Pause

Is there any greater display of power than the power it takes to raise the dead to life? For the earliest believers, it had to be a jolt just to be close to the power displayed in Jesus.

That mighty "lightning bolt" has been seen and heard through the centuries and can be seen and heard still in the lives of Jesus-followers today.

That's good news; especially if you're in need of a jolt of God's power today.

Listen

Then he said to them, “These are my words that I spoke to you while I was still with you — that everything written about me in the law of Moses, the prophets, and the psalms must be fulfilled.” Then he opened their minds to understand the scriptures, and he said to them, “Thus it is written, that the Messiah is to suffer and to rise from the dead on the third day, and that repentance and forgiveness of sins is to be proclaimed in his name to all nations, beginning from Jerusalem. You are witnesses of these things. And see, I am sending upon you what my Father promised; so stay here in the city until you have been clothed with power from on high.”

Luke 24:44-49

Think

Yesterday’s psalm praised a mighty king who rules the earth with love. Today, the resurrected Jesus interprets this psalm: it speaks of him! He appears to his disciples and teaches them that the law of Moses, the prophets, and the psalms – that is, the entire Old Testament – all anticipated his life, death, and resurrection. He is the center of Scripture and of history.

Jesus then summarizes this vast message. His suffering and resurrection have prepared the way for forgiveness to all nations. With his resurrection, the universal praise described in the Psalms can begin! To receive this forgiveness, all people need to do is to believe in Jesus’ message and repent, or turn, from their old way of life.

Only one catch – this message needs messengers. That’s where the disciples come in. Jesus dispatches them as messengers, eyewitnesses of his resurrection power, and he promises them a share of this power to take his good news to the entire world.

Joshua Hays

Pray

Risen Lord Jesus, may your praise ring out! Thank you for your first messengers who spread the good news of resurrection power. Help me to continue their work, spreading your message of forgiveness, reconciliation, and love. Amen.

Go

Feel the power that rises beneath you,
Raising you up to embrace the life
That God intends for you to know.

Carry yourself, then, with humble confidence,
Aware that it is the very hand of God
That holds you upright and alive.