April 16, 2023: Worship Service Family Worship Series No.10 ,"The Resurrection of Jesus and the Faith of His Disciples”　

Last week was Easter commemorating the resurrection of Jesus Christ on the third day.
Today, we are talking about the time after Jesus’ resurrection.

Since you all grew up in a Christian home, I think the miracles and resurrection that Jesus did have come easily to you without any doubt, but what do you think?

If someone asks me to prove that Jesus was resurrected, I will have trouble, but I believe it.

I've heard it explained that the resurrection is not a physical resurrection but a spiritual one, but I believe it is both.

I have never doubted the biblical story either. But sometimes I wonder why there are still so many terrible things happening in this world and problems that cannot be solved, even though Jesus is God's only begotten Son and died on the cross to free us from our sins and resurrected as proof of His victory. I hope that heaven will come to this world soon.

You are right. Well then, let's start the worship service with praise.

On the evening of Jesus' resurrection, two disciples were on their way to a town called Emmaus about 7 miles west of Jerusalem. One of the two was named Cleopas, but the other's name was not written in the Bible. He was not one of the 12 disciples but one of the other 70 disciples. 

They were walking in gloom because Jesus had died on the cross.

Then a man walked beside two disciples and asked, "What are you discussing?” They stopped and asked, "You were in Jerusalem, weren't you? But you do not know what happened in this city? I am talking about Jesus of Nazareth. Jesus was a prophet, but the chief priests and officials crucified Him. We had hoped that Jesus would be the one to save Israel. Some women went to the tomb of Jesus early in the morning. An angel appeared to them and told them that Jesus was alive. We are now confused about what to believe.”

The man said, "Oh, how foolish people! You cannot believe all that the prophets foretold? Did they not say that Christ would suffer and enter into His glory? And, explained what Moses and all the prophets in the Old Testament had written about Jesus.

When they approached Emmaus, the man still seemed to be going on so they stopped the man and said “It is almost dusk, why don’t you stay the night with us.” The man went with them into the house to eat. The man went into the house with them and sat down at the table. He took a piece of bread, blessed it, and gave it to them. At that moment, the eyes of the two disciples were opened and they realized that this man was Jesus. Then they could no longer see Jesus.

They said, "As we were walking, when that man spoke and when he preached the Bible to us, our hearts were very excited. Let's go back to Jerusalem right away and let everyone know that Jesus is alive! They returned to Jerusalem.

The two of them went to where the disciples were and told them about the man on the way to Emmaus and how they recognized Him as Jesus because of the breaking of bread. Jesus appeared to the disciples suddenly. The disciples were so frightened and amazed that they thought He was a ghost. Then Jesus asked them, "Why are you so afraid? Why do you doubt in your hearts? Look at my hands and my feet. It is me. Touch me and see. The spirit has no flesh and bones, but I have and show you as you can see. They were so excited and still wondered. Jesus asked them,

"Do you have any food here?" They gave Jesus a piece of grilled fish, and Jesus ate it in front of all. Then Jesus said, "The Gospel will be shared by you in my name, and you will preach to all nations beginning in Jerusalem. Therefore, you are the witnesses of these things.

By the way, the disciples heard about the resurrection many times from Jesus, but did they truly believe it?

The disciples didn’t want to believe that Jesus will die on the cross, so even though they were told many times, they didn’t try to believe.

All disciples (except for John) ran away because they were afraid to be caught like Jesus. That’s why I don’t think they believed that Jesus would live again.

Even though the ladies told them that they met the resurrected Jesus, the disciples continued to doubt and denied it. I wonder if men are timider than women.

Hahaha. James, let's keep our faith!

Yeah.

James, you believe that Jesus lived both physically and spiritually. What is the reason for that?

I am not exactly clear about the spirit, but when Jesus appeared to His disciples, they were scared because they thought He was a ghost. We know the story of when Jesus walked on the water in the storm, His disciples thought it was a ghost and were scared, too. I think they had the same mistake again. Jesus ate the fish which showed Jesus had a physical body. Jesus showed Tomas both His hands with nails and said, "Touch me with your finger," letting him know that it was Jesus in Gospel John 20:24-29.

I am sure Jesus lived physically and spiritually. But, the question remains as to why Jesus appeared in a way that the disciples of that time could understand, but after that time, Jesus does not appear in the flesh.

I see. Your question is related to the next story, so let's continue to think about it.

Yes, that's right. We are convinced that something is "real" only when we can scientifically prove it.

For example, proving that I am loved is not easy to explain. I think the only way is to believe that I am loved. A novel is written not even in reality, but the readers are moved because of what the author was trying to say the truth in his novel. The disciples knew what Jesus had done such as giving bread to 5,000 people, healing people with incurable diseases, and bringing Lazarus back to life, known as the last miracle. But, when Jesus died on the cross, they lost the power to believe because of despair.

In Luke verse 19, one of the disciples described Jesus to the man saying, "This is Jesus of Nazareth. He was a prophet before God and all people, He was a powerful man indeed. I think he believed that Jesus was one of the prophets but not the Messiah. After all, maybe the disciples only believed in part of the reason why Jesus came to this world, or maybe He was a hero who saves Israel from the Roman Empire, just like the people.

Well, we discussed the importance of Christianity today.
I want to continue our studies next week. Dad, could you please pray for us?

Yes, let us pray. We glorify Jesus had resurrected and triumphed over us! Jesus went through such a painful time because of us. We believe in Jesus as our Savior. It is not only the meaning of death but also triumphed over death.

Please help us to know more of God's heart and love through the guidance of the Holy Spirit.

We thank you and pray in the name of Jesus, Amen.