The Benediction that Blesses Us

Then he led them out as far as Bethany, and lifting up his hands he blessed them. While he blessed them, he parted from them and was carried up into heaven. And they worshiped him and returned to Jerusalem with great joy, and were continually in the temple blessing God (Luke 24:50-53).

The Holy Spirit had Luke conclude this gospel with a very brief yet powerful benediction. Luke presented the same scene in much greater detail at the beginning of his letter to Theophilus that is included in the scriptures as the Book of Acts. Here we learn that Jesus simply, yet profoundly led them out, lifted His hands in a blessing, and left them for heaven. Our Teacher, the Holy Spirit, leads us into some vital everyday truth for disciples in every age that are living for Christ and awaiting His return. With the Spirit’s help, we can join the first disciples and receive the benediction that blesses us.

Jesus led the disciples. Sometimes we read the scriptures too fast. When we slow down and listen for key words we become more sensitive to the Holy Spirit’s leading us into God’s truth. Today we notice that Jesus led His disciples to the place of His choosing, where He planned to leave them and return to His Father’s side in heaven. We are always better off when we follow Jesus’ leading and keep ourselves in the center of His will, protection, and power. If we follow Jesus in the midst of our ever-changing and directionless world, we will discover and enjoy the abundant life He wants us to know now as we prepare for eternal life in heaven… “To him the gatekeeper opens. The sheep hear his voice, and he calls his own sheep by name and leads them out. When he has brought out all his own, he goes before them, and the sheep follow him, for they know his voice” (John 10:3-4). Enjoy the abundance of a Christ-led life today!

Jesus lifted His hands and blessed the disciples. When we pause to reflect on this moment, the Spirit points out that this was God, bowing down to touch the disciples with a blessing. In the midst of being preoccupied with the details of the ascension and anticipation of the joyful return to heaven, Jesus paused and humbly touched His disciples with a blessing. We are reminded of the way Jesus lifted and blessed the five loaves and two fishes, multiplying them into food for thousands… “Taking the five loaves and the two fish, he looked up to heaven and said a blessing. Then he broke the loaves and gave them to the disciples, and the disciples gave them to the crowds… And those who ate were about five thousand men, besides women and children” (Matthew 14:19-21). The Greek word for blessing means to speak or invoke prosperity and thanks into someone’s life. Let’s face it, living for Christ in an un-Christian world does not yield many blessings from other people, but every time we pause and spend some devoted time with Jesus and His Word, we position ourselves to receive His blessing.

Jesus left the disciples to return to heaven. The blessing here is a bit more mysterious. We don’t usually feel very blessed when a loved one departs from us to go to heaven. Of course, we rejoice because we know the truth and beauty of heaven, but we miss their physical presence here. With Jesus, it’s different. We rejoice that He has returned to the Father where He now intercedes continuously for the completion of our salvation… “He is able to save to the uttermost those who draw near to God through him, since he always lives to make intercession for them” (Hebrews 7:25), and we have the additional blessing of His spiritual presence in our heart every day… “Nevertheless, I tell you the truth: it is to your advantage that I go away, for if I do not go away, the Helper will not come to you. But if I go, I will send him to you” (John 16:7). As we grow in the faith, we become more sensitive to Christ’s presence and influence in our hearts and we anticipate His work in the people and circumstances that surround us.

As we grow up into Christ, just like the first disciples, we are encouraged and strengthened by…

The Benediction that Blesses Us.

The Commission that Compels Us

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.” Then he opened their minds to understand the Scriptures, and said to them, “Thus it is written, that the Christ should suffer and on the third day rise from the dead, and that repentance and forgiveness of sins should be proclaimed in his name to all nations, beginning from Jerusalem. You are witnesses of these things. 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” (Luke 24:44-49).

Jesus was about to return to His Father in heaven. He wanted to prepare His disciples to launch into the ministry that was going to establish and grow His kingdom and change the world. Time was short, the task was great, and they needed so much. He had to choose His words carefully. As disciples, we too need to hear the final instructions of our Master. The responsibility to follow Christ and to share His gospel today is no less compelling for true disciples than it was on that long-ago day of His ascension. Can you sense the Holy Spirit stirring your spirit with the same exhortation and instruction that Jesus shared with the first disciples? We can grow in the faith and become more effective witnesses whenever we trust and obey the three admonitions revealed here as Jesus commissioned His disciples. Through His words, our spirits are excited and energized to share Christ today by the commission that compels us.

Persevering disciples are persuaded by the promise of the Word that encourages us. The commission Jesus spoke over His disciples was founded on the truth revealed in God’s Word. He spoke of two great promises revealed in God’s Word. First, He told the disciples that God’s promise about the suffering, death, and resurrection of the Messiah was about to be fulfilled… “He was pierced for our transgressions; he was crushed for our iniquities; upon him was the chastisement that brought us peace, and with his wounds we are healed... they made his grave with the wicked and with a rich man in his death... when his soul makes an offering for guilt, he shall see his offspring; he shall prolong his days; the will of the LORD shall prosper in his hand. (Isaiah 53:5, 9-10). Then Jesus added the promise that willing witnesses in every age will be participating in the fulfillment of His promise that “repentance and forgiveness of sins should be proclaimed in his name to all nations”. Be encouraged to share His gospel with someone today!

Productive disciples are provoked by the promise of the witness that engages us. The commission of all true disciples is a call to witness. Jesus reminded the disciples that would soon be witnesses of the fulfillment of every promise required for salvation. What they experienced would propel the disciples out into the world with a driving compulsion to share the gospel that had transformed them with a world that desperately needed transforming. Because we are born again, we have had the same transforming experience and therefore, we have the same call… “Go into all the world and proclaim the gospel to the whole creation” (Mark 16:15). Let your salvation experience provoke you to engage your world with the transforming power of the gospel today!

Potent disciples are propelled by the promise of the wait that empowers us. The commissioning words of Jesus were accompanied by an admonition to wait for the promise of power. Jesus promised an anointing directly from the throne of His Father that would clothe true witnesses in every age with supernatural power for the task of sharing His gospel with the world. Jesus affirmed this promise after His resurrection… “But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth” (Acts 1:8). Don’t start your day without seeking the fullness of the Holy Spirit that empowers us to share the gospel!

As we grow up into Christ, we are encouraged to engage our world with His gospel by…

The Commission that Compels Us.

The Appearances that Assure Us

As they were talking about these things, Jesus himself stood among them, and said to them, “Peace to you!” But they were startled and frightened and thought they saw a spirit. And he said to them, “Why are you troubled, and why do doubts arise in your hearts? 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.” And when he had said this, he showed them his hands and his feet. And while they still disbelieved for joy and were marveling, he said to them, “Have you anything here to eat?” They gave him a piece of broiled fish, and he took it and ate before them (Luke 24:36-43).

The disciples were gathered together and digesting the amazing report of a Jesus sighting by two brothers. Luke does not give us a clear glimpse into their hearts, but we might imagine this room was filled with a wide range of emotions. Suddenly, Jesus showed up, and His greeting shows us that He knew their hearts were filled with trouble and doubts. He set about immediately to address the dreadful condition of their hearts with both words and actions that were intended to give them peace, increase their faith, and show them His love. Here and down through the ages, Jesus Christ has always blessed troubled disciples with the appearances that assure us.

Our peace manifests when we sense Jesus in the midst of our struggle. Jesus’ first response was to restore His disciples’ peace. Let’s face it, when we’re going through a difficult trial, our primary need is peace. Troubles capture our attention and force us to focus on temporary and terrible things. They make us forget the final promise of Jesus to His disciples… “Behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age” (Matthew 28:20). I like that He said “behold” because it reminds me to readjust my focus from temporary trouble to the permanent presence of the Lord whenever I am tested, and when I do, I remember His assuring words… “I have said these things to you, that in me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation. But take heart; I have overcome the world” (John 16:33).

Our love magnifies when we share with Jesus in His suffering. Jesus showed His disciples the marks of His suffering. There is nothing we can experience in this life that Jesus is not aware of and acquainted with… “He was despised and rejected by men; a man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief… Surely he has borne our griefs and carried our sorrows” (Isaiah 53:3-4). Maturing love is growing beyond a desire to know the power of Christ. It is a hunger to know and identify with the suffering of Christ as expressed by the Holy Spirit inspired words of Paul… “that I may know him and the power of his resurrection, and may share his sufferings, becoming like him in his death” (Philippians 3:10). The compelling reminder of Christ’s suffering is reflected to every age to at the Lord’s Table, and will forever be revealed in heaven… “And between the throne and the four living creatures and among the elders I saw a Lamb standing, as though it had been slain” (Revelation 5:6). True disciples are assured and compelled by Christ’s love to share His suffering and reflect His compassion to our hurting world today… “For the love of Christ controls us, because we have concluded this: that one has died for all, therefore all have died; and he died for all, that those who live might no longer live for themselves but for him who for their sake died and was raised” (2 Corinthians 5:14-15).

Our faith matures when we see that Jesus is acquainted with our sorrow. Jesus’ final action was to eat some broiled fish to confirm that He was truly raised from the dead in body as well as spirit. I believe this was to confirm His humanity to the disciples, to remind them that in every way, He was just like us… “For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but one who in every respect has been tempted as we are, yet without sin” (Hebrews 4:15), and to assure us that we have the certainty of being raised just as Christ was… “in fact Christ has been raised from the dead, the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep… For as in Adam all die, so also in Christ shall all be made alive” (1 Corinthians 15:20-22).

As we grow up into Christ, our faith matures and our witness is empowered by…

The Appearances that Assure Us.