Luke 24:1-26 -- "It will all work out in the end"
1 Now upon the first day of the week, very early in the morning, they came unto the sepulchre, bringing the spices which they had prepared, and certain others with them.
What is the point? If He is resurrected they’ll find out, it will all work out in the end. What is the point of anointing His body with spices 3 days after the crucifixion? I hear that very often from Christians when we discuss the Lord’s second coming. “It will all work out in the end”. Don’t you want to just tell these sisters, “hey, don’t worry about it, it will all work out in the end”? I didn’t think so.
2 And they found the stone rolled away from the sepulchre. 3 And they entered in, and found not the body of the Lord Jesus. 4 And it came to pass, as they were much perplexed thereabout, behold, two men stood by them in shining garments: 5 And as they were afraid, and bowed down their faces to the earth, they said unto them, Why seek ye the living among the dead? 6 He is not here, but is risen: remember how he spake unto you when he was yet in Galilee, 7 Saying, The Son of man must be delivered into the hands of sinful men, and be crucified, and the third day rise again.
Others say “we cannot know the day nor the hour”. There have been 1,000 interpretations, etc. But the words were spoken, they were there in the Bible, all you had to do was believe and seek and you would have found them. This is a word to us, He has given the word already, we need to remember what He said.
8 And they remembered his words, 9 And returned from the sepulchre, and told all these things unto the eleven, and to all the rest. 10 It was Mary Magdalene and Joanna, and Mary the mother of James, and other women that were with them, which told these things unto the apostles. 11 And their words seemed to them as idle tales, and they believed them not.
Idle tales, this is the way too many are taking the word on the rapture, they feel it is simply an idle tale. These weren’t backsliders or lukewarm Christians, these were the apostles!
12 Then arose Peter, and ran unto the sepulchre; and stooping down, he beheld the linen clothes laid by themselves, and departed, wondering in himself at that which was come to pass.
There was a reward for Mary Magdalene, Joanna, and Mary the mother of James to discover the resurrection. There was a reward to Peter.
13 And, behold, two of them went that same day to a village called Emmaus, which was from Jerusalem about threescore furlongs. 14 And they talked together of all these things which had happened. 15 And it came to pass, that, while they communed together and reasoned, Jesus himself drew near, and went with them. 16 But their eyes were holden that they should not know him.
Mary mistook Jesus for the gardener and these two also did not recognize Him at first. I suspect this is the resurrected Jesus being very playful. The harder I look and rack my brain trying to remember the words spoken the more I feel like Jesus is playing with us.
17 And he said unto them, What manner of communications are these that ye have one to another, as ye walk, and are sad? 18 And the one of them, whose name was Cleopas, answering said unto him, Art thou only a stranger in Jerusalem, and hast not known the things which are come to pass there in these days?
Right now all these political leaders in Washington are so self important, thinking they are so powerful. I suspect that after the rapture of the saints will anyone really think that? I think they are headed for a terrible crash. One day you are rich, powerful, you can do whatever you wish and ignore everyone else. The next day you are Saddam Hussein hiding in a hole in the ground.
19 And he said unto them, What things? And they said unto him, Concerning Jesus of Nazareth, which was a prophet mighty in deed and word before God and all the people: 20 And how the chief priests and our rulers delivered him to be condemned to death, and have crucified him. 21 But we trusted that it had been he which should have redeemed Israel: and beside all this, to day is the third day since these things were done. 22 Yea, and certain women also of our company made us astonished, which were early at the sepulchre; 23 And when they found not his body, they came, saying, that they had also seen a vision of angels, which said that he was alive. 24 And certain of them which were with us went to the sepulchre, and found it even so as the women had said: but him they saw not.
If Jesus was five years old He would have been totally loving this. How great is this! How does He keep a straight face?
25 Then he said unto them, O fools, and slow of heart to believe all that the prophets have spoken: 26 Ought not Christ to have suffered these things, and to enter into his glory?
Fools and slow of heart to believe. I think that is what Jesus will say to all those with the “it will all pan out in the end” doctrine. How can you take such a lackadaisical attitude towards Christ’s return?