Open your Bibles to the Gospel of Luke in chapter 24. Also, good evening to everyone. It's good to be back in the house of the Lord with all of you. Luke chapter 24, there we have the account of the resurrected Savior, that blessed narrative concerning the one victorious upon Calvary's cross, who, as promised, was resurrected the third day appeared to his disciples and gave them many joys and many instructions prior to his ascension.
We're going to focus specifically on verses 36 to 53, but we'll read the chapter in its entirety to set context and to put us in the right place regarding this narrative. So this is Luke 24, beginning at verse 1. This is the word of the triune God. Now on the first day of the week, very early in the morning, They and certain other women with them came to the tomb, bringing the spices which they had prepared.
But they found the stone rolled away from the tomb. Then they went in and did not find the body of the Lord Jesus. And it happened, as they were greatly perplexed about this, that, behold, two men stood by them in shining garments, 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? He is not here, but is risen.
Remember how he spoke to you when he was still in Galilee, saying, The Son of Man must be delivered into the hands of sinful men and be crucified, and the third day rise again. And they remembered his words. Then they returned from the tomb and told all these things to the eleven and to all the rest. It was Mary Magdalene, Joanna, Mary the mother of James, and the other women with them, who told these things to the apostles.
And their words seemed to them like idle tales, and they did not believe them. 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. Now behold, two of them were traveling that same day to a village called Emmaus, which was seven miles from Jerusalem.
And they talked together of all these things which had happened. So it was, while they conversed and reasoned, that Jesus himself drew near and went with them. But their eyes were restrained, so that they did not know him. And he said to them, What kind of conversation is this that you have with one another as you walk and are sad?
Then the one whose name was Cleopas answered and said to him, Are you the only stranger in Jerusalem? And have you not known the things which happened here in these days? And he said to them, What things? So they said to him, The things concerning Jesus of Nazareth, who was a prophet, mighty in deed and word before God and all the people, and how the chief priests and our rulers delivered him to be condemned to death and crucified him.
But we were hoping that it was he who was going to redeem Israel. Indeed, besides all this, today is the third day since these things happened. Yes, and certain women of our company who arrived at the tomb early astonished us. When they did not find his body, they came saying that they had also seen a vision of angels who said he was alive.
And certain of those who were with us went to the tomb and found it just as the women had said, but him they did not see. Then he said to them, O foolish ones and slow of heart to believe in all that the prophets have spoken. Ought not the Christ to have suffered these things and to enter into His glory? And beginning at Moses and all the prophets, He expounded to them in all the scriptures the things concerning Himself.
Then they drew near to the village where they were going, and He indicated that He would have gone farther. But they constrained Him, saying, Abide with us, for it is toward evening, and the day is far spent. And He went in to stay with them. Now it came to pass, as he sat at the table with them, that he took bread, blessed and broke it, and gave it to them.
Then their eyes were opened, and they knew him, and he vanished from their sight. And they said to one another, Did not our heart burn within us while he talked with us on the road and while he opened the Scriptures to us? So they rose up that very hour and returned to Jerusalem, and found the eleven and those who were with them gathered together, saying, The Lord is risen indeed, and has appeared to Simon. And they told about these things that had happened on the road, and how he was known to them in the breaking of bread.
Now as they said these things, Jesus himself stood in the midst of them and said to them, Peace to you. But they were terrified and frightened, and supposed they had seen a spirit. And he said to them, Why are you troubled? And why do doubts arise in your hearts?
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.' When he had said this, he showed them his hands and his feet. But while they still did not believe for joy and marveled, he said to them, Have you any food here?
So they gave him a piece of broiled fish and some honeycomb, and he took it and ate it in their presence. Then he said to them, These are the words which I spoke to you while I was still with you, that all things must be fulfilled which were written in the law of Moses and the prophets, and the Psalms concerning me. And he opened their understanding that they might comprehend the Scriptures. Then he said to them, Thus it is written, and thus it was necessary for the Christ to suffer and to rise from the dead the third day, and that repentance and remission of sins should be preached in his name to all nations, beginning at Jerusalem.
And you are witnesses of these things. Behold, I send the promise of my Father upon you. But tarry in the city of Jerusalem until you are endued with power from on high. And he led them out as far as Bethany, and he lifted up his hands and blessed them.
Now it came to pass while he blessed them that he parted from them and carried up into heaven. That he was parted from them and carried up into heaven. and they worshiped him and returned to Jerusalem with great joy and were continually in the temple praising and blessing God. Amen. Well, let us pray.
Heavenly Father, we thank you for this, the reading of your scriptures and this engagement that we have now in worship, the preaching of your word. We do pray that you would bless us now as we engage in this. Help us to have our minds tuned to the Holy Scriptures. Give us your Holy Spirit, Lord God, that we may lay hold of its truth.
Help us to lay hold of our blessed God, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, and to rejoice in the Christ to whom the Word points. Do be with us now, and in this exercise of worship, Lord God, may you be glorified. And we pray in the name of our Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.
Introduction
Well, let's just remind ourselves that the tenor and the flavor of the Holy Scriptures, and in this case, the Gospels, it comes to us in not the tenor or flavor of a once upon a time. We've noted this before, the historicity of the gospel accounts. Our Bibles are inspired, they are inerrant, they are infallible, and so the gospel accounts, like every other portion of Holy Scripture, come to us with the weight of that inspiration, that infallibility, and that inerrancy. In fact, just turn with me for a moment as we work through a bit of a short introduction here to our subject matter, to the beginning of Luke, to see how our Bibles come to us.
Notice in Luke 1, beginning at verse 1, our Bibles don't come to us in that flavor of once upon a time. They don't come to us in that manner of fable and fiction, but rather certain history. Notice Luke 1, beginning at verse 1, in as much as many have taken, in hand to set in order a narrative of those things which have been fulfilled among us, just as those who from the beginning were eyewitnesses and ministers of the Word delivered them to us, it seemed good to me also, having had perfect understanding of all things, from the very first, to write to you an orderly account, most excellent Theophilus, that you may know the certainty of those things in which you were instructed. So Luke begins his gospel, not with once upon a time, but with the historicity, that is, the certain historical fact that what he is writing about truly did take place.
The second volume that Luke writes, the Book of Acts, remember that Luke is the author of the Gospel of Luke and also the Book of Acts, he begins in a very similar way his second volume, the Book of Acts. Notice in Acts 1.1, The former account, that is Luke, the former account I made, O Theophilus, of all that Jesus began both to do and teach, until the day in which he was taken up, after he, through the Holy Spirit, had given commandments to the apostles whom he had chosen, to whom he also presented himself alive after his suffering by many infallible proofs, being seen by them during forty days, and speaking of the things pertaining to the kingdom of God. We ought to rejoice as Christians that when we come to the Bible, we come. to the certainty of God's truth and God's word. These things did take place.
The narratives did take place. Now, our Bibles come to us in many other literary flavors. We have poetry, we have song, we have words of wisdom, we have prophecy, we have apocalyptic literature. Here in the Gospels, we have narrative given with a theological purpose.
And in this narrative given with a theological purpose, the Gospel of Luke, it sets forth at the end our passage this evening, the certainty of the resurrected Christ. We have the word of God that declares two men with certainty a resurrected champion, our Lord Jesus Christ. And so in verses 36 to 53,
Blessings of the Resurrected Christ
we want to look at the blessings of the resurrected Christ. The day of days had come, that hour of hours, where the Son of God, who took upon himself man's nature for our redemption, gave himself up upon Calvary's cross. He had completed that once for all, that obedience unto cross death vocation that he was charged with by his father. He had performed that perfectly, and now he has been raised from the dead.
Isn't it a joyful sight for the Christian to see that one who was the man of sorrows, no longer now the man of sorrows, but having gone through that veil of victory, he is now the champion of that victory, resurrected the third day. and about to ascend, but before he does, he gives his disciples some blessings, some preparatory things in order for them to go about and to preach this crucified Jesus, to proclaim this resurrected Christ. And so, we want to look at three things this evening.
Comfort of the Resurrected Christ
First off, the comfort of the resurrected Christ. That's seen in verses 36 to 43. The teaching of the resurrected Christ in verses 44 to 49, Thirdly, the ascension of the resurrected Christ from verse 50 to verse 53. So first off, the comfort of the resurrected Christ.
We want to notice first his salutation, and it's very simple. Notice verse 36. Now, as they said these things, Jesus himself stood in the midst of them and said to them, peace to you.
Christ's Salutation of Peace
He gives them a salutation. That simply means to speak or to give an utterance of greeting. You know as we type emails or write letters. We don't write letters as often as we used to we should write more letters It's a it's a wonderful exercise.
You know try and write letters take out a pen and a piece of paper and write a letter It's a it's a wonderful exercise, but we begin our emails With a salutation dear so-and-so you know I bring you greetings I hope this letter finds you well and that sort of a thing here. We have the resurrected Christ giving a a salutation, and he says, peace to you. And you may have heard before that this is a very usual greeting in the first century context. It might be tantamount to our modern day hello, how are you, that sort of a thing.
But, as given by the resurrected Christ, it doesn't come as empty and as vain as our sort of cordial greetings come in our modern day context. It is, as Gil writes here, notice what what Gill notes with regards to this greeting, he says, peace be unto you, is an usual form of salutation among the Jews, expressive of all prosperity in soul and body, inward and outward, spiritual and temporal, and here may have a special regard to that peace he said he gave unto them and left with them upon his departure from them, and which he had obtained by the blood of his cross and now preached unto them. So while it might be a standard idiomatic greeting in the first century context, it's spoken by Christ and it comes with the weight of glorious theology and blessed truth. Remember that Christ is our peace according to Paul in the letter to the Ephesians.
In Ephesians 2.14 it says, and he himself is our peace. It says later on in that same passage that he makes peace and it says in that same passage a third time that he preaches peace. And so Christ is the author of peace. And so giving this salutation, it is right and true for him to say peace to you.
Again, it's not an empty cordiality and it's not an empty convention. We as men, sinful redeemed men with remaining corruption very often engaged in empty cordialities. It's something that we ought to try and do less of. We'll greet somebody and we'll say, hey, how are you? and they'll say good, and then they'll say how are you, and we'll say good, and then we'll just, and then we'll leave each other.
It's a very, very, it's, you know, it's customary, but it just seems very, very empty. I mean, it's nice that we do it, but we ought to hope and pray that it would be filled with a true cordiality and a true feeling for that other person, and hopefully that's reciprocated. But with Christ, there are no empty words. With respect to the tongue of the Lord Jesus Christ, there is no vanity. and he comes with this blessed salutation, peace to you.
It points back to that John 14 declaration that he gives peace and he leaves peace with them. And these disciples receive this salutation, peace to you, and it comes with that weight. You know, we think of Christ, we ought to think of him as we just noted, that he is our peace. We ought to think then of Romans 5, 1, Therefore, having been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.
We ought to think of that Colossians 1 20 reality that he has made peace through or by the blood of his cross. And so he gives this blessed salutation. He then goes on with, secondly, a demonstration. And there are four quick things we want to observe here.
Christ's Bodily Demonstration
He goes and he engages in a demonstration to his disciples. And first we see his display of divinity. Notice the language at verse 38. And he said to them, why are you troubled and why do doubts arise in your hearts?
We see here Christ giving a display of his divinity. Now, we could say with this first clause, why are you troubled? That anybody may have been able to see by their outward appearance because they're engaged in terror, fright, and they're supposing that they had seen a spirit. That's a, you know, it's a fair conclusion.
But Christ goes on to say, and why do doubts arise in your hearts? This is a display of divinity. The book of Revelation describes Jesus Christ in one of the letters to the seven churches as he whose eyes are as a flame of fire. That speaks to his omniscience.
He is the one who knows the thoughts and the intents of the hearts of men. And so Christ comes here with a comforting posture and delivery And he says, why are you troubled? And why did doubts arise in your hearts? This should have, though it didn't immediately, but this should have comforted the disciples because they would realize, okay, this isn't just some spirit.
This really is the Christ because he knows the thoughts of our hearts. No one else can know the thoughts of our hearts, save God himself. Christ here gives a display of his divinity secondly he appeals to sight notice what he says he says Behold my hands and my feet that it is I myself Remember that this is all under the topic of the comfort of the resurrected Christ that is Christ giving comfort to his disciples and so to To put an end to the terror, to put an end to them being frightened, and to put an end to this supposition that Christ is just a spirit, he says, behold, look at my hands and my feet, that it is I myself. He wants to lift them up from out of this position of terror and fright.
He wants to correct their misunderstanding that he is just a spirit. And so he says, behold my hands and my feet. And of course, we should know that he's not just saying behold my hands and my feet, generally speaking, because humans have hands and feet and spirits don't. But he wants them to look at the print of the nails on his hands, the print of the nails on his feet, and his wound, the wound in his side.
He's saying, look, that one crucified, that man of sorrows acquainted with grief, that one who was lifted up upon that Roman gibbet of execution has been victorious over death and hell and has now been raised the third day and he stands before you. I am that crucified one. I am that Christ. Behold my hands and my feet.
And he appeals next to their touch.
Appeal to Touch and Human Action
He appeals to their sight and now to Notice, handle me and see, for a spirit does not have flesh and bones as you see I have. We should note that we aren't to think, I don't believe, that Christ is engaging here in sharp rebuke of his disciples. We're not to envision, and we should never vainly envision Christ anyway, but with eyes of faith, we're not to suppose that Christ is somehow glaring at them with eyes of flame, with wholesome indignation of some sort, behind a furrowed brow and waving his finger and saying, why don't you believe in me? Christ is with the calmness and the peacefulness of the resurrected Savior coming to them in their particular frame, knowing that they are but dust, and wanting them, again, to rise up from out of their trepidation and their fear.
And so he says, look upon me, and then he says, handle me and see, for a spirit does not have flesh and bones as you see I have. We should see here the kindness of our Savior. The kindness of our Savior. He doesn't wag the finger and rebuke them with sharpness, but rather he's giving them a blessed demonstration that he really is the Christ, victorious at the cross, and now victorious in the subsequent resurrection that he promised.
He appeals to their sight, he appeals to their touch, and notice he goes on and he appeals to human action. But notice in between here, verse 40, when he had said this, he showed them his hands and his feet, but while they still did not believe, for joy and marveled, he said to them, So he engages in this demonstration, he engages in this post-crucifixion, post-resurrection demonstration, and he does so in kindness, but his disciples are still shaken. His disciples have still not yet arrived at the point of fully embracing the truth of the resurrection of the Lord Jesus Christ. But while they still did not believe for joy and marveled, he said to them, and notice what he says, he says, Have you any food here?
So they gave him a piece of broiled fish and some honeycomb, and he took it and ate it in their presence. We are to understand that Christ is not hungry here. Christ is resurrected. He has his glorified body.
It is pre-ascension, yes, but it is post-resurrection, and Christ is not suffering from hunger here. He's not asking for food so that his body might be sustained because he needs no sustentation. He says, have you any food here? And he subsequently eats the food provided so that he could further demonstrate that he is not a phantom, he is not a specter, he is not a spirit or a ghost, but he is the resurrected Christ.
Very God and very man, yet one Christ. And so he goes and he furthers this blessed demonstration to show that he is that same Christ who was before them, that same Christ who was crucified. Spurgeon notes, this was an exceedingly convincing proof of his unquestionable resurrection. In very deed and fact, and not in vision and phantom, the man who had died upon the cross stood among them.
It's a blessed truth. What we're to realize here as well, brethren, is something that the old church used to say. They used to have these particular idioms, the ancient church. And one of the idioms that they had was,
Docetism and True Humanity
if Christ was a phantom, then our salvation is a phantom also. It speaks to Christological error in the early church and some of which still sadly survives to this day. But there was a rejection of the physical in the early church. There was a Gnosticism which rejected the truth that Christ really did come in the flesh.
It saw all physical reality as ungodly and wicked. and so could not ascribe physicality to Christ. They wouldn't say, they would not affirm that Christ took on himself our humanity for our redemption, but only appeared to be human. And so we need to understand though, that if Christ is a phantom, then our salvation is a phantom also. Why?
Because another one, the unassumed is the unhealed, another idiom. If Christ, did not assume humanity, then we are not healed. Because that which is healed must be assumed. Christ needed to assume humanity because humanity needed to be healed.
If he didn't actually assume humanity, if he actually did not take to himself man's nature, then man is not redeemed, then man is not saved. And so Christ in this glorious demonstration is asserting the veracity that is the certain truthfulness of salvation. That he really did assume humanity. He really was delivered up upon Calvary's cross.
He really did cry upon that cross in his assumed humanity, my God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me? And in victory over death and hell and the devil, he now on the third day or later, as the resurrected Christ, has appeared to these and has shown forth this demonstration that he is very God and that he is very man, the one who redeems his people. from their sins. Well,
Teaching of the Resurrected Christ
secondly then, the teaching of the resurrected Christ. Notice that
Christ's Reminder of Prior Announcements
Christ goes on to speak here and goes on to engage in other things, and we want to note the teaching of the resurrected Christ, first by noting his reminder in verse 44. Then he said to them, these are the words which I spoke to you while I was still with you. So, It's the nature and the frame of man, it's our condition, even in our redeemed condition, that we need reminding. A reading of the Bible itself, Old and New Testaments, will see that the Christian needs reminding.
And these disciples were reminded on more than one occasion, that it was announced to them on more than one occasion that the Christ would suffer that he would be delivered up by the hands of wicked men, he would be crucified and put to death, but he would rise again the third day. In fact, there are three places in the gospel of Luke where we find this, and you can turn to Luke 9 with me to see the first one. Luke 9 at verse 21. And he strictly warned and commanded them to tell this to no one, saying, The Son of Man must suffer many things, and be rejected by the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and be raised the third day.
Luke 13 and verse 32. Luke 13 at verse 32. Notice the same language. And he said to them, Go tell that fox, Behold, I cast out demons and perform cures today and tomorrow, and the third day I shall be perfected.
Nevertheless, I must journey today, tomorrow, and the day following for it cannot be that a prophet should perish outside of Jerusalem." Hopefully you love it too. I love it when the Savior here says, go tell that fox, speaking of Herod. Christ wasn't afraid to, He didn't shy away from the opportunity to deliver wholesome rebukes of the religious leaders of His day, those errorists, those in opposition, those enemies of God. And He says, go tell that fox, And notice he speaks with regards to his power in the casting out of demons, the performance of miracles, and then also the third day I shall be perfected, the announcement of his resurrection.
And as we'll have occasion to note later, that announcement to an enemy is an announcement of they're all dread. That means outside of Christ and in unbelief, they are to dread the resurrection. They are to dread the ascension because the one delivered up by their wicked hands is the one promised by their old covenant scriptures to be the Messiah, the Redeemer of men. And so they put him to death and the resurrection punctuates the fact that they have put to death the Lord of glory.
The subsequent ascension even more punctuates the fact that they have put to death the Lord of glory. They're all dread that Christ on the third day would bring about perfection and notice in at Luke 18 33 another instance of the announcement the third in the gospel of Luke the announcement of the death and resurrection of Christ at verse 31 of Luke 18 actually then he took the 12 aside and said to them, Behold, we are going up to Jerusalem and all things that are written by the prophets concerning the Son of Man will be accomplished. For he will be delivered to the Gentiles and will be mocked and insulted and spit upon. They will scourge him and kill him and the third day he will rise again.
And so when we get to chapter 24 and we see Christ say that these are the things that I spoke to you when I was still with you. Delivering this reminder, we can see why he has to remind them that he beforehand spoke to them about this. It's because there were a number of occasions where he did so and yet they still did not fully embrace the reality and the theology of the resurrection. Notice verse 34 in fact though, if you're still at Luke 18.
But they understood none of these things This saying was hidden from them, and they did not know the things which were spoken. So in a sense, I guess we kind of have to cut them a little bit of slack here, because by divine design and by divine providence, there was the intention that post-resurrection, by the instruction of the risen Christ, they would be brought to the fullness of the knowledge of that crucifixion and that resurrection. as the risen Christ would prepare them and equip them for their going about the earth preaching the glories of Jesus Christ and his gospel. So back to Luke 24 we see this reminder given and then
Christ's Instruction from Scripture
secondly under the teaching of the resurrected Christ we notice now his instruction So notice again at verse 44, then he said to them, these are the words which I spoke to you while I was still with you, that all things must be fulfilled which were written in the law of Moses and the prophets and the Psalms concerning me. And he opened their understanding that they might comprehend the scriptures. He gives them instruction that all things might be fulfilled which were written concerning me. You see, he gives them a post-resurrection Bible study.
What a glorious thing it must have been to receive a Bible study from the resurrected Christ. Isn't that amazing? Jesus Christ sits with them after eating broiled fish and honeycomb, and he gives them a Bible study. But you see, it's a very important value that he gives them this Bible study because he is preparing them for they're going about in preaching Christ to the nations.
And so what better way, what one of many great ways to prepare his disciples is by opening up the scriptures to them and showing them from the law of Moses, from the prophets and from the Psalms, those things concerning Christ. Nehemiah Cox wrote these words with regards to this particular reality and the reality that's in view is and it's something we noted this morning But all of the all of the Old Testament all of the old covenant streams of revelation find remember their confluence in Christ they find their terminus, that is their ending point in Jesus Christ. All of the washings, all of the ceremonies, all of the sacrifices, all of the prophecies, all of those things find their end, their scope, and their terminus in Jesus Christ, and that's what Christ is saying here. Remember the old covenant scriptures, these things spoke concerning me, that one that would come in the fullness of the times, born of a woman, born under the law to redeem those who were under the law.
It spoke of a crucified Messiah, of a resurrected Messiah, and of an ascended Messiah. And so he opens up the scriptures to make known these things. And Nehemiah Cox writes, in all our search after the mind of God in the holy scriptures, we are to manage our inquiries with reference to Christ. You see, our Bibles aren't just a slapping together of ancient dusty tomes put together in order to bring out some sort of ethical morsels for modern-day man.
These 66 books of the Old and the New Testaments, inspired, inerrant, and infallible, were delivered by God so that they might, chapter after chapter, page after page, point forward to Christ upon the cross working out the salvation of men. That's why, as we noted this morning from Genesis 3.15, that promise of the hero born of woman who would crush the serpent with his heel, all of biblical revelation following that leads up to this particular point. A resurrected Christ equipping his disciples who would then ascend, not the disciples but Christ, who would then ascend and send forth his spirit that they might have the power wherewith to go out to the nations and preach the glories of that resurrected Savior. And so he gives them a Bible study, he teaches them, he instructs them, and that instruction comes by opening up the Scriptures and showing that all of the Scriptures point forward to Christ.
He is the sum and substance of biblical revelation. He is the sum and substance of Old Testament revelation and New Testament revelation, to be sure. Turn to Acts 3 for a moment, because we want to see that in the pages of Holy Scripture, we find this very thing. We want to remark as you're turning to Acts chapter 3 that Christ in his earthly ministry spoke these these very things he said to his Religious opponents the Jews of his day you search the scriptures for in them you think that you have eternal life But these are they that testify of me Abraham rejoiced to see my day.
He saw it and was glad We see here in Acts 3 the proclamation of the Apostle Peter notice at verse 18 But those things which God foretold by the mouth of all his prophets that the Christ would suffer he has thus fulfilled Repent therefore and be converted that your sins may be blotted out so that times of refreshing may come from the presence of the Lord and that he may send Jesus Christ, who was preached to you before, whom heaven must receive until the times of restoration of all things, which God has spoken by the mouth of all his prophets since the world began. For Moses truly said to the fathers, the Lord your God will raise up for you a prophet, like me from your brethren, him you shall hear in all things whatever he says to you. And it shall be that every soul who will not hear that prophet shall be utterly destroyed from among the people. Yes, and all the prophets, from Samuel and those who follow, as many as have spoken, have also foretold these days.
You are sons of the prophets and of the covenant which God made with our fathers, saying to Abraham, And in your seed all the families of the earth shall be blessed. To you first, God, having raised up his servant Jesus, sent him to bless you in turning away every one of you from your iniquities. You see, what has been called the apostolic kerygma, that is the apostolic pattern of proclamation in the book of Acts, is to set forth Jesus as this very thing, the promise of the prophets, the promise of the Old Testament. And because he is the promised one of the Old Testament and the only name under heaven by which we might be saved, therefore Jews believe on him.
Even you who put him to death and who shed his blood believe on him. That self-maledictory curse that you pronounced upon yourself and your children is not valid if only you believe in the risen Christ. And you Gentiles believe on this one, whom the oracles of the Jews have spoken of. The apostolic kerygma in the book of Acts, that is, the pattern of apostolic preaching is clear.
This Jesus is the sum and substance of old covenant religion. One more text in the book of Acts, Acts 26, you can turn there as well. Acts 26, and notice there at verse 22. Having obtained help from God, to this day I stand, witnessing both to small and great, saying no other things than those which the prophets and Moses said would come, that the Christ would suffer, that he would be the first to rise from the dead, and would proclaim light to the Jews, to the Jewish people, and to the Gentiles.
You see, Paul would, in one sense, be wondering, why am I being persecuted? Now, he knows why. Unbelief and the prophetic announcements that these would be blind, that seeing they will not see and hearing they will not hear. He realized that.
But as he's preaching to them, he's speaking to them, and it's almost as if he's flabbergasted in a sense. I speak to you no other things than those which the prophets and Moses said would come. And what are those things? That Christ would suffer, that he would be the first to rise from the dead, and would proclaim light to the Jewish people and to the Gentiles.
Blessed truth. Christ gives them this Bible study in order to equip them. He gives them this Bible study showing forth the reality that the old covenant scriptures spoke concerning his death and resurrection. John Owen wrote so many years ago on this particular topic, and this is a wonderful quote.
The great design, whose lines are drawn in the face, and whose substance lies in the bowels of the Old Testament, and which is the spirit that enlivens the whole doctrine and story of it, the bond of union wherein all the parts of it do center, without which they would loose scattered and deformed heaps, is the bringing forth of Messiah, the Savior of the world. Without an apprehension of this design and faith therein, neither can a letter of it be understood, nor can a rational man discover any important excellency in it. Him it promiseth, Him it typifieth, him it teacheth and prophesieth about, him it calls all men to desire and expect. Do you see what he's saying here?
He's saying that if we don't understand that Christ is the sum and substance of the Old Testament Scriptures, then neither can a letter of it be understood, nor can a rational man discover any important excellency in it. So shame on those so-called Christians who would say that there is no announcement of Christ in the Old Testament. Or who would say that Christ is not the sum and substance of the Old Testament? That yes, Christ is a topic therein, but he is just one among many other topics.
You know, the people of the Jews, for example, as being another one. Now make no mistake, the people of the Jews are central in Old Covenant revelation, but for the purpose of pointing forward to and bringing forth the Christ. He is the sum and substance of Old Covenant revelation and John Owen, is absolutely correct. Moving on then, thirdly, to the teaching of the resurrected Christ.
In the teaching of the resurrected Christ, we have thirdly, His enabling grace. So back to Acts 24. Excuse me, Luke 24. If there's a deacon around, could you please get me more water?
Having not preached in four years, my voice is and muscles aren't conditioned very well. So please forgive this raspy voice. Maybe it sounds better, I don't know. Luke 24, going back there, we want to note His enabling grace.
Notice as He continues here, as Jesus continues here, verse 45, excuse me, and he opened their understanding that they might comprehend the scriptures. It's a very simple statement here, and he opened their understanding that they might comprehend the scriptures. Now, I say enabling grace here because this isn't speaking to amazing and victorious grace, that which brings a dead sinner from the deadness of sin to life in Christ. So, we don't have a salvific or a soteriological passage here. and he opened their understanding.
Very similar language is used of Lydia in the book of Acts. God opened her heart that she might understand or receive the things spoken by the apostles. That isn't this language here. He opened their understanding.
They had already been brought forth from death to life in Christ. Amazing and victorious grace has already changed their hearts and brought them forth. This is the language of simply opening their already grace-filled hearts with understanding to better understand the revelation of Christ as it pertains to the resurrection. Because remember, they were terrified, they were frightened, They had supposed they had seen a spirit.
For joy they did not believe, but marveled. And so he needed to open up their understanding so that they could fully embrace the blessed truth that the crucified one has been resurrected. And so
Christ's Enabling Grace
he gives them this enabling grace. And we see as well these preparatory words.
Christ's Preparatory Words
Fourthly, under the teaching of the resurrected Christ, we see his preparatory words. Notice at verse 46. Then he said to them, thus it is written, and thus it was necessary for the Christ to suffer and to rise from the dead the third day. He wants to stress, he is stressing, the settled and necessary reality of the death and resurrection.
That these things had to take place. Thus it is written, and thus it was necessary. So, based upon the foreordainment of God, remember that Christ is delivered up, according to Acts 2.23, by the predetermined plan and foreordination of God, to be put to death by wicked hands, but to rise the third day. So by the plan of God, the very plan of God himself, by virtue of the covenant between the Father and the Son, that pre-temporal covenant of redemption, whereby they set forth to save a multitude which no man can number from every tribe and tongue and people and nation, it was necessary for the Christ to come, to give himself up, but to be raised the third day.
And of course, thus it is written. It was necessary because the old covenant scriptures themselves testify to the very fact. He emphasizes the settled and necessary reality of his death and resurrection, and then he stresses the post-ascension mission of the church. Notice, and that repentance and remission of sins should be preached in his name to all nations beginning at Jerusalem.
You see, he's preparing them here. We've already noted that he's equipping them. He's now preparing them for their mission. It has all been a preparation.
He is preparing and equipping them for going out among the nations and preaching the glory of Jesus Christ. It would be a blessing and a comfort here to know that Because of the settled and necessary reality of the resurrection that they're going forth and preaching repentance to all nations Will not be done in vain It won't be vanity as they go out in their persecuted It won't be vanity as they go about and are opposed, besieged on all sides by evil and opposition. They're going to go forth, but they're going to go forth in the power of the ascended Christ who sends forth his spirit that they might victoriously proclaim the riches of Jesus Christ to all that will hear. It's a blessing and it would come to them as a blessing.
Christ goes on and he strengthens their unique position for proclamation. Notice, and you are, verse 48, and you are witnesses of these things. Now, this could be taken two ways. This could be taken, and you will be the witnesses to me as you go about proclaiming Christ.
That's, I think, a legitimate understanding because they do that. Subsequent revelation shows us the book of Acts is all about that. It could be that that's referring to their going out and being witnesses by the proclamation of the gospel. But it's probably the second thing that they are the peculiar recipients of the revelation of the resurrected Christ.
That is, they were eyewitnesses of his majesty in the resurrection. In fact, Peter uses that language touching upon the thing that we started this evening with. He says, for we did not follow cunningly devised fables when we made known to you the power and the coming of the Lord Jesus Christ, but were eyewitnesses of his majesty. And so that speaks to this, the apostles were such a prerequisite for being a true apostle was that they had laid their eyes upon the resurrected Christ.
And so he says or he speaks with regards to their unique position for proclamation and that being that they are the eyewitnesses to his majesty in the resurrection. Just quickly as we move towards a close, nearer to a close on this hot evening, you can turn with me to Acts chapter 10. Acts chapter 10, on this point of the disciples, the apostles, being in a unique position for proclamation, Christ strengthening them for such, in Acts chapter 10, we have at verse 40, Him, God raised up on the third day, and showed him openly, not to all the people, but to witnesses chosen before by God, even to us who ate and drank with him after he arose from the dead. And he 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.
To him, all the prophets witnessed that through his name, whoever believes in him will receive remission of sins." And then we want to notice here Lastly, under his preparatory words, he encourages them with the coming and promised power from on high. Verse 49, Behold, I send the promise of my father upon you, but tarry in the city of Jerusalem until you are endued with power from on high. So you see, he equips them and he prepares them by the word. which is very important, and then he promises them the Spirit. You see, these two elements are absolutely necessary for Christianity.
These two things are absolutely necessary for salvation. What are we brought forth by? We're brought forth by Word and Spirit. By God's word, he brings us forth by the power of the Holy Spirit, that one who gives us the assurance of the truths laid therein in the word of God.
And then how is it that the church goes out and proclaims Jesus Christ? It's according to the word and by the power of the Spirit of God. And so he gives them the Bible study. He equips them with biblical truth concerning himself.
And then he says, I will send the promise of my spirit upon you. I don't send you alone into the world. You know, that was the promise of Christ. It's unto your benefit that I depart from you.
It's for your benefit that I go to my father. Why? Because if I do not, then the spirit of truth, the comforter, another comforter will not come to do the work. that you require to provide the power and the vigor that you require to proclaim Jesus Christ and Him crucified. So word and spirit is given by Christ in the teaching that He gives His disciples.
And then
Ascension of the Resurrected Christ
lastly, we'll close with this, the ascension of the resurrected Christ. Notice this blessed language here at verse 50, And He led them out as far as Bethany, and He lifted up His hands and blessed them. This speaks to, it's obvious, a pre-ascension blessing by God, but we ought not to skip past this, just to see a note that, okay, Christ blesses them, what else can we learn as we proceed from 51 through to the end of the chapter? We want to make a note here, and he led them out as far as Bethany, and he lifted up his hands and blessed them.
You know what this speaks to? It speaks to Christ as the better than Aaron priest, who is blessing his people by virtue of the sacrifice that he just rendered. To see this, we can turn to Leviticus for a moment. In Leviticus chapter 9, Christ is acting, as we noted this morning, acting as that blessed high priest, that blessed high priest, who is the perfect high priest, unlike the priests of the old covenant, he does not need to go in daily, he does not need to go in annually to render up sins for himself and for his people, but rather he offered up a once for all sacrifice for sin that abides forever.
Notice at Leviticus 9 at verse 7, And Moses said to Aaron, go to the altar, offer your sin offering and your burnt offering and make atonement for yourself and for the people. Offer the offering of the people and make atonement for them as the Lord commanded. Now move to verse 22. Then Aaron lifted his hand toward the people, blessed them and came down from offering the sin offering, the burnt offering and peace offering.
So going back to Luke 24, the better than Aaron high priest Christ is blessing his people. He's lifting up his hands just like that Aaron, though by virtue of a better and more abiding sacrifice. The blood of bulls and goats could never take away sins. But this man, after he had offered that precious blood of his own, this man has blessed us by that blood, this man has blessed us by that sacrifice, and in or following upon the heels of the offering of that sacrifice, he gives that Aaronic, but better than Aaronic, blessing to his gathered apostles.
Don't just skip past this without relishing in the glory of Old Testament connectivity here. Christ had offered the sacrifice, and then blesses them. And Gil makes this observation. He says, Isn't that great?
He's asking for the blessing from God and he's holding out his hands so that those under which his hands are lifted might receive the blessing that descends from on high, based upon his perfect sacrifice. Verse 51, we see his ascension proper, now it came to pass while he blessed them that he was parted from them and carried up into heaven. You see, there isn't a lot of expansion upon the ascension here, but that doesn't mean that we aren't not to, that doesn't mean that we're not to reflect upon the glory of the ascension at this particular point. Victorious Christ, victorious at Calvary, raised the third day, is now ascending to his Father.
What does this punctuate? It punctuates the veracity of the crucifixion, that is, that it truly did take place. But not only that, that for which it took place was executed perfectly, the forgiveness of sins. Christ really did secure the salvation of a multitude which no man can number.
The resurrection punctuates that, but the ascension all the more punctuates it as he goes to the father, the one from whom he was sent. He was carried up into heaven. Our minds ought to be drawn to Daniel 7 and that promise of that one like the son of man who ascends to the ancient of days to receive glory, dominion, and a kingdom. This is what we should see in the ascension.
The victorious Christ is going to receive the glory, the dominion, and the kingdom that he was promised. After perfecting the work of salvation, after executing perfectly that obedience unto cross-death vocation, he is now going to receive the reward for his mediatorial perfection by God the Father. He'll be crowned, the great coronation of the King of Kings and Lord of Lords upon his ascension.
Worship and Devotion
And notice, lastly, worship and devotion. Worship and devotion. We see here in verse 52, and they worshipped him. and return to Jerusalem with great joy. And we're continually in the temple, praising and blessing God.
Amen. You know, doesn't this drive a nail in the coffin of any theology that opposes the deity of the Lord Jesus Christ? You know, the madness and the colossal folly of Jehovah's Witnesses, the blasphemies of anyone who would steal from Christ the dignity of his deity, they worshiped him. Worship is saved solely and alone for God.
No other is to be worshipped. No other is to receive glory like God, and yet here they worship Him. Why? Because He is very God of very God.
Light from light, true God from true God, begotten, not made, one in being with the Father. And this One who assumed our humanity ascended to the right hand of the Majesty on high, and they rightfully Worship him and notice the devotion. They're continually in the temple praising and blessing God. Isn't that to be the character of the Christian?
We're continually in the temple praising and blessing God. Now there is no longer a temple, but you know what I mean. We come to the house of God and we worship Father, Son, and Holy Spirit and we rejoice in so blessed of Christ. Worship and devotion.
The simplicity of biblical worship as we noted this morning. sweet contemplations of our God, sweet contemplations of our Christ, and continually in the church, blessing His great name. We are to find, brethren, in closing, great hope in the resurrection. We, too, are comforted by this same resurrected Christ. He might not be appearing before us in His resurrected glory, But know this, the Bible is true when it says that he walks among his lampstands, that he is in the midst of his churches.
He's here right now, brethren. And he comforts us with this truth. You see, we are of all men the most pitiable if Christ did not rise again from the dead. Our faith is vanity if Christ did not rise from the dead.
But verily and truly, He did rise from the dead. He gave many proofs. He comforted His disciples. And by virtue of divine revelation, the Spirit of God, and the abiding presence of Christ in His church, He comforts us with that same certain hope of His blessed resurrection.
We are to know the Word of God as Christ gave this Bible study to His disciples. We're to avail of the same thing. We come to the Scriptures and we find that page after page, chapter after chapter, they point to the blessed Christ working out the salvation of men. And our religious affections are to land upon Christ Jesus our Savior.
We're not to be carried away and stolen away by so many other things to the sacrifice and to the detriment of focus upon Jesus Christ? There are so many rabbit trails of meaningless things, so many, you know, fables and fictions and genealogies and all things that can steal away our Christian hearts when we are to be solely and alone focused upon him who gave himself for us. Let's rest upon our crucified, our resurrected and ascended Christ and therein find the sub and substance of biblical religion.
Closing Prayer
Well, let us pray. Heavenly Father, we thank you for your word. We rejoice in its truth to us. We thank you so much for this account of our resurrected Savior.
We do pray that you would fill us with hope, that you would fill us with comfort, that you would fill us with that Christian joy as we cast our eyes of faith upon him who was lifted up to your right hand. We pray that we would reflect so often upon our Savior, upon the glories of our triune God. We pray that you would cause us by your word and by your spirit To all the more grow in the grace and in the knowledge of Jesus Christ our Savior. And might we look forward to the next day, that is the next Lord's Day.
Lord God, as we come together again as the assembly of the faithful, that you might cause us to have hearts that draw near to you in that boldness by virtue of the finished work of Jesus Christ the Lord. Do go with us now in this week, help us to conduct ourselves in a manner worthy of the gospel of grace. And it's in the name of Jesus Christ we pray, amen. Well, let's stand and sing a doxology this evening.
We're gonna sing 402, stanza number five. That's 402, stanza number five. ♪ Honor to the Father ♪ ♪ Honor, honor to the Son ♪ ♪ Honor, honor to the Spirit ♪ ♪ Ever free and ever one ♪ ♪ One in might and one in glory ♪ ♪ One in deepest love ♪ The Lord bless you and keep you the Lord make his face shine upon you and be gracious to you The Lord lift up his countenance upon you and give you peace. Amen. Well, let's be seated We'll have a brief time of prayer and when the pianos finished you're dismissed.
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