“’Was it not necessary that the Messiah should suffer these things and then enter into his glory?’” Then beginning with Moses and all the prophets, he interpreted to them the things about himself in all the scriptures.” – Luke 24:26-27
The word of a teacher can stay with you long after the bell rings. I remember being on a short break in my high school physics class. I needed these little breaks. I was the only underclassman in the class and everyone else seemed to be so far ahead of me. During the break my chemistry teacher came into the room to talk with my physics teacher about an unrelated matter. As he was leaving my chemistry teacher noticed that I was in this class and he turned to my physics teacher and asked, “How’s Brandon doing in this class?”
My physics teacher, with his ice blue eyes and hair that looked like he was permanently attached to a Van de Graaff generator, turned to look at me and said,
“Floundering.”
I wanted to crawl under my desk. He was 100% right. I was struggling and needed help.
We all need help in understanding from time to time. The disciples on the road to Emmaus needed help understanding. They had been with Jesus for awhile. They had seen the events in Jerusalem firsthand. They heard the direct testimony that the tomb was empty. They had all the pieces and they still did not understand.
It is perfectly OK to not fully understand the resurrection. We may have heard the resurrection story countless times over the years but we may still have questions. In fact, it’s good to have questions. Jesus wants us to ask, seek and knock. The resurrection of Christ is proclaimed as a truth we can cling to and a mystery we cannot fully grasp this side of heaven. It is a miracle that becomes tangible in our lives. It becomes real every time we choose love over bitterness, compassion over self-preservation, and justice over comfort. When we live this spirit filled kind of life we grow in our understanding of the resurrection.
Jesus may not teach us an impromptu course in Old Testament prophecy and how it culminates in his death and resurrection, but he does show us how to live as the new creation. Bring your questions to God. Share your struggles with Christ. Trust in the Lord and see that Christ will not leave you floundering.
