Friday within the Octave of the Feast of the Resurrection of our Lord
Scripture: St. Luke 24:36-49 (NKJV)
24:36 Now as they said these things, Jesus Himself stood in the midst of them, and said to them, “Peace to you.” 37 But they were terrified and frightened, and supposed they had seen a spirit. 38 And He said to them, “Why are you troubled? And why do doubts arise in your hearts? 39 Behold My hands and My feet, that it is I Myself. Handle Me and see, for a spirit does not have flesh and bones as you see I have.”
40 When He had said this, He showed them His hands and His feet. 41 But while they still did not believe for joy, and marveled, He said to them, “Have you any food here?” 42 So they gave Him a piece of a broiled fish and some honeycomb. 43 And He took it and ate in their presence.
44 Then He said to them, “These are the words which I spoke to you while I was still with you, that all things must be fulfilled which were written in the Law of Moses and the Prophets and the Psalms concerning Me.” 45 And He opened their understanding, that they might comprehend the Scriptures.
46 Then He said to them, “Thus it is written, and thus it was necessary for the Christ to suffer and to rise from the dead the third day, 47 and that repentance and remission of sins should be preached in His name to all nations, beginning at Jerusalem. 48 And you are witnesses of these things.
49 “Behold, I send the Promise of My Father upon you; but tarry in the city of Jerusalem until you are endued with power from on high.”
Devotion
Today’s verses follow the Easter Monday Gospel, continuing the theme of Jesus opening the Scriptures to His disciples. “These are the words which I spoke to you,” Jesus says, and demonstrates that what was done to Him was “necessary.” Without His suffering and death, there could be no repentance. Without remission of sins, repentance could never be complete: no matter how sincerely we might feel convicted and be sorry for our sins, we would have to suffer for all eternity, as we could never make up for our rebellion against God.
The disciples marveled in joy, but they were not yet really believing that He had risen bodily: it was, to them, impossible. Therefore, Jesus made it clearer than even touching Him could make it, by taking some food and eating it. The food was clearly gone, so this must be neither an apparition nor the deception of their senses. What is impossible is exactly what was necessary for the salvation of mankind, so why should any part of Jesus’ work seem ‘normal’? Even His most normal activities had a hidden, impossible (for us) reality: He did it all without sin. His cry from the cross of “Why have You forsaken Me?” shows that the impossible is what is normal in saving mankind. The Innocent was forsaken for the sake of the guilty, God died for the ungodly.
Prayer: Father in Heaven, as You work all things together for our good, even the actions by which the wicked disown You redounding to Your glory, grant that we never despair or misbelieve, but trust always Your will for us in Christ. Amen.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
