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This
is the final encounter the disciples had with Jesus recorded in the Gospels.
Final words are so important to us. They are words we hold onto and refer
back to. These are Jesus’ final instructions to His friends. He begins
by reminding them in verse 44 that He had taught them for almost three years
from the books of the Law, the Prophets, and the Psalms about the events surrounding
His Passion but they had not fully understood His teaching. So like the two
on the road to Emmaus (v. 27), “He opened their minds so they could
understand the Scriptures” (v. 45). What a statement of unspeakable
value this is. It expresses Christ’s immediate access to the human spirit
and absolute power over it. He has the power to adjust human understanding.
He can rectify our understanding for spiritual discernment and makes it possible
for us to interpret Scriptures. He wants us to be wiser in what is written,
and be made wise to salvation by it. So, He equips them to understand and
interpret the Scriptures so they are enabled to proclaim the gospel from a
scriptural understanding (v. 47). Consequently on the day of Pentecost (Acts
2:14ff), in explaining the phenomenon of the coming of the Holy Spirit, Peter
proclaimed, “This is what was spoken by the prophet Joel.” His
sermon had a scriptural basis through correct discernment and interpretation.
Through
His instruction, Jesus enabled the disciples to understand that the Cross
was not some unfortunate accident; it was the key element of God’s redemptive
plan for humanity. It always was in the heart of God, as clearly revealed
in the Scriptures. It was in the name of a crucified and risen Saviour that
they were to teach repentance and remission of sins (v. 47). This message
of repentance and forgiveness of sins would go global, and the starting point
would be Jerusalem. Jesus tells them they were witnesses of these things (v.
48); not only of the events surrounding His Passion, but also of His commission
to spread the gospel. This was a work for which they would all be mutually
responsible.
Luke
only records two post-Resurrection encounters. One of these was an encounter
with the disciples on the road to Emmaus (Luke 24:13-35), and the other is
found in Luke 24:36ff. We know from 1 Corinthians 15:3-8 that at least 514
men, not counting the women such as Mary Magdalene and the other Mary, saw
the risen Lord. Why then did Luke pick this Resurrection encounter to record
as one of the two key Resurrection encounters of his Gospel? To answer that,
we need to understand why Luke wrote his Gospel.
Luke
wrote a two-volume discourse (Luke-Acts) on the Christian faith. His first
aim was to give a reliable explanation as to the origins of Christianity.
He tells the story of Jesus and validates the story’s continuation in
the life of the church.
Second,
he wrote to show the relationship of Christianity to Judaism. He reveals how
Jesus was the fulfillment of the messianic prophecies of the Old Testament
Scriptures.
Third,
the Gospel—and its sequel, Acts—were written to show how Christianity
moved from Judaism to embrace the Gentiles. The post-Resurrection recorded
in verses 36-53 meets all three of these objectives.
First
we read of the Resurrected Jesus saying to His petrified disciples, “‘Look
at my hands and feet. It is I myself! Touch me and see; a ghost does not have
flesh and bones, as you see I have . . . Do you have anything here to eat?’
They gave him a piece of broiled fish, and he took it and ate it in their
presence” (vv. 39, 41 and 42). This is a strong affirmation that Jesus
actually bodily rose from the dead.
Second,
Luke provides us with evidence of the relationship of Jesus with the Old Testament
Scriptures of Judaism. “Then he opened their minds so they could understand
the Scriptures” (v. 45). He told them, “This is what is written:
The Christ will suffer and rise from the dead on the third day” (vv.
46, 47). Jesus was the fulfillment of what God promised centuries before,
in the Old Testament.
Third,
we see how Christianity moved out from Judaism to the Gentiles, “Repentance
and forgiveness of sins will be preached in his name to all nations, beginning
at Jerusalem” (v. 47). “You are witnesses of these things. 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.”
The
important points of this encounter are:
1.
Jesus told the disciples they would be called to preach.
2.
The nature of the gospel is a call to repentance, “turning one’s
life around.”
3.
The hope of the gospel is a message of forgiveness of sins.
4.
The authority of the gospel resides in Jesus’ name.
5.
The message of the gospel is for all nations.
(For
the full manuscript of this sermon go to www.preachersmagazine.org and click
on “Sermons”)
According
to the calendar, Thursday was the celebration of Ascension Day. It is the
day the church sets aside to commemorate that great event of the Risen Lord
Jesus Christ returning to heaven.
Luke
tells us the disciples returned to Jerusalem with great joy (v. 52). Why?
Their leader was gone. You would expect them to return to Jerusalem with great
fear. After all, nothing had changed. The Romans who put Jesus to death were
still in the country. Could it be that on the Mount of Olives they had experienced
something that had transformed them?
Let’s
stand with them. As I stand there with them, I am full of questions. The first
question that comes to my mind is, “Where do we go from here?”
Jesus answered that question in verses 46-48. He told them to go into the
whole world.
The
important verbs in these two verses are ‘suffer,’ ‘arise,’
and ‘be proclaimed.’ Jesus had accomplished the first two and
now He was turning the work over to them. “Go and tell the whole world
that I suffered, died, and rose again and that repentance and remission of
sins should be proclaimed.” The verb ‘to proclaim’ can also
be translated ‘to herald.’ Today individuals are driven by this
Great Purpose. It is the same purpose that took those first apostles back
to Jerusalem with great joy. It is the desire of Jesus that repentance and
remission of sins should be proclaimed. The world still needs to hear that
message. Where do we go from here? We go into the entire world.
Remember,
I’m standing with the disciples. The next question that comes to my
mind on hearing the answer to the first question is, “How can you be
serious, Jesus?” I mean, these men have proved themselves weak in the
past. As we stand with those apostles, in their weakness and failure, no matter
how ineffective, how unprepared, or how hopeless we might feel, Jesus still
wants us to do it. Now as we stand there, a momentous turning point occurs.
Jesus
did not expect them to do this work on their own. He would fulfill the promise
of His Father when He returned to heaven. He would send them the Holy Spirit,
the One who would be in them, the One who would work with them and through
them. As I stand there with the apostles, I discover a great truth: this is
His work. Jesus started it and He will complete it. But He wants me to help
Him. I look at myself and my first reaction is, “I cannot do this.”
But He gives me the promise of the Helper.
A
few verses in 2 Timothy 4 seem to speak to me on a regular basis. Paul is
in prison and he is writing to Timothy and telling his young student about
his ordeals. In verse 16 he writes, “At my first defense, no one came
to my support, but everyone deserted me. May it not be held against them.”
Have you ever felt let down by people, especially people you trusted? I’m
glad his report does not end there. Triumphantly he recalls,
“But the Lord stood at my side and gave me strength, so that through
me the message might be fully proclaimed and all the Gentiles might hear it.
And I was delivered from the lion’s mouth. The Lord will rescue me from
every evil attack and will bring me safely to his heavenly kingdom. To him
be glory for ever and ever. Amen.”
What
a Savior, who never leaves us on our own.
I
am one of those people who like asking questions. Where do we go from here?
You go into the entire world and proclaim repentance and the remission of
sins. Jesus gave them a Great Purpose. How can You be serious? I will make
sure that you are never alone. Jesus gave them a Great Promise. How will that
work, Jesus? You know that when You were with the disciples they rarely got
it right. You know how timid and fearful they were. So, how will it work if
they have the Holy Spirit?
The
Holy Spirit of promise would fill them with a great power, which would make
them adequate to perform their work in Jerusalem and enable them to expand
their ministry to the uttermost parts of the world. As I stand with them I
hear myself saying, “Yes. That’s exactly what I need.” No
wonder they returned to Jerusalem with great joy. On the Mount of Olives Jesus
had given them a purpose for their lives. He had given them the promise that
they would never be on their own and the prospect of a power to complete their
purpose. We know the outcome of the disciples’ ministry. We know the
wonderful story Jesus wrote through them. I wonder what kind of story He is
writing through our lives? When the stories are read in heaven, how will ours
read?
You
know I like questions. Please allow me ask you a few this morning.
Does
your life have a Great Purpose? There is more to it than making money and
making life comfortable. Jesus needs us to complete His mission for our generation.
He wants us to be fulfilled in our lives. He desires that our lives would
be given to His Great Purpose.
Do
you feel alone and abandoned? Are you facing something and you sense that
you are by yourself? Why not talk to Jesus and ask Him to renew His Great
Promise to you personally?
Do you lack the power to fulfill His purpose in your own world? That power is freely available to all of us. Why not ask Him to fill you anew with His Great Power? That day the disciples left their final meeting with Jesus with great joy. How will you leave your meeting with Jesus today?