How does Jesus complete the redemption by ascending to the Father in John 20:17?
A viewer asks how Jesus completes the redemption by ascending to the Father in John 20:17.
Answer
Yes, it relates to Him offering His sacrifice in the heavenly tabernacle, which you can see in Hebrews 9:11-12 and especially Hebrews 9:23. Unlike the Old Testament high priest, who had to go into the tabernacle on the Day of Atonement, perform the sacrifice, and then come out, only to go in and out again year after year so that it was never completed, Christ goes into the tabernacle where the heavenly Father is and never comes out. There He represents the sacrifice He performed on Calvary, just as we say in the Eucharist that the Mass is a representation of that sacrifice, and He does so continually. Because of our ongoing sins on earth, the Father has a continual view of Christ's sacrifice and never has to wait; Christ's very presence is the continual offering. Hebrews 9:23 says it was necessary for the copies of the heavenly things to be purified with these sacrifices, but the heavenly things themselves with better sacrifices; for Christ did not enter a man-made sanctuary that was only a copy, He entered heaven itself, to appear for us in God's presence, bringing with Him the sacrifice He performed at Calvary. That is exactly what John 20:17 is saying.