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He is risen! (April 1, 2018)

UNIFORM LESSON FOR April 1, 2018
Scripture passage and lesson focus: Luke 24:1-12, 28-35

For Christians who celebrate the resurrection of Jesus every year, it takes a special effort to recognize how countercultural and revolutionary the biblical resurrection stories are in our secular age. Modernity decrees that resurrections do not happen. In antiquity, however, resurrection stories were not uncommon. They usually involved gods or god-like human beings.

Luke wanted his readers to know that his resurrection story involved a unique person: Jesus of Nazareth, the Messiah. Furthermore, the resurrection Luke describes was not limited to one person. It had very important consequences for every human being. The followers of the resurrected Messiah believed that sin and death no longer held sway over humanity. Repentance and forgiveness of sins were now possible for all who believed.

Luke 24:1-7 — The empty tomb
Caves in the hills around Jerusalem were often used for tombs, since Jews were not allowed to bury their dead within the walls of Jerusalem. Some quite elaborate tombs and some with inscriptions naming the person buried in them have been excavated.

The precise location of the burial of Jesus has been a matter of dispute for a long time. Many visitors to Jerusalem are shown the so-called Garden Tomb, which was discovered near the Garden of Gethsemane in 1867. Others go the Church of the Holy Sepulcher in Israeli-occupied East Jerusalem. While the issue probably cannot be decided with finality, recent archeological investigations at the Church of the Holy Sepulcher suggest that it has the stronger claim to authenticity.

Luke’s description of Jesus’ burial tells us that Joseph of Arimathea requested the body of Jesus and arranged to have it buried in a previously unused rock-hewn tomb (23:50-53). The women who came to the tomb to complete the traditional Jewish burial procedures are not named until 24:10. They found that the round stone that typically was placed in front of the entrance of a tomb had been rolled away. Their perplexity gave way to sheer terror when suddenly two men in dazzling garments (identified as angels in verse 23) appeared and began to speak to them.

The two angels inform the women that Jesus “is not here, but has risen.” Then they reminded the women in typical Lukan terms that Jesus “must be handed over to sinners, and be crucified, and on the third day rise again.”

Luke 24:8-12 — First responders tell others
Reminded of what Jesus had told them in Galilee, the women went to the 11 disciples and others who were with them. Mary Magdalene, Joanna, Mary the mother of James and other women recounted what they had experienced, but the report of these women was dismissed as utter nonsense by all of the men — perhaps except Peter. Peter, always quick to take the lead, ran to the tomb to see for himself (24:12). Although a few important manuscripts lack verse 12, the preponderance of the evidence supports its authenticity. Luke tells us that Peter was amazed, but unlike the women, he went home and did not tell anybody what he had seen.

Luke 24:28-35 — The Lord has risen indeed!
Two other followers of Jesus who doubted the reports of the women were walking back to Emmaus with a stranger who appeared to be unaware of what had happened in Jerusalem. They invited the stranger to join them for a meal. When their guest himself became the host and served them, suddenly their eyes were opened and they recognized their resurrected Lord. Their shared meal became a sacramental moment. The companion, whom they now knew was their resurrected Lord, vanished from their sight. As commentator John Carroll observes, “The Easter presence of Jesus is elusive.”

With their warmed hearts and enlightened minds, the Emmaus-bound travelers turned around and went back to Jerusalem. There they found the transformed disciples. Their doubtful resistance had been changed to exuberant shouts: “The Lord has risen indeed!”

Their new confidence in the resurrection of Jesus was based on an appearance of the risen Lord. They knew that the risen Jesus had appeared to Peter (called Simon here), an appearance Luke does not report. A growing tradition of post-resurrection appearances soon became a chorus of jubilant believers eager to proclaim the revolutionary message that Messiah Jesus was not dead — he had conquered sin and death.

For discussion: Why do you think the report of the women, who were the first to discover the empty tomb, was not believed by the disciples? Compare our passage in Luke 24:1-12 with John 20:1-10. What similarities and differences do you see? Do you think it is possible to convince unbelievers that Jesus arose from the dead? If so, how would you do it?

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