Third Sunday of Easter |
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Scripture |
Luke 24:36b-48 36 While they were talking about this, Jesus himself stood among them and said to them, “Peace be with you.” 37 They were startled and terrified, and thought that they were seeing a ghost. 38 He said to them, “Why are you frightened, and why do doubts arise in your hearts? 39 Look at my hands and my feet; see that it is I myself. Touch me and see; for a ghost 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 in their joy they were disbelieving and still wondering, he said to them, “Have you anything here to eat?” 42 They gave him a piece of broiled fish, 43 and he took it and ate in their presence. 44 Then 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, 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 Messiah is to suffer and to rise from the dead on the third day, 47 and that repentance and forgiveness of sins is to be proclaimed in his name to all nations, beginning from Jerusalem . 48 You are witnesses of these things. 49 And see, I am sending upon you what my Father promised; so stay here in the city until you have been clothed with power from on high.”
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Devotional |
Jesus appears to his disciples. After the separate appearance of Jesus to an assortment of disciples, now he appears to the group. They are startled and fearful, but Jesus assures them that all that he had told them has taken place. Jesus is also speaking to believers who would come much later; even today he speaks to us. “The experience of the presence of the risen Lord led the disciples to see that he had been raised, and the experience of the individual believer and the community of believers is still the foundation of faith. Where the Lord’s physical hands and feet are no longer present, the ministry of the hands of countless saints in simple and sincere ministries continues to bear witness to the Lord’s living presence. Although he may not appear in our midst to eat broiled fish, his presence is tangible in soup kitchens, around the kitchen table, and around the altar table. We see him “in the breaking of bread.” As in the first century so now the most convincing proof of the resurrection is the daily testimony of the faithful that the Christ still lives and the work of his kingdom continues.” 1 Today we experience the presence of Jesus in many ways and places. We experience in the breaking of the bread and in the lines at soup kitchens, unemployment offices, and where people are suffering. We also hear the command as he send his disciples out. “ The believer who affirms that the Lord is risen, therefore, should consider next what it is that the Lord has sent him or her to do. The uniqueness of the Easter message is that it invariably changes the lives of those who find themselves touched by it.” 2 As we affirm the “Lord has risen” we experience the transformation of our lives. The meaning of this transformation became meaningful in reading Ben Witherington’s, What Have They Done with Jesus? He states that: “It was the experience of seeing the risen Lord that created the inner circle of Jesus, and the coming of the Spirit that birthed the church.” 3 He describes the transformation of several of those present at the resurrection, but two stands out. “One member of the inner circle of the fledging church, Peter, was already a follower of the historical Jesus before Easter, but this really didn’t much help since he abandoned his Master in Jesus’ greatest hour of need. Another member of the inner circle, the Beloved Disciple, was a part-time pre-Easter follower, joining up whenever Jesus was in the vicinity of Jerusalem , but he wasn’t one of the original inner circle of the Twelve or one of the core three.” 4 We join Peter in a new beginning and new way of following Christ. Christ has come to offer them a chance for a new beginning. Christ has risen so we can have a new beginning. 1 R. Alan Culpepper, “The Gospel of Luke” in the New Interpreter’s Bible, Vol. IX. p. 490 |