Seeing and Believing

RIVERSIDE INDONESIAN FELLOWSHIP
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Seeing and Believing

Riverside Indonesian Fellowship
Published by Stanley Pouw in 2020 · 26 April 2020

We’ve looked at the empty tomb that is the first evidence of our Lord’s resurrection. We also noted appearance of the two angels, which is the second evidence. And the third are then there are the many eyewitnesses, and particularly Mary Magdalene. It is remarkable that such a woman with such a past and with no significant role would be the first person to see the risen Christ, not the apostles.

Before they saw Jesus, however, the disciples were full of fear and doubt. The last thing they expect was a resurrection. They don’t even believe the testimony of eyewitnesses who were credible and known. Why is it that they preached the risen Christ against hatred, opposition, and eventually gave their lives as martyrs for the gospel of the resurrection? There had to be an event that transformed them.

What had happened on the day of resurrection? Our Lord comes out of the grave early in the morning, before the women arrive at the tomb. The tomb is empty, the stone is rolled away by an angel and the grave clothes are lying there. Luke 24:4, “And it happened, as they were greatly perplexed about this, that behold, two men stood by them in shining garments.” We know they are angels.

Verse 5-8, “Then, as they were afraid and bowed their faces to the earth, they said to them, “Why do you seek the living among the dead? 6 He is not here, but is risen! Remember how He spoke to you when He was still in Galilee, 7 saying, ‘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 Then they returned from the tomb and told all these things to the eleven and to all the rest. 10 It was Mary Magdalene, Joanna, Mary the mother of James, and the other women with them, who told these things to the apostles.” All credible witnesses, well-known followers of Jesus. But to the apostles, verse 11, “their words seemed to them like idle tales, and they did not believe them.”

“12 But Peter arose and ran to the tomb; and stooping down, he saw the linen cloths lying by themselves; and he departed, marveling to himself at what had happened.” Again, not sure whether he actually believed in a resurrection. The women are told by two angels He has risen. These who give the testimony are messengers from heaven. This is God’s word on what happened to the Lord Jesus.

In the meantime, we know the Lord appeared personally to Mary Magdalene. Somewhat later that day we read in Luke 24:13-35 about two followers of Jesus who were on their way to the town of Emmaus. They were walking and talking. In verse 15, “Jesus Himself approached them and began traveling with them. 16 But their eyes were prevented from recognizing Him.”

Jesus is in a physical form, but transcendent form. It is a physical body fit for another dimension, another realm. So they walk and talk with Him. Eventually they say how sad they are, because the one they had hoped would be the Messiah is dead. And, finally, our Lord explains to them that this is what the Old Testament promised. Verse 25, “O foolish men, and slow of heart to believe in all that the prophets have spoken!”

Verse 26, “Ought not the Christ to have suffered these things and to enter into His glory?” 27 And beginning at Moses and all the Prophets, He expounded to them in all the Scriptures the things concerning Himself.” He gave them a messianic interpretation of the Old Testament which applied to Him. They still don’t know who He is. 28 Then they drew near to the village where they were going, and He indicated He would go farther.

29 But they constrained Him, saying, “Abide with us, for it is toward evening, and the day is far spent.” And He stayed with them. 30 Now as He sat at the table with them, He took bread, blessed and broke it, and gave it to them. 31 Then their eyes were opened and they knew Him; and He vanished from their sight. 32 And they said to one another, “Did not our heart burn within us while He opened the Scriptures to us?”

33 So they rose up that very hour and returned to Jerusalem, and found the eleven and those who were with them gathered together, 34 saying, “The Lord is risen indeed, and has appeared to Simon!” 35 And they told about the things that had happened on the road.” So now Mary Magdalene has seen Him. The women have heard from the angels. And two followers on the road to Emmaus have seen Him.

Luke 24:36, “Now as they said these things, Jesus Himself stood in the midst of them, and said to them, “Peace to you.” 37 But they were terrified and frightened, and supposed they had seen a spirit. 38 And He said to them, “Why are you troubled? And why do doubts arise in your hearts? 39 Behold My hands and My feet, that it is I Myself. Handle Me and see, for a spirit does not have flesh and bones as you see I have.”

40 When He had said this, He showed them His hands and His feet. 41 But while they still did not believe for joy, and marveled, He said to them, “Have you any food here?” 42 So they gave Him a piece of a broiled fish and some honeycomb. 43 And He took it and ate in their presence.” Now let’s go to John 20:19, “Then, the same day at evening, being the first day of the week, when the doors were shut for fear of the Jews.”

“Jesus came and stood in the midst, and said to them, “Peace be with you.” 20 When He had said this, He showed them His hands and His side. Then the disciples were glad when they saw the Lord.” When it says the doors were shut, the Greek word is actually barred or padlocked inside. They knew that since their Master had been executed as a criminal they could be next.

How did that happen? Well, Jesus in His resurrected body is able to go right through the wall the same way in His resurrected body in the grave He is able to go right through the linen wrappings. He didn’t say, “Shame on you for your doubt.” He said, “Peace be with you all.” That would be the right thing to say, because the trauma for all these disciples and followers must have been shocking.

He is not a spirit though, He’s not an apparition. This is not a hallucination. And to demonstrate that He shows them His scars, and as we read in Luke 24:42-43, He ate broiled fish. This is really Jesus in a glorified resurrected body. In heaven in Revelation 5, you see the throne of God and the cry is, “Who is worthy to open the book and break its seals?” Who has the title deed of the world and the power?

And, finally, someone appears and it’s Jesus, the Son of God, but He appears as though He had been slain, a scarred sacrifice. Even in heaven Jesus will bear those scars. Even in heaven He will be one who has evidence of having been slain. And, by the end of verse 20, “The disciples then rejoiced when they saw the Lord.” It’s all clear now; they rejoiced when they saw the Lord.

Verse 21, “So Jesus said to them again, “Peace to you!” He calms them down again. The first time He calmed them down because they were traumatized, now He calms them down because they’re erupting in joy. I know this is an exhilarating moment like none that ever any human could experience, but calm down. Why? “I have something important to say to you,” and what He says is profound but simple.

What is the first directive Jesus gave to His disciples after He rose from the dead? This must be critical, right? He has one simple message. It is so straightforward that it just occupies three little verses, and yet it is a profound sermon, “As the Father has sent Me, I also send you.” This is His first post-resurrection sermon, and it’s a mandate. It is the first articulation of the Great Commission.

Later on when He ascended into heaven, He reiterated that Great Commission as recorded in Matthew 28: 18-20. He talks about the Great Commission at the end of Luke as well. Here is the Great Commission, “Go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, Son, and the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I’ve commanded you; and lo, I am with you always.”

But the Great Commission has three parts. Number one, verse 21, “As the Father has sent Me, I also send you.” This is the first phase. God, the Father didn’t send Jesus to bring about social justice. He didn’t send Jesus to improve people’s economic condition. He didn’t send Jesus to elevate the morality of people. The main reason is, “The Son of Man has come to seek and save the lost.”

The Father sent the Son to provide the sacrifice necessary in His death, and the triumph necessary in His resurrection, to bring salvation to all God’s chosen people through all of redemptive history. That’s why you are here. You’re here for the purpose of fulfilling the very task that was originally given to Christ. Luke begins Acts with, “The ministry that Jesus began was now carried on by the apostles.”

And it’s continuing to be carried on by us. John 17:18-19, “As You sent Me into the world, I also have sent them into the world. 19 And for their sakes I sanctify Myself, that they also may be sanctified by the truth.” I send them as a people sanctified in the truth to do the very thing that You sent Me to do. Jesus came to seek and save lost sinners, and that is why all believers exist in the world today.

Everything we do, whether it’s our ministry, our worship, whether it’s our spiritual testimony that has as its objective to display a transformed life. It is transformed by God through the gospel so that the bible has credibility when we proclaim its truth. What we should do in our lives is to let men can see the good works, glorify God who transformed us to such good works, and then preach the gospel.

The second aspect is, verse 22, “When Jesus had said this, He breathed on them and said to them, ‘Receive the Holy Spirit.’” This is a formidable task. When Christ began His ministry, the Holy Spirit came upon Him at His baptism and launched Him into His ministry. As the Father empowered Jesus with the Holy Spirit, Jesus empowers us with the Holy Spirit. He is our Spirit-filled model.

In John 14, 15, and 16, Jesus kept saying to the disciples, “When I go, I will come back in the form of the Holy Spirit. It is better for you that I go, because then the Spirit will come, and He will lead you into all truth, and He will teach you all things concerning Me.” You can’t do this without the Holy Spirit. How? Jesus breathed on them. In Genesis 2, God created Adam when, “He breathed into him the breath of life.”

The Holy Spirit is the breath of God. The Holy Spirit is the source of power: “You’ll receive power after the Holy Spirit has come upon you.” That did not happen then because Jesus had not ascended yet. It came in Acts 2:4, “And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance.” He descends on all the believers there, and they are turned into fearless preachers.

So first, you have a commission to go into the world to preach the gospel. Second, “You cannot do this in your own strength, so I’m giving you the Holy Spirit.” Romans 8:9 says, “He that doesn’t have the Sprit is not God’s.” Then thirdly in verse 23, “If you forgive the sins of any, their sins have been forgiven them; if you retain the sins of any, they have been retained.”

That verse has been misinterpreted a lot. Our Lord is talking to apostles, and to other people there who were followers of Christ, and He says this to all of them. Mark 2:7, “Who can forgive sins but God alone?” Acts 10:42 says, “God commanded us to preach to the people, and to testify that it is He who was ordained by God to be Judge of the living and the dead.”

He’s talking about Christ. “43 Of Him all the prophets bear witness that through His name everyone who believes in Him receives forgiveness of sins.” And what are we to preach is that everyone who believes in the Lord Jesus Christ receives forgiveness of sin. So if you believe in the Lord Jesus Christ, then I can say to you, ‘Your sins are forgiven.’ If you reject the Lord Jesus Christ, ‘you are still in your sins.’”

We have the right to say to someone what Jesus said in John 8:24, “If you do not believe in Jesus, you will die in your sins, and where Jesus goes you will never come.” Back to John 20:25, “So the other disciples were saying to him, ‘We’ve seen the Lord!’” So he said to them, ‘Unless I see in His hands the imprint of the nails, put my finger into the of the nails, put my hand into His side, I will not believe.’

26 After eight days,” that’s the next Sunday, “His disciples are again inside, Thomas with them. The doors having been shut. And again Jesus comes through the walls and says, ‘Peace be with you. 27 Then He said to Thomas, ‘“Reach your finger here, and look at My hands; and reach your hand here, and put it into My side. Do not be unbelieving, but believing.”

28 He said, ‘My Lord and my God!’” That is the final evidence of the literal resurrection of Jesus. “29 Jesus said to him, ‘Because you’ve seen Me, you have believed. Blessed are they who did not see, and yet believed.’” We haven’t seen the risen Christ, but we have experienced the risen Christ in His power and His presence. We love Him. We believe in the one we haven’t seen.

Why? We believe the Bible, because the Spirit of God has given us not only faith in Christ, but faith in Scripture. “And we walk,” says Paul in 2 Corinthians 5:7, “by faith, not by sight.” We have a risen Christ, whom we love and whom we believe, whom we experience in our lives on a regular basis, who has transformed us so that our lives are different so we can tell others. Praise the Lord. Let us pray.



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