March 29, 2024
Please use the comment section on this page to share insights from today’s reading OR your own personal Bible reading.
Reading along with us in our Lenten readings from “The Life of Jesus”? Here’s today’s reading:
Day 40 in the Book: “The Life of Jesus“
The Last Forty Days
Read Sections 6.5 through 6.8 (pages 186-190)
This book is an account of Jesus’ life and teachings told through in chronological order from the four Gospels to create one continuous story.
*If you do not have a copy of the book please contact the church at (401)667-0775 and we can get you a copy.
He has risen. Death could not hold God!! Was thinking today of the folded shroud. Remember hearing an explanation. Back in those days if a master was at his table and done. He would wipe his face. Mouth etc and leave the towel in a wrinkled pile and the servant would take over. . If he was going to return he would neatly fold it !!!!! The two disciples walking in emmaus. I would have been just like them and Thomas. An empty tomb but still sadden. Always loved the verse. Weren’t our hearts burning within us while he talked with us. Shouldn’t we be like that 24/7? I think of the excitement in life I’ve had. been to patriots games in 10degree weather. Snow. Rain. I’ve been fishing 100 miles offshore. Played in sports games where my hit finished the game. Adrenaline. Excitement!! I should be 100000 times more excited that my name has been written in heaven. Always!!!!
Lenten 2024 – Day 40
32 ¶ And they said to one another, “Did not our heart burn within us while He talked with us on the road, and while He opened the Scriptures to us?”
”Then said Jesus to them again, Peace be unto you: as my Father hath sent me, even so send I you. And when he had said this, he breathed on them, and saith unto them, Receive ye the Holy Ghost: whose soever sins ye remit, they are remitted unto them; and whose soever sins ye retain, they are retained.“
John 20:21-23 KJV
Did Jesus give these disciples the Holy Spirit before Pentecost?
What does He mean that they can remain or retain people’s sin?
What the disciples receive here is an Old Testament filling of the Spirit that could be lost. What they received at Pentecost was the baptism of the Spirit that cannot be lost. As far as the rest, I can’t say without further study what it means, but what I can say it was something unique to the apostles because there is nothing in the epistles that indicate that this was normative for any facet of the church. Another translation would make it easier to understand as well….
Thanks, Pastor!
Lenten day 40 what joy Jesus brought to His followers when He appeared to them! He ate with them—His body was human again! Miracle of miracles. He provided many ways to prove who He was.
Jesus in the presence of his disciples and closest friends, yet they do not recognize him right off. At the tomb, on the Emmaus road, seems to be a ghost in a locked room, Thomas, as Jesus stands right in front of him. Seven gone fishing, yet they weren’t sure who he was until they caught an abundance of fish. Peculiar how Jesus Christ can be in our midst, and we don’t see him. And he knows us before we know him.
Somehow, I am reminded of Nathaniel, sitting under a fig tree, being of a good character, without guile. Jesus saw him in a private moment, we know not what the context. Nathaniel didn’t know Jesus saw him, being alone as he thought, yet he reflected righteousness in private. When Jesus later revealed his identity, Nathaniel knew somehing good did come out of Galilee, the very Son of God!
Jesus is in our midst, he said the Comforter would not leave us alone when he would go. In open public where we behave accordingly, or dark rooms where no one can see. It doesn’t matter…
Be Nathaniel. -gy
On the road to Emmaus, Jesus prevents these two followers from recognizing Him. They were discussing what had happened the last few days. They said that they were hoping that He would be the One to free Israel. But all this happened. These two followers just couldn`t understand why Jesus died. They heard about the empty tomb but they didn`t understand at all that Christ really arose after three days. They were looking for a Messiah that would be King of all kings and set His rule on earth and destroying all the enemies of Israel. Jesus calls them foolish and slow to understand the scriptures. For He says that the prophets said the Messiah must suffer before He goes to glory with His Father. Then He started to teach them starting from the books of Moses, prophets, and latter He includes the Psalms. It is after all HIS-STORY. I find it interesting how many times Jesus appeared before the eleven, and other followers. What we are given is probably only a few of His appearances but these are given so that we may believe. John 21:25 { And there are also many other things which Jesus did, the which, if they should be written everyone, I suppose that even the world itself could not contain the books that should be written. Amen.} He was human but more than that. He had a transformed body. He could eat before them. He demonstrated that He was not a ghost or that they didn`t imagine Him. He talked with them while still teaching. He could suddenly disappear and yet appear to them out of know where even though the door was locked. Then finally after 40 days He ascends up into Heaven. All the disciples watch Him go up. The way that they saw Jesus go up into the clouds is the way that the whole world will see Him return. And guess what. We will all have transformed bodies like His. 1 Cor. 15:35–56. We will also recognize each other. I forgot the scripture for this. I think that we will appear in a younger version of our selves. Before we were all broken down as old people. At any rate; I not only will see Jesus but I will see a few loved ones that found Jesus. That would be my beloved sister,{ Susan}; my mom { Phyillis} and my aunt Eunice. May the Lord bless as we look forward to His Return.
A handful of accounts here that shows that Jesus in fact was risen from the dead because His interaction with His followers. The first interaction has the two purposely blinded to who Jesus is to give Jesus a chance to share with them the greater plan that God had and how the rest of Scripture made clear just the way things played out. Once their eyes are opened they can see that it is Jesus but they recognized there was something going on in their hearts all along. The disciples, somewhat understandably, have no clue what to make of Jesus. And yet Jesus does things that verify that He is in fact alive. This all shows that we need to be prepared for God to do things that are new, even if at first we don’t understand. And yet it is also good to know we have a God who patiently leads us and teaches us and allows us a chance to catch up. We also can trust these accounts as well, because all of these disciples maintained their witness to the risen Christ through thick and thin and many to horrible deaths.
Amy, Pastor, perhaps James 5:19-20 (in context 16-20) helps understand John 20:23. Sin is a transgression against God, only God forgives, remits, takes away sin. That is a fundamental of faith. Jesus speaks to Peter, feed my sheep. In other words, preach the gospel to every creature, that their sins can be remitted. In this sense, every one of us can loose and remit sins. Let’s be the agent for others to enjoy remission of sins! -gy
Interesting thoughts Gordon…thanks for sharing…
Lenten 2024 – Day 30