You Are Witnesses of These Things
Luke 24:34-46
Introduction
It is still the first day of the week early evening at dark when the Emmaus-road disciples catch up with the rest in Jerusalem. We remember that the two disciples who were walking back to Emmaus had Jesus walk up to them and begin asking them questions concerning the resent events. Upon arriving at their house and after Jesus broke the bread and blessed it, their eyes were opened and they realized it was, in fact, the risen Lord seated with them at the table. Immediately then, He vanishes right before their eyes. Next, they head back to Jerusalem to find the others and tell them that Jesus has risen, indeed!
John tells us in His Gospel that when the two disciples return to Jerusalem they found the others in a house with the doors locked because they were afraid of the Jews…
John 20:19 (ESV)
19 On the evening of that day, the first day of the week, the doors being locked where the disciples were for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood among them and said to them, “Peace be with you.”
Notice with me the first words out of Jesus’ mouth. These were the disciples who had fled and denied Him and who didn’t believe He rose from the dead…Also notice where Jesus takes them in order to build their faith…back to the Scriptures.
Primary Claim of the Text
The Gospel was foretold in the Law of Moses, the Prophets, and the Psalms and also that there would be those witnesses who would continue the great story of redemption after Jesus.
Luke 24:36-49 (ESV)
36 As they were talking about these things, Jesus himself stood among them, and said to them, “Peace to you!”
37 But they were startled and frightened and thought they saw 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 And while they still disbelieved for joy and were marveling, 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 before them.
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 and the Prophets and the Psalms must be fulfilled.”
45 Then he opened their minds to understand the Scriptures,
46 and said to them, “Thus it is written, that the Christ should suffer and on the third day rise from the dead,
47 and that repentance and forgiveness of sins should be proclaimed in his name to all nations, beginning from Jerusalem.
48 You are witnesses of these things.
49 And behold, I am sending the promise of my Father upon you. But stay in the city until you are clothed with power from on high.”
1. Peace to You
36 As they were talking about these things, Jesus himself stood among them, and said to them, “Peace to you!”
37 But they were startled and frightened and thought they saw 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 And while they still disbelieved for joy and were marveling, 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 before them.
Have you ever wondered what the Lord would say to His disciples when He saw them again? What would be the first words He would speak? Would it be words of rebuke because they failed to understand? Would it be words of discipline or words of a pointed, “I told you so”. The first words Jesus spoke to His disciples when He saw them were, Peace to you.
When Jesus says, peace to you, He is extending the eternal peace that He had acquired for all who love Him. Even though they were hiding behind locked doors in fear they were given peace. It took Jesus to extend this type of peace.
This is something else that they needed to understand if they were to go on and fulfill their own mission. Beloved, we can have peace with God through Jesus Christ. He purchased that peace at Calvary. He purchased it and He gives it to those who are His.
Paul understood this type of Peace and he writes about it in his letter to the Ephesian Church…
Ephesians 2:11-18 (ESV)
11 Therefore remember that at one time you Gentiles in the flesh, called “the uncircumcision” by what is called the circumcision, which is made in the flesh by hands—
12 remember that you were at that time separated from Christ, alienated from the commonwealth of Israel and strangers to the covenants of promise, having no hope and without God in the world.
13 But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ.
14 For he himself is our peace, who has made us both one and has broken down in his flesh the dividing wall of hostility
15 by abolishing the law of commandments expressed in ordinances, that he might create in himself one new man in place of the two, so making peace,
16 and might reconcile us both to God in one body through the cross, thereby killing the hostility.
17 And he came and preached peace to you who were far off and peace to those who were near.
18 For through him we both have access in one Spirit to the Father.
When Jesus greets His beloved disciples, He isn’t harsh or disgusted with them but greets them with grace and peace. Because of the cross, Jesus has reconciled all His followers to God. We are all brought near to God through Jesus’ death. The death of Christ killed the hostility between sinners like us and the God of righteousness.
Jesus also was extending to His followers immediate peace as well. They were cowering in fear and needed some comfort and peace in their situation. Again, as we learned last week, they were afraid when they should have been rejoicing. They did not believe. They lacked faith.
When we operate by sight and not by faith we will be fearful. What Jesus was about to do was strengthen their faith. So, He assures them that it really is Him and not a ghost. He proves it to them when He asks for something to eat…ghosts don’t eat.
At first, they disbelieved. Then, Luke tells us that they couldn’t believe it was true out of joy. Once they were convinced it was really Jesus they were so over come with joy that it was too much for them to process and they lacked believe because it was too good to be true.
They needed to touch Jesus and watch Him eat and speak with Him in order to believe it really was Him and not a spirit.
Luke tells us that Jesus showed them the marks of the cross.
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.
On the one hand, He wanted them to understand that He wasn’t a ghost and on the other hand, He wanted them to see that He really is the same Jesus that they knew and loved and who loved them.
Peace to you…These words carry with then an eternal weight of glory. To imagine that fearful doubting evil sinners could be given peace is amazing indeed. Jesus came and accomplished His mission perfectly and lost sinners are found. Those who are enslaved by sin are set free, those who are far off and enemies of God are brought near. Because of the cross, God becomes our Friend and not our enemy. We become beloved children of the eternal King. The One who justly could judge us extends to us peace and a pardon…paid in full…it is finished.
2. The Gospel was Prophesied
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 and the Prophets and the Psalms must be fulfilled.”
45 Then he opened their minds to understand the Scriptures,
46 and said to them, “Thus it is written, that the Christ should suffer and on the third day rise from the dead,
It’s at this point in Luke’s account that the Lord’s Words were probably spoke at a later time. He was teaching some forty days and so it seems that most theologians rightfully attribute these words of Jesus to a different time within those days.
Please see with me how quickly Jesus takes His followers back to the Scriptures.
Luke is making a point here. What opens their eyes is not so much seeing Him and touching Him but believing all His Words…
–Remember the women at the tomb?
Luke 24:5-9 (ESV)
5 And as they were frightened and bowed their faces to the ground, the men said to them, “Why do you seek the living among the dead?
6 He is not here, but has risen. Remember how he told you, while he was still in Galilee,
7 that the Son of Man must be delivered into the hands of sinful men and be crucified and on the third day rise.”
8 And they remembered his words,
9 and returning from the tomb they told all these things to the eleven and to all the rest.
–Remember the two disciples on the Emmaus Road?
Luke 24:25-27 (ESV)
25 And he said to them, “O foolish ones, and slow of heart to believe all that the prophets have spoken!
26 Was it not necessary that the Christ should suffer these things and enter into his glory?”
27 And beginning with Moses and all the Prophets, he interpreted to them in all the Scriptures the things concerning himself.
–Now with all the disciples?
“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 and the Prophets and the Psalms must be fulfilled.”
45 Then he opened their minds to understand the Scriptures,
46 and said to them, “Thus it is written, that the Christ should suffer and on the third day rise from the dead,
We must see just what it was that they were told previously by Jesus. We must see that He taught them that He would die under the hands of sinners and that on the third day be raised again to life. He also taught them in the OT all the prophecies concerning Himself, specifically concerning His death and resurrection. Jesus spoke with His followers to explain to them that the events of just a few days ago saturate the OT Scriptures. It’s at this point their eyes open and they see clearly who Jesus is and how it was that He came and accomplished His mission…to seek and save the lost by means of dying the death they deserve. He died our death for us. They began to understand that the cross did not mean defeat but eternal victory for Christ and all His followers.
3. The Gospel Will Be Proclaimed
47 and that repentance and forgiveness of sins should be proclaimed in his name to all nations, beginning from Jerusalem.
48 You are witnesses of these things.
49 And behold, I am sending the promise of my Father upon you. But stay in the city until you are clothed with power from on high.”
I want us to see something else Jesus taught them from the OT…
Not only did He show them all the prophecies concerning His death and resurrection but He also taught them all the prophecies concerning their role in the spread of this amazing news.
What they learned, and what we must also learn is that in the sharing of the Gospel, namely the same words of Christ that the women believed, the Emmaus Disciples believed and that the others also believed. This is the same message that Paul would later be given and he would believe…
1 Corinthians 15:3-4 (ESV)
3 For I delivered to you as of first importance what I also received: that Christ died for our sins in accordance with the Scriptures,
4 that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day in accordance with the Scriptures,
Jesus, at this point, tells His followers so can they understand from the Scriptures and from His own Words all about His death and resurrection that they are to wait in Jerusalem for the promise of God.
We must see that there was another OT prophecy that would shortly come true. Just as the Law of Moses, the Prophets, and the Psalms taught about the death and resurrection of Jesus, they also teach about another promise of God that would come to pass very soon…the gift of the Holy Spirit.
First, I want to identify what exactly Jesus is referring to. What is this other promise of God that they were to wait for in Jerusalem?
Galatians 3:14 (ESV)
14 so that in Christ Jesus the blessing of Abraham might come to the Gentiles, so that we might receive the promised Spirit through faith.
God made a promise to Abraham that through him all the nations would receive a blessing.
Genesis 12:1-3 (ESV)
1 Now the LORD said to Abram, “Go from your country and your kindred and your father’s house to the land that I will show you.
2 And I will make of you a great nation, and I will bless you and make your name great, so that you will be a blessing.
3 I will bless those who bless you, and him who dishonors you I will curse, and in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed.”
Because Paul identifies exactly what the promised blessing would be that Abraham received. The OT prophecy given to Abraham was that through the death and resurrection of Jesus those among the Gentile nations who have faith in Christ would be blessed in that they would receive the Holy Spirit as well as believing Jews.
Acts 10:44-48 (ESV)
44 While Peter was still saying these things, the Holy Spirit fell on all who heard the word.
45 And the believers from among the circumcised who had come with Peter were amazed, because the gift of the Holy Spirit was poured out even on the Gentiles.
46 For they were hearing them speaking in tongues and extolling God. Then Peter declared,
47 “Can anyone withhold water for baptizing these people, who have received the Holy Spirit just as we have?”
48 And he commanded them to be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ. Then they asked him to remain for some days.
Now it’s the Holy Spirit who in turn would give these believers power and boldness to go and speak of these same Words of Christ. That He would die and on the third day rise from the grave…according to the OT Scriptures.
Now that Jesus’ immediate followers had been enlightened through some forty days of teaching from Moses to the Psalms things concerning Himself, they had to now wait for the Holy Spirit to come and empower them to be Gospel witnesses of these events.
We have many of those accounts given to us in the Book of Acts.
The Bible is completed and there is no other Scriptures being written. But beloved, there are more pages of Christ’s victories being recorded. Jesus Christ has given this same commission to all His followers, starting with those who were eyewitnesses to those down through the centuries who are witnesses to His life changing grace. The work of the Holy Spirit continues as men and women, boys and girls hear the same message and believe…
that repentance and forgiveness of sins should be proclaimed in his name to all nations, beginning from Jerusalem.
