This week opened with a miracle. We watched Jesus literally rise from the earth. We saw Daniel’s Son of Man receive an everlasting Kingdom. We joined in the rejoicing over the King in Psalm 47 and Hebrews fixed our attention on the exalted Son, seated at God’s right hand.
The passage in Psalms 68 speaks of God ascending in triumph, surrounded by imagery of Divine victory! Yet, we almost immediately shift to a much more tender place. “Day after day he bears our burdens; God is our salvation.”

Power and mercy belong together here. The God who reigns is also the God who carries. The God of victory is also the God of salvation. His greatness doesn’t make Him indifferent to our weaknesses and struggles.
 
Thankfully, His exaltation doesn’t mean He has become less concerned with ordinary human need. It is an incredible comfort to me to know the One who is interested in my needs, in my heart, and my flourishing is also the One who holds all authority over heaven and earth.
His throne gives you and me a reason for confidence no matter what life throws at us. We all still carry burdens, encounter unfavorable circumstances, and live in a world where full restoration has yet to come. But we can carry those burdens beneath His reign; in fact, we can lay those burdens at His throne and allow Him to carry them for us.

As always, we wrap up the week in a posture of worship. I hope this week was more than an information dump about the ascension of Jesus. I hope it led you to a place of peaceful dependence and genuine worship of the ascended King.
 
So many times we speak of the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus (all very important parts of the story), but we often fall short and fail to mention the ascension, a crucial piece of the story defining just Who it is we worship.
 
Next week, the story shifts again as we find the reigning Christ pouring out His Spirit on His people. For today, worship is enough. The King reigns, and He is good.

What burden do you need to consciously place before the reigning Christ today? How has seeing Jesus as both exalted King and saving Lord shaped your worship this week?

Father, blessed by Your name. Thank you that the risen Jesus reigns and His authority will never fail. I’m grateful that Your goodness and exalted throne don’t make You distant from my burdens. Teach me to worship with confidence, fully submitted to the reign of Jesus, to bring my needs and desires honestly to You, and to rest in the goodness of the King who holds all things together. Amen.

“I praise the reigning Jesus because __________________.”