Luke 24

Luke 24:1-12

Chapter 57 The Tomb Was Not EmptyWe often speak of “the empty tomb” as proof of our Saviour’s resurrection from the dead, but that really is not accurate. The tomb really wasn’t empty. We who believe in the risen Christ have entered into his rest, because he is resting at the right hand of the Father. We rest in Christ, the risen Redeemer, because his work is finished. His resurrection is the pledge that he has perfected forever them that are sanctified. He has finished all the salvation of his people, and we are complete in him. It is my hope that God the Holy Spirit will enable me to set before you some restful thoughts, as we make a pilgrimage to the new tomb of Joseph of Arimathaea, and see the place where the Lord lay. Once Died The very first thing that must be remembered is this. Christ Jesus once died. “For in that he died, he died unto sin once: but in that he liveth, he liveth unto God” (Romans 6:10). So, as we gather around the place where the Lord Jesus slept “with the rich in his death”, seeing the stone rolled from the mouth of the tomb, we know he is not there. Yet, he assuredly was once there. “He was crucified, dead, and buried.” He was as dead as the dead whose bodies are buried in the cemetery. Though he could see no corruption, though he could not be held by the bands of death beyond the predestined time, yet he was once dead. There was a time when there was no light in his eye, no sound in his ear, no thought in his mind, and no word in his mouth, because there was no pulse of life in his heart. Christ died for our sins. He did not merely appear to be dead. He died unto sin once, because he was made sin for us. He was, therefore, buried in the sepulchre. A dead man is a fit occupant of the silent tomb. But, blessed be his name, he is not there now! He is risen from the dead. We look to the risen Christ as our only Saviour and our only salvation, receiving the atonement from him (Romans 4:25 to Romans 5:11). We rejoice to know that “Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures; And that he was buried, and that he rose again the third day according to the scriptures.” And when he rose again the third day, our blessed Saviour left some things in his tomb for us. What things did he leave? How are they to be used by us? Sweet Spices First, the Lord Jesus left sweet spices in the tomb. When he arose, he did not take those costly spices in which his body was wrapped with him. He left them behind. Joseph had brought about one hundred pounds of myrrh and aloes, and the sweet aroma of those spices remained in the tomb. That tomb must have smelled like a perfume store, when Peter and John stepped into it. What a blessed thought that is, when taken in a spiritual sense! Our Lord Jesus has filled the grave with a sweet fragrance. It no longer smells of corruption and foul decay. We can sing with Isaac Watts: Why do we mourn departing friends, Or shake at death’s alarms? ’Tis but the voice that Jesus sends To call them to His arms. Are we not tending upward, too, As fast as time can move? Nor would we wish the hours more slow To keep us from our love. Why should we tremble to convey Their bodies to the tomb? There the dear flesh of Jesus lay, And left a long perfume. The graves of all His saints He blessed, And softened every bed; Where should the dying members rest, But with the dying Head? Thence He arose, ascending high, And showed our feet the way; Up to the Lord our flesh shall fly, At the great rising day. Then let the last loud trumpet sound, And bid our kindred rise; Awake, ye nations under ground; Ye saints, ascend the skies. That bed awaiting our bodies beneath the earth is now perfumed with costly spices and decked with sweet flowers. There the truest Friend we have once laid his holy head. The angel’s first word to the women who came to the tomb was, “Fear not ye” (Matthew 28:5). We should never draw back with fear from the grave. Our Lord was once there; and where he goes, no terror can remain. Let us, therefore, say with David, “Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff they comfort me” (Psalms 23:4). Grave Clothes Next, our Saviour left his grave clothes behind him in the tomb. When Peter went into the sepulchre, he saw the grave clothes carefully folded by themselves, laying to one side. He did not leave behind him a mouldy shroud, but, as Luke tells us in Luke 24:12, “linen clothes”. He left those grave clothes for us to look upon as tokens of his fellowship with us in our low estate, as reminders that as he has cast aside the garments of death so shall we. When he arose from his chamber, he left his bedclothes behind. And when we drop these bodies in death, as we ascend up to heaven, we will leave these garments of death behind (2 Corinthians 4:16-18; 2 Corinthians 5:1-9; Psalms 27:13; Psalms 17:15; Isaiah 57:1-2). “The righteous perisheth, and no man layeth it to heart: and merciful men are taken away, none considering that the righteous is taken away from the evil to come. He shall enter into peace: they shall rest in their beds, each one walking in his uprightness.” Look at it another way. When visiting battlefields and museums of war, we see flags hung up in such places as the memorials of victory, memorials of defeated enemies and battles won. So it is in the tomb where the Saviour vanquished death. There his grave clothes were laid as the trophies of his victory over death, and assurances to us that we have been made more than conquerors through him that hath loved us. “O death, where is thy sting? O grave, where is thy victory?” Take one more look at those linen grave clothes in the fragrant tomb. Do they not lay before your eye of faith as emblems of his righteousness, that righteousness by which he merits heavenly glory as our Surety, that righteousness he has made ours, by which we are made “meet to be partakers of the inheritance of the saints in light”? (See Psalms 132:7-9, Revelation 14:4-5; Revelation 19:6-9). The Napkin Then, John adds, Peter saw “the napkin that was about his head” carefully folded up and laid by itself (John 20:6-7). I see that napkin in our Saviour’s tomb still. It is the handkerchief with which the Lord God wipes every tear from our eyes. Let the widow and the orphan, the widower and the broken-hearted father, mourning brothers and sisters and friends take this handkerchief and wipe their tears away forever. “Thus saith the LORD; Refrain thy voice from weeping, and thine eyes from tears: for thy work shall be rewarded, saith the LORD; and they shall come again from the land of the enemy” (Jeremiah 31:16). “Thy dead men shall live, together with my dead body shall they arise. Awake and sing, ye that dwell in dust: for thy dew is as the dew of herbs, and the earth shall cast out the dead” (Isaiah 26:19). And with this same handkerchief, he wipes away all other tears from our eyes (Revelation 7:17; Revelation 21:4). Angels Our Lord Jesus left something else in his tomb. He left angels behind him and made the grave … A cell which angels use To come and go with heavenly news Angels were not in the tomb before, but, at his resurrection, they descended. One rolled away the stone, and others sat where the Saviour’s body once lay. I have never read that our Master has recalled the angels from the sepulchres of his saints. And we are assured that when his Lazaruses die, the angels of God carry their souls into the bosom of their Lord. And their bodies shall be watched by guardian spirits, as surely as Michael kept the body of Moses until the resurrection. A Way Out Another thing was left behind in the tomb by our blessed Redeemer. A way out. He left an open passage from the tomb. The stone was rolled away. Death is, for God’s elect, a prison without bars or doors. The open tomb tells me there is a Door open in Heaven. The risen Christ is the Way out of death for us. By his resurrection from the dead, we have been raised from spiritual death. God has “quickened us together with Christ” (Ephesians 2:5). From darkest night to brilliant light, O praise his name, he lifted me! Our Saviour’s resurrection is the pledge of our resurrection. It is that by which we have been forever saved from the second death. We were raised from the dead with him representatively. We have been raised by him spiritually in the first resurrection, the new birth. And we shall be raised from the dead physically in the last day, when our bodies are raised in his likeness. Our mighty Samson has pulled up the posts and carried away the gates of the grave with all their bars. The key is taken from the girdle of death and is held in the hand of the Prince of Life. As Peter, when he was visited by the angel, found that his chains fell off, while iron gates opened before him of their own accord, so shall the saints find ready escape at the resurrection morning. Yes, we shall sleep a while, each one in his resting-place, but we shall rise again in the morning, for the stone is rolled away. A mighty angel rolled away the great stone; and when he had done the deed, he sat down upon the stone. His garment was white as snow, and his face like lightning; and as he sat on the stone he seemed to say to death and hell, “Roll it back again if you can”! That mighty Angel who rolled away the stone from the tomb for us is Christ himself! Light Our risen Saviour left one more thing behind in his tomb for us. Tombs are places of utter darkness. But our Lord Jesus left in his tomb the brilliant light of life and immortality. God “hath saved us, and called us with an holy calling, not according to our works, but according to his own purpose and grace, which was given us in Christ Jesus before the world began, But is now made manifest by the appearing of our Saviour Jesus Christ, who hath abolished death, and hath brought life and immortality to light through the gospel: Whereunto I am appointed a preacher, and an apostle, and a teacher of the Gentiles” (2 Timothy 1:9-11). Our Lord Jesus Christ went into the tomb and illuminated it with his presence, “the lamp of his love is our guide through the gloom”. He has brought life and immortality to light by the gospel; now in every cemetery there is a light which shall burn through the watches of earth’s night till the day break the shadows flee away, and the resurrection morn shall dawn. “But now is Christ risen from the dead, and become the firstfruits of them that slept. For since by man came death, by man came also the resurrection of the dead. For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ shall all be made alive. But every man in his own order: Christ the firstfruits; afterward they that are Christ’s at his coming … But some man will say, How are the dead raised up? and with what body do they come? Thou fool, that which thou sowest is not quickened, except it die: And that which thou sowest, thou sowest not that body that shall be, but bare grain, it may chance of wheat, or of some other grain: But God giveth it a body as it hath pleased him, and to every seed his own body. All flesh is not the same flesh: but there is one kind of flesh of men, another flesh of beasts, another of fishes, and another of birds.

There are also celestial bodies, and bodies terrestrial: but the glory of the celestial is one, and the glory of the terrestrial is another. There is one glory of the sun, and another glory of the moon, and another glory of the stars: for one star differeth from another star in glory.

So also is the resurrection of the dead. It is sown in corruption; it is raised in incorruption: It is sown in dishonour; it is raised in glory: it is sown in weakness; it is raised in power: It is sown a natural body; it is raised a spiritual body. There is a natural body, and there is a spiritual body. And so it is written, The first man Adam was made a living soul; the last Adam was made a quickening spirit. Howbeit that was not first which is spiritual, but that which is natural; and afterward that which is spiritual. The first man is of the earth, earthy: the second man is the Lord from heaven.

As is the earthy, such are they also that are earthy: and as is the heavenly, such are they also that are heavenly. And as we have borne the image of the earthy, we shall also bear the image of the heavenly.

Now this I say, brethren, that flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God; neither doth corruption inherit incorruption. Behold, I shew you a mystery; We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed, In a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trump: for the trumpet shall sound, and the dead shall be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed. For this corruptible must put on incorruption, and this mortal must put on immortality. So when this corruptible shall have put on incorruption, and this mortal shall have put on immortality, then shall be brought to pass the saying that is written, Death is swallowed up in victory. O death, where is thy sting? O grave, where is thy victory?

The sting of death is sin; and the strength of sin is the law. But thanks be to God, which giveth us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.

Therefore, my beloved brethren, be ye stedfast, unmoveable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, forasmuch as ye know that your labour is not in vain in the Lord” (1 Corinthians 15:20-23; 1 Corinthians 15:35-58).

Luke 24:13-35

Chapter 58 “He Opened To Us The Scriptures” That which is here revealed is so precious, so sweet, so heavenly that it hardly needs explanation. Indeed, it cannot be explained to any who have not experienced it for themselves. As they walked together, our Lord Jesus opened the scriptures to these two disciples. “Beginning at Moses and all the prophets, he expounded unto them in all the scriptures the things concerning himself.” Robert Hawker, commenting on those words, wrote, “Hence we are taught, as plain as words can make it, that the whole body of scripture is concerning the Lord Jesus Christ.” Our Lord Jesus Christ is the Pearl of Great Price in this field of his Divine Revelation. As he drew near these two disciples in the way, may he draw near to us every time we open the Book of God. As he opened to them the scriptures, may he open the scriptures to us by his Spirit. As his presence and his doctrine caused their hearts to burn within them, O may he cause our hearts to burn within us when we read and study the Sacred Volume. The fact is, we have read the Bible with no profit to our souls and no understanding of its message, until we realize that the message of holy scripture is the person and work of our Lord Jesus Christ. The purpose of the Bible is the revelation of Christ. I fully agree with Martin Luther, who wrote, “There is not a word in the Bible which can be understood without reference to the cross … As we go to the cradle only in order to find the baby, so we go to the scriptures only to find Christ.” Robert Murray M‘Cheyne, who lived long before anyone dreamed of electric lights, said to his congregation at Christ’s Church in Dundee, Scotland, “When you are reading a book in a dark room, and find it difficult, you take it to a window to get more light. So take your Bible to Christ.” Christ is the scope of scripture, the sum and substance of divine Revelation. Take Christ out of this Book and all that is left is processed wood, with gilded edges, wrapped in leather covers. One Message The one thing I want you to see in this study is this fact. The Bible is a Book about the Lord Jesus Christ. How I wish I could get every man who claims to be a preacher to see this! With regard to the Book of God, Christ is “the key of knowledge”. Without the key, men can never unlock the Chest and discover its riches. They just fumble.

The Bible is not a book about science, but the Book about Christ. This is not a book about morality, but the Book about Christ. This is not a book about history, politics, philosophy, or law. It is not even a book about prophecy, church dogma, or theology. This is a HIM-BOOK. It is all about HIM, the Lord Jesus Christ.

It is not enough just to preach the Book, we are sent of God to preach the message of the Book, and the message of this Book is Jesus Christ and him crucified. There is not a page in this Book that does not speak of Christ, not a page! The Son of God tells us plainly that he is the message and theme of holy scripture, that he is the living Word of whom the written Word speaks. He said, “Search the scriptures; for in them ye think ye have eternal life: and they are they which testify of me” (John 5:39). “And beginning at Moses and all the prophets, he expounded unto them in all the scriptures the things concerning himself … And he said unto them, These are the words which I spake unto you, while I was yet with you, that all things must be fulfilled, which were written in the law of Moses, and in the prophets, and in the psalms, concerning me. Then opened he their understanding, that they might understand the scriptures, And said unto them, Thus it is written, and thus it behoved Christ to suffer, and to rise from the dead the third day: And that repentance and remission of sins should be preached in his name among all nations, beginning at Jerusalem” (Luke 24:27; Luke 24:44-47). The Apostle Paul shows us that the preaching of Christ is synonymous with preaching all the counsel of God, for Christ is all the counsel of God. In Acts 20:26-27 he said, to the Ephesian elders, “Wherefore I take you to record this day, that I am pure from the blood of all men. For I have not shunned to declare unto you all the counsel of God.” In 1 Corinthians 2:2 he wrote, to the Church at Corinth, “For I determined not to know any thing among you, save Jesus Christ, and him crucified.” In both places, he is telling us the same thing. Christ and him crucified, is all the counsel of God, for all that God Almighty has purposed, decreed, revealed and given to the sons of Adam is in Jesus Christ and him crucified. The Bible, the Word of God is a Book with one message, and that one message is redemption, righteousness, and eternal life in Christ. The Old Testament Prophecies The Old Testament scriptures speak of Christ, point us to Christ, and call us to faith in Christ. All the law, the prophets, and the psalms speak of our Redeemer. All the Old Testament declares, “The Redeemer is coming.” From the moment that God announced in the Garden of Eden that the Seed of the woman would crush the serpent’s head (Genesis 3:15), Christ was the central fact and figure of Old Testament prophecy. Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Moses, David, Solomon, and all the prophets spoke of him. Here are a few of the many prophetic statements that pointed directly to the coming of Christ, his glorious Person, and his redemptive work: Genesis 22:13-14; Genesis 49:10; Deuteronomy 18:15-18; Psalms 2:7-8; Psalms 45:6-7; Psalms 110:3; Proverbs 8:22-23; Son 1:2-4; Isaiah 53:8-11; Micah 5:2; Zechariah 12:10; Malachi 3:1. Job spoke of Christ as his Redeemer, whom he expected to see in his flesh in resurrection glory. Enoch prophesied of Christ’s glorious second advent, of his coming to the earth in the last day with ten thousands of his saints. The Old Testament Types In addition to the direct prophecies about the coming of Christ, God gave numerous types and pictures to foreshadow his coming. The types of Christ and his redemptive works are so numerous that I cannot begin to name them But let me mention just a few. They may be divided into three different categories. Typical People Adam (Romans 5:14), Noah (Hebrews 11:7), Melchisedec (Hebrews 7:1-3), Moses (Deuteronomy 18:15-18), Aaron (Hebrews 5:1-5), Joshua (Hebrews 4:1-9), Boaz (Rth 2:1; Rth 3:18), David (Acts 2:25-36), Solomon (1 Kings 10:1-24). Typical Things Noah’s Ark (Genesis 6), The Ram Caught in a Thicket (Genesis 22:8-13), Jacob’s Ladder (John 1:51), The Brazen Serpent (John 3:14-16), The Paschal Lamb (1 Corinthians 5:7), The Scapegoat (Leviticus 16:21), The Manna (John 6:32-33), The Smitten Rock (1 Corinthians 10:4), The Altar of Sacrifice (Hebrews 13:10), The Mercy-seat (1 John 2:1-2). Typical Places The Tabernacle (John 1:14), The Temple (John 2:18-20), The Cities of Refuge (Hebrews 6:18). The lists could be greatly expanded.[12] I have not even mentioned all the instituted, ceremonial types, the sabbath days, and the many other instituted types of the Old Testament, all of which pointed to the Person and work of Christ as our Mediator. “Let no man therefore judge you in meat, or in drink, or in respect of an holyday, or of the new moon, or of the sabbath days: Which are a shadow of things to come; but the body is of Christ” (Colossians 2:16-17). [12] Peter in Acts 2, Stephen in Acts 7, and Paul in Acts 13 delivered sermons that summarized the entire history of the Old Testament. And the subject of each of their sermons was the Lord Jesus Christ. Jesus Christ and him crucified is the theme of holy scripture! “To him give all the prophets witness”! And to him give all the apostles witness. Every book of the Bible speaks of Christ. Let me show you just one thing revealed about Christ in each of the 66 books of holy scripture. Christ is the theme of every text, the subject of every page, and the message of every subject set forth in holy scripture. But space will permit me to show you just one thing revealing Christ in every book of the Bible. In Genesis he is the Seed of the Woman. In Exodus he is the Paschal Lamb. In Leviticus he is the Atonement for Sin. In Numbers he is the Brazen Serpent. In Deuteronomy he is the City of Refuge. In Joshua he is Rahab’s Scarlet Cord. In Judges he is the Angel of the Lord. In Ruth he is our Kinsman Redeemer. In 1 Samuel he is the Slayer of our Enemies. In 2 Samuel he is the Gracious King. In 1 Kings he is the Builder of his Temple. In 2 Kings he is the Great Prophet. In 1 Chronicles he is the Ark of Blessing. In 2 Chronicles he is the Defender Of his People. In Ezra he is the Restorer of his People. In Nehemiah he is the Rememberer of his People. In Esther he is the Preserver of his People. In Job he is the Daysman. In Psalms he is the Good Shepherd. In Proverbs he is the Wisdom of God. In Ecclesiastes he is the Teacher of Wisdom. In Solomon’s Song he is the Beloved of his Church. In Isaiah he is the Substitute for Sinners. In Jeremiah he is the Lord our Righteousness. In Lamentations he is the Lord our Portion. In Ezekiel he is the Glory of the Lord. In Daniel he is the Messiah the Prince. In Hosea he is God my Husband. In Joel he is the Hope of his People. In Amos he is the Sifter of his People. In Obadiah he is the Searcher of Hearts. In Jonah he is the Sovereign Deliverer. In Micah he is Bethlehem’s Infant. In Nahum he is the Great One. In Habakkuk he is the Faithful One. In Zephaniah he is the Mighty One. In Haggai he is the Desire of All Nations. In Zechariah he is the Fountain Opened for Sinners. In Malachi he is the Sun of Righteousness. In Matthew he is the Son of David. In Mark he is the Son of man. In Luke he is the Son of God. In John he is the Lamb of God. In Acts he is the Ascended Lord. In Romans he is the Just God our Saviour. In 1 Corinthians he is the Power of God. In 2 Corinthians he is the Reconciler. In Galatians he is the End of the Law. In Ephesians he is the Effectual Saviour. In Philippians he is the Joy of Saints. In Colossians he is the Pre-eminent One. In 1 Thessalonians he is the Hope of Salvation. In 2 Thessalonians he is the Coming Lord. In 1 Timothy he is the Preacher’s Doctrine. In 2 Timothy he is the Eternal Surety. In Titus he is the Grace of God. In Philemon he is the Intercessor. In Hebrews he is the Fulfillment of the Law. In James he is the Giver of Grace. In 1 Peter he is the Effectual Redeemer. In 2 Peter he is the Longsuffering Lord. In 1 John he is the Propitiation for Our Sins. In 2 John he is the Doctrine of God. In 3 John he is the Truth of God. In Jude he is Our Security. In Revelation he is the Fulness of God If we would understand, profit from and rightly use the Word of God, we must understand everything written in the Sacred Volume as it relates to the glorious Person and saving work of the Lord Jesus Christ. Never be satisfied with your understanding of any text in the Book of God until in it you have “found him of whom Moses in the law, and the prophets, did write, Jesus”, the Christ, the Son of God. The Book of God is a Book about him! The New Testament The doctrine and message of the entire New Testament is the Lord Jesus Christ. We do not have two Bibles, the Old and the New. We have one Bible. God’s Word is one, with two distinct parts, the Old Testament and the New Testament. The Old Testament is the New Testament concealed. The New Testament is the Old Testament revealed. But the message in both the Old and the New is the same. The message is Christ. The four gospels give us four views of Christ. Matthew presents him as the promised King. Mark presents him as the Servant of God. Luke presents him as the Son of man. John presents him as the Son of God. The four gospels tell us that the Redeemer has come. The Book of Acts tells us that the Redeemer is enthroned. The Book of Acts demonstrates that our Lord Jesus Christ was the singular subject of preaching in the earliest days of Christianity. The words “preach”, “preached”, and “preaching” are used thirty-seven times in the Book of Acts. It is not insignificant that every time they are used the subject preached was Jesus Christ and the resurrection! If the Book of Acts is to be taken for our standard, it must be concluded that unless Christ has been preached no preaching has been done. That man who pretends to be a preacher but does not preach Christ and him crucified mocks the people who hear him, and rather than serving their souls he destroys them. The Epistles reveal and explain the mysteries of Christ and his gospel, proclaiming the Redeemer’s doctrine: ruin by the Fall, redemption by the blood, and regeneration by the Holy Spirit, showing us the universality of God’s mercy, love, and grace in Christ for chosen sinners out of every nation, kindred, tribe, and tongue. The Book of Revelation is a declaration of the sure triumph of Christ and his church by the gospel. The Book of Revelation tells us that the Redeemer is coming again. “Behold, he cometh with clouds; and every eye shall see him, and they also which pierced him: and all kindreds of the earth shall wail because of him” (Revelation 1:7). “And they sung a new song, saying, Thou art worthy to take the book, and to open the seals thereof: for thou wast slain, and hast redeemed us to God by thy blood out of every kindred, and tongue, and people, and nation; And hast made us unto our God kings and priests: and we shall reign on the earth. And I beheld, and I heard the voice of many angels round about the throne and the beasts and the elders: and the number of them was ten thousand times ten thousand, and thousands of thousands; Saying with a loud voice, Worthy is the Lamb that was slain to receive power, and riches, and wisdom, and strength, and honour, and glory, and blessing. And every creature which is in heaven, and on the earth, and under the earth, and such as are in the sea, and all that are in them, heard I saying, Blessing, and honour, and glory, and power, be unto him that sitteth upon the throne, and unto the Lamb for ever and ever. And the four beasts said, Amen. And the four and twenty elders fell down and worshipped him that liveth for ever and ever” (Revelation 5:9-14). Behold the glories of the Lamb Amidst his Father’s throne. Prepare new honours for his Name, And songs before unknown. Let elders worship at his feet, The church adore around, With vials full of odours sweet, And harps of sweeter sound. Those are the prayers of the saints, And these the hymns they raise; Jesus is kind to our complaints, He loves to hear our praise. Eternal Father, who shall look Into Thy secret will? Who but the Son should take the Book And open every seal? He shall fulfil Thy great decrees, The Son deserves it well; Lo, in his hand the sovereign keys Of heaven, and death, and hell! Now to the Lamb that once was slain Be endless blessings paid; Salvation, glory, joy remain Forever on Thy head. Thou hast redeemed our souls with blood, Hast set the prisoner free; Hast made us kings and priests to God, And we shall reign with Thee. The worlds of nature and of grace Are put beneath Thy power; Then shorten these delaying days, And bring the promised hour. Isaac Watts “And I heard as it were the voice of a great multitude, and as the voice of many waters, and as the voice of mighty thunderings, saying, Alleluia: for the Lord God omnipotent reigneth” (Revelation 19:6). The whole message of the Bible is Jesus Christ and him crucified. Christ is the living Word of whom the written Word speaks. If we could squeeze the whole Volume of Inspiration down to its very essence and substance, we would find Christ, only Christ, and nothing but Christ. Our Lord said, concerning the whole Volume of the holy scriptures, “They testify of me” (John 5:39). The purpose of the Holy Spirit in moving men to write the scriptures was to reveal Christ. That is the only purpose for which the Inspired Volume was given (John 16:14). To use the scriptures for any other purpose is to misuse and abuse them. The Ordinances Of The Gospel The only two ordinances of worship prescribed in the New Testament are designed to focus our hearts upon Christ. Baptism is a symbolic burial and resurrection with him (Romans 6:3-6). The Lord’s Supper is a symbolic remembrance of Christ and his great work of redemption as our Substitute (1 Corinthians 11:24-26). Christ is the message of the Book of God, in the Old Testament prophecies, in the Old Testament types, in the New Testament, and in the ordinances of divine worship. In the Book of God we read about Christ. In believer’s baptism we confess Christ. In the Lord’s Supper we remember Christ. “And many other signs truly did Jesus in the presence of his disciples, which are not written in this book: But these are written, that ye might believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God; and that believing ye might have life through his name” (John 20:30-31). I cannot find better words to express what I so earnestly want you to see than these, which were spoken by C. H. Spurgeon to his congregation in London many years ago … “Brethren, we should always read scripture in this light; we should consider the Word of God to be as a mirror into which Christ looks down from heaven; and, then, we looking into it see his face reflected as in a glass darkly, it is true, but still in such a way as to be a blessed preparation for seeing him as we shall see him face to face. This Volume contains Jesus Christ’s letters to us, perfumed by love. These pages are the garments of our King and they all smell of myrrh, and aloes, and cassia. Scripture is the golden chariot in which Jesus rides, and it is paved with love for the daughters of Jerusalem. The scriptures are the swaddling bands of the holy child, Jesus; unroll them, and you find your Saviour.” When you read the Word of God, look for Christ. When you study the Word of God, study Christ. When you talk about the Word of God, talk of Christ. When you live by the Word of God, live Christ. And when you preach the Word of God, preach Christ. Preach Christ The American Puritan, Cotton Mather, instructed his students with these wise and needful words of counsel “Among all the subjects with which you feed the people of God, I beseech you, let not the true Bread of Life be forgotten; but exhibit as much as you can of the glorious Christ unto them; yea, let the motto upon your whole ministry be, ‘Christ is all!’” What a blessing it would be if every man who claims to speak for God, who claims to be a gospel preacher, would heed those words! How blessed the church of God would be if those who fill her pulpits were determined to preach and teach nothing but Jesus Christ and him crucified! That was Paul’s determination (1 Corinthians 2:2). It ought to be every preacher’s determination. Any man who is sent of God to preach is sent of God to preach Christ crucified, always, in all places, in all his fulness (1 Corinthians 1:17-24). Christ crucified is “all the counsel of God” (Acts 20:27). He is the singular subject of holy scripture. He is the sum and essence of all true doctrine. He is the life of all gospel ordinances. He is the secret ingredient of all true worship. He is the Mercy-seat in whom God meets with men. He is the motive of all godliness, obedience, service, and devotion. He is the reward of heavenly glory. Jesus Christ is our God. Jesus Christ is our Saviour. And Jesus Christ is salvation. He is the Way to heaven; and he is Heaven. He is the Revealer of truth, and he is Truth. He is the Giver of Life; and he is Life. “Christ is all”! When we talk about divine sovereignty, we are declaring that Jesus Christ is Lord. When we proclaim God’s glorious work of predestination, we are showing how that sinners have been predestinated to be conformed to the image of Christ. God’s election is his choice of some to everlasting salvation in Christ and for Christ’s sake. Total depravity, a thoroughly biblical doctrine, is God’s revelation of our need of Christ. Limited atonement is the biblical assurance of effectual redemption and grace by Christ, the declaration that all for whom Christ died shall be saved. Irresistible grace, or effectual calling, is the almighty, irresistible revelation of Christ in the soul by the Holy Spirit, which causes the chosen to come to him.

Regeneration is the implanting of Christ in us. Justification is the imputation of Christ’s righteousness to all his redeemed. Faith is trusting Christ. Sanctification is Christ being formed in us, begun in regeneration and consummated in glorification. Perseverance is Christ holding our hearts by grace and keeping us in life and faith. Baptism is the believer’s public confession of faith in Christ.

Being symbolically buried in the watery grave and raised with him, we confess our faith in his finished work of redemption as our Substitute. The Lord’s Supper is our blessed remembrance of Christ. Eternal life is knowing Christ. Heaven is being with Christ and like Christ perfectly and forever. Preaching is telling people about Christ. Anything else is not preaching.

Call it what you may; but it is not preaching! “Ought not Christ to have suffered these things, and to enter into his glory?”

Luke 24:26

Chapter 59 The Necessity Our Lord Jesus is walking along the Emmaus Road, talking to two of his disciples, who are terribly perplexed by the fact that he had been delivered by the chief priests unto Pilate, condemned and crucified. The risen Redeemer was standing before them, and they said, “We had trusted.” How sad! Had they given up their trust? Were they now saying, “We trust him no more”? “We had trusted that it had been he which should have redeemed Israel.” In Luke 24:25-26 our Saviour answers them with a word of stern reproof and blessed instruction. Here is his word of reproof. “Then he said unto them, O fools, and slow of heart to believe all that the prophets have spoken” (Luke 24:25). The most foolish, God dishonouring thing in this world is unbelief. And when that unbelief is found in his own, it is even more foolish and more God dishonouring! That is our Saviour’s word of stern reproof. Let us lay it to heart. But I want to call your attention to the word of instruction found in Luke 24:26. It is cast in the form of a two part question “Ought not Christ to have suffered these things, and to enter into his glory?” Our Lord Jesus here asserts again what he had so often told them, that there was an imperative, an absolute necessity that he suffer all that he suffered in Gethsemane, Gabbatha, and Golgotha. And he tells them that one aspect of that necessity was the fact that he could never have entered into his glory had he not suffered all those things as our Surety, Substitute, and Saviour. God’s Greatest Work Without question, the most wondrous of all God’s works is the work of redemption. When we attempt to contemplate what that work involved, we are lost in astonishment. When we think of the unutterable depths of shame and sorrow into which the Lord of glory entered to save us, we are awed and staggered. A. W. Pink said: “That the eternal Son of God should lay aside the robes of his ineffable glory and take upon him the form of a servant, that the Ruler of heaven and earth should be ‘made under the law’ (Galatians 4:4), that the Creator of the universe should tabernacle in this world and ‘have not where to lay his head’ (Matthew 8:20), is something which no finite mind can comprehend; but where carnal reason fails us, God-given faith believes and worships.” As we trace the path of our Saviour from the throne of life to the tomb of death and behold him who was rich, for our sakes, becoming poor, that we through his poverty might be made rich, we cannot fathom the depths of the wonders before us. We know that every step in the path of our Redeemer’s humiliation was ordained in the eternal purpose of God. Yet, it was a path of immeasurable sorrow, unutterable anguish, ceaseless ignominy, bitter hatred, and relentless persecution that, at last, brought the Beloved Son of God, the Darling of heaven, to suffer the painful, shameful death of the cross. Who could ever have imagined such things as these? Standing at the foot of the cross, as I behold the Holy One nailed to the cursed tree, covered with his own blood and the spit of an enraged mob, made sin, forsaken, and cursed of God his Father, yet, realizing that this is the work of God’s own hand, I am lost in astonishment. I am filled with awe (2 Corinthians 5:21; Galatians 3:13). Samuel Stennett wrote: Yonder, amazing sight, I see! The incarnate Son of God Expiring on the cursed tree, And weltering in his blood. Behold, a purple torrent run Down from his hands and head, The crimson tide puts out the sun; His groans awake the dead. The trembling earth, the darkened sky, Proclaim the truth aloud; And with the amazed centurion, cry, “This is the Son of God”! A Question Awed as I am with reverence for my crucified Lord, still there is a question that I cannot suppress, a question that reason and sound judgment cannot fail to ask. The question is, Why? Why did the Son of God suffer such a death? Why did God so torment his beloved Son and kill him in such an horribly ignominious way? Was it to save my soul? I know that he did so that I might live. He suffered, the Just for the unjust, that he might bring me to God. But was there no other way for the omnipotent God to save me? Was all this done to demonstrate the greatness of God’s love to me? Indeed it was (Romans 5:8; 1 John 3:16; 1 John 4:9-10). Jesus, who left his throne on high, Left the bright realms of bliss, And came to earth to bleed and die, Was ever love like this? But, surely, God could have revealed his love to me in some other way. Why did he slay his Son? What necessity was there for the Son of God to suffer and die upon the cursed tree? Only one answer can be found to that question. The justice of God had to be satisfied. There was no necessity for God to save anyone. Salvation is altogether the free gift of his grace. But, having determined to save his elect from the ruins of fallen humanity, the only way God could save his people and forgive their sins was by the death of Christ. “Without shedding of blood is no remission” (Hebrews 9:22). The justice of God had to be satisfied in order for God to save his people; and the only thing that could ever satisfy the justice of God is the blood of Christ. I want to show you from the Word of God both the necessity and the blessedness of Christ’s satisfaction of divine justice by his death on the cross. This is a doctrine of utmost importance. It is the glory of the gospel and the revelation of the glory of our God. It is the satisfaction of divine justice by the death of Christ that distinguishes Christianity from all other religions. Take the cross out of Christianity, take away the satisfaction of Christ by his death upon the cross, and Christianity is of no more value and benefit to the souls of men than Judaism, Islam, or Hinduism. It is of paramount importance, because without satisfaction for sin, there could be no salvation from it. Among the countless damnable heresies that are embraced and taught by men, none is more common and none so destructive to the souls of men as the denial of Christ’s satisfaction (Hebrews 10:26-29).[13] [13] “Unholy” in Hebrews 10:29 means “common”. Those who make the blood of Christ a common thing, without efficacy, without merit, are without hope! There is no other sacrifice for sin. Hebrews 2:9-10 Perhaps Hebrews 2:9-10 states the necessity of Christ’s satisfaction for sin more clearly than any other single text. In it we see that he is Jesus, our Saviour, the Christ of God. We see in him the fulness of the Godhead (Colossians 2:9), the fulness of grace (John 1:14; Colossians 1:19), and the fulness of redemption (Ephesians 1:7). We see him as Christ, our Redeemer, the Son of God, the Son of man, the Lord our Righteousness. We see him as our all (1 Corinthians 1:31). Do you see him? If you do, flesh and blood has not revealed him to you, but our Father in heaven. “Who was made a little lower than the angels.” He who made the angels was made a little lower than the angels. He was made of the seed of woman, made to be a man, “made under the law, to redeem them that were under the law” (Galatians 4:4-5). This is the reason for the incarnation. This is why Christ was made a little lower than the angels … “For the suffering of death.” The Son of God came into this world for the purpose of suffering death. He did not come to be an earthly monarch in Jerusalem. He did not come to establish a new religion. He did not come to be a reformer, or a mere example of morality and virtue. Christ, the Son of God, became a man so that he might die in the place of men and redeem them. He came here to die, because there was no other way for his people to be saved and live. We see this too, since he suffered and died in the place of his people, the Lord Jesus Christ is now … “Crowned with glory and honour” (Philippians 2:8-11). Christ is exalted. That Man who died for us at Calvary is now crowned with glory, given all honour, as the Lord of all. The God-man, who died for us, now rules the world to save those people for whom he died (John 17:2; Romans 14:9). Now, look at the next line. Christ “was made a little lower than the angels for the suffering of death, that he by the grace of God should taste death for every man.” This statement, like all others, must be interpreted within its context and in the light of the entire Word of God. Is this a declaration that Christ died even for those for whom he refused to pray (John 17:9), for those who are not his sheep (John 10:11), for those who are vessels of wrath fitted to destruction (Romans 9:22), for those from whom he has hidden both his works and his grace (Matthew 11:20-25)? Of course not! Does this statement mean that Christ died for those who suffer the wrath of God in hell? No!

That would be a declaration that there are some for whom Christ shed his blood in vain and would be a denial of the efficacy of his atonement. What, then, is the meaning of this statement? “That he by the grace of God should taste death for every man.” Christ died not merely as a good example, or merely for the good of men, but as the divine Surety, in the room and place of men. However, the word “man” was added by our translators with no apparent reason, except to make the sentence read more easily. In the Greek text there is no word in this verse that should be translated “man”. The sentence literally should be translated, “That he by the grace of God should taste death for every”, or “for all”, or “for every one”. And the context makes it crystal clear that the Apostle was speaking of specific men. Our Lord Jesus Christ, by the grace of God, tasted death for every one of the sons he would bring to glory (Luke 24:10), for every one of the brethren he is not ashamed to own (Luke 24:11), for every member of the church, in the midst of which he will sing praise (Luke 24:12), for every one of the children God the Father had given him to save, for whose sake he assumed flesh and blood (Luke 24:13), for every one of Abraham’s seed, God’s elect, whom he took hold of to save (Luke 24:16). Why was the Son of God made so humble as to suffer and die for his people? What necessity was there for his humiliation and death in the room and stead of his people? Read Luke 24:10 … “For it became him.” It was necessary, if God would save sinners and bring them to glory, that the Son of God must suffer in their room and satisfy all that the law and justice of God could demand. The scriptures plainly declare that there was a necessity for the death of Christ (Matthew 16:21; John 3:14). It was necessitated by the decree of God (Acts 2:23), Christ’s covenant engagements as our Surety (John 10:17-18), the prophecies of the Old Testament (Matthew 26:54), and the election of grace. God did not have to save anyone; but since he has chosen to save some, the only way he could save them was by the satisfaction of justice, through the sacrifice of his own dear Son. When Paul says, “it became him”, that it was necessary for God to slay his Son to save his people, lest we begin to think that this implies some weakness in God, he immediately describes our God with these words “for whom are all things and by whom are all things.” Here the Lord God is described as that One who is both the ultimate end and first cause of all things (Romans 11:36). All things are for him. He made all things for himself, for the glorifying of all the perfections of his nature (Proverbs 16:4; 2 Corinthians 5:18). And all things are by him. All things in nature, all things in providence, all things in redemption, and all things in grace are the work of our God. I repeat myself deliberately, God did not have to save anyone; but since he has chosen to save some, the only way he could save them was by the satisfaction of justice through the sacrifice of his own dear Son. “In bringing many sons unto glory.” This is an intimation of God’s gracious designs toward his elect. Those whom Christ came to save are many, and they were already the sons of God by eternal adoption and divine predestination long before Christ came to redeem them (Galatians 4:4-6). In the covenant of grace our God declared, “I will be their Father, and they shall be my sons and daughters.” We were chosen to be the children of God from eternity. We were given power and authority to become the sons of God, and given the nature of God’s sons in regeneration (John 1:12-13). And we were openly and manifestly declared to be the sons of God when we believed by faith in Christ. Our faith in Christ does not make us God’s sons.

Adoption did that. Faith receives the adoption of sons and looks upon God through Christ as our Father (Galatians 4:6; Romans 8:15-16). The sons of God are many, a great multitude which no man can number, ten thousand times ten thousand. The many chosen of God. The many for whom Christ gave his life a ransom. The many for whom his blood was shed for the remission of sins. The many made righteous by his obedience. The many for whom many mansions are prepared in the Father’s house. John Gill wrote: “God has chosen them ‘through sanctification of the Spirit and belief of the truth’, to the obtaining of the glory of the Lord Jesus Christ! Christ died for them, and by means of his death, they receive the promise of eternal inheritance, and the inheritance itself. God calls them by his grace to eternal glory, and makes them ‘meet to be partakers of the inheritance of the saints in light.’” The Person by whom God’s elect are brought to glory is Christ, “the Captain of their salvation.” He is called “the Captain” of our salvation because he is the One in charge of it, the One responsible for it, the One whose arm alone has accomplished it. As the Captain of our salvation, the Lord Jesus Christ was “made perfect through sufferings”. That is to say, the way, the means by which our great Saviour saved us and perfected, or completed his work as the Captain of our salvation was by his perfect sufferings and death as our Substitute. Apart from his sufferings for the satisfaction of justice there could have been no salvation. “Though he were a Son, yet learned he obedience by the things which he suffered: And being made perfect, he became the Author of eternal salvation unto all them that obey him” (Hebrews 5:8-9). It was necessary for Christ to suffer and die on the cross under the wrath of God to save his people. He did not have to save us. But if he saved us he could not save in any other way. Justice demanded it (Proverbs 16:6; Proverbs 17:15; Romans 3:24-26; 1 Peter 3:18). This is what the Spirit of God teaches us in Hebrews 2:9-10 : since it was the design, purpose, and pleasure of the Almighty to bring some of the sons of men into eternal glory and happiness as the sons of God by Christ, it was necessary for Christ, the Son of God, to suffer all that the law and justice of God required for the punishment of sin, dying under the wrath of God as our Substitute. I am not saying that the satisfaction of Christ procures the love of God for us. It does not. The death of Christ is the fruit of God’s love, not the cause of it. But I am saying, it is the death of Christ and the satisfaction of justice by his death that opens the way into the embraces of God’s arms. We could never have been reconciled to God without the shedding of Christ’s blood. Gill again states: “Let me observe to you something relating to experience, which you would do well to lay up in your minds. It may be of use to you hereafter, when you may be tempted to doubt of your interest in Christ’s satisfaction. Have you any reason to believe that you have, at any time, had communion with God, in private or in public, in your closet, or in the family, or in the house of God, under any ordinance, either the ministry of the Word, or prayer, or the Supper of the Lord? Then you may be assured Christ has made satisfaction for you; or you would never have enjoyed such communion.” Six Statements Here are six statements that simply cannot be refuted and must not be ignored. First, all men and women by nature, since the fall of our father Adam, are sinners, alienated from God. “All have sinned and come short of the glory of God” (Romans 3:23). As sinners, we are alienated from the life of God and have become enemies unto God. The wages of our sin and enmity to God is death. Second, every transgression must receive its just recompense of reward (Hebrews 2:2). All sin must be punished, either in the sinner or in the sinner’s Substitute. The law, being broken, accuses of sin, condemns the sinner, and demands death. Unless satisfaction is made, the sentence of the law must be executed. The sanction of the law is death. It can never be abrogated, changed, altered, or abated. God will never relax his justice! “The soul that sinneth, it shall die”! (Ezekiel 18:2). But third … It is the will of God to save sinners. “He delighteth in mercy”! God has decreed the salvation of some. Christ came to save some. There are some people in this world who must be saved, because it is the will of God to save them; and God’s will cannot be frustrated (John 10:16). Every chosen sinner (2 Thessalonians 2:13-14), every predestined son (Romans 8:29-30), every heir of the covenant (Ephesians 1:3-7), and every child of Adam whose name was written in the Lamb’s Book of Life from the foundation of the world must be saved (Revelation 13:8). There is no possibility that even one of God’s elect will perish! However, fourth … It is impossible for a holy and just God to save any sinner apart from the satisfaction of justice (Hebrews 9:22). God declares, “I will by no means clear the guilty” (Exodus 34:7). I know that God is omnipotent, almighty, and sovereign. He does what he will! Nobody on this earth declares that glorious truth more fully, more frequently, or more forcibly than I do. But God cannot do that which is contrary to his nature and character. We do not rob God of his sovereignty when we repeat the declaration of scripture and say, “God cannot lie.” He who is the Truth cannot lie. Neither do we rob God of his sovereignty when we assert this truth of holy scripture: God cannot forgive sin without the satisfaction of justice. The just, holy, and true God must punish sin. Fifth, the only way the justice of God could ever be satisfied is by the substitutionary sacrifice of the Lord Jesus Christ (Job 34:23; Romans 3:24-26). And sixth … God could not die, and man could not satisfy; but the God-man both died and satisfied. Two facts demonstrate clearly that there was no other way for justice to be satisfied. Only the death of Christ upon the cross could do it. The love of God the Father for his Son proves it. Would God Almighty slay his darling Son, if there were any other way to save his people consistent with his justice? And the prayer of Christ in Gethsemane proves it (Matthew 26:39). If the salvation of his people could be accomplished by any means other than his death upon the cross, would not God the Father have granted his tormented Son the desire of his soul? What can justice satisfy? Nothing but the blood of Jesus! What can God’s law magnify? Nothing but the blood of Jesus! Oh, precious is the flow, That makes me white as snow! No other fount I know, Nothing but the blood of Jesus! Robert Lowry It is impossible for God in his holiness to punish any sinner for whose sins justice has been satisfied by the blood of Christ (Isaiah 53:11 Romans 8:1-4). The law has no claim upon an executed felon. Every sinner who trusts the Lord Jesus Christ has been chosen, redeemed, and called, and must be forever saved! Christ’s Glory There is something else suggested in Luke 24:26. Christ could not have entered into his glory except by his suffering and death as our Substitute, by which justice was satisfied, righteousness was brought in, his work was finished, and the people he came to save were saved. His question reads, “Ought not Christ to have suffered these things, and to enter into his glory?” We are convinced by Holy Spirit conviction of righteousness, because he has ascended to the Father (John 16:11; Romans 14:9; Philippians 2:8-11). What a horrible evil sin is. Nothing but the blood of Christ could make satisfaction for it. God Almighty will punish sin. The death of Christ as the sinner’s Substitute demonstrates the strictness of God’s holy law. Yet, there is a way open for sinners to come to God. Christ is the Way. He has made satisfaction for sin. If you trust him, if you come to God by faith in him, he made satisfaction for your sin. Let us ever admire and adore the perfections of our God (Psalms 85:10-11). Admire his love. Adore his mercy. Rejoice in his grace. Stand in awe of his wisdom, holiness, justice, and truth. All shine forth gloriously in the satisfaction of Christ. “For it became him, for whom are all things, and by whom are all things, in bringing many sons to glory, to make the Captain of their salvation perfect through sufferings.” Divine wisdom found a ransom for our souls in Christ. Holiness approved of it. Justice is satisfied with it. Truth proclaims it. “Ought not Christ to have suffered these things, and to enter into his glory?” Because he suffered, bled and died, Because he reigns, our God on High, Because He’s just to justify, Our Saviour shall be satisfied! “He shall see of the travail of his soul, and shall be satisfied.”

Luke 24:29

Chapter 60 “Abide With Us”Can the Son of God be forced to do anything? Can man compel the Christ of God, by any means, to anything? The answer to those questions may surprise you. As the Lord Jesus walked along the Emmaus road with these two disciples, when they got close to the village and started to turn in, “he made as though he would have gone further” (Luke 24:28). His feet were turned to go on down the road, but not his heart. His heart was still with them. He acted like he was going to leave them, because he wanted to constrain them to constrain him to abide with them. He wanted to make them want him. Examples There are other examples of this kind in the scriptures. You will remember that one dark night when the disciples were on the sea, a terrible storm arose. They were terrified. Suddenly, they saw a figure walking across the raging waves of the sea. Like here, the disciples did not know that it was their Saviour. As he approached their storm-tossed boat, it appeared that he was going to walk right by them. Then, “they cried out for fear.” As soon as he heard their cry, he stopped; and “straightway Jesus spake unto them, saying, Be of good cheer; it is I; be not afraid.” As the Lord Jesus made his way to Calvary, having set his face like a flint to go to Jerusalem, that he might suffer and die in our room and stead, nothing could stop him. Nothing could even cause him to take a backward glance over his shoulder, or break his stride. But, just as he was going out of Jericho, he heard a poor, blind beggar cry out, “Jesus, thou son of David, have mercy on me.” And, immediately, “Jesus stood still.” On another occasion, a poor, desperate Canaanite woman came to him crying, “Have mercy on me, O Lord, thou Son of David; my daughter is grievously vexed with a devil. But he answered her not a word” (Matthew 15:22-23). He made as though he did not hear her. Why was that ear, which was always open to the call of misery, closed to this woman? Why did he answer her not a word? It was because he wanted to open her heart wider, wide enough to receive the blessing he was about to bestow. That is often the way he works with us. Our blessed Saviour often makes it appear that he will leave us, or that he has left us, that he may graciously cause us to cry after him. Oh, how he loves for us to cry after him! Oh, how the Son of God loves for us to entreat him not to leave us! He does so, because he ever delights to abide with us. Our dear Lord often proves our love by withholding his mercies until we know our need of his mercy. He has promised to do us good. He has promised to bless us. He has promised that he will never leave us, nor forsake us. But he says, “I will yet for this be enquired of to do it” (Ezekiel 36:37). He loves to draw out our desires after him, because it is good for us, and because he delights to hear us express our need of him. That is how he dealt with Jacob at Peniel. Remember, it was not Jacob who wrestled with the Lord. It was the Lord who wrestled with Jacob. He had come for the purpose of blessing his chosen one; but he would not do so until Jacob had to have him. He said to Jacob, “Let me go, for the day breaketh.” But Jacob was in desperate need. He cried, “I will not let thee go, except thou bless me” (Genesis 32:26). And the Lord blessed him. We have another remarkable and instructive example of our Saviour’s gracious dealing in this manner with his chosen in the Son 5:2-16. I urge you to read that passage with great care, asking God the Holy Spirit to apply its message to your heart.[14] [14] This passage in the Song of Solomon (Luke 5:2-16) is of such tremendous importance that I encourage you to read my comments on it in my Discovering Christ in the Song of Solomon, (Published by Evangelical Press, Darlington, England - 2005), as well as those by Roger Ellsworth in He is Altogether Lovely (Published by Evangelical Press, Darlington, England 1998), and John Gill’s Exposition of the Book of Canticles (Published by the Primitive Baptist Library of Carthage, Illinois - 1980). So it was here in Luke 24. As they drew near to Emmaus, our Lord “made as though he would have gone further”, because he wanted to constrain them to constrain him to abide with them. And so we read in our text, “they constrained him, saying, Abide with us: for it is toward evening, and the day is far spent. And he went in to tarry with them” (Luke 24:29). Christ, our Hope, our Strength, our God, You have redeemed us by Your blood; Through You alone we’re saved from sin; You’ve proved Yourself the sinner’s Friend! Often when gathered in this place, You’ve come with tokens of Your grace, And blessed the preaching of Your Word, Come again, beloved Lord! Enter our hearts and show Your face; Abide with us, dear Prince of Peace; Come now and make each heart Your own, Your house, Your temple, and Your throne! Keep us from grieving You with sin, Subdue our lusts and reign within; Abide with us for evermore; Make us abide in You, our Lord! “Abide with us.” That is my unceasing prayer. Oh, how I pray that he will abide with me, abide with my family, abide with the local church family he has given me, and abide with you, for without him we can do nothing. Without him, we are nothing! “They Constrained Him” “They constrained him.” What a remarkable word that is! The specific word here translated “constrained” is a very strong word. It means, “to compel by use of force.” It is only used in one other place in the scriptures. It is used in Acts 16:15, where Lydia constrained Paul and Silas to abide in her house. “They constrained him.” The words might be translated, “They held him by force.” How? By what force was the Lord of Glory constrained? How was he compelled? What force could force the Son of God to do anything? There is only one such force put before us in all the Book of God. Our Lord Jesus was constrained by the cry of these poor, needy souls, “Abide with us”. That cry constrained him to go in and “tarry with them”. He was not constrained by their faith. At the time, they did not know who he was. He was not constrained by any promise from his poor disciples. He was constrained by their need of him, by their felt need of that which only he could provide. So it is with us. “Abide With Us” His conversation had been so engaging, so heavenly and instructive, so sweet and delightful, so powerful and moving, so beneficial to their souls that they could not bear to have him part from them. So “they constrained him, saying, Abide with us.” This is not the Master speaking to the disciples, but the disciples to the Master. It is not the Lord Jesus that is standing at the door and saying, “Behold, I stand at the door, and knock: if any man hear my voice, and open the door, I will come in to him, and sup with him, and he with me.” It is a pair of disciples that is saying, “Come in with us, blessed of the Lord. ‘Abide with us.’” And, as he blessed Jacob before parting from him, so here he went in and sat down with them. When he did, he brought his blessing with him. He filled the house with the fragrance of his presence and the odour of the ointment of his grace. “He sat at meat with them” (Luke 24:30). He gave them bread to eat, bread he had blessed especially in their presence for them (Luke 24:30). He opened their eyes and caused them to know him (Luke 24:31). He caused their hearts to burn within them (Luke 24:32). “They constrained him, saying, Abide with us”, because they were not willing to part with him. O Spirit of God, give us grace that we may follow the example of these disciples. Abide with us, our Saviour, Let not Your mercy cease; From every foe defend us, And keep our souls in peace. Abide with us, our Saviour, To us open Your Word, That we may, now and ever, Here find our blessed Lord. Abide with us, our Saviour, And guide us in Your light; Increase to us Your favour, And save us by Your might. Joshua Stegmann Our Need Our blessed Saviour heals as many as have need of healing (Luke 9:11). He visits those who need him, and abides with them as long as he is needed. But he always departs from those who have no need for him (Matthew 19:1). If we would constrain the Lord Jesus to abide with us, we must, like these disciples, pour out our hearts’ need to him (Job 23:4; Isaiah 43:26). Saviour, “abide with us”, because these are days of great trouble, heaviness and sorrow. “Abide with us”, because this world is empty without you. Life is death, if you are not with us. This world would be an empty place, a house left desolate without you, without the sound of your voice, or your footsteps. All is emptiness and cold without you. It is Christ who fills our lives, rejoices our hearts, and lights up our homes. He, and he alone gives us gladness in this wilderness. O blessed Saviour, “abide with us”! “Abide with us, for it is toward evening, and the day is far spent”, because all is darkness without you. We do not know what lies before us, what our future is to be. We know the past, we know the present, but the future is hidden from us. For that future and all its uncertainties, we need you to be our Guide and our Protector. We need you to light up our path. We need you to defend us and keep us. We need you to comfort and cheer us. We need you to hold us by the right hand of your righteousness. We need you to carry us across the swelling Jordan. We need you to present us to the Father. Who will fight for us, who will deliver us and keep us to the last, in all changes, trials and sorrows? Abide with us. Leave us not, neither forsake us, O God of our salvation, O Rest of the weary, O Light of the dark, O Saviour of the lost, O Joy of the sorrowful, O Helper of the helpless, unchanging Companion, Friend and Brother, O blessed Kinsman, with whom there is no variableness nor shadow of turning, the same yesterday, today, and forever, “abide with us”! Lead us out, lead us in, lead us along the way, lead us beside the still waters, lead us into your banqueting house, and let your banner over us be love! “Abide with us”, because earth’s night is at hand. The sun of time is going down behind the hills. The end of all things is at hand. The day of the Lord hastens on. Satan is in a rage, “because he knoweth that he hath but a short time.” Antichrist is rampant everywhere. Evil men and seducers wax worse and worse. Perilous times have come. Wars and rumours of wars cover the earth. Earthquakes and tsunamis, tornadoes and hurricanes cause men’s hearts everywhere to fail them for fear. “If the foundations be destroyed, What shall the righteous do?” We can do nothing except constrain the Lord Jesus, crying, “abide with us”! “Abide with us” in all your mercy, love and grace, in all your strength and help, in all your joy and peace. “Abide with us” forever. Swift to its close ebbs out life’s little day, Earth’s joys grow dim; its glories pass away! Change and decay in all around I see. Thou Who changest not, abide with me! Henry F. Lyte “He Went In” I cannot fail to call your attention to the last sentence of Luk 24:29. “And he went in to tarry with them.” Like these disciples, in the Song of Solomon we see the church in great importunity, seeking her Beloved. And when she found him, she constrained him to abide with her. May God the Holy Spirit ever show us our constant need of our Saviour and constrain us to constrain him to “abide with us”. “It was but a little that I passed from them, but I found him whom my soul loveth: I held him, and would not let him go, until I had brought him into my mother’s house, and into the chamber of her that conceived me. I charge you, O ye daughters of Jerusalem, by the roes, and by the hinds of the field, that ye stir not up, nor awake my love, till he please” (Son 3:4-5). Let us, by crying constantly to our Saviour, constrain him to “abide with us”.

Luke 24:36-53

Chapter 62 Risen But Still The SameWe generally assume that what a person has been he is and will be. With men that is sometimes a mistake. Men do change and are changed. But, with regard to the Lord Jesus Christ, that is neither an assumption nor a mistake. He does not change and cannot be changed. What he has been he is now, and he shall forever be. Our Lord Jesus Christ is “the same, yesterday, and today, and forever.” He declares, “I am the Lord, I change not; therefore ye sons of Jacob are not consumed.” It is he alone of whom it can be said, he “is, and was, and is to come.” The two disciples who had walked with our risen Saviour along the Emmaus road, after the Lord Jesus made himself known to them, were so overwhelmed with joy that they seem to have forgotten why they had come to Emmaus. They immediately returned to Jerusalem to tell their brethren the good news (Luke 24:33; Luke 24:35). Then, in Luke 24:36 we read, “And as they thus spake, Jesus himself stood in the midst of them.” The disciples were gathered together, probably in the same large, upper room in which the Lord Jesus had instituted the Lord’s Supper. How troubled and perplexed they were. Then, “as they thus spake, Jesus himself stood in the midst of them.” Our blessed Saviour loves to meet with his saints when they are gathered together. He delights to reveal himself to us when we most need him. In Luke 24:36-53 Luke gives us a brief summary of those forty days between the resurrection and the ascension of our Redeemer. During those forty days, “he shewed himself alive after his passion by many infallible proofs, being seen of them forty days, and speaking of the things pertaining to the kingdom of God: And, being assembled together with them, commanded them that they should not depart from Jerusalem, but wait for the promise of the Father, which, saith he, ye have heard of me” (Acts 1:3-4). Peace Bestowed Let us look at the first appearance of our risen Lord in the midst of his assembled church described in Luke 24:36-43. “Jesus himself stood in the midst of them”, uninvited, unexpected, undeserved, but most welcome. He stood in the centre to be near to them all. He appeared in the midst of them to bestow peace upon them all (Luke 24:36-43). “And as they thus spake, Jesus himself stood in the midst of them, and saith unto them, Peace be unto you. But they were terrified and affrighted, and supposed that they had seen a spirit. And he said unto them, Why are ye troubled? and why do thoughts arise in your hearts? Behold my hands and my feet, that it is I myself: handle me, and see; for a spirit hath not flesh and bones, as ye see me have. And when he had thus spoken, he showed them his hands and his feet. And while they yet believed not for joy, and wondered, he said unto them, Have ye here any meat? And they gave him a piece of a broiled fish, and of an honeycomb. And he took it, and did eat before them.” The Lord Jesus had now finished his blessed work of redemption. He had entered in once into the holy place. He had, with his own blood, obtained eternal redemption for his elect. And now he appeared in the midst of his disciples in exactly the same character and nature in which he had walked with them before, to bestow exactly the same blessing he had bestowed upon them in the days of his earthly ministry. Our risen Redeemer is the same in his person and grace as he has ever been. “Jesus himself stood in the midst of them, and saith unto them, Peace be unto you” (See John 14:27). This is particularly blessed when we remember the men to whom these words were addressed. Our Lord Jesus spoke these words to those very same disciples who three days before had shamefully forsaken him and fled. They had broken their promises. They had forgotten their professed readiness to die with him. They had been scattered, “every man to his own”, and left him to die alone. One of them had even denied him three times. They were all “backsliding children” (Jeremiah 3:22). But the Lord Jesus had promised, “I will heal their backsliding, I will love them freely” (Hosea 14:4). Therefore, “Jesus himself stood in the midst of them, and saith unto them, Peace be unto you.” Not a word of rebuke is spoken. Not a single sharp reproof fell from his lips. Calmly and quietly he appeared in the midst of them, and spoke peace. “Peace be unto you”! How free his love must be! Truly, his is love that passes knowledge! It is his glory to pass over iniquity, transgression, and sin! He “delighteth in mercy.” He is far more willing to forgive than we are to be forgiven, and far more ready to pardon than we are to be pardoned. There is in his great, almighty, infinite heart infinite forgiveness. Though our sins have been as scarlet, he makes them as white as snow. He has blotted them out, cast them behind his back, buried them in the depths of the sea, and remembers them no more. Though, like these poor disciples, we are constantly stumbling and falling, constantly “backsliding children”, his forgiveness is free, full, and undeserved forgiveness. The peace and forgiveness he speaks to our troubled hearts is the same peace he spoke to them. It is peace obtained by the blood of his cross, flowing from our crucified, risen Saviour, the peace of complete redemption, perfect atonement and absolute forgiveness. He speaks peace to our souls, saying, “I have blotted out thy sins! … Fury is not in me”! Christ is the Saviour who gives peace to needy sinners. In his pierced hands there is mercy enough and to spare. He raises the dead, revives the languishing, restores the fallen, and heals the wounded. There is forgiveness with him, that he may be feared (Psalms 130:4). Peace Experienced Though he spoke peace, these poor souls were still incapable of enjoying it. “They were terrified and affrighted” (Luke 24:37). Then our blessed Saviour gave these poor, troubled souls undeniable proof of his accomplished redemption, by which he assured their hearts, causing them to experience the peace he spoke (Luke 24:38-43). “And he said unto them, Why are ye troubled? and why do thoughts arise in your hearts? Behold my hands and my feet, that it is I myself: handle me, and see; for a spirit hath not flesh and bones, as ye see me have. And when he had thus spoken, he showed them his hands and his feet. And while they yet believed not for joy, and wondered, he said unto them, Have ye here any meat? And they gave him a piece of a broiled fish, and of an honeycomb. And he took it, and did eat before them.” It is one thing to hear the words, “Peace be unto you”, but it is something else to experience peace in your soul. And our Saviour causes his own to experience the peace he gives. He does not just say, “Have peace.” He causes us to know his peace in the blessed experience of grace, in the sweet experience of knowing him. He gives us peace! He said, “Behold my hands and feet … touch me and see.” He stood before them, stretched out his nail pierced hands, and pointed to his wounded feet, through which the nails had passed, by which his body had been fastened to the cursed tree. Then he took “a piece of broiled fish and of an honeycomb … and did eat before them.” By these things, the Lord Jesus removed all their doubt and all their fear. So it is with us. We enjoy the sweet peace of redemption, forgiveness, and everlasting salvation as we handle our Saviour personally by faith in the sweet experience of his grace (1 John 1:1-3). Those very same wounds, with which our Redeemer gave peace to these disciples, convincing them of his accomplished redemption and of his triumph over death by his resurrection, are the wounds he perpetually and everlastingly spreads before our Father in heaven for us. There, as our mighty Advocate and Great High Priest, our Saviour pleads the merit of his sin-atoning blood and substitutionary death for our everlasting salvation. Yes, the crucified, risen Christ has returned to heaven, “to appear in the presence of God for us” (Hebrews 9:24). His blood speaks to God for us (Hebrews 12:24). There he stands forever the “Lamb which had been slain” (Revelation 5:6). Christ is our great High Priest before the mercy-seat. He has our names engraved upon his heart as he stands before God, making intercession for us (Exodus 28:29-30). That which the saints of old passionately desired and looked for has come to fruition in the intercession of our mighty Advocate. He has set us as a seal upon his heart, as a seal upon his arm, because of his love that is stronger than death (Son 8:6). What a blessed encouragement this is to me in times of spiritual barrenness and leanness of soul! There is One whose pierced hands and side plead for me, when I have no power to plead for myself. “If any man sin, we have”, says John, “an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous; and he is the propitiation for our sins” (1 John 2:1-2). Our Lord might have commanded his disciples to believe that he had risen. He might have sharply reproved their unbelief. Instead, in great mercy, he stooped to their need. He stooped to their weakness, and said, “Why are ye troubled? and why do thoughts arise in your hearts? Behold (literally: you shall behold!) my hands and my feet, that it is I myself: handle me, and see (literally: you shall see!); for a spirit hath not flesh and bones, as ye see me have” (Luke 24:38-39). What a great example our Saviour is to us in all things. When we are dealing with one another, let us ever remember his gracious dealings with us. Weak disciples are disciples still. Weak brethren are brethren still. They need to be taught and led with patience, not upbraided and handled roughly. To the weak, let us become as weak that we might minister to the weak (1 Corinthians 9:22). Christ in the Midst Luke 24:36-43 describe our Lord’s first appearance to his assembled church after the resurrection. Here we see the Lord Jesus Christ in the midst of his brethren, assembled with his saints. He appeared in their midst, he visited his church, when his disciples had acted very shamefully, fleeing from him at his betrayal and deserting him at his trial. They were unprepared and unbelieving, doubting his promise and refusing the testimony of his messengers. They greatly needed him, for they were like sheep without a shepherd. Yet, they had come together in his name, as his disciples, in loving memory of him. They lamented his absence and greatly desired him. Some among them testified that they had been with him, and told others what they saw, experienced, and heard him speak. When he appeared in their midst, he spoke peace to his disciples, showed himself to them, permitted each of them to handle him, and proved himself to them again. Are not we in the same condition as these disciples? May we not hopefully look for our Lord Jesus to appear in our midst? This is what we miss when we absent ourselves from the assembly of his saints. There was one disciple, a true disciple, a true believer, who was not present at this assembly. Thomas was not with his brethren in the house of God. We are not told why he was not present; but he was not there (John 20:24). Perhaps he thought he had something more important to do. Perhaps he was overcome with unbelief.

Perhaps he was in a very low condition. We do not know. But this we do know: when his Redeemer appeared in the midst of his brethren, Thomas was not there. I do not know, but I doubt Thomas ever missed another service. When you absent yourself from the house of God, you absent yourself from the ministry of the Word and the fellowship of your family. And you may absent yourself from the blessedness of Christ’s manifest presence, from the indescribable privilege of seeing him, hearing him, handling him, and feasting with him. Christ’s Doctrine In the next paragraph (Luke 24:44-48) our Lord Jesus gave his disciples a summary of his doctrine. He summarized everything he had taught them while he walked with them in the flesh. “And he said unto them, These are the words which I spake unto you, while I was yet with you, that all things must be fulfilled, which were written in the law of Moses, and in the prophets, and in the psalms, concerning me. Then opened he their understanding, that they might understand the scriptures, And said unto them, Thus it is written, and thus it behoved Christ to suffer, and to rise from the dead the third day: And that repentance and remission of sins should be preached in his name among all nations, beginning at Jerusalem. And ye are witnesses of these things.” First, in summarizing everything he had taught, the Lord Jesus now showed these disciples the meaning and message of the Old Testament scriptures. The risen Saviour is the same in his doctrine as he has ever been. “And he said unto them, These are the words which I spake unto you, while I was yet with you, that all things must be fulfilled, which were written in the law of Moses, and in the prophets, and in the psalms, concerning me” (Luke 24:44). The most casual reading of the gospel narratives makes it clear that these men knew the Old Testament very well. They knew how it was written by inspiration of God. They knew how it was compiled and preserved by divine providence. They knew its history and knew its letter. But its meaning and its message was hidden from their eyes, until the Saviour said, “Everything that you have read in the Old Testament, all the law, all the prophecies, all the types and ceremonies, all the rituals and sacrifices, and all the psalms and proverbs are about me.” Yet, even then, they did not understand his words. But “then opened he their understanding, that they might understand the scriptures.” The fact is no human being can understand the Book of God except as God himself gives him understanding. Spiritual discernment is the gift of God the Holy Spirit. A man can study Greek and Hebrew, learn everything there is to know about grammar, ancient biblical history, archaeology, philosophy, theology, hermeneutics, exegesis, and rhetoric, and still have absolutely no knowledge of holy scripture. The Bible is a Book of divine revelation that cannot be understood without divine illumination. Only God can take the things of God and show them to a man (1 Corinthians 2:9-15). Can you imagine what it must have been like to have been present, to have heard that sermon, and to have received that blessed enlightenment? What a moment it must have been! What awe the disciples must have felt! How differently the Saviour’s words must have sounded! How majestic, how heavenly, how powerful! They now heard him as their risen Redeemer, coming from the other world to open their understanding. Now, for the first time, they understood all that he had taught them. Now, for the first time, they understood the vast, infinite importance of his mission in coming into the world. Now, for the first time, they began to know the meaning of his infinite grace, everlasting love, and immutable mercy as the Christ of God, their God, their Redeemer, their Saviour, and their Lord and King! His Death Then, the Lord Jesus spoke to his disciples about his death on the cross. He had done so many, many times before (Matthew 16:21; Matthew 17:22-23; Matthew 20:18-19; Mark 8:31-32; Mark 9:31; Mark 10:33-34; Luke 18:31-33). He did not speak of his death as an unhappy misfortune, or as a thing to be lamented, but as a necessity. And said unto them, Thus it is written, and thus it behoved Christ to suffer, and to rise from the dead the third day” (Luke 24:46). There are three things revealed here that must be understood. These three things are vital. No one understands the Bible who does not understand these three things.

1. The death of Christ was according to the will and purpose of God. He was delivered to death “by the determinate counsel and foreknowledge of God” (Acts 2:23). He died in our place and room, as our Substitute, by the sovereign will and eternal decree of God, because “it pleased the Lord to bruise him.”
2. The death of God’s darling Son, the Lord Jesus Christ, was necessary for our salvation. Without the death of Christ, God’s law could never have been fulfilled, divine justice could never have been satisfied, sin could never have been put away, sinners could never have been pardoned, forgiven, justified, and made righteous before God, and God could never have shown mercy.
3. The cross of Christ was the only solution of a mighty difficulty, the only answer to that ancient question, “How can a man be just with God?” (Job 9:2). The cross untied the knot. It is the death of Christ upon the cursed tree that makes it possible for our God to be “a just God and a Saviour” (Isaiah 45:20). Because Christ once died, the Just for the unjust, that he might bring us to God, God is “just, and the Justifier” of the ungodly (Romans 3:26). It is only by the blood of Christ crucified that sinners can draw near to God with boldness, with full assurance of faith, in confident hope of eternal life. Christ, by suffering and dying as our Substitute in our stead, the just for the unjust, has made a way by which we can draw near to God. And his death guarantees that all for whom he suffered and died shall come to God by him! Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures (1 Corinthians 15:1-3). How did Christ die? He died voluntarily, by his own will. He said, “I lay down my life … The Good Shepherd giveth his life for the sheep.” Our Lord Jesus died vicariously, as our Substitute in the place of his elect (2 Corinthians 5:21). And he died victoriously, triumphantly, having accomplished all that he intended to accomplish, having obtained eternal redemption for his people (Galatians 3:13). The cross of Christ is all our hope, all our peace, all our salvation. The cross of our Lord Jesus Christ is the cancellation of all our debt, the restoration of all our loss, the redemption of all God’s elect. “God forbid that I should glory, save in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, by whom the world is crucified unto me, and I unto the world.” “I determined not to know any thing among you, save Jesus Christ, and him crucified.” Upon the cross I see him bleed, And by the sight from guilt am freed; Christ crucified removed my sin, And by his grace I’m born again. To see my Saviour as he rose Assures my faith, disarms my foes; Satan’s assaults I overcome, By pointing to my Saviour’s tomb. Exalted on his glorious throne, My Saviour makes my cause his own; No good can I now be denied, For Jesus lives, and will provide. He looks, with tender pity down, And holds for me the conqu’ror’s crown; Though pressed with griefs and cares before, My soul revives, nor asks for more. By faith I see the day at hand When in his presence I shall stand; Then it shall be my endless bliss, To see him where, and as he is. Repentance And Remission In Luke 24:47 our Lord Jesus goes on to tell us that he died as our sin-atoning Substitute, “that repentance and remission of sins should be preached in his name among all nations, beginning at Jerusalem.” Notice that our Saviour did not say that he died so that we could tell sinners to repent. Rather, he tells us that he died that we might proclaim repentance. There is a difference. When God commands all men everywhere to repent, he commands them to turn to him. But here our Saviour, by virtue of his death on the cross, commands us to preach repentance, that is to proclaim the turning of sinners to him. By virtue of his sin-atoning sacrifice, we proclaim liberty to the captives (Isaiah 61:1-3; Zechariah 9:11-12). The word repentance basically means “reversal”. And the gospel we preach proclaims a complete reversal. The repentance accomplished for us, the repentance we proclaim in the gospel is a reversal of all things for us by Christ (2 Corinthians 5:17). The repentance God commands of sinners is a reversal of our thoughts, minds, and attitudes about how sins are remitted. This proclamation of reversal is the blessed proclamation of the remission of sins. Everything has been reversed for us, because he has put away (remitted) our sins. His prisoners are sent forth out of their prison, because he has remitted their sins. “And ye”, you who have been turned to him by hearing him declare that he has put away your sins, “are witnesses of these things” (Luke 24:48). Every redeemed sinner is, in his place, Christ’s missionary, his witness, bearing his own testimony to his Saviour’s accomplishments, his grace, and the free forgiveness of sins found in him. Our Saviour commanded his disciples to preach the gospel everywhere, to all men, among all nations; and he said, “beginning at Jerusalem”. Robert Hawker wrote … “Those Jerusalem-sinners, whose hearts were to be called by sovereign grace on the then approaching day of Pentecost, were there; many of whom had joined the Scribes and Elders in his crucifixion, and were now triumphing in having shed his blood. Yet, to this Jerusalem, this slaughter-house of his Prophets, and himself also, Jesus will have the first proclamation of mercy in his death made! Oh! the riches of his grace! Oh! the boundless love of Christ, which passeth knowledge”! None are beyond the reach of grace. None are beyond the reach of omnipotent mercy. It is the glory of our Great Physician that he heals incurable cases. The things that are impossible to men are possible with Christ. Glorious End In Luke 24:50-53 Luke gives us a very brief description of our Saviour’s glorious end. “And he led them out as far as to Bethany, and he lifted up his hands, and blessed them. And it came to pass, while he blessed them, he was parted from them, and carried up into heaven. And they worshipped him, and returned to Jerusalem with great joy: And were continually in the temple, praising and blessing God. Amen.” Here, Luke takes one giant step, moving from the Lord’s resurrection to his ascension forty days later. Here he shows us in simple language the blessed, triumphant climax of our Redeemer’s work on this earth. Our risen Christ is the same in his resurrection glory as he has ever been (John 17:5). “He lifted up his hands and blessed them. And it came to pass, while he blessed them, he was parted from them.” He left them when in the very act of blessing them. The high priest in the Old Testament typified Christ in the lifting up of his hands to bless the people. He, however, prayed for the blessing of God upon his people. The Lord Jesus commands it. Our great High Priest ascended while blessing, as if to say that his blessing is forever. As with Manoah, he ascended in the sweet incense of his own sacrifice (Judges 13:19-20). The Lord Jesus was carried up to heaven, upon the merit of his own blood and righteousness as the Lamb of God slain for our sins, and accepted as our Forerunner to be the Anchor of our souls, to be our Advocate with the Father, and to assure us of our indestructible, everlasting salvation, security, and blessedness (Romans 8:31-39). When they saw him ascend, after hearing his words and receiving his blessing (his perpetual, unceasing, everlasting blessing), the redeemed of the Lord worshipped him and went away with great joy, because he had “opened their understanding”. Oh, may he do the same for you and me continually! If he will give us a conscious interest in his salvation, causing us to hear the word of the truth of the gospel of our salvation, we will worship him with great joy and put our own “Amen” to his blessed name and work. Coming Again “And while they looked stedfastly toward heaven as he went up, behold, two men stood by them in white apparel; Which also said, Ye men of Galilee, why stand ye gazing up into heaven? this same Jesus, which is taken up from you into heaven, shall so come in like manner as ye have seen him go into heaven” (Acts 1:10-11). The day will soon come when this same Jesus shall return from heaven in like manner as he ascended. He will come forth, like the Jewish high priest of old, to bless his people, to gather his saints together, and to restore all things (Leviticus 9:23; Acts 3:21). For that day, let us wait, “looking for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ unto eternal life.” Until that day, let us love and adore him, trust and serve him as his “witnesses of these things” to the praise of his glory.

Luke 24:50-53

Chapter 63 His Nail Pierced Hands Once every year, on the Day of Atonement in the Old Testament, the high priest would lay aside his glorious apparel and put on a common white robe and linen trousers, identifying himself with the common people. He would take the lamb appointed for sacrifice and slay it. He would go alone into the holy of holies with the blood of the lamb. There he would sprinkle the sacrificial blood upon the mercy-seat, which covered the ark of the covenant. That atoning sacrifice God required once every year for propitiation, so that the sins of the nation might be covered. Then, the high priest would put on his gorgeous garments again, the robes of fine linen, scarlet, and blue, with the sweet-sounding bells and pomegranates. He would put on his glittering breastplate and place the mitre on his head. He would come out in that gorgeous apparel as God’s high priest, lift up his hands, and bless the people of God in words like these “The Lord bless thee and keep thee: the Lord make his face to shine upon thee, and be gracious unto thee: the Lord lift up his countenance upon thee, and give thee peace” (Numbers 6:24-26). Type Fulfilled That elaborate ceremony was ordained of God to typify the work of Christ, that One who was to come who would be both the true Sacrifice and the true High Priest over the household of faith. We see that type beautifully fulfilled in Luke 24:50-53. Here we see the Lord Jesus Christ lifting up his hands as our glorious High Priest and blessing his people. Our Saviour had for a while laid aside his robe of glory and splendour, and veiled himself in human flesh. He offered himself, body, soul, and spirit, as a propitiatory, sin-atoning sacrifice to God. “By his own blood he entered once into the holy place, having obtained eternal redemption for us” (Hebrews 9:12). And now our great High Priest, just as he was ascending into heaven, lifted up his hands to bless his people. “And he lifted up his hands, and blessed them.” Let us now, as we conclude our study of Luke’s Gospel, focus our minds and our hearts on his nail pierced hands. Having spoiled the grave, our Lord proved his power over things that are under the earth. Tarrying for forty days among men after his resurrection, he claimed his power over the earth itself. Then he ascended up through the air to show that the dominion of the prince of the power of the air was broken. Finally, the Son of God entered again into the heaven of heavens, claiming his throne of total and universal sovereignty as our blessed God-man Mediator. From the lowest depths of the grave to the highest realms of glory, Jesus Christ reigns supreme over the vast domains, King of kings and Lord of lords. His Reasons Our Lord Jesus might have gone straight to heaven on the morning of his resurrection; but he had reasons for tarrying on the earth for forty days. I want to briefly point out some of the reasons why our Lord remained here for forty days after his resurrection. In the days of Noah the waters of God’s judgment overflowed the earth for forty days. Our Saviour was in the wilderness for forty days, where he was tempted of the devil. And now the victorious Christ tarries for forty days of triumph in the very place where he had fought the battle and won the victory. But why did he tarry here for those forty days? Those forty days were sufficient to prove to all mankind that he had truly risen from the dead. He came forth from the grave, not as some sort of phantom or ghost, but as a real man of flesh and bones. During this time, our Lord removed every lingering doubt from the minds of his disciples. He said, “Behold my hands and my feet, that it is I myself; handle me and see; for a spirit hath not flesh and bones, as ye see me have” (Luke 24:39). Again, he tarried here those forty days, because those instructions he had given to his disciples before his death needed a few finishing touches. He had yet many things to tell them, which they could not have understood before his death and resurrection. But, primarily, our Lord Jesus tarried here for forty days so that he might issue the commission his church must follow so long as the world stands. He said to Peter, “Feed my sheep … Feed my lambs.” He commanded them all saying, “Go ye into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature. He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved. He that believeth not shall be damned.” He would not make his departure from the world until his final orders had been given. The mighty Captain of our salvation marshalled his troops, set them in their ranks, and gave them their marching orders. He commanded them to march forward into battle, and onward to victory, with this word of promise “Lo, I am with you always, even unto the end of the world.” Then, just as he was leaving his troops upon the earth, and going up to assume his throne, “he lifted up his hands and blessed them.” Can you picture the scene? There is the Son of God with his apostles and disciples gathered around him. They have come out of Jerusalem to the Mount Olivet. Behind them was Jerusalem, the city left desolate and awaiting destruction, and the place called Calvary, where forty-three days earlier he had suffered, bled, and died as our Substitute. Just ahead were Bethany, the little village where he had performed the mighty miracle of raising Lazarus from the dead, and the home into which he had been so often received as a welcome Guest, the home of Martha, Mary and Lazarus. And just below them was the Garden of Gethsemane, where for our sakes he had wrestled with death and hell, sweating blood. We are not told all that took place that day; but it seems reasonable to me to suppose that our Lord must have sung a hymn with his beloved disciples. I imagine that there were some final, personal words to each of the disciples. He must have assured Peter, comforted James, inspired John, and encouraged Thomas. At any rate, he gave them his farewell message. Then, “he lifted up his hands, and blessed them.” While he was blessing them, he broke the law of gravity and began to rise. The disciples must have been astonished. He began to rise up to heaven, slowly, majestically, until he was almost out of sight. Then, the astonished disciples saw a cloud between them and their Saviour, and the Lord’s body was gone. “A cloud received him out of their sight.” Who knows what happened beyond that cloud? It was too glorious for human eyes to see, or for human ears to hear. But I think the angels of God must have begun to sing, “Lift up your heads, O ye gates; and be lift up, ye everlasting doors; and the King of glory shall come in”! One cried, “Who is the King of glory?” Another replied, “The Lord, strong and mighty, the Lord mighty in battle … The Lord of hosts, he is the King of glory.” And now the ascended Christ sits as a King and a Priest upon his throne. Lifted To Bless As he ascended, “he lifted up his hands and blessed them.” The hands of our Lord were lifted up to bless. Every blessing of divine grace flows to us freely from the nail pierced hands of the Son of God. Standing there upon the Mount of Olives, anticipating that glory which lay immediately before him, our Lord Jesus wanted to bless his disciples. He had opened his ministry with a proclamation of grace; and now his last act upon the earth is a benediction of grace. These uplifted hands are the hands of our Lord and Redeemer. He said to his troubled, fearful disciples, “Behold my hands.” When he had “showed them his hands”, their hearts were comforted and filled with joy. These are the hands of our sovereign Creator, our eternal Surety, and our blessed Saviour. These hands blessed the little children, stilled the tempest, saved perishing Peter, and raised the widow’s son. These hands assured doubting Thomas and comforted the troubled disciples. Are you in need? Are you in trouble? Is your heart anxious, burdened, and pressed down with care? Your Saviour says, “Behold my hands”! His hands are lifted up to bless. This blessing was not at all unusual. The hands of our Lord were always blessing hands. Throughout his earthly life, blessings flowed from them continually. During his earthly ministry, thousands received multiplied blessings from his hands. The four gospels are full of examples of blessings, which fell from the hands of Christ. He went about doing good. His hands scattered blessings like a farmer scatters his seed. When our Lord lifted up his hands to bless his disciples, as he was leaving them, he was just doing what he had always done. The richest blessings we ever get from the hands of Christ are not unusual things at all, but just a continuation of his old ways. If this day the Son of God lifts up his hands to bless you, it will only be another link in the golden chain of his mercy. He has blessed us. He is blessing us. And he will continue to bless us. He is still the same. But now Christ blessed his disciples in a somewhat different manner. He blessed them with a new authority. Before he had prayed for blessings upon them. Now he pronounces the blessing! His work of sacrifice was done. The atonement was complete. And the blessings had been purchased. Before our Saviour had looked up to heaven and asked for the blessings. Now, he looks down, as it were, from heaven and bestows the blessing, as one whose right and power it is to bless. No one except the Lord Jesus Christ has the right, authority, and power to bless us. All who pretend to be priests (or priestly preachers) with power to bless are deceivers of men’s souls. As our Saviour lifts up his hands, he seems to be saying, “Look here, my children, all blessings are in these hands.” These are the hands of our Daysman, the God-man Mediator. Another thing that strikes me is the fact that the blessing of our Lord’s hands was a full and complete blessing. Did you notice what our Saviour said as he blessed them? Luke does not tell us that he said a word. He seems to have simply “looked” the blessing upon them. I can almost picture him. He stretched his arms upward and opened his hands wide, and waved them over the people. In that gesture he seems to be saying, “Look, my ransomed flock, all that I have is for you. All is yours. All that you need now, and all that you ever shall need is in these hands.” Once more, the blessing of our Lord’s hands was a special, peculiar blessing. “He lifted up his hands and blessed them.” This was a special, distinguishing blessing. It was not for the world, but for his own people. The teaching of “common grace” is a common delusion. The blessings of God’s grace and goodness are special, family blessings reserved for the Lord’s chosen. Yes, our God and Saviour sends the sunshine and the rain upon the reprobate, and they receive the temporal benefit of such; but even the sunshine and the rain descend upon the earth for God’s elect. The blessings of God are for his own (Romans 8:28).

Those things that men refer to as the blessings of “common grace” will only add to the condemnation of the wicked. God’s elect are blessed in all things (Deuteronomy 28:1-14); but the wicked and unbelieving are cursed in all things (Deuteronomy 28:15-46). Let all men know that in all things, “the Lord doth put a difference between the Egyptians and Israel” (Exodus 11:7). In all things he is particularly and distinguishingly gracious to his own elect. Christ loved the church and gave himself for it. He laid down his life for his sheep.

Here he blessed his redeemed ones. He could not and would not withhold one blessing from those for whom he had poured out his life’s blood. As our High Priest, he had been discriminating in his prayer; and he is discriminating in his blessing (John 17:9; John 17:20). Are we now blessed in Christ? If so, it is because we always were blessed in him (Ephesians 1:3-14). And we shall yet be blessed by those dear hands. There is no power in heaven, in earth, or in hell which can reverse the blessings of our Lord. He who has ascended up to heaven left us a legacy of blessings from his hands. His hands will bless us while we live, bless us when we die, and will bless us in the judgment. His hands shall wave away his enemies into everlasting fire. And his hands will beckon us to glory, saying, “Come, ye blessed of my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world.” Christ lifted up his hands to bless us, and we are blessed indeed! Nail Pierced Hands Look again at those hands of our Lord by which we are blessed. They are nail pierced hands. Can you, with your mind’s eye, see him rising up into heaven? I do not know what the disciples saw last. Probably each one saw some distinguishing feature in the glorified Christ which they best remembered. But I am sure that they all beheld those distinguishing marks in his hands. Those hands bore the marks of the Crucified One. We cannot mistake him. This is the One who was nailed to the tree for us. What do these nail pierced hands tell us? Those nail pierced hands identify our Lord. They tell us who he is. As the disciples beheld those blessed hands, with the nail holes still in them, they knew that it was indeed their Lord. And, when we see our Redeemer in glory, we shall know him by the prints of the nails in his hands. Yes, even in glory, our Lord bears the marks of his crucifixion. He appears in glory as “a Lamb that had been slain.” These are the hands that loose the seals and open the book of God’s decrees (Revelation 5:5), and fulfil all that is written in the book (Revelation 10:1-3). For another thing, those nail pierced hands show us plainly the price of that blessing which Christ bestows. They tell us what he has done. Oh, he blesses us freely and bountifully; but who can tell what those blessings of grace have cost him? There’s ne’er a gift his hand bestows, But cost his heart a groan! Yes, we are freely blessed; but every blessing we enjoy so freely is given to us by the nail pierced hands of our Redeemer. Had he not been nailed to that tree to die in our place, we could never have been saved. “The chastisement of our peace was upon him, and with his stripes we are healed.” We get everything through those nail pierced hands of our Lord. Righteousness is in those pierced hands. Redemption is in those pierced hands. Pardon is in those pierced hands. Peace is in those pierced hands. With the touch of his nail pierced hand, the Son of God heals the sin-sick soul. Sinners cannot get any good thing, except through those nail pierced hands. These hands are the ladder which Jacob saw reaching from earth to heaven and from heaven to earth. Those nail pierced hands hold the keys of life. Those nail pierced hands open the gates of heaven. Those nail pierced hands are the only Refuge for our souls. It is a great blessing just to look at those nail pierced hands. We would care nothing about merely seeing those hands with the mortal eye of this flesh out of curiosity. But, oh, what a blessing it is to look upon the nail pierced hands of our Redeemer with the eye of faith! Looking upon those nail pierced hands we are made to weep and mourn because of our sin. It was our sin that pierced him. Beholding his nail pierced hands we know that he has carried away all our sins, that he finished our salvation, and that we “shall never perish”. By lifting up those nail pierced hands to bless his disciples, our Lord Jesus epitomized the gospel. Those hands were pierced in crucifixion so that they might be lifted up in salvation. There is the sinner’s Substitute going up to heaven with those nail pierced hands; and as he goes he scatters the blessing of grace upon us. The blessings of salvation could not be ours in any other way than through the nail pierced hands of our Substitute. Fall down before him and ask him to stretch over you those nail pierced hands. Sovereign’s Hands The nail pierced hands of our Lord Jesus Christ now hold the sceptre of total and sovereign dominion. They are the hands of him who alone is the Sovereign of the universe. We look back to Calvary and see those hands pierced in our redemption. We look back at Mount Olivet and see those nail pierced hands lifted up to bless us. Now, we look up to heaven and see those nail pierced hands, which bless us, are also ruling the world for us (John 17:1-2; Psalms 68:17-18; Romans 14:9). The nail pierced hands of our Christ hold the sceptre of universal providence. “All things were made by him; and he is before all things, and by him all things consist” (Colossians 1:16-17). All men are in his hands. All the demons of hell are in his hands. All events are in his hands. He’s got the whole world in his hands, He’s got the whole wide world in his hands! King Jesus has power and control over all things, so that he might give eternal life to all those for whom his hands were pierced. Those nail pierced hands, which bless us, rule all things for the church he redeemed with his own precious blood (Revelation 1:16; Ephesians 1:19-23). Our Lord says, “I have graven thee upon the palms of my hands.” And in those nail-prints the Son of God reads all the names of all his people. Those hands protect us. Those hands provide for us. Those hands preserve us. Those hands will present us faultless, unblameable, and unreproveable before the presence of his glory in heaven. In the resurrection morning we shall see the nail pierced hands of our Redeemer. What a glorious sight that will be! When Rachel held Jacob’s hands, they must have appeared most precious to her. They bore the marks of his fourteen years of loving toil for her. And when we see the nail-prints in the hands of our Redeemer, we shall see the marks of his loving toil by which he redeemed us. The nail pierced hands of our Lord Jesus Christ hold the sceptre of righteous judgment, too. Those hands will slay all his enemies. And those hands will be held up as our only plea and our only defence in that great day. Have you seen Christ? Have you seen those hands pierced to redeem, lifted up to bless, exalted to save? “Him hath God exalted with his own right hand to be a Prince and a Saviour, for to give repentance to Israel, and the forgiveness of sins” (Acts 5:31). Those nail pierced hands are able to save.

They are full of forgiveness. Those nail pierced hands should compel us to worship him. They should cause us to consecrate ourselves to the glory of our Saviour. Those nail pierced hands should fill us with comfort and joy. They should inspire us with patience. Those blessed hands, those nail pierced hands will accomplish God’s eternal purpose in all things. “The pleasure of the Lord shall prosper in his hands.” May it please the Lord now to lift up his nail pierced hands to bless you, today, tomorrow and forever. Amen.