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PEACE BESTOWED
While they were still talking about this, Jesus himself stood among them and said to them, “Peace be with you” (Luke 24:36; cf. John 20:19, 21).
“Peace be with you” (Shalom) was the standard Hebrew greeting in those days. But I believe those were intended to be far more than a simple greeting. Jesus was probably saying that the peace of salvation is now available because of His crucifixion and resurrection.
· The disciples were CONFUSED.
· The disciples were AFRAID.
On the evening of that first day of the week, when the disciples were together, with the doors locked for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood among them and said, “Peace be with you!” (John 20:19).
The reality of the RESURRECTION provides peace during confusing and frightening times.
PROOFS REVEALED
People are seeing Jesus in strange places today:
· Jesus in a Cheeto
· Jesus in an ultrasound
· Jesus in a potato
· Jesus in a cheese curl
· Jesus in a tree log
· Jesus on a tree
An Orlando, Florida man says that an image of Jesus appears in the trunk of his front yard tree each evening around dusk. “In daylight, you only see the knot in the tree,” said Joe Lewis. “Once it’s dark and the street lights are on, the shadow is cast over the tree.” Now Lewis enjoys sitting outside, looking at the image. “It feels like you are hanging out with Jesus.”
Thankfully, Jesus didn’t appear to His disciples in a Cheeto. He appeared in bodily form. However, at first the disciples doubted that He had really risen from the dead. It was too amazing to be true.
They were startled and frightened, thinking they saw a ghost (Luke 24:37).
· He showed them His HANDS and FEET.
He said to them, “Why are you troubled, and why do doubts rise in your minds? Look at my hands and my feet. It is I myself! Touch me and see; a ghost does not have flesh and bones, as you see I have.” When he had said this, he showed them his hands and feet (Luke 24:38-40).
· He was able to EAT food.
And while they still did not believe it because of joy and amazement, he asked them, “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 (Luke 24:41-43).
PROPHECY FULFILLED
He said to them, “This is what I told you while I was still with you: Everything must be fulfilled that is written about me in the Law of Moses, the Prophets and the Psalms.” Then he opened their minds so they could understand the Scriptures. He told them, “This is what is written...” (Luke 24:44-46a).
· The Messiah is to SUFFER.
“The Christ will suffer” (Luke 24:46b).
· The Messiah is to RISE from the dead on the third day.
“And rise from the dead on the third day” (Luke 24:46c).
· Repentance is to be PROCLAIMED to all nations.
“And repentance and forgiveness of sins will be preached in his name to all nations, beginning at Jerusalem” (Luke 24:47).
“I will also make you a light for the Gentiles, that you may bring my salvation to the ends of the earth” (Isaiah 49:6).
The necessity of the crucifixion and resurrection is stated repeatedly in Luke’s Gospel:
· “The Son of Man must suffer many things and be rejected by the elders, chief priests and teachers of the law, and he must be killed and on the third day be raised to life” (Luke 9:22).
· “The Son of Man must be delivered into the hands of sinful man, be crucified and on the third day be raised again” (Luke 24:7).
· “Was it not necessary for the Christ to suffer these things and to enter into His glory?” (Luke 24:26 NASB).
· “Everything must be fulfilled that is written about me in the Law of Moses, the Prophets and the Psalms” (Luke 24:44).
Jesus added proclamation to the list of divine necessities. As it was absolutely necessary for Jesus to die and rise again, so it is absolutely necessary for us to spread the message of repentance and forgiveness.
POWER PROMISED
1. The message: We have a STORY to tell.
“You are witnesses of these things” (Luke 24:48).
2. The method: We must go into the world as JESUS did.
“As the Father has sent me, so I am sending you” (John 20:21 NLT).
As Jesus was sent “into the world,” so also are we sent “into the world.” Jesus prayed to the Father, “As you sent me into the world, I have sent them into the world” (John 17:18). This is the principle of incarnation, the principle of becoming one with those we would help.
“I personally believe that our failure to obey the implications of this command is the greatest weakness of evangelical Christians in the field of evangelism today. We do not identify. We believe so strongly (and rightly) in proclamation, that we tend to proclaim our message from a distance. We sometimes appear like people who shout advice to drowning men from the safety of the seashore. We do not dive in to rescue them. We are afraid of getting wet, and indeed of greater perils that this. But Jesus Christ did not broadcast salvation from the sky. He visited us in great humility....”—John Stott
The church’s mission is to carry on Jesus’ mission. “In my former book, Theophilus, I wrote about all that Jesus began to do and to teach until the day he was taken up to heaven” (Acts 1:1-2). The Book of Acts is the sequel to the Gospel of Luke. Acts tells of what Jesus continued to do through His followers.
3. The might: We can receive power from the SPIRIT.
“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” (Luke 24:49).
Jesus had gone up to Jerusalem to be crucified, but now the direction reverses and the mission goes out from Jerusalem.
“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” (Acts 1:8).
Acts 1:8 is an outline of the Book of Acts: The apostles were witnesses in Jerusalem (chaps. 1-7), Judea and Samaria (chapters 8-9), and the ends of the earth (chapters 10-28).
Jesus equipped them before He sent them out. The fulfillment of His promise is found in Acts 2. The disciples were transformed (especially Peter).
According to a legend, when Jesus returned to heaven following His death and resurrection, the angels gathered in amazement. They gazed at the wounds in His hands and feet, and shuddered to recall His suffering.
Finally Gabriel spoke: “Master, You suffered terribly down there. Do they know and appreciate the extent of Your sacrifice?”
“No,” said Jesus. “Not yet. Right now only a handful of people in Palestine know.”
“Then what have You done to let everyone else know?” asked Gabriel.
“I’ve asked Peter, James, and John, and a few others to spread the news. They will tell others who will tell others until the message spreads to the ends of the earth.”
But Gabriel, knowing the nature of human beings, asked, “What is Plan B?”
“I have no Plan B,” replied Christ. “There is no alternative strategy. I’m counting on them.”
Twenty centuries later, He still has no other plan. He’s counting on you and me. (Nelson’s Complete Book of Stories, Illustrations & Quotes, p. 787)
RESOURCES USED
Darrell L. Bock, Luke, vol. 2 (BECNT)
James Montgomery Boice, The Gospel of John, vol. 5
D. A. Carson, The Gospel according to John
Joel B. Green, The Gospel of Luke (NICNT)
Leon Morris, The Gospel according to John (NICNT)
