Last week in this column we began a look at the benefits of the resurrection. We asked the question, “Am I actually living what I already possess in Christ?”. This week we want to conclude the topic by asking another question, “Benefits of the Resurrection?”.
Let’s consider Luke 24, the last chapter in that Gospel. This chapter talks about the period of time after the death, burial and resurrection, but before the ascension (rising to heaven) of Jesus.
Contrary to popular belief, Luke was not one of the 12 apostles. (Neither was Mark, by the way.) Luke was a physician, a companion of Paul on his many journeys to spread the Good News. Luke was also a Gentile, the only non-Jew to write the words of the New Testament. (God was the author, He used men to write it down.)
While Luke was not an actual eyewitness to Jesus’ ministry and never met him, he did interview those who did; the apostles, Paul, Mary and others. As a doctor, Luke was very intelligent and detail oriented, and wanted to get all the facts in order to record what happened. Luke also wrote the book of Acts, which some consider to be a continuation of Luke’s book.
Now after Jesus died on the cross, he continued on the earth for 40 days following the resurrection. He was seen by many during this time. Luke chapter 24 records that two of the people who saw Jesus were a couple of his followers, not the 12 disciples, but followers who were traveling on the road to Emmaus.
Here is the story,….
13 That same day two of Jesus’ followers were walking to the village of Emmaus, seven miles from Jerusalem. 14 As they walked along, they were talking about everything that had happened. 15 As they talked and discussed these things, Jesus himself suddenly came and began walking with them. 16 But God kept them from recognizing him.
17 He asked them, “What are you discussing so intently as you walk along?” They stopped short, sadness written across their faces.
18 Then one of them, Cleopas, replied, “You must be the only person in Jerusalem who hasn’t heard about all the things that have happened there the last few days.”
19 “What things?” Jesus asked. “The things that happened to Jesus, the man from Nazareth,” they said. “He was a prophet who did powerful miracles, and he was a mighty teacher in the eyes of God and all the people.
20 But our leading priests and other religious leaders handed him over to be condemned to death, and they crucified him.
21 We had hoped he was the Messiah who had come to rescue Israel. This all happened three days ago.
22 Then some women from our group of his followers were at his tomb early this morning, and they came back with an amazing report.
23 They said his body was missing, and they had seen angels who told them Jesus is alive!
24 Some of our men ran out to see, and sure enough, his body was gone, just as the women had said.
25 Then Jesus said to them, “You foolish people! You find it so hard to believe all that the prophets wrote in the Scriptures. 26 Wasn’t it clearly predicted that the Messiah would have to suffer all these things before entering his glory?”
27 Then Jesus took them through the writings of Moses and all the prophets, explaining from all the Scriptures the things concerning himself. (over 300 prophecies!)
28 By this time they were nearing Emmaus and the end of their journey. Jesus acted as if he were going on, 29 but they begged him, “Stay the night with us, since it is getting late.” So, he went home with them.
30 As they sat down to eat, he took the bread and blessed it. Then he broke it and gave it to them.
31 Suddenly, their eyes were opened, and they recognized him. And at that moment he disappeared!
32 They said to each other, “Didn’t our hearts burn within us as he talked with us on the road and explained the Scriptures to us?”
33 And within the hour they were on their way back to Jerusalem. There they found the eleven disciples and the others who had gathered with them, 34 who said, “The Lord has really risen! He appeared to Peter.”
THERE ARE THREE BENEFITS OF THE RESURRECTION IN THIS STORY
The first benefit: while they were walking along and Jesus showed up, the didn’t recognize Him. But as they talked together, Jesus explained the scriptures to them. The first benefit if you are a follower of Jesus Christ is that Jesus (through the gift of the Holy Spirit within you) will EXPLAIN the scriptures to you as you open them.
You don’t need to understand Hebrew and Greek. You don’t need to know the difference between exegesis and eisegesis (exegesis draws the meaning out of the text – eisegesis pushes your ideas and bias into the text)
You don’t need to know what homiletics and hermeneutics are either. (Hermeneutics is the science and art of interpreting the Bible to discover its original meaning and context. Homiletics is the art of preparing and delivering sermons (preaching) to communicate those truths effectively to a modern audience.) Those are all preacher words that we learn at the seminary. But YOU DON’T NEED THEM.
You JUST NEED TO KNOW JESUS! That’s the beautiful thing of it all!
As a pastor, my job is not just to teach the scripture, but to teach others how to study the scripture. My job is to remove any obstacles that you have so Jesus can explain the Bible to you.
Back to our scripture… Jesus began at Moses and the Prophets…..there are at least 300 distinct old testament prophecies concerning Jesus, Jesus explained these to them. That’s what he does for us today, also!
It’s important to know that the more you read the Bible, the more you’ll understand it!
The Second Benefit: He Opens our Minds
Verse 45 tells us that when they sat down with Jesus and He ate with them, he opened their minds to understand the scripture. Would that be okay with you?
Many people have closed minds. They are unwilling to look at anything new. Yet, we need to have our minds open to the things of God to see clearly what He wants to show us. When we stop learning, we start decaying!
Have you ever sat down to read the Bible, read a chapter, closed the book then thought, “I don’t understand what I just read.” Or perhaps you said, “I can’t remember what I just read.”
That’s where we need our minds opened! Jesus is the one to do that for us. It’s a benefit of the resurrection! However, we have to get into our quiet place, with no distractions, no tv, no radio, no internet, no noise. “Just be still,” the scripture says, and “know that I am God”.
The Third Benefit: He Blesses us! HE BLESSES US!
Verse 50 of our chapter 24 in Luke tells us that Jesus led them to Bethany, then lifted His hands and blessed them. Then He was taken up to heaven!
The disciples were so filled with joy when Jesus blessed them!
This week I led a young man in my office to receive Jesus Christ as his Lord and Savior. After we prayed together, he just radiated with joy! The Holy Spirit came upon him and he stated, “I feel as though all my burdens have been lifted off of me!” What a great blessing!
Now many people, including some preachers today, talk about blessing in financial terms. While God does promise to meet our needs, including our financial needs, I think that this just means that when God is guiding our lives, things just work out. THINGS JUST WORK OUT!
Romans 8:28 says it this way, “And we know that God causes everything to work together for the good of those who love God and are called according to his purpose for them.”
I’ve had many, many times that God worked out things in my life. When I had no possible way of seeing the solution to my problems, God stepped in, and THINGS JUST WORKED OUT!
What a blessing!
I’m sure you’ve had times like this also. So, as we conclude Easter month here in 2026, just remember that there are blessings to the resurrection!
The One Thing that Stops the Benefits of the Resurrection:
Just after spent those 40 days with the disciples, some of them asked him, “Lord, has the time come for your to free Israel and restore our kingdom?” “Jesus replied to them, The Father alone has the authority to set those dates and times and they are not for you to know.”
The disciples still did not fully understand it all. They wanted to have their OWN kingdom. In essence they were asking Jesus, “are you now going to LET US rule and reign again?” Are you going to let us be in charge? Are you going to build OUR KINGDOM, Jesus?”
Jesus told them, it’s not about building YOUR kingdom. It’s about building MY KINGDOM. That happens is when you go and tell others about Jesus!
In order for us to experience all the benefits of the resurrection, we need to do a self-checkup. Are we working to build God’s Kingdom, or our own. Are we telling others about Jesus? Do we fuss and fight with other Christians about trivial things like the color of the carpet in church? If so, we have missed the point, just like those disciples did.
It’s not about what we want, it’s all about what God wants!
When we seek first the Kingdom of God, and His Righteousness, all these benefits of the resurrection will be ours!…
The New Birth, Forgiveness of sin, The Holy Spirit who leads us and explains the scripture to us, and opens our understanding of it, and the blessings that come from a relationship when we walk closely with Him. Don’t miss out!
Craig Valley Baptist Church, next to Bibo’s at 171 Salem Ave in New Castle, welcomes you to visit and share in the forgiveness we have experienced. We meet Sundays at 11AM, with an upbeat service of music, sharing and preaching. You don’t need to dress up, and you won’t be asked to speak, so just come and hang out and meet new and old friends! Questions? Call 540-864-5667 or email pastor@cv-bc.com.
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Pastor Scott Gabrielson