Luke 24:36-53

by sumpteretc

The disciples are deep in excitement over the news that the resurrected Jesus has been appearing to people, yet when He actually shows up among them, they are “startled and frightened.” Jesus has to assure them of His resurrection body by allowing them to touch Him and by eating food. Jesus finds their lack of understanding troubling. He feels as though the disciples ought to already understand from the Scriptures what has happened. Still he patiently explains what has taken place and what the future role of the disciples will be.

It’s easy to have preconceived notions about who Jesus is. Even those closest to Him can form misconceptions about His nature, power, plan, etc. The most common tendency is probably to put Jesus in a box, instead of letting Him be the incomparable, incomprehensible God that He is. Luke’s message is that Jesus shatters our categories of what is possible, what is appropriate, what is God’s ultimate purpose here.

I too am guilty of limiting Christ. Having grown up in the church, I sometimes feel like I have a pretty good grasp on who Jesus is, how He works and my role in the plan. Pretty soon, I don’t need Jesus anymore. It’s at those moments that I need to be “started and amazed” by how much bigger my God and His plan are than what I have figure. Open my eyes, God, to see the real Jesus.