“W H Y D O YO U S E E K T H E L I V I N G O N E A M O N G T H E D E A D ?”
LUKE 24:1-53
24:1 But on the first day of the week, at early dawn, they came to the tomb bringing the spices which they
had prepared. 2 And they found the stone rolled away from the tomb, 3 but when they entered, they did not
find the body of the Lord Jesus. 4 While they were perplexed about this, behold, two men suddenly stood near
them in dazzling clothing; 5 and as the women were terrified and bowed their faces to the ground, the men said
to them, “Why do you seek the living One among the dead? 6 “He is not here, but He has risen. Remember
how He spoke to you while He was still in Galilee, 7 saying that the Son of Man must be delivered into the
hands of sinful men, and be crucified, and the third day rise again.” 8 And they remembered His words, 9 and
returned from the tomb and reported all these things to the eleven and to all the rest. 10 Now they were Mary
Magdalene and Joanna and Mary the mother of James; also the other women with them were telling these
things to the apostles. 11 But these words appeared to them as nonsense, and they would not believe them.
12 But Peter got up and ran to the tomb; stooping and looking in, he *saw the linen wrappings only; and he
went away to his home, marveling at what had happened.
13 And behold, two of them were going that very day to a village named Emmaus, which was *about
seven miles from Jerusalem. 14 And they were talking with each other about all these things which had taken
place. 15 While they were talking and discussing, Jesus Himself approached and began traveling with them.
16 But their eyes were prevented from recognizing Him. 17 And He said to them, “What are these words that
you are exchanging with one another as you are walking?” And they stood still, looking sad. 18 One of them,
named Cleopas, answered and said to Him, “Are You the only one visiting Jerusalem and unaware of the things
which have happened here in these days?” 19 And He said to them, “What things?” And they said to Him,
“The things about Jesus the Nazarene, who was a prophet mighty in deed and word in the sight of God and all
the people, 20 and how the chief priests and our rulers delivered Him to the sentence of death, and crucified
Him. 21 “But we were hoping that it was He who was going to redeem Israel. Indeed, besides all this, it is the
third day since these things happened. 22 “But also some women among us amazed us. When they were at the
tomb early in the morning, 23 and did not find His body, they came, saying that they had also seen a vision of
angels who said that He was alive. 24 “Some of those who were with us went to the tomb and found it just
exactly as the women also had said; but Him they did not see.” 25 And He said to them, “O foolish men and
slow of heart to believe in all that the prophets have spoken!
26 “Was it not necessary for the Christ to suffer these things and to enter into His glory?” 27 Then
beginning with Moses and with all the prophets, He explained to them the things concerning Himself in all the
Scriptures.
28 And they approached the village where they were going, and He acted as though He were going
farther. 29 But they urged Him, saying, “Stay with us, for it is getting toward evening, and the day is now nearly
over.” So He went in to stay with them. 30 When He had reclined at the table with them, He took the bread
and blessed it, and breaking it, He began giving it to them. 31 Then their eyes were opened and they recognized
Him; and He vanished from their sight. 32 They said to one another, “Were not our hearts burning within us
while He was speaking to us on the road, while He was explaining the Scriptures to us?” 33 And they got up
that very hour and returned to Jerusalem, and found gathered together the eleven and those who were with
them, 34 saying, “The Lord has really risen and has appeared to Simon.” 35 They began to relate their
experiences on the road and how He was recognized by them in the breaking of the bread.
36 While they were telling these things, He Himself stood in their midst and *said to them, “Peace be to
you.” 37 But they were startled and frightened and thought that they were seeing a spirit. 38 And He said to
them, “Why are you troubled, and why do doubts arise in your hearts? 39 “See 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.” 40 And when He
had said this, He showed them His hands and His feet. 41 While they still could not believe it because of their
joy and amazement, He said to them, “Have you anything here to eat?” 42 They gave Him a piece of a broiled
fish; 43 and He took it and ate it before them.
44 Now He said to them, “These are My words which I spoke to you while I was still with you, that all
things which are written about Me in the Law of Moses and the Prophets and the Psalms must be fulfilled.”
45 Then He opened their minds to understand the Scriptures, 46 and He said to them, “Thus it is written, that
the Christ would suffer and rise again from the dead the third day, 47 and that repentance for forgiveness of
sins would be proclaimed in His name to all the nations, beginning from Jerusalem. 48 “You are witnesses of
these things. 49 “And behold, I am sending forth the promise of My Father upon you; but you are to stay in the
city until you are clothed with power from on high.”
50 And He led them out as far as Bethany, and He lifted up His hands and blessed them. 51 While He was
blessing them, He parted from them and was carried up into heaven. 52 And they, after worshiping Him,
returned to Jerusalem with great joy, 53 and were continually in the temple praising God.
LUKE 24:1-12
24:1 But on the first day of the week, at early dawn, they came to the tomb bringing the spices which they
had prepared. 2 And they found the stone rolled away from the tomb, 3 but when they entered, they did not
find the body of the Lord Jesus. 4 While they were perplexed about this, behold, two men suddenly stood near
them in dazzling clothing; 5 and as the women were terrified and bowed their faces to the ground, the men said
to them, “Why do you seek the living One among the dead? 6 “He is not here, but He has risen. Remember
how He spoke to you while He was still in Galilee, 7 saying that the Son of Man must be delivered into the
hands of sinful men, and be crucified, and the third day rise again.” 8 And they remembered His words, 9 and
returned from the tomb and reported all these things to the eleven and to all the rest. 10 Now they were Mary
Magdalene and Joanna and Mary the mother of James; also the other women with them were telling these
things to the apostles. 11 But these words appeared to them as nonsense, and they would not believe them.
12 But Peter got up and ran to the tomb; stooping and looking in, he *saw the linen wrappings only; and he
went away to his home, marveling at what had happened.
They came to the tomb bringing the spices which they had prepared
In this beautiful reading our renaissance man, Luke, seems to contrast the despair of life without Christ
and the joy of life with Christ. He also contrasts a life based in ideology and idealism and a life based in
unconditional love.
Beginning with the women followers, love compels them to go to Jesus beyond even hope or faith. Their
confidence in Christ (idealism) — their image of a Messiah was dashed — as were their beliefs (ideology). This
left the men immobilized in the upper room, but the women had a great card to play — unconditional love.
Jesus had loved them in life when the world had rejected them and they wanted to love him in death in a similar
unconditional manner.
The power of love remains the greatest motivating power in the universe. When fear has locked us in
hopelessness and even our faith is destroyed. Foster love and it will lead to hope and faith.
Their image of the Messiah was a conquering king who would ride into Jerusalem on a warhorse instead of
a humble donkey. The last few days of Christ’s life must have been terribly confusing for all of his followers,
Jesus kept contradicting their image of a messiah.
Does Jesus contradict our image of a Messiah? Do we see him as a way to be conquering heroes instead
of humble servants? When life hands us contradictions to our faith are we shattered like the male apostles or
move beyond faith and hope to love like these women?
In our ministry, let us also make sure our love is the lead agent of faith and hope. Let’s help people fall in
love with Jesus by continually and unconditionally showing his loving side to others. Love them beyond
ideology (faith) and beyond idealism (hope). When they let you down, forgive them and love them still.
When we just rely on faith or hope, we are easily dashed by the hiccoughs in life, the ups and downs
everyone experiences — whether a follower of Christ or not. Faith can easily become ideology and hope can
easily become idealism. However, unconditional love is limitless…
Unconditional love continually seeks three outcomes (we teach this to children in our classes).
1.
What is best for your dignity?
2.
What is best for my dignity?
3.
What is best for the dignity of all involved?
Or, as we say to the kids, “For you, for me, for everyone I see…”
“Why do you seek the living One among the dead?”
How often do we seek the “Living One” among the dead?

Living One [G2198 Zaō] to live, a way of living — a path to life

Dead [G3498 Nekros] corpse, dead being
A couple things we should notice about angels.
1.
They terrify people
2.
They don’t understand our doubt
There is some reference to cherub(s) and/or cherubic angels in the Torah and one reference in Hebrews
— but largely our image of Cherubic angels comes from Greek mythology (assistants to Bacchus — the god
of drunkenness and debauchery often referred in Baroque Art to as putti [pl] putto [sing.] or amorino [sing]
and amorini [pl] and the paintings of Donatello and Raphael’s, La Madonna de San Sisto.
Ezekiel’s description of the Cherubim is particularly frightening.
EZEKIEL 1:5-14
5 Within it there were figures resembling four living beings. And this was their appearance: they had
human form. 6 Each of them had four faces and four wings. 7 Their legs were straight and their feet were
like a calf's hoof, and they gleamed like burnished bronze. 8 Under their wings on their four sides were
human hands. As for the faces and wings of the four of them, 9 their wings touched one another; their faces
did not turn when they moved, each went straight forward. 10 As for the form of their faces, each had the
face of a man; all four had the face of a lion on the right and the face of a bull on the left, and all four had
the face of an eagle. 11 Such were their faces. Their wings were spread out above; each had two touching
another being, and two covering their bodies. 12 And each went straight forward; wherever the spirit was
about to go, they would go, without turning as they went. 13 In the midst of the living beings there was
something that looked like burning coals of fire, like torches darting back and forth among the living
beings. The fire was bright, and lightning was flashing from the fire. 14 And the living beings ran to and
fro like bolts of lightning.
Catholic theology speaks of Cherubim and Seraphim as two different types of angels. The Cherubim
follow the Seraphim in rank. They are sometimes mistaken for the aforementioned Putti. The writer of
Hebrews speaks of the Cherubim and how their glory overshadows the mercy seat within the tabernacle’s Holy
of Holies.
HEBREWS 9:1-5
9:1 Now even the first covenant had regulations of divine worship and the earthly sanctuary. 2 For there
was a tabernacle prepared, the outer one, in which were the lampstand and the table and the sacred bread;
this is called the holy place. 3 Behind the second veil there was a tabernacle which is called the Holy of
Holies, 4 having a golden altar of incense and the ark of the covenant covered on all sides with gold, in
which was a golden jar holding the manna, and Aaron's rod which budded, and the tables of the covenant;
5 and above it were the cherubim of glory overshadowing the mercy seat; but of these things we cannot
now speak in detail.
To think of angels as nude male babies (and sometimes in diapers) with wings is a terrible disservice. They
are powerful beings sent to live out commands received directly from the Lord. Because they have seen what
we only hope some day to see, they don’t understand our doubt and capitulation. They almost chastise these
women for their lack of faith, “Didn’t you hear our Lord tell you he would rise? What is wrong with you? Don’t
you believe the Prince Almighty?”
What is the Way of the Dead [Nekros] instead of the Way of Living One [Zaō]?
1.
M. Scott Peck calls us a culture of Necrophilia’s because we use those who people to get things
[People of the Lie; The hope for healing human evil, M. Scott Peck, Touchstone © 1983]. Peck
tells us that people who are evil “live” backwards; using the living to get what is dead instead of
using what is dead to free and empower the living.
2.
When we evaluate ourselves or other people by what they have or do instead of who they are in
the dignity of Christ, we too, choose the way of the dead instead of the way of life.
Christ, in particular, elevated those who had little or were unable to participate fully in the economy. The
widowed, the orphaned, the diseased and the crippled were his constant companions and he built bridges
between these people and the well-to-do (like Zacchaeus, Nicodemus and Joseph of Arimathea). Some of these
wealthy people include the women who came to minister to his body after death.
LUKE 8:1-3
8:1 Soon afterwards, He began going around from one city and village to another, proclaiming and
preaching the kingdom of God. The twelve were with Him, 2 and also some women who had been healed
of evil spirits and sicknesses: Mary who was called Magdalene, from whom seven demons had gone out,
3 and Joanna the wife of Chuza, Herod’s steward, and Susanna, and many others who were contributing to
their support out of their private means.
We are called to be bridge-builders, not just between those who have and those who do not, but also
between those who are in the way of death and those who are in the way of the Living One.
In what ways do I need to be wary of using people to get things or being prejudiced against those who
have little or are economically “outside the social safety net?”
When I look at the people I lead do I see a balance of those who are economically blessed in equal
relationship with those who are in need? Do I help people see how they each can be a blessing to each other?
Would the angels chastise me for “seeking the way of the Living One among the dead?”
But these words appeared to them as nonsense
This again is not a very good comment on the male disciples and the women followers; it is almost as
though this is a contrast Luke is trying to highlight multiple times in his Gospel. Perhaps it is the Greek in him
living within a chauvinistic culture and detesting any cultural tendency to abuse and demean women.
Contemporary research indicates the best way to raise the economic value of any global region is to fund
education and small businesses development (microlending), particularly among women (see
grameenfoundation.org).
In the first place, these men remain hiding in despair and fear while the women went forth out of love to
minister to the shattered body of Jesus. In their defense, they would be wanted men, high on the Religious
Leaders hit list, while the women less so [see Matthew 27:62-66 and John 20:19].
So Peter — ever impulsive — in a burst of hope, tinted perhaps with guilt, runs to the burial site to
confirm or deny the women’s report. In John’s Gospel, John goes too and beats Peter to the tomb — ever the
competition between the two. John calls himself “the other disciple.”
JOHN 20:3-10
3 So Peter and the other disciple went forth, and they were going to the tomb. 4 The two were
running together; and the other disciple ran ahead faster than Peter and came to the tomb first; 5 and
stooping and looking in, he *saw the linen wrappings lying there; but he did not go in. 6 And so Simon
Peter also *came, following him, and entered the tomb; and he *saw the linen wrappings lying there, 7 and
the face-cloth which had been on His head, not lying with the linen wrappings, but rolled up in a place by
itself. 8 So the other disciple who had first come to the tomb then also entered, and he saw and believed.
9 For as yet they did not understand the Scripture, that He must rise again from the dead. 10 So the
disciples went away again to their own homes.
It is refreshing and interesting to note the disciples had these personality issues and mini-competitions
going on amongst them, a reason for hope within us. The beautiful thing is that the Gospels do not try to hide
their foibles as much literature does when writing about hero-worship leadership.
What we find revealed to us is these men, who closely followed Jesus, with all their weaknesses. In fact, in
relating his stories to Mark, Peter seems to almost make a point of showing his faults as if to say, “I had so
many issues before Jesus came into my life. It is Jesus-through-me that made me who I am. Focus the story on
Jesus and not on me.”
What we see coming through Luke’s writings in the last few chapters are that the keys to true leadership in
the Way of the Living One are threefold.
1.
Humility
2.
Service
3.
Advocating for the unheard
Who remains traditionally unheard in my culture and how do I spend time especially listening to them? Do
I seek to illuminate the voice of the unheard or exacerbate their silence? Do I try to sugarcoat my weaknesses
or reveal the glory of the Living One through them?
H E WA S R E C O G N I Z E D B Y T H E M I N T H E B R E A K I N G O F T H E B R E A D
LUKE 24:13-35
13 And behold, two of them were going that very day to a village named Emmaus, which was *about
seven miles from Jerusalem. 14 And they were talking with each other about all these things which had taken
place. 15 While they were talking and discussing, Jesus Himself approached and began traveling with them.
16 But their eyes were prevented from recognizing Him. 17 And He said to them, “What are these words that
you are exchanging with one another as you are walking?” And they stood still, looking sad. 18 One of them,
named Cleopas, answered and said to Him, “Are You the only one visiting Jerusalem and unaware of the things
which have happened here in these days?” 19 And He said to them, “What things?” And they said to Him,
“The things about Jesus the Nazarene, who was a prophet mighty in deed and word in the sight of God and all
the people, 20 and how the chief priests and our rulers delivered Him to the sentence of death, and crucified
Him. 21 “But we were hoping that it was He who was going to redeem Israel. Indeed, besides all this, it is the
third day since these things happened. 22 “But also some women among us amazed us. When they were at the
tomb early in the morning, 23 and did not find His body, they came, saying that they had also seen a vision of
angels who said that He was alive. 24 “Some of those who were with us went to the tomb and found it just
exactly as the women also had said; but Him they did not see.” 25 And He said to them, “O foolish men and
slow of heart to believe in all that the prophets have spoken!
26 “Was it not necessary for the Christ to suffer these things and to enter into His glory?” 27 Then
beginning with Moses and with all the prophets, He explained to them the things concerning Himself in all the
Scriptures.
28 And they approached the village where they were going, and He acted as though He were going
farther. 29 But they urged Him, saying, “Stay with us, for it is getting toward evening, and the day is now nearly
over.” So He went in to stay with them. 30 When He had reclined at the table with them, He took the bread
and blessed it, and breaking it, He began giving it to them. 31 Then their eyes were opened and they recognized
Him; and He vanished from their sight. 32 They said to one another, “Were not our hearts burning within us
while He was speaking to us on the road, while He was explaining the Scriptures to us?” 33 And they got up
that very hour and returned to Jerusalem, and found gathered together the eleven and those who were with
them, 34 saying, “The Lord has really risen and has appeared to Simon.” 35 They began to relate their
experiences on the road and how He was recognized by them in the breaking of the bread.
“Are You the only one visiting Jerusalem and unaware of the things which have happened here in these days?”
This is perhaps the greatest example of leadership and teaching in written history. These disciples, like the
apostles in the Upper Room, had been crushed by Jesus’ crucifixion. Once again we see the difference between
beliefs built on ideology (faith) and idealism (hope) versus a belief built on relationship (love). What Jesus
simply does is restore with these two disciples a relationship built on love.
He begins by walking with them and opening himself up to their needs. Just as in the “call” to Andrew and
John the Beloved in the Gospel of John, Jesus begins with listening instead of telling. He even lets himself
look silly so he can better understand these followers’ needs as they tarry the 35 to 60 stadia — between four
and nine miles or six and twelve kilometers — from Jerusalem to Emmaus (the distance is hard to pinpoint as
there are four likely candidates that could be the biblical site of Emmaus).
JOHN 1:35-42
35 Again the next day John was standing with two of his disciples, 36 and he looked at Jesus as He
walked, and *said, “Behold, the Lamb of God!” 37 The two disciples heard him speak, and they followed
Jesus. 38 And Jesus turned and saw them following, and *said to them, “What do you seek?” They said to
Him, “Rabbi (which translated means Teacher), where are You staying?” 39 He *said to them, “Come, and
you will see.” So they came and saw where He was staying; and they stayed with Him that day, for it was
about the *tenth hour. 40 One of the two who heard John speak and followed Him, was Andrew, Simon
Peter's brother. 41 He *found first his own brother Simon and *said to him, “We have found the Messiah”
(which translated means Christ). 42 He brought him to Jesus. Jesus looked at him and said, “You are
Simon the son of John; you shall be called Cephas”(which is translated Peter).
No great leader begins with talking; they all begin with sincere listening. They want to find out, “What do
you seek?”
Look at the three steps of leadership Jesus takes.
1.
Relationship — In both John and this excerpt, Jesus seeks first to build relationship with his
followers/students/disciples. He wants a reciprocal relationship built on love, not knowledge.
The knowledge will be sustained by the love.
2.
Relevance — secondly, the teaching flows from the identification of the Follower’s/Student’s
need. It is not what they don’t know (head knowledge) that Jesus speaks to, he speaks to the
desperation of their hearts. To the Greek mind, knowledge was a “retained in the brain,” to the
Hebrew, knowledge was “intimacy,” a closeness of the heart as when “Adam knew Eve [Genesis
4:1, KJV].” Had relations [H3045 Yada] to know, to acknowledge, to become aware, to cohabit,
to instruct, understand, know very well, to perceive, to learn, to experience, to have relations
with…
3.
Rigor — the call of Jesus comes from the relevance of the relationship with Jesus. In John, the
apostle’s simply wanted to go anywhere Jesus was going and he invited them into a completely
transparent relationship. “Rabbi, where are you staying?” “Come and you will see.” Then Jesus
takes them to some of the hardest places in the region to love the least accepted and most
rejected (for example Samaria and the Geresenes, modern-day Palestine and Syria). Where would
Jesus take us in our towns and cities? Do we have the guts to go there and just be available to (or
share a meal with) those in need?
Too often leaders and teachers will attempt to begin with rigor instead of relevance and relationship. Then
they have nothing to sustain the rigor of the vision or the curricula and the whole relationship falls apart. As
you can see in this story, it doesn’t matter what the teacher knows. Obviously Jesus knew every detail of what
had happened over the last three days. Yet, he still doesn’t jump into teaching. He continues to ask probing
questions, even allowing the disciples to somewhat ridicule him for his lack of knowledge. “Are You the only
one visiting Jerusalem and unaware of the things which have happened here in these days?”
In our culture, true listening is at a premium. Many people ask questions only so they can talk more about
themselves. It is manipulative. Jesus asks questions to find out about his follower’s needs and then builds the
curriculum from there.
What these followers/students first recognize about Jesus is not his incredible knowledge but his inspiring
sincerity. They are taken in by his invitational compassion, not his encyclopedic memory.
Do I begin leadership and teaching by tying rigor (a challenge) into relevance based upon sincere
relationship? What does that look like in the situations where I am called to lead or teach (as a partner, parent,
teacher or leader)?
Do people seek me out because they know I will sincerely listen to them building a curriculum or shared
vision based upon the deepest needs we’ve reciprocally identified?
“Stay with us, for it is getting toward evening, and the day is now nearly over.”
Here is another sign of the consummate leader and teacher, Jesus’ followers and disciples want him to stay
and continue teaching. In current vernacular, it is like the bell has rung, it’s past quitting time and these students
and followers are insisting, “If you stay, we’ll buy dinner — we’ll order pizza. Just keep teaching.”
To me, the greatest honor of being a teacher or leader is when students — who are graduating — ask if
they can still attend our classes or ask, “Do I have to go to lunch/recess? Can’t I just stay here and keep doing
this project?”
Rarely are these questions the result of, “What I am teaching,” it is the based upon the relevance of what
the students are learning and the relationships they are building in the particular learning environment.
In John, the students/followers say, “Rabbi (which translated means Teacher), where are You staying?”
Here in Luke’s Gospel (and Luke is the only one who gives us details on this story), the disciples/students say,
“Stay with us, for it is getting toward evening, and the day is now nearly over.”
Do my students/followers want to stay beyond their time and ask to share in my time? Am I the kind of
transparent leader that helps my students/followers feel comfortable enough to even ask that question? Do
they have a sense about me that I would want to linger with them to teach more than the course demands or
the work assigned? Are they seeking from me the “Way of the Living One,” or just the way to make a living?
He was recognized by them in the breaking of the bread
Is it any wonder that the Lord — accused by the Religious Leaders of “eating with sinners,” — would be
recognized in the breaking of the bread [Luke 5:30, Luke 15:2]? It was enough for Jesus to eat with them, he
did not have to convert or change them. There is an implicit violence in meeting with an individual — or even
a group/community/workplace — with the hidden or blatant intention of “Changing or converting them” —
before I even know them. What better way to learn about people than to have a relaxed meal together sans
agenda?
I remember sitting on an airplane listening to two women talk about a young man who was apparently
going through a problematic period of his life. Over and over the women said, “I am going to talk to him,” and,
“I am going to tell him what-for.”
Once in a juvenile outreach we were teaching the students how to really help others disclose their feelings
and affirm the discloser. One of my questions was, “Has anyone ever really listened to you like that?”
A student in the class told his mentor, the last time he had been listened to like that, was when he was
arrested and two detectives were trying to convict him of a crime. There is something seriously wrong with a
society that only listens to people to convict them or convert them. It was enough for Jesus to love them.
Great leaders and teachers enter into a relationship like Jesus — without an agenda, simply to love others
and empower their lives.
The Eucharist or The Lord’s Supper is all about how Jesus broke the bread and “gave thanks” that he
could be broken for his people. [Matthew 26:26, Mark, 14:12, 14:22, Luke 22:19, Luke 24:30, See also Mark 8:6,
John 6:23, 6:48, 6:51 and Acts 27:35].
Do my students/followers recognize me by my gratitude to sacrificially “break myself ” for them? Jesus
wasn’t trying to set up an elaborate ritual, just a simple reminder of his gratitude for being our sacrifice. Like in
life, he knew everyone had to eat and he wanted to be remembered at the table of his loved ones. Why do we
need to make such a simple remembrance so complicated? Even to the point that churches (his body) are
divided by this one simple request.
LUKE 22:19
And when He had taken some bread and given thanks, He broke it and gave it to them, saying, “This is
My body which is given for you; do this in remembrance of Me.”
What simple rituals and habits do I create with others so that they will remember our gratitude together?
LUKE 24:36-53
36 While they were telling these things, He Himself stood in their midst and *said to them, “Peace be to
you.” 37 But they were startled and frightened and thought that they were seeing a spirit. 38 And He said to
them, “Why are you troubled, and why do doubts arise in your hearts? 39 “See 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.” 40 And when He
had said this, He showed them His hands and His feet. 41 While they still could not believe it because of their
joy and amazement, He said to them, “Have you anything here to eat?” 42 They gave Him a piece of a broiled
fish; 43 and He took it and ate it before them.
44 Now He said to them, “These are My words which I spoke to you while I was still with you, that all
things which are written about Me in the Law of Moses and the Prophets and the Psalms must be fulfilled.”
45 Then He opened their minds to understand the Scriptures, 46 and He said to them, “Thus it is written, that
the Christ would suffer and rise again from the dead the third day, 47 and that repentance for forgiveness of
sins would be proclaimed in His name to all the nations, beginning from Jerusalem. 48 “You are witnesses of
these things. 49 “And behold, I am sending forth the promise of My Father upon you; but you are to stay in the
city until you are clothed with power from on high.”
50 And He led them out as far as Bethany, and He lifted up His hands and blessed them. 51 While He was
blessing them, He parted from them and was carried up into heaven. 52 And they, after worshiping Him,
returned to Jerusalem with great joy, 53 and were continually in the temple praising God.
“Peace be to you.”
This blessing of peace comes from two ancient sources and we should not assumed that Jesus was wishing
the apostles a peaceful day — such as we would contemporarily identify it.
The first blessing is from Judges 6.
JUDGES 6:11-14
11 Then the angel of the LORD came and sat under the oak that was in Ophrah, which belonged to
Joash the Abiezrite as his son Gideon was beating out wheat in the wine press in order to save it from the
Midianites. 12 The angel of the LORD appeared to him and said to him, “The LORD is with you, O
valiant warrior.” 13 Then Gideon said to him, “O my lord, if the LORD is with us, why then has all this
happened to us? And where are all His miracles which our fathers told us about, saying, ‘Did not the
LORD bring us up from Egypt?’ But now the LORD has abandoned us and given us into the hand of
Midian.” 14 The LORD looked at him and said, “Go in this your strength and deliver Israel from the hand
of Midian. Have I not sent you?”
The second is from 1 Chronicles 28.
1 CHRONICLES 28:20
Then David said to his son Solomon, “Be strong and courageous, and act; do not fear nor be
dismayed, for the LORD God, my God, is with you. He will not fail you nor forsake you until all the work
for the service of the house of the LORD is finished.
In the first blessing, the angel is almost mimicking Gideon, he is supposed to be a great warrior, however
look where he is threshing wheat. He is hiding in a valley by the wine press. Anyone who has ever threshed
wheat knows you do it on the crest of the hill so the wind can blow away the chaff and your family doesn’t
have to eat husks and dirt.
So, the blessing is really a challenge to rise up from the hidden places and assume his role as a leader. “Go
in this your strength and deliver Israel from the hand of Midian. Have I not sent you?”
The second reading is David’s last blessing of his son, Solomon. In it, he challenges Solomon to take up
the mantel of leadership and rely on God’s strength to sustain him. Once again, the blessing is really a
commission to take up his leadership responsibility and rely on the Lord for strength.
The peace blessing of Jesus to the Apostles was also a challenge to pick up the mantel of leadership. They
were not supposed to be shivering in the upper room behind locked doors. That is no place for the leadership
of a church. The peace of Christ gives is not similar to the peace of this world.
JOHN 14:27
“Peace I leave with you; My peace I give to you; not as the world gives do I give to you. Do not let
your heart be troubled, nor let it be fearful.”
How does Christ’s peace differ from this world’s peace?
1.
It is not Pax Romana (the peace of Rome). If you have the biggest or best-equipped army, you
control the peace. Pax Christus is found in humility and service not coercion and
authoritarianism. Go to the most problematic places and you will find true leaders building
bridges to the future there.
2.
It is not peace by fleeing chaos. Christ challenges us to go into the chaos and bring his peace there.
3.
It is not a comfortable peace where we can lounge undisturbed by a pool. It is a challenging
peace called to find its root in bringing hope to the least accepted and most rejected. The fruition
of this peace is found when people are liberated from systemic or interpersonal manipulation.
Have I accepted the challenge of Jesus’ peace that comes with a commission or am I still seeking the
world’s peace with comfort and sequestration? What peace do I pass on to my people? Do I prepare them for
the commission of Christ or the comfort of this world?
“See My hands and My feet”
Jesus’ body was wounded all over; his face and head were pummeled. His back stripped to the bone by a
cat of nine tails. Yet he only retains the wounds that would affirm the disciples’ faith. All of us are emotionally
or physically wounded in life. Are we able to keep our wounds in perspective and put aside what does not point
to the joy of eternity? Or are we the type of person who carries our life’s wounds forever and unpacks them on
every person we see?
Jesus didn’t reveal his wounds for sympathy but to encourage the Apostles to move beyond their own selfpity. People — adults and children alike — do what gets attention. Martyrs get attention by endlessly sharing
the details behind every scar, emotional and physical, they have received in life. Obviously this was not what
Jesus was doing.
He retained only the wounds that would prove he was the Messiah returned from the dead and rid himself
of the wounds that would simply draw attention to himself and lead others to feel sorry for him. What wounds
do I carry around with me? Do I retain every hurt I’ve ever received and recant the tales of each wound to
draw attention to myself or am I able to realize that everyone has pain in their life and only share the
experiences I’ve had that will point others towards their freedom?
Do I empathize with others or try to monopolize the pain-meter? Can I honestly say I listen to others
when they talk about their hurts with an ear for understanding and healing or am I waiting for the opportunity
to jump in and top-their-story? “Oh that’s nothing, you should hear about what happened to me…”
I had a series of heart attacks in March, 2013 and began not sharing them with people because of how
many people responded in two ways.
1.
They would tell me about relatives they had that had a heart attack and died
2.
They would try and advise me about how I should start acting to regain my health
Of course, both of these responses were opportunities to respond in grace. But I found most people were
not really listening to hear my story rather than seeking the opportunity to relay their own experience. Because
we are so rarely listened to, we carry substantial wounds within us that we unload on every person we meet.
It is one of the greatest gifts we can offer others — to simply listen empathically without trying to topthat-story or give unrequested advice. Helping people identify their own hurts and emotions without trying to
minimize their experiences. Responses like, “Wow, that must have been painful…” Then, allowing them to lay
out their course of healing rather than hurriedly trying to impose my resolutions in their life so I can either
move on to my own story or become a quasi-messiah in their life.
How often do I listen with an open heart to help people identify their own emotions and resolutions
versus listening with a hidden agenda of trying to tell my own story and seeking my own healing or to pointing
out my infinite wisdom?
The deeper my own centering life of prayer and study, the less I have to look to others for healing. Prayer
and reflection makes us more available to the needs of others.
“All things which are written about Me in the Law of Moses and the Prophets and the Psalms must be fulfilled.”
There were over 300 prophecies written about the Messiah in the Old Testament. Matthew’s Gospel is the
Synoptic Gospel that focuses primarily on how Jesus fulfilled each prophecy. I heard a man preach last Sunday
on these prophecies at Phoenix First Assembly of God, he stated his research indicated that the chance of one
person fulfilling even just eight of the 300 was 1 x 10 28, that is a 1 with 28 zeros behind it.
1.
Born in Bethlehem
2.
Crucified
3.
Line of David
4.
Executed among criminals
5.
Buried among the wealthy
6.
A healer
7.
Raised people from death
8.
Fed multitudes
1 x 1028, which is 10,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000
And they, after worshiping Him, returned to Jerusalem with great joy, and were continually in the temple praising God
Great leaders always have an eye on when they will need to fill their role in a sustaining way for the good
of the whole. As you can see, the “peace” which Jesus gives as a blessing to his followers turns from
commission to action as they boldly go to the temple to praise God. Nothing could have been more dangerous
for them as there was an arrest warrant out for them by both the Religious Leaders and Pontius.
Later, Peter and John would both be arrested and brought before the Sanhedrin for healing a man and
preaching in the Temple.
ACTS 4:1-22
4:1 As they were speaking to the people, the priests and the captain of the temple guard and the
Sadducees came up to them, 2 being greatly disturbed because they were teaching the people and
proclaiming in Jesus the resurrection from the dead. 3 And they laid hands on them and put them in jail
until the next day, for it was already evening. 4 But many of those who had heard the message believed;
and the number of the men came to be about five thousand.
5 On the next day, their rulers and elders and scribes were gathered together in Jerusalem; 6 and
Annas the high priest was there, and Caiaphas and John and Alexander, and all who were of high-priestly
descent. 7 When they had placed them in the center, they began to inquire, “By what power, or in what
name, have you done this?” 8 Then Peter, filled with the Holy Spirit, said to them, “Rulers and elders of
the people, 9 if we are on trial today for a benefit done to a sick man, as to how this man has been made
well, 10 let it be known to all of you and to all the people of Israel, that by the name of Jesus Christ the
Nazarene, whom you crucified, whom God raised from the dead—by this name this man stands here
before you in good health. 11 “He is the STONE WHICH WAS REJECTED by you, THE BUILDERS,
but WHICH BECAME THE CHIEF CORNER stone.12 “And there is salvation in no one else; for there is
no other name under heaven that has been given among men by which we must be saved.”
13 Now as they observed the confidence of Peter and John and understood that they were
uneducated and untrained men, they were amazed, and began to recognize them as having been with Jesus.
14 And seeing the man who had been healed standing with them, they had nothing to say in reply. 15 But
when they had ordered them to leave the Council, they began to confer with one another, 16 saying, “What
shall we do with these men? For the fact that a noteworthy miracle has taken place through them is
apparent to all who live in Jerusalem, and we cannot deny it. 17 “But so that it will not spread any further
among the people, let us warn them to speak no longer to any man in this name.” 18 And when they had
summoned them, they commanded them not to speak or teach at all in the name of Jesus. 19 But Peter
and John answered and said to them, “Whether it is right in the sight of God to give heed to you rather
than to God, you be the judge; 20 for we cannot stop speaking about what we have seen and heard.”
21 When they had threatened them further, they let them go (finding no basis on which to punish them)
on account of the people, because they were all glorifying God for what had happened; 22 for the man
was more than forty years old on whom this miracle of healing had been performed.
Christ’s commission moves the Apostles from hiding to healing. Can we say we are preparing a
commission for our followers/students as well? Will they leave us more dependent or ready to change the
world with a plan for healing and leading others?
EPILOGUE
THE GOSPEL OF A TRUE FRIEND AND ARTIST
I have loved this commentary on Luke and feel so blessed to be able to pass it on to you. We began the
book by saying Luke was the penultimate Renaissance man — lawyer, doctor, friend, historian, philosopher —
I think that above all else I will remember Luke as a painter. For those who look close enough, almost every
chapter is a contrast between light and dark. From the Magnificat of the impoverished handmaiden of the
Lord, Mary, contrasted with the high priest, Zechariah, and his mute response to John’s birth. From the
authoritarian leadership styles of Pontius and Herod contrasted with the authentic leadership of Jesus. From
the women who went to visit Jesus’ tomb out of love to the male apostle’s who hid in broken ideology and
idealism (Faith and Hope).
Luke gives us the opportunity to learn about ourselves through these contrasts. Every chapter provides us
an opportunity to ask who depicts me the most? With whom would I rather associate myself ?