Jesus Goes To Heaven

TEXT: Acts 1:1-14; 2:1-8    

ONE day when Jesus was here on earth He told His disciple-helpers about a place that is very beautiful. No one can even think how beautiful it will be. Do you know where that place is? It is in Heaven. It is up, up, up, way up past the clouds, in God’s Heaven.

Jesus said, “I am going away for a little while. You cannot go with me now.” He was going back to Heaven. Jesus was going back to live with God and all the angels, but He promised that some day lie will come again to take His people to be with Him.

Jesus was all finished with His work on earth. He had been teaching people how to love God, what they must do so they, too, can go to Heaven. Everyone, every little boy, every little girl, every grown-up person can go to Heaven if he does what Jesus has taught him to do. It is all written in the Bible, just as Jesus said it. We did not see Jesus when He was here, but if we do what He tells in the Bible, we will be ready to go with Him when He comes back to earth again to get us.

Jesus’ helpers must have felt sad when He went away. “Oh, what will we do without You?” they may have said. Jesus told them to go back first to the City of Jerusalem and pray. Then they could go and tell others about Jesus. He promised to help them and be with them, even if they could not see Him.

One day after Jesus had talked to His friends, they walked to a mountain top. As they stood there, Jesus held out His hands and blessed them. All of a sudden Jesus started to go up, up, up. He was going right up in the air, right off the ground; up, up, up, higher and higher. Jesus was going up into Heaven. A big cloud came and hid Jesus in its fluffy whiteness.

Jesus’ friends watched. They were so surprised to see Jesus going up like that! Jesus had gone to Heaven to get a place ready for everyone who loves Him, just as He said He would.

Look! Look! Two men all dressed in white came and asked, “Why stand ye gazing [looking] up into heaven? this same Jesus, which is taken up from you into heaven, shall so come in like manner as ye have seen him go into heaven.”

Hurry, hurry! They went back to the big room in the house where Jesus had told them to go and pray. Lots of other people were there to pray, too. Everyone was praying. No one looked around. God does not like it when we kneel to pray and then look around at others.

God sent His Holy Spirit, because all the people there had clean hearts. Then they were ready to go out and work for Jesus and tell other men, women, boys and girls about Jesus. You can be a little helper for Jesus, too.