May 17, 2026

Everyday Easter

How The Resurrection Impacts Our Daily Lives

Pastor Matt Hammett

Colossians 3:1
Since, then, you have been raised with Christ, set your hearts on things above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God.

If Jesus is truly reigning right now, how should that reshape how we live?

Acts 1:1-11
1 In my former book, Theophilus, I wrote about all that Jesus began to do and to teach 2 until the day he was taken up to heaven, after giving instructions through the Holy Spirit to the apostles he had chosen. 3 After his suffering, he presented himself to them and gave many convincing proofs that he was alive. He appeared to them over a period of forty days and spoke about the kingdom of God. 4 On one occasion, while he was eating with them, he gave them this command: “Do not leave Jerusalem, but wait for the gift my Father promised, which you have heard me speak about. 5 For John baptized with water, but in a few days you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit.”

6 Then they gathered around him and asked him, “Lord, are you at this time going to restore the kingdom to Israel?”

7 He said to them: “It is not for you to know the times or dates the Father has set by his own authority. 8 But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.”

9 After he said this, he was taken up before their very eyes, and a cloud hid him from their sight.

10 They were looking intently up into the sky as he was going, when suddenly two men dressed in white stood beside them. 11 “Men of Galilee,” they said, “why do you stand here looking into the sky? This same Jesus, who has been taken from you into heaven, will come back in the same way you have seen him go into heaven.”

I. JESUS IS NOT ABSENT, HE IS REIGNING.

Acts 1:9
After he said this, he was taken up before their very eyes, and a cloud hid him from their sight.

Luke 24:49–53
49 I am going to send you what my Father has promised; but stay in the city until you have been clothed with power from on high.” 50 When he had led them out to the vicinity of Bethany, he lifted up his hands and blessed them. 51 While he was blessing them, he left them and was taken up into heaven. 52 Then they worshiped him and returned to Jerusalem with great joy. 53 And they stayed continually at the temple, praising God.

Hebrews 1:3
The Son is the radiance of God’s glory and the exact representation of his being, sustaining all things by his powerful word. After he had provided purification for sins, he sat down at the right hand of the Majesty in heaven

2. Because He reigns, we are sent, not stranded.

Acts 1:8-11
8 But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you;and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.”
9 After he said this, he was taken up before their very eyes, and a cloud hid him from their sight.

10 They were looking intently up into the sky as he was going, when suddenly two men dressed in white stood beside them. 11 “Men of Galilee,” they said, “why do you stand here looking into the sky? This same Jesus, who has been taken from you into heaven, will come back in the same way you have seen him go into heaven.”

Acts 1:11
“Men of Galilee,” they said, “why do you stand here looking into the sky? This same Jesus, who has been taken from you into heaven, will come back in the same way you have seen him go into heaven.”

3. Because He reigns, we live as citizens of an unshakeable kingdom.

Hebrews 12:28
Therefore, since we are receiving a kingdom that cannot be shaken, let us be thankful, and so worship God acceptably with reverence and awe,

Romans 8:34
Who then is the one who condemns? No one. Christ Jesus who died—more than that, who was raised to life—is at the right hand of God and is also interceding for us.
"As a fellow human Jesus is our mediator and advocate, made like His brothers and sisters in every way so that He might be One who rules and judges those whose existence He understands from the inside, because He lived our human story with us in the most vulnerable, authentic, and beautiful way.

"In Jesus, God has a mother and a betrayer. In Jesus, God has scars and God has memories…of meals and laughter with His friends and cold nights huddled together against the desert air in cloaks, He recalls storms at sea and a grinding emptiness at the tomb of his friend."

- Kenneth Tanner

1 John 3:16–18
16 This is how we know what love is: Jesus Christ laid down his life for us. And we ought to lay down our lives for our brothers and sisters. 17 If anyone has material possessions and sees a brother or sister in need but has no pity on them, how can the love of God be in that person? 18 Dear children, let us not love with words or speech but with actions and in truth.

Jesus’ Invitation is to Look Up and Look Out

LOOK UP

Worship
Security
Identity
Intimacy with the enthroned Christ

LOOK OUT

Mission
Compassion
Action
Agency in His name

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Table Talk Questions

Read Luke 24:44–53; Acts 1:1–11; Hebrews 1:1–4

- In what ways is the Ascension a neglected aspect of Jesus's life and why is it so crucial? How might your faith change if you more regularly lived with the awareness that Jesus is enthroned right now? What difference does it make to know heaven’s throne is occupied by Jesus?

- Are you more prone to “look up” or “look out”? Why? Jesus calls us to both:

Look up → worship, trust, prayer, remembering who reigns
Look out → compassion, mission, justice, generosity, service

Which comes more naturally to you? Which is harder? What might healthy balance look like in your life right now?
How often do you think of Jesus as your ascended Advocate and what might that change?

- Hebrews 1:1-4 reminds us Jesus is seated at the Father’s right hand, interceding for us. What burden are you carrying right now that you need to entrust to Him? How does knowing Jesus has gone up but has not gone away strengthen you?

- If Jesus is truly reigning as King, what would change about the way you handle money, possessions, and security Every act of generosity is a declaration: Jesus is on the throne. Where do you feel financial anxiety, fear, or scarcity? What would it look like to live more as a citizen of Christ’s kingdom than a captive of this world’s economy?

-Where is Jesus inviting you to lift your eyes and where is He calling you to open your hands? Ascension invites us: upward in worship, outward in mission, and open-handed in generosity. What does it look like for you to look up this week? What does it look like for you to look out this week? What is one concrete act of love, courage, or generosity Jesus may be prompting you toward?

- How does knowing that Jesus reigns with nail scarred hands shape the way you face suffering? The One on the throne knows grief, injustice, betrayal, suffering, and what it is to weep. Where do you need hope right now? How does it comfort you to know that the King who reigns is also the Savior who understands?

- The ascension reminds us that Jesus is enthroned, present, interceding for, and sending you. How is He inviting you to respond?

Key Question: If Jesus is truly reigning right now, how should that reshape how you live?

1. Jesus is not ________________, He is __________________ Hebrews 1:3, Luke 24:49–53

2. Because Jesus _________________, we are _____________, not stranded. Acts 1:8-11

3. Because Jesus _________________, we live as ________________of an unshakeable kingdom. Hebrews 12:28, Romans 8:34

Jesus’s Comission is to _____________________- and _______________________