, even the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees him nor knows him. You know him, for he dwells with you and will be in you. John 14:16-17

So, Jesus was going to leave and then the Holy Spirit would come and live in them. But, just the Holy Spirit? Ah, it is here that we must be very careful. It would be easy to slip into polytheistic thinking. We serve One God, not three. Look at what Jesus then says:

If anyone loves me, he will keep my word, and my Father will love him, and we will come to him and make our home with him. John 14:23

Jesus is saying that both He and the Father would come and make their home in us. So, who dwells within us? The fullness of God: Father, Son and Holy Spirit. Yes, it is true that this indwelling is the primary work of the third person in the Trinity, but God is not split up into parts.

When we truly begin to ponder this and meditate upon it, this must be one of the most amazing truth claims in all of Scripture: that God Himself dwells within us. Who can fathom this?

But how is all of this tied to the resurrection and why Jesus left? Well, first of all, look at how closely the “coming” is tied to the “going”:

I tell you the truth: it is to your advantage that I go away, for if I do not go away, the Helper will not come to you. But if I go, I will send him to you. John 16:7

There have been volumes written on why Jesus said He “had” to go away in order for the Holy Spirit to come. Let me give you my ranch/farm-common-sense answer, for we don’t have anything in Scripture that speaks to this directly.

Our walk is by faith and God has decreed it to be that way. If Jesus were still here, walking the earth, it would take no faith, or little faith, to believe in Him. Remember what He told Thomas when he felt the wounds on the physical body of the risen Jesus? After he fell down and said, “My Lord and my God!” Jesus said: "Blessed are those who have not seen and yet believe." It is God’s design that His people walk by faith.

So, Jesus had to leave, and once He left, the door was then open for God to fill His people with the Spirit so that they might walk by that Spirit… walking by faith and not by sight.

Jesus died for our sins, was buried and then raised from the dead, physically, to conquer death (and a whole lot more) and then He physically left so that the Spirit might come and indwell us. None of this would have happened if Jesus had remained in the tomb. In fact, if He had not risen, as Paul says, “our faith is in vain”.

Dear brothers and sisters, it is so easy for us to grow dim in our thoughts and hearts concerning the magnitude of what God has done for us. Earlier we read that Jesus told the disciples that they should be rejoicing because Jesus was going away. How is it possible for them to rejoice in the loss of their Lord? Because He was not going to leave them as orphans, but come in the fullness of God and dwell within them.

This is the basis for the radical transformation that takes place in the one who comes to Christ. We saw it in Peter and John after Pentecost. They were huddled in fear one minute and in the next they were standing in the spotlight of the entire force of Jewish authorities, but now, transformed and empowered by the Spirit of God, speaking boldly and fearlessly.

Dear family, there is no greater time than at this moment for us to be the light and salt that we were meant to be and that God has prepared us to be.

We have His Word and He lives within us.

For what are we waiting?

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(#2) The Seal Was Broken

If Jesus Rose from the Dead, then (#2) The Seal Was Broken [audio] We don’t spend much time talking about the seal that was placed upon the tomb, but I think it is significant. Here is the historical record: The next day, that is, after the day of Preparation, the chief priests and the Pharisees gathered before Pilate and said, “Sir, we remember how that impostor said, while he was still alive, ‘After three days I will rise.’ Therefore order the tomb to be made secure until the third day, lest his disciples go and steal him away and tell the people, ‘He has risen from the dead,’ and the last fraud will be worse than the first.” Pilate said to them, “You have a guard of soldiers. Go, make it as secure as you can.” So they went and made the tomb secure by sealing the stone and setting a guard. (Matthew 27:62-66) The account states that the chief priests and the Pharisees “made the tomb secure by sealing the stone…”. This seal was most likely several ropes that were drawn across the stone and then affixed to the tomb walls with a soft clay imprinted with some symbol of authority. It was also likely that the ropes were sealed at their juncture in front of the stone. In this way, no one could move the stone or the ropes without breaking the dried clay and destroying the “seal” affixed upon the clay. The seal was there to “put on notice” that no one was to mess with the tomb. Rome could deal quite nastily with those who did so. Now, this doesn’t mean much to us today, for we are long past the norm of using “seals” as they were utilized in ancient times. but in those days, a seal was inviolable[1]. It represented authority, authenticity, and finality. No one messed with a seal. In the book of Esther, when King Ahasuerus issued the order to save the Jews, he commanded them to “seal it with the king's ring, for an edict written in the name of the king and sealed with the king's ring cannot be revoked.” (Esther 8:8) When Daniel was thrown into the lion’s den, “… a stone was brought and laid on the mouth of the den, and the king sealed it with his own signet and with the signet of his lords, that nothing might be changed concerning Daniel." (Daniel 6:17) In the vision concerning the destruction of Jerusalem, the Scripture says: And the vision of all this has become to you like the words of a book that is sealed. When men give it to one who can read, saying, “Read this,” he says, “I cannot, for it is sealed.” (Isaiah 29:11) The permanence of a seal against all who were unauthorized to break it was an inviolable part of their world. It becomes even more apparent when John is caught up to heaven and there beholds the scroll with seven seals. John weeps because there was “no one worthy to open the scroll or to look into it” (Revelation 5:4). Of course, we find that the Lamb, “standing as though it had been slain” (Revelation 5:6), was worthy to break the seals. And when each of those seals were broken, great calamity came upon the earth. Seals in the Scripture mean something. And John had wept, because the seal represented an inviolable wall to anyone who did not have the authority to break it. Seals show authority. They show authenticity. And they show finality for all except the one who had the authority to break them. And so, we now come back to the tomb. The seal, whether it was a Roman seal or the High Priest’s seal, represented a fixed closure that no one was allowed to breach. When it was set upon the tomb, there was a finality, a stamp of ultimate authority, that said, “This tomb is closed.” Ah, but God is not subject to the laws or seals of man. I can imagine that when the earth began to shake and the stone was rolled aside, that those clay seals with the authority of man impressed upon them broke into a thousand pieces and lay as trash littering the ground. If Jesus rose from the dead, then the seal of man, meant to keep Him in the grave, had been utterly and completely destroyed. But there is one more thing that must be mentioned regarding “seals." It is important to note that God has given us this detail in the record to help substantiate the reality of the accounts of the empty tomb and the risen Lord Jesus. But it also brings our minds to something quite wonderful. In John 6:27, Jesus said: "Do not work for the food that perishes, but for the food that endures to eternal life, which the Son of Man will give to you. For on him God the Father has set his seal.” If God seals something, it is sealed! "In him you also, when you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation, and believed in him, were sealed with the promised Holy Spirit." (Ephesians 1:13) “… it is God who establishes us with you in Christ, and has anointed us, and who has also put his seal on us and given us his Spirit in our hearts as a guarantee." (2 Corinthians 1:21) This is God’s seal of authority, authenticity, and finality. You are His, sealed with His guarantee. Oh, my, dear brothers and sisters in Christ! How deep is the steadfast love of God that He should do such mighty things to secure us to Himself and then tell us that He has put His own seal upon you and me? As David writes: “Such knowledge is too wonderful for me; it is high; I cannot attain it.” (Psalm 139:6) [previous] [next] [1]Inviolable /ĭn-vī′ə-lə-bəl/: never to be broken, infringed or dishonored; unassailable; secure from violation or assault or trespass

If Jesus Rose from the Dead, then... (#0)

The resurrection of Jesus Christ is the most important truth claim in a biblical worldview. It is the key apologetic for Christianity. It is the most important event in history. The implications of the Resurrection are so deeply woven into the fabric of our Christian faith that it is important for us to continually embed its truths into our heart and mind such that it becomes an ever-present reality. To do this, I would like for us to ponder fifty compelling arguments and implications that are true if Jesus, indeed, “rose from the dead.” We will look at these, one a day, over the next seven weeks. This will take us through Ascension Day and Pentecost. The latter two are important days of remembrance following the Resurrection and we will highlight them. But more importantly, I want to help people contemplate, on a daily basis, over a sustained period of time, the tremendous significance of the Resurrection. We will do this by considering not only the many proofs, but also the many deep implications. I would encourage you to do this as devotions with your spouse or as a study for your small group and then engage in a healthy discussion (suggested questions will be provided in the daily email). My prayer is that God will use these days to increase faith within the Body of Christ and our ability to provide a "neighborly apologetic" to those who are open to hear as the result of the relationships we are building with them. Paul states that without the resurrection, our faith would be in vain and we would still be lost. “… if Christ has not been raised, your faith is futile and you are still in your sins.” 1 Corinthians 15:17 This is not a minor statement, and it should cause us pause, for it puts this unique historical event into sharp perspective. Without the Resurrection, we are hopelessly lost. We are without a true faith and we are unforgiven, still condemned in our sins. We should probably read that verse over several times before plowing forward. It is easy for me, and possibly you, to treat Easter as another Christian holiday marked by multiple, and possibly extensive, preparations. Church choirs rehearse diligently and on overtime, special services are prepared (think Good Friday and sometimes Sunrise Services), thousands of lilies are tended and provoked to bloom at the right time and are purchased to line sanctuary rails, special meals are planned and prepared and joyously consumed, treasure hunts are created, painted eggs are hidden and Easter baskets are filled with chocolate bunnies, peeps, and who knows what else the market has, and will, come up with. The point here is that just like Christmas and Thanksgiving and every other holiday, including birthdays, anniversaries, and the multitude of “take-your-boss-to-lunch” kind of days, they are preceded with much preparation, happy execution, and then forgotten except to toss the wrappings into the trash and press on with life as usual. When I was at the White House, the annual “Easter Egg Roll” on the south lawn was a big deal with weeks of preparation, followed immediately by a massive clean-up and the Secret Service hustling folks out of the “compound." The next day, it was impossible to find any evidence that there had been anything going on. For the Resurrection, however, Paul implies that it is something so critical to our faith that it should be an ever present reality. The astounding cry, “He lives!” should be ongoing, not a one-and-done holiday. Certainly, "We serve a risen Savior, He's in the world today," as the famous hymn states, is an astounding, continual reality. I believe it is important for us to frequently ponder and meditate upon the deep implications that the tomb was really, truly empty and the resurrection of Jesus from the dead is absolutely true. So, we will look at not only these implications, but also the apologetic propositions and the incredible truths that logically follow this unmatched historical assertion. We will generally lay down the apologetic arguments first and then deal with the implications. And hopefully, after working your way through all of this, you will have imprinted these implications and truths deep in your heart such that they will help you with your walk into the darkness we call future. Because it is the Resurrection of Christ that stands not only at the forefront in the apologetic reality of who Jesus is and what God has done for us, but also the enduring hope we have in Christ. As another famous hymn states: "Because He lives, I can face tomorrow." [Next: It Would Have Shaken Everything]