Who is this resurrected Jesus?

“How long was it,” I asked Dom as we considered continuing to blog after writing about the Jesus’ resurrection, “how long was it between Jesus' resurrection and his ascension?”

“Forty days,” he replied

40 days? WOW! That’s nearly 6 weeks!

“So,” I asked Jesus, “what were You doing during those 40 days?”

Nearly a third of each Gospel focuses on the week leading up to Jesus’ death, underscoring how central the cross is to our Christian faith. But it raises a question: why the forty days before Jesus finally left his followers, and then another ten days before the Spirit came? What was the purpose of this period? What was Jesus doing with his disciples? What do the stories that are recorded tell us?

Over the past few weeks, we’ve reflected on several of Jesus’ post-resurrection encounters. Interestingly, many of the stories are written in detail about an individual’s interaction with Jesus. A striking pattern runs through them: people often didn’t recognize Him at first. Mary recognized Him only when He spoke her name. The disciples on the road to Emmaus understood who He was when He broke the bread. That first Sunday evening, the ten disciples—huddled behind locked doors in fear—thought He was a ghost until He showed them His wounds and ate with them. And later still, by the Sea of Tiberias, Peter recognized Him only after the overwhelming catch of fish.

So, I find myself asking: why was it so hard to recognize You, Jesus? Why, after all You had told them about what was to come, were they so slow to believe?  What was so different about You? Was it just that they didn’t expect to see You? Or were You in some way changed? Who were You now?

So, Lord, what were You doing for those 40 days? How were You each time You met with someone? And what can we learn as we journey with You with each appearance?

John assures us there were many other miraculous signs that You did. Can we trust that what we need to know about Your presence during these 40 days is what was recorded here in the gospels? I wonder if You are inviting us to see how each person is important to You. Maia in her blog several weeks ago pointed this out-- how You responded differently with each person according to their needs.  Here you were, after Your resurrection: knowing Mary, all You needed was to gently say her name. Knowing the disciples hiding in their fear, You spoke tenderly, “Peace be with you.” No reprimand about why they were troubled or that they doubted Your resurrection. Just a gracious invitation to look at Your hands and feet, to realize it really was You! And when they still doubted, You asked for something to eat! And then it seems You disappeared again. And apparently it was a week later, and they were still locked in their room, but this time Thomas, who had declared he wouldn’t believe until he could touch Your wounds, was with them. And You appeared. And again, Your first words were “Peace be with you.” And this time Your focus was on Thomas. No reproach, just a quiet invitation to do exactly what he had been asking for.  “It's OK, Thomas. Put your finger here; see My hands.”

The next story was about Peter—maybe the most precious of them all. Now the disciples are back in Galilee where You had promised to meet them. But You had not shown up. Peter, in his despair and discouragement, decided to return to his old life—fishing.  And then there You were, beside the lake, making a charcoal fire, preparing a meal for them. And Peter, who could have expected all sorts of disappointments expressed by his master—all that he had been telling himself over the weeks-- gets only an invitation to breakfast, broken bread and fish. What memories would have stirred for them all. Again, no rebuke for Peter. Only a question— “Do you love Me?” –repeated three times, and then the assignment to take care of the Master’s sheep.

Can you enter the marvel of this resurrected Jesus? Can you put yourself in the disciples’ shoes? Who is this resurrected Jesus? He seems so calm, so forgiving, so kind, so deeply caring for the needs of each one. He holds no resentment about their past failures. He speaks of the present reality of his scarred body, as if to remind them that something important has occurred. Yes, He was crucified. And yes, that changes everything. “It is finished!” He had cried out from the cross. He knew He had accomplished what he came to earth to do. He was filled with joy! His sacrifice changed everything for these people He loved so much and for all the people in the ages to come—God’s Kingdom of righteousness, peace and joy was now open to all. Everyone now can live into the possibility of the mystery of being right with God, of having fulfilled lives, set free to love God fully and reach out in love to those around them.

I wonder if over the weeks that followed as He spent time with them, as He talked further of the Kingdom of God and what was to come, His joy overflowed to them and gave them hope—hope that the future could be different; hope that each of them could be different; hope that the light that shone from His resurrected body could also infill them.

What does this resurrected Jesus have to say to us today? How does He speak to us in the areas of our struggles and failures, our doubts and our fears? I wonder if, like the disciples, we fail to recognize Jesus when He shows up for us. I wonder if we allow our sight to grow dim as we give into discouragement, despair, frustration, comparison with others’ lives…

What promises has God given—to all of us, and to you personally—that we struggle to trust? Where are you hesitant to believe that He will do what He has said?

Where in your life do you feel like Peter waiting in Galilee—yes, he had seen the Master and knew he was alive, yet where was He now? Why the waiting? Why the silence? Day after day, as discouragement built, did it feel to Peter like everything he’d poured himself into—the past three years--might somehow have been for nothing?

Are you waiting for a God who seems to have disappeared, for a promise that seems way too long in coming to fruition? Are you feeling like giving up the hope that your life can be different? Where is Jesus for you now? Are you lost in discouragement and unfulfilled dreams and the sense that you have let down the God you love so much? Can you hear your Lord’s gentle question to you, “Do you love Me?” With Peter, are you crying out desperately: “Lord, you know I love you.”

In His mercy and kindness, is He saying to you, “Feed My sheep.” "Do what I have called you to do". Is this all that matters to our God: love Him and love His people?

As my grandson said to me the other day, “I thought it would be easy. But it’s not.”

Lord, You already knew all of this—how impossible it would be for them and for us. Whatever else You spoke to the disciples and those around You during those forty days—whether reminding them of Your teachings, recalling the journeys You shared together, or revealing more of the Kingdom of God—it seems that above all, the most vital message was the command to wait for the coming of the Spirit. You had told them previously that it would be better for them if You went away, because then the Spirit would come. You said they already knew the Spirit, that He had been with them and would now be in them (John 14:17): the Spirit of truth, the Comforter, the Counselor, the One who would guide them into all truth.

This promised gift from the Father would transform everything for them, granting the power they’d need to carry out Your commands and fulfill Your great commission: “to go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey all You had instructed.”

Wow! That is a big promise: God by his Spirit living in them, giving them the power they had seen displayed through their master. So many times, You had spoken to them with such love and appreciation of Your Father and of this promised Spirit. And then, after reminding them to wait in Jerusalem for this gift, You were taken up before their eyes.

How would that moment have felt for them? What now? Yet, they returned to the room where they were staying in Jerusalem—the eleven disciples, now called apostles—their role was unfolding, and they were ready. Something had changed for them. They were filled with hope, with possibility for the future. Together with the women who had faithfully followed Jesus, Jesus’ mother and his brothers(!), they joined together constantly in prayer.  One hundred and twenty of them, Luke reports in Acts. And now Peter begins his leadership role. The encounter with Jesus, Peter’s spoken confession of love, and the commission he had received had changed him. He was ready for what lay ahead.

What about you? Is there someone or something in one of these encounters that speaks to your heart? Is there an invitation here--into the joy of our risen Savior, the gift of the Holy Spirit, or the depth of the Father’s love-- that you need to linger in, listening for His words of love and affirmation and hope for your future?

 Are you holding back from that quiet place with Him because you fear a correction or judgment that might only affirm your doubts about yourself?  Remember, perfect love casts out fear.  You are fully and deeply loved. The God who understood even the depth of Peter’s failure is with you. His forgiveness is real, and He meets us as we come to Him and receive the love He longs to pour out upon us.

Welcome the Holy Spirit now! Be filled with His love and His joy and then go -- share all you have received with the world around you.