Luke 24:25-27, 44-47 (Isaiah
53:3-8) Lesson Notes
Isaiah
53 shows how the Lord had to suffer. As we have said in previous weeks, we know
for certain that this was prophesied long before Christ was born.
*Read
all of chapter 24. **Why were the disciples slow to believe?
***Have
you ever been slow to believe?
These
are two different resurrection appearances. The first is with two disciples on
the road to Emmaus (seven miles west of Jerusalem). The second is in Jerusalem.
Only
Luke gives us the narrative of Jesus walking with the two disciples down the
Emmaus Road. Jesus begins by rebuking these two men, calling them foolish and
slow to believe. (Although the disciples question Jesus as to whether He was the only one in Jerusalem who had not heard what had happened, Jesus may have actually been the only one!) “The resurrection’s reality should not have been hidden”
(Bock). They should have known this truth from the prophets. This goes to show
us that we may miss what the Lord is going to reveal if we are not in His word.
We gain understanding from the study of the writings of the prophets and
apostles. I have said several times before that the disciples, and really all
the Jews of the first century and even until today, had no category for a
suffering Messiah. Jesus is now pushing them into the category. He is framing
the discussion and showing them from the Scriptures how the prophets had
foretold of a suffering Savior. Although first century Judaism did not expect a
suffering Messiah, the OT prophets did anticipate One. For Christ to enter into
His glory, He had to be raised from the dead. The resurrection and ascension
have provided vindication and victory. He now reigns at the right hand of God
while all His enemies have been made His footstool. “Moses and all the
prophets” refers to all of the Old Testament. Jesus explained the things about
Himself to them from the OT Scriptures. He was beginning to open the eyes that
were shut. He will soon fully reveal Himself. (Did they realize it was Him in the way that He broke the bread, or did they at that moment notice His nail wounds?)
On a
second occasion, Jesus makes clear that the OT had foretold all the things
about His suffering, death, and return to glory. He also makes clear that He
was also teaching these very things to His disciples during His ministry. What
had come to pass was God’s plan. Here, the three divisions of the OT are noted:
Moses, Prophets, and Psalms. The discussion involves the “Messiah” title and
much more. Christ’s position, titles, work, and person are shown throughout the
OT. “What the disciples could not grasp before the crucifixion and resurrection
now becomes clear” (Bock). Notice that our minds have to be opened to
understand the Scriptures. Christians have to engage their minds, and they are
to love the Lord their God with all their mind. Like I said, they did not have
categories for these things, so they had to be transformed by the renewing of
their minds. These categories had to be forged and framed and formed in their
minds. Many of the Jews thought that there would be a resurrection of the dead
on the last day. Jesus shows how His was to be a quick resurrection (not allow
your Holy One to see corruption). Men and women must repent for forgiveness of
sins. They must change their minds about God, how they have behaved, how they
are to be forgiven, and how they are to relate to Him. It all centers on
Christ. Notice also the prominence of “preaching” and “all nations.”
The
main point is: everything from the suffering of Christ to the universal
proclamation of His name was predicted in Scripture. We should note the
continuity of God’s plan in Scripture.
Luke
likes to stress that all Scripture points to Jesus: Lk 24:45; Acts 17:2, 11;
Acts 18:24, 28. “Luke sees continuity in God’s plan” (Bock).