Luke 24:1-53
24:1 Those most faithful to Jesus continue to visit and tend His tomb.
24:2 During one of their routine visits, they notice that the tomb has been opened.
24:3 They investigated but found the tomb to be empty.
24:4 As they are trying to understand the situation, with much anxiety, they are joined by two angels. Angels, messengers of God, shine with the light of God's love, truth and wisdom.
24:5 At the appearance of the two angels, the women are astonished; their immediate reaction is to bow down to these angels who are shining with the life of God. They angels ask the women a question: Why do you search for Jesus in a cemetery where the dead are? By this, the angels mean to remind the women that Jesus is alive in God, always. Incapable of death.
This is elemental in the foundation of our faith as well: Jesus worked to teach us to elevate our faith because He wanted us to realize that our God is a living God, who created us with the intention of keeping us, eternally. When someone leaves they earth, they are not gone, but reformed with God.
24:6 The angels remind the women that Jesus Himself informed and prepared them for His rise after the crucifixion.
24:7 The angels use the specific words of Jesus to recall the memory in their minds...
24:8 Suddenly the women remember. It was a difficult concept for them to comprehend but now that they are facing the reality of it right before their eyes, they realize its truth.
24:9-11 The women return to the rest of the group to inform them of the truth just delivered to them by the angels but they are reluctant to believe them.
24:12 The message did resonate with Peter -- he reexamined the tomb and noticed that while Jesus' body was seemingly absent, the clothes He wore were still lying there. Peter has a private realization that Jesus indeed rose after "death."
24:13 Two of Jesus' followers were travelling.
24:14 Together they discussed and recounted the events of Jesus' crucifixion. This was a massive event for the world and they experienced it -- we can imagine that their emotions were so complex and prominent that they couldn't do anything but discuss it with each other.
24:15 These two were very passionate about their faith in God and love for Jesus, and for this reason, something very beautiful was about to happen to them. Jesus Himself joined them, but this time, Jesus in His eternal, spiritual form.
24:16 At the time, the two men were so consumed by emotion that they did not realize the presence of He whom they so loved. Jesus, in His spiritual form, was able to appear however He wished and at first, He wanted to present Himself to the men the exact same way He lived His life: humbly. Jesus did not appear to them with flash and brilliance (thought He could have) He appeared as a simple, modest figure -- and they did not recognize Him.
24:17 Jesus joins the two disciples and asks why they are sad. The men interpret this to mean that the person posing the question is unaware of the events which took place concerning Jesus. However, when Jesus asks why they are sad... we can understand that He means: why be sad when God's will was performed and Jesus rose in life and success with Him? Jesus questions the quality of their faith as they so quickly forgot everything they were taught.
24:18-24 The travelers recount to Jesus the events they assume He is unaware of.
24:25 Jesus wants them to be firm in their faith! If they believed Jesus while He was alive, they should remain firm in believing all of the truth that He taught -- that He would rise and return to them. We all have to follow through with our faith otherwise it is weak.
24:26 For everything Jesus did and stood for, He certainly qualified Himself for a place in God's house.
24:27 Jesus, ever the teacher, began to remind them of all the scripture that spoke concerning Jesus' life, death and Resurrection.
24:28-29 The disciples reach their destination and, kind souls that they are, invite this mystery-Person to say with them, instead of travelling alone.
24:30 Jesus sits down with them and fulfills His promise -- to sit and eat with them after the resurrection. Luke 22:15-16.
24:31 Immediately the disciples' faith returns to them and they realize that Jesus is with them, returned as promised.
24:32 The had an inkling that something was going on while they traveled, the wisdom of Jesus was with them and they felt it but had not yet put it together.
24:33-35 The disciples return to Jerusalem and use their own experience to repeat what the women had said in the beginning, Jesus had returned to them.
24:36 Jesus appears to the group as they all begin to realize the truth and wishes peace to them.
24:37 They were amazed because Jesus had appeared to them in His spiritual form -- entirely different from the forms we live in on Earth. And Jesus' form is brilliant and amazing and they are stunned.
24:38 Jesus wants to know why they are so distressed and why the doubted His truths -- it's important to Jesus that we listen to what He says, work to understand it, and they believe it with all of our hearts.
24:39-40 Jesus offers them the opportunity to study Him -- the determine for themselves that it is indeed Him, but in another form.
24:41-43 This quite a funny scene if we envision it. Jesus' new form has completely thrown this group off. First the experienced the miracle of following Him and learning from Him... they fell in love with the Word and then had to watch Jesus be killed. Their hearts were heavy and clouded with deep emotion. And then -- Jesus appears to them without any wounds, without any pain or sadness and munches on some food like nothing happened. Of course... a LOT happened, but Jesus really wanted to show them the truth: there is no sadness or fear when we return to God. Jesus was never scared of death because He knew that children of God never die. This is a lesson He still needed to explain and teach to the disciples.
He's basically saying: See! You never had to worry! Lighten up, God is alive and full of love for you.
24:44-45 Jesus connected the dots for them: He reminded them of everything He taught, that He was never in any danger but needed to fulfill God's word in order to set in motion a message for world and the first disciples. He opened their understanding to absorb the truth of His words because they were truly trying to comprehend.
24:46-48 It had to have happened the way it did happen, Jesus explains. His life was devoted to teaching God's brilliant message against evil and Jesus' life and death on earth accomplished that. They were witnesses of the events and they are important because they became the first teachers of Jesus' word... which has spread across the globe and across generation.
24:49 Jesus gives them Godspeed... their faith enables them to be strengthened and propelled by God's grace (and yours enables you to be the same). Jesus wanted them to truly solidify in their faith before they went out teaching because they needed to be firm and strong in their faith otherwise it would crumble.
24:50 He led them... He physically walked them through their first steps (as He does with you). And He remains with us as we continue to walk and work in faith but His presence transforms to something more spiritual... because an entity so beautiful must return to heaven... but guess what, He works from Home! He blesses them (and you).
24:51-52 His teaching of the disciples completed, Jesus ascend back into heaven, the Home He is made of. And after his ascension, the disciples are filled with strength of faith. They devote their entire lives to teaching and spreading His message... through their passionate acts beliefs.
