‘…and said to them, “Thus it is written, that the Christ should suffer and on the third day rise from the dead.”’ (Luke 24:46).
The first reports about the living Jesus, that came from the women, were not believed (Mark 16:11). But eventually, the 11 disciples also began to believe the news (Luke 24:33-34). Undoubtedly, there was a lot of discussion about everything that had happened. Suddenly the room went very quiet. All at once Jesus stood among them and said, ‘Peace be with you’. Shalom. That was a common, everyday greeting. But now, spoken by Jesus at that very moment, this greeting took on even greater significance. It took a while for the disciples to truly experience that peace. Jesus had to show them His wounds and eat and drink something before it really sank in: It was Jesus indeed! He stood in their midst just as He always had done.
At the same time, something really had changed. Jesus’ body had not been healed in an earthly sense, as had been the case with Lazarus (John 11:43–44). After His resurrection, Jesus had become part of heaven again. He had conquered death and would never die again. Just as was the case with the disciples on the road to Emmaus, Jesus had to point out to His 11 faithful followers: Everything happened just as I told you! Including My resurrection!
Have you ever doubted Jesus’ promises? In what way have you doubted?