Article for April 14, 2024
Luke 24:36–49 36As they were talking about these things, Jesus himself stood among them, and said to them, “Peace to you!” 37But they were startled and frightened and thought they saw a spirit. 38And he said to them, “Why are you troubled, and why do doubts arise in your hearts?
Ok, deal with it! Jesus was killed by those who persecuted Him. He died and was put into a tomb where His body should have remained yet today. But how can they kill one who is God? How does one defeat that which is undefeatable? What part of this is God did they not understand? Of course, Jesus the Christ was going to be resurrected. What else do you expect from the one who is all powerful, and all wise.
This is God that we speak of each Sunday and try and learn His ways. We speak of God as if He is an entity not present in our studies and in our worship services. You do know God is actually participating in our worship as our worship is directed to Him. God is participating in our studies as it is His Holy Spirit that guides us to understand and digest His word.
When you pray, God is with you and is listening to you, and pays very close attention to you and your prayers. We have an advocate for our sins who is Jesus Christ and His actions did not stop at the cross, or the grave, or His resurrection, or His ascension. Rather God has been with us since before time and will be with us for all eternity. So maybe we should start to act as if He is sitting or standing right next to us and listening to all that we say. He sees all that we do, and yet we act as if He might be in the other room
.
Luke 24:39-40 39See my hands and my feet, that it is I, myself. Touch me, and see. For a spirit does not have flesh and bones as you see that I have.” 40And when he had said this, he showed them his hands and his feet.
Do not disbelieve but believe, Jesus told Thomas who had a hard time understanding that we have a God who cannot be destroyed. The Evil one might have doubted at one time, but now the evil one is trying to convince us that Jesus was destroyed, and He is no longer with us.
Jesus did not just resurrect in the spirit, but in the body with flesh and wounds still intact. What does this tell us, but that we too when we are resurrected from the dead will be whole in body and soul too. Guess who is in control of our resurrection, yes, it is Jesus Christ our Lord.
Luke 24:41-42 41And while they still disbelieved for joy and were marveling, he said to them, “Have you anything here to eat?” 42They gave him a piece of broiled fish, 43and he took it and ate before them.
Ok, you’ve seen the hands, feet, His side, and you touched Him. If that was not enough and you still disbelieve how about giving the resurrected Lord some food to eat. He ate it and it did not go through Him like Casper the friendly ghost. Ok, now do you understand that our new life will be solid among other things we do not know about yet?
Luke 24:44 44Then he said to them, “These are my words that I spoke to you while I was still with you, that everything written about me in the Law of Moses and the Prophets, and the Psalms must be fulfilled.”
Jesus is trying to tell us, He is for real, He cannot be destroyed, and neither can we, God’s children. We are indeed the gifted ones who are being saved every day.
Luke 24:45–47 45Then he opened their minds to understand the Scriptures, 46and said to them, “Thus it is written, that the Christ should suffer and on the third day rise from the dead, 47and that repentance and forgiveness of sins should be proclaimed in his name to all nations, beginning from Jerusalem.
We can take that sigh of relief and know we have an advocate who saves us from our sins. This is the good news we need to shout out to the world. Jesus came to save us all from the clutches of our sinful nature that wants us to think we will be buried with our sin.
Luke 24:48–49 48You are witnesses of these things. 49And behold, I am sending the promise of my Father upon you. But stay in the city until you are clothed with power from on high.”
We are in our Jerusalem, it is called St. John’s, now we need to know we have received the gifts from Jesus Christ and go out from here and preach the Good News to all. Our Lord Jesus Christ is the risen Lord who will return to claim us to be His own. Amen.
Written by Pastor Curtis A. May