Post-Resurrection Appearances of Jesus – The Appearance to the disciples with another commission

April 15, 2021 (Thursday)

Then he said to them, “These are the very things I told you about while I was still with you: everything written about me in the Law of Moses, the writings of the prophets, and the Psalms had to come true.” Then he opened their minds to understand the Scriptures, and said to them, “This is what is written: the Messiah must suffer and must rise from death three days later, and in his name the message about repentance and the forgiveness of sins must be preached to all nations, beginning in Jerusalem. You are witnesses of these things. And I myself will send upon you what my Father has promised. But you must wait in the city until the power from above comes down upon you” (Luke 24:44-49).

For forty days after his death he appeared to them many times in ways that proved beyond doubt that he was alive. They saw him, and he talked with them about the Kingdom of God. And when they came together, he gave them this order: “Do not leave Jerusalem, but wait for the gift I told you about, the gift my Father promised. John baptized with water, but in a few days you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit.” When the apostles met together with Jesus, they asked him, “Lord, will you at this time give the Kingdom back to Israel?” Jesus said to them, “The times and occasions are set by my Father’s own authority, and it is not for you to know when they will be. But when the Holy Spirit comes upon you, you will be filled with power, and you will be witnesses for me in Jerusalem, in all of Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth” (Acts 1:3-8).

With this appearance to the disciples, Jesus opened the Scriptures and opened their minds to understand them, just as He had done with the two men on the road to Emmaus. The Old Testament predicted a coming Messiah, sometimes as reigning king and sometimes as a suffering servant. The view that most people held was the one about a king who would throw off the yoke of Rome and restore Israel to prominence. Jesus made clear that there is another group of Scriptures that teach that the Messiah must suffer and must rise from death three days later, and in His name the message about repentance and the forgiveness of sins must be preached to all nations. His people have a glorious future, bringing people into the Kingdom of God, which exists in the hearts of believers. He will be taken up to Heaven and when He returns, His coming will be in power and glory.

They still did not understand, but when the Holy Spirit came upon them on the day of Pentecost, they were filled with power and became witnesses for Christ in Jerusalem, in all of Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth. The fact that you and I are born again, created new in Christ, is evidence of their obedience to begin taking the gospel everywhere in the world.