We cannot relate to the events in our Lord’s life after the transfiguration. Until that moment, Jesus led a life we can recognize: the normal, if perfect, life of a man. From the transfiguration onward— Gethsemane, the cross, the resurrection, and the ascension—everything in our Lord’s life is unfamiliar to us. The cross is the doorway through which every member of humanity can enter into the life of God. Through the resurrection, our Lord has the right to give eternal life to all. By the ascension, our Lord enters heaven and keeps the door open for humanity.
“After six days Jesus took with him Peter, James and John . . . and led them up a high mountain by themselves. There he was transfigured before them” (Matthew 17:1–2). After the transfiguration, Jesus remained on earth. If he’d gone to heaven immediately, he would have gone alone as a glorious figure, but not as a savior. Instead, he turned his back on glory and came down from the mountain to identify himself with fallen humanity.
“He left them and was taken up into heaven” (Luke 24:51). The ascension completed the transfiguration. Our Lord returned to his original place of glory, but he didn’t return simply as the Son of God. He returned also as the Son of Man. Because he did, all of humanity now has free access to the throne of God. As Son of Man, Jesus Christ deliberately limited his divine omnipotence, omniscience, and omnipresence. Now, in his glory, they are his in absolute power. Sitting at the throne of God, Jesus Christ, as Son of Man, has all power. He is King of Kings and Lord of Lords from the day of his ascension until now.
