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“Brothers and sisters, we do not want you to be uninformed about those who sleep in death, so that you do not grieve like the rest of mankind, who have no hope. For we believe that Jesus died and rose again, and so we believe that God will bring with Jesus those who have fallen asleep in him.” (1 Thessalonians 4:13-14, NIV)

Dying is a part of living.

Any religion that does not address this inevitable fact of life is not worth following.

As disciples of Jesus, we have God’s instruction about how to face death and dying: Not as those who have no hope. Our hope for what occurs after we die is based on what Jesus has already done. He has conquered death, hell, and the grave by His resurrection.

Therefore, believing that God is good to His word, we grieve only the temporary absence of those who have died, because the loss is not eternal. Take heart in this promise from our heavenly Father. – Luther

Tagged death, grief, the book of 1 Thessalonians, the Resurrection

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“And he led them out as far as 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 worshiped him, and returned to Jerusalem with great joy: And were continually in the temple, praising and blessing God. Amen.” (Luke 24:50-53, NIV)

For the disciples of Jesus, Jerusalem had been the site of many tragic events over the previous days. In fact, with the death of Jesus, it seemed that all of their dreams had been dashed; and that all of their plans had been trashed.

In the light of the Resurrection, however, they “returned to Jerusalem with great joy.” We can only imagine what the outsiders must have thought about the disciples of Jesus as they saw them in the temple; joyful and praising and blessing God. Perhaps they thought: “Aren’t these the disciples of the man who was crucified on Friday? Why is it that they are now so bright and optimistic?”

The answer then, as now, is this: He lives!

The Resurrection of our Lord trumps every sorrow and redeems every failure. The Resurrection enables us to return to the scene of our greatest humiliation with great joy and confidence. To live in the light of the Resurrection is to truly live! – Luther

Tagged joy, optimism, the book of Luke, the Resurrection, victory

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“He asked them, ‘What are you discussing together as you walk along?’ They stood still, their faces downcast.” (Luke 24:17, NIV)

The evidence of the Resurrection was not accepted by Jesus’ closest disciples. In light of the empty tomb, the angel’s proclamation, the testimony of the women, the ancient prophecies come true, and even Jesus’ own words about His death and resurrection, one might think the disposition of the two disciples en route to Emmaus in today’s scripture would have been anything but “downcast,” but they were very distressed.

I am the first to admit that had I been there, I probably wouldn’t have believed, either. All of the disciples — except, to their eternal credit, the women — refused to accept the evidence of Jesus’ resurrection. What they were seeing was unprecedented, and denial of the evidence is always the surest way to avoid facing the hard questions that inevitably follow Revelation.

Today, we still have the empty tomb, the angel’s proclamation, the testimony of the women, the ancient prophecies come true, and even Jesus’ own words about His death and resurrection and — unlike the two disciples on Resurrection Day — more than 2,000 additional years of testimony that all of it is still true!

Does your countenance reflect this compelling evidence?

The Lord is risen! He is risen indeed! Hallelujah! – Luther

Tagged Emmaus, the book of Luke, the Resurrection