Adult Sunday School Lesson Summary for April 19, 2009 Released on April 8, Witnesses to New Life

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1 Adult Sunday School Lesson Summary for April 19, 2009 Released on April 8, 2009 Witnesses to New Life Lesson Text: Luke 24:44-53 Background Scripture: Luke 24:36-53 Devotional Reading: Acts 2:22-32 Luke 24: And he said unto them, These are the words which I spake unto you, while I was yet with you, that all things must be fulfilled, which were written in the law of Moses, and in the prophets, and in the psalms, concerning me. 45 Then opened he their understanding, that they might understand the Scriptures, 46 And said unto them, Thus it is written, and thus it behooved Christ to suffer, and to rise from the dead the third day: 47 And that repentance and remission of sins should be preached in his name among all nations, beginning at Jerusalem. 48 And ye are witnesses of these things. 49 And, behold, I send the promise of my Father upon you: but tarry ye in the city of Jerusalem, until ye be endued with power from on high. 50 And he led them out as far as to Bethany, and he lifted up his hands, and blessed them. 51 And it came to pass, while he blessed them, he was parted from them, and carried up into heaven. 52 And they worshipped him, and returned to Jerusalem with great joy: 53 And were continually in the temple, praising and blessing God. Amen. LESSON AIMS: Facts: to explain the circumstances under which Jesus commanded His followers to be witnesses to Him. Principle: to show that in order to be witnesses for Jesus in the world, Christians must have the Holy Spirit within. Application: to show that we cannot be good witnesses without the power of the Holy Spirit working in our lives. INTRODUCTION: For believers the path to new life also necessitated Jesus' resurrection. A corpse in a tomb could not impart eternal life. Only by overcoming death and reclaiming life could He transmit His life to those who trust Him. However, if all humanity was to learn about the path to new life, still another step was necessary - messengers needed to take the good news to the ends of the earth. The ideal messengers, of course, were the witnesses to Jesus' resurrection. There were many of these, as the Apostle Paul assured the Corinthians (1 Cor. 15:5-8). They included not only those enumerated in the Gospel accounts but many others as well, including one group of more than five hundred. Eventually, all these witnesses would have their impact. But Jesus especial-

2 ly spent time with the eleven apostles, teaching and training them for their role as evangelists and future leaders of the church. That is what occurs in our text for this week. LESSON BACKGROUND: Time: A. D. 30 Places: Jerusalem; Bethany After Jesus died, His body was removed from the cross, wrapped in linen, and placed in a borrowed tomb before the Sabbath could begin (Luke 23:50 56). After that particular Sabbath day was over, some women who followed Jesus went to His tomb with burial spices, but found His body gone. An angel told them He had risen as He had said (Luke 24:1 12). When the women told the disciples, they doubted, although Peter ran to the tomb to test their claim. Jesus then appeared to two disciples on the road to Emmaus (Luke 24:13 35) and finally showed himself to the eleven. They were startled by His appearance and wondered if He was a ghost. But He demonstrated the truth of His resurrection by inviting them to inspect His wounds, touch His body, and watch Him eat food (Luke 24:36 43). The disciples could see and feel the evidence, but it still made little sense to them. That s where today s lesson begins. THE WITNESSES INSTRUCTED (Luke 24:44-48) 1. How did Jesus confirm His new life and show that His finished work was not an accident? (v. 44) According to Acts 1:3, Jesus remained on the earth forty days after His resurrection and confirmed His new life by "many infallible proofs" and spoke of the things pertaining to the kingdom of God." Though none of the Gospels tell all that happened during that time, Luke relates, in condensed form, the instruction Jesus gave the apostles before He left them. Having given evidence that it was really He who stood among them (Luke 24:38-43), Jesus called to their remembrance "the words which I spake unto you, while I was yet with you" (v. 44). This striking statement was a reminder that Jesus no longer considered Himself to be "with" them in the same sense as before. His earthly sojourn had ended with His death, and by resurrection He had entered a new relationship with His own. The old one would not resume. The teaching of which Jesus reminded the apostles was that it was necessary for all the things written about Him in Scripture to be fulfilled. Jesus saw His earthly life and finished work of atonement as fulfilling Old Testament teaching, and none of it was inadvertent, accidental, or coincidental. He had brought to fruition a plan and a process that God had set in motion in the distant past. He culminated all that had been foretold and prefigured. 2. What are the three divisions of the Old Testament Jesus spoke of as witnesses to His redemptive work? To underscore the completeness of this revelation, Jesus called as witness the three divisions of the Jewish Scriptures: the Law (Pentateuch), the Prophets, and the Psalms (which may refer also to the other canonical writings). The redemptive work of Jesus is thus the unifying theme of the Old Testament. It gives meaning to all its promises and symbols. Jesus reminded the disciples of all the times He had taught them those Old Testament passages that talked about Him and showed that He was indeed the Messiah. Moses, the Prophets, and the Psalms pointed to Jesus as the long-awaited Messiah. Jesus was referring to the Pentateuch, the first five books of our Bible when He spoke of Moses. The Prophets was a reference to what we call the prophetic and historical books in our

3 Scriptures. The Psalms included all the wisdom literature. Jesus then explained those Scriptures again to His disciples to remind them of what they already knew. Jesus statement here is one of our earliest witnesses to the Jewish canon of Scripture. The word canon (literally, measuring rod ) refers to the authoritative collection of sacred writings. The text of the Jewish canon is the same as our Old Testament, although it is organized differently. The Jewish canon has the three sections that Jesus mentions here. The designation psalms as used here is more inclusive than the book we know as Psalms; that third section refers to all the books that don t fit within the Law and the Prophets. Naturally, the book of Psalms itself constitutes a large portion of this segment. By contrast, today we arrange the Old Testament in a format: 5 books of law, 12 books of history, 5 books of wisdom, 5 books by major prophets, and 12 books by minor prophets. If Jesus is alluding to the entirety of the Jewish canon, then He is claiming boldly that what He has undergone is nothing less than the fulfillment of the entire Old Testament. The whole story, from Adam to the return from exile and beyond, points to and finds its fulfillment in Jesus death, burial, and resurrection. 3. Why did Scripture make more sense to the apostles after Jesus' resurrection? (v. 45) Jesus opened their minds so that they could understand the Scriptures. Earlier, when He had tried to teach them what prophecies He had to fulfill, their minds were unable to grasp it (cf. Luke 9:43-45; 18:31-34). But now that the crucifixion and resurrection had occurred, the Scriptures all made sense, and God's eternal plan became plain. Jesus was here doing for the Eleven what He had done earlier for the two disciples on the road to Emmaus (Luke 24:25-32). Blinded by their sorrow and lack of faith, they had found His death incomprehensible. But after rebuking them, Jesus had given them one long Bible lesson that related His work to the progressively unfolding sovereign plan of God. Jesus' approach reminds us even today that both Testaments in the Bible are valuable because they are unified in Him. When Paul told Timothy that all Scripture is profitable (2 Tim. 3:16), he was speaking primarily of the Old Testament. Therefore, we should never ignore it. 4. What things about Himself did Jesus teach from the Scriptures? (vs ) According to Jesus, the Old Testament Scriptures taught several things that He had to accomplish. First, He had to suffer. The apostles now understood this because it had been fulfilled. But earlier they had not been able to comprehend how Messiah should suffer before entering His kingdom (Mark 9:31-32). Yet this was prophesied in Psalm 22 and Isaiah 53. Second, the Messiah had to rise from the dead the third day (Luke 24:46). This too was better understood after the fact than before. Yet the Scriptures had already spoken of it and instructed those spiritually prepared to comprehend (cf. Pss. 16:10; 110:1; 118:22-24; Isa. 53:10-12). "The third day" (Luke 24:46) made it clear that this was a special, individual resurrection and not the resurrection of the last day. The third thing the Old Testament foretold was that "repentance and remission of sins should be preached in his name among all nations" (Luke 24:47). This message would be the result of Jesus' death and resurrection. Prior to His death, He had prophesied this worldwide gospel thrust when certain Greeks came looking for Him (John 12:20). He said that He would be lifted up and thereby draw all men to Himself (v. 32). In dying as a planted seed, He would produce a great harvest (v. 24). Now Jesus declared that this too had been foretold in the Old Testament Scriptures. Starting with the promise to Abraham that all nations would be blessed in him (Gen. 12:3; 22:18), God repeated His message of blessings on the Gentiles many times (cf. 1 Kings 8:41-43; Isa. 42:6-7; 45:22; 49:6). It would finally be fulfilled in the universal message of Christ.

4 5. What was the universal message of Christ that the apostles were to proclaim? (v. 47) The universal message of Christ would be one of "repentance and remission of sins" (Luke 24:47). Repentance implies a change of mind. All who hear Christ's message must turn away from their sin and accept God's remedy for it if they are to find "remission," or forgiveness, through Jesus' shed blood. Forgiveness is offered universally, but it is effective only for those who acknowledge their need for it. 6. What does it mean to preach the gospel in Christ's name? Where would the preaching of the gospel begin? (vs. 47) The message of salvation would go forth in Jesus' name. To speak in someone's name is to speak under his authority. The risen Christ, by virtue of both His deity and His finished work of atonement, has absolute authority. He expressed this to His disciples forcefully in Matthew 28:18: "All power (authority) is given unto me in heaven and in earth." The corollary of this for His people is "Go ye therefore, and teach all nations" (v. 19). Both the message and the mandate are given in His name. The proclamation, although worldwide in scope, was to begin at Jerusalem. Jerusalem had been Jesus' focal point. Even in the midst of His great ministry, He had "set his face to go to Jerusalem" (Luke 9:51) because there He would complete His earthly work (cf. 13:22; 17:11; 18:31; 19:28). Now the apostles' work would fan out from this central point, reaching Jews first (Rom. 1:16), then breaking new ground with Samaritans and Gentiles (Acts 1:8). 7. How did the scriptural message fulfilled in Christ relate to the apostles? (v. 48) Jesus stated it plainly: "And ye are witnesses of these things." They stood at a unique juncture in time where God's Word was fulfilled, and they had seen it happen! Now, by virtue of that experience, they were to carry the message of forgiveness to the ends of the earth. Others of that time period may have seen some things that Jesus did, but His apostles are taught how to interpret these events without error. The apostles were physically present to observe the events that comprise the essence of the gospel story. When they went out to fulfill Jesus commission to preach the gospel to all the nations, they did so as uniquely qualified eyewitnesses. This makes their testimony superior to all the naysayers in ages since who have sought to discredit the story of Jesus (C. R. Boatman). As firsthand witnesses, these particular disciples have important responsibilities. The apostle Paul also becomes a firsthand witness through extraordinary means (Acts 9:1 19; 1 Corinthians 15:1 10; etc.). The apostles are commissioned to take the gospel to the world and personally verify it. For this reason the apostolic testimony, as preserved in the New Testament, constitutes the reliable baseline for Christian faith. The apostles did not go forth with a system of philosophy or ethics. They carried the message of their transforming experience with Jesus, the Son of God and Redeemer of men (cf. Acts 2:32; 3:15; 5:32; 10:39-42). Then they invited their listeners to join them in that transformed life. This is our task as well. We are not called to argue morals, social issues, or even theology. We are to bear witness of what Jesus has done for us and invite others to enter into His life through faith. THE WITNESSES COMMISSIONED (Luke 24:49-53) 8. How are you doing as a witness for Christ? How can you make your life a stronger testimony? When we actively witness for the Lord, we demonstrate the impact that our faith is having in our lives. When our outward life reflects true faith, others are drawn to us and then to Christ. Our testimony is strengthened when we learn to walk with Christ daily in His Word and in prayer.

5 A person may be a Christian for 30 years, but end up being spiritually immature if the only spiritual nourishment he or she gets during all those years is Sunday morning worship and Sunday school. A regular, persistent private time of worship and devotion is necessary. This is how we learn more about Christ and grow in our love for Him. Those things that we love we naturally share with others. 9. How were the apostles to be empowered for their work? (v. 49) Jesus did not ask the apostles to represent Him in their own strength. The word "behold" calls special attention to the commitment He was about to make "I send the promise of my Father upon you." The promise to which He referred was the Holy Spirit. Jesus had spoken of the Spirit's coming the night before His crucifixion (John 14:16-17, 26; 15:26), and He would repeat it again before His ascension (Acts 1:4-5, 8). Meanwhile, He ordered the apostles to remain in Jerusalem until they had been "endued with power from on high" (Luke 24:49). "Endued" is, literally, "clothed." They would eventually be enveloped by the heavenly power of the Holy Spirit, but they had to wait for God to act. They could not accomplish His will without His power. The Holy Spirit would enable the early church to accomplish remarkable things, but its leaders had to wait patiently for His coming. 10. What was Jesus doing at the time He was taken up into heaven? How did the apostles react? (vs ) The conversation Luke has recorded here should be augmented by the additional details given in Acts 1:1-11, for these most likely refer to the same event. Jesus led the apostles out of Jerusalem to Bethany, which was on the eastern slope of the Mount of Olives. There, lifting His hands, He blessed them. This was to be His last act on earth. Jesus' blessing was more than wishing the apostles well in their new endeavors. It was a prayer for them to enjoy the divine presence and power after He had left them. Just as His blessing of the bread at Emmaus (Luke 24:30) was a prayer for God to sanctify it for the disciples' bodily strength, so His blessing now invoked His Father's power for the apostles' ministry. It was surely a blessing they would recall often. Even as Jesus was blessing His own, He was "parted from them, and carried up into heaven" (Luke 24:51). His hands, upraised in benediction, no doubt remained so until He disappeared from sight. Even after a cloud covered Him, the apostles gazed upward, perhaps hoping to see Him reappear (Acts 1:9-10). Had this been the end of the matter, the apostles might have left the scene in perplexity. But Luke adds in Acts 1:10-11 that two angels interrupted their trancelike state and explained what this meant. The Jesus they had seen ascend into heaven would return the same way - bodily, visibly, and in the air. Meanwhile, He continues His ministry for His own as Intercessor and Advocate (Heb. 7:25; 8:1; I John 2:1-2). 11. Why is Luke s description of Jesus ascension important? (v. 51) Luke's description of Jesus' ascension is important, for it confirms the truth of Jesus' prophecy at His trial: "Hereafter shall the Son of man sit on the right hand of the power of God" (Luke 22:69). The Jewish officials used this to condemn Him because they considered it blasphemy (vs ). But it was the sober truth, witnessed by the apostles and incorporated into their message (Acts 2:33; 5:31). Luke builds up to the ascension in his gospel. At Jesus transfiguration in Luke 9:31, Moses and Elijah speak with Jesus about His departure. Then in 9:51, Luke says the time for Jesus to be taken away is drawing near. This goal of ascension is reached only through the cross and resurrection, but that the ascension is Jesus goal should not be overlooked. It marks the completion of Jesus earthly pilgrimage. It isn t enough for Him to be born and to walk among people. It isn t enough to teach His followers about the kingdom and how to live. It isn t even enough for Him to die and rise again. Jesus destiny is to sit at God s right hand in glory; that can happen only after the ascension.

6 12. How did the apostles respond to Jesus' instruction and the commission? (vs ) The apostles responded to this glorious event in several ways. First, they worshiped Him. They had seen all the evidences of Jesus' deity, embraced His incomparable teaching, observed His redeeming death and resurrection, and now witnessed His triumphant return to His Father. Their understanding of Him had deepened. He was God, and they knew it. So they worshiped Him. Second, they returned to Jerusalem. They obeyed Jesus' command to wait there until the Holy Spirit came upon them. These Galileans would have been naturally inclined to return to their homes. Most of them previously would have felt out of place in Jerusalem. In fact, not long before this they had been cowering in fright there, hiding from the religious establishment. But all that had changed and they returned in confidence. Third, the apostles returned full of joy. One might expect them to be sad at the departure of the Friend who had done so much for them. They could have been disappointed that He had not set up Israel's kingdom (cf. Acts 1:6), but His thorough instruction had spared them from this. They now saw that Jesus' works were only the beginning of a larger redemptive program (v. 1); they had been appointed to continue it. They also knew His absence was only temporary (v. 11). So the apostles returned to Jerusalem to wait. While they waited for the Holy Spirit, they "were continually in the temple, praising and blessing God" (Luke 24:53). No doubt parts of all the ten days between Jesus' ascension and the Day of Pentecost were spent in the temple. There they praised God and exalted His name for the new life Jesus purchased with His blood. Jesus had often taught in the temple; now His apostles continued His work, proclaiming His gospel while amazed worshipers looked on. 13. In what ways has the ascended Lord blessed you? How can you use these blessings to bless others as you serve as His witness? Many times we focus on those blessings from God that are merely of the flesh. For example, we may think of health, finances, and family as being the major blessings we receive. Though Christ indeed has blessed us in these ways, the major focus should be on the spiritual blessings we have received. When we realize that the greatest blessing given us is that of forgiveness of sin and salvation, we should want to share this blessing with others. A way to do this is to develop a personal (but not scripted) testimony to share with others. Extending forgiveness and grace to others as Christ has extended it to us is a way to be a blessing. PRACTICAL POINTS: 1. Jesus came to fulfill the Old Testament Scriptures, not to abolish or replace them (Luke 24:44). 2. Only God can open someone's mind to understand the Scriptures (Luke 24:45; cf. Matt. 16:17; 1 Cor. 2:14). 3. God's plan for salvation is meant to be proclaimed to all people everywhere (Luke 24:46-47; John 3:16-18). 4. Christ reveals His truth to us (Luke 24:48). 5. Christ gives us the power to boldly and effectively proclaim His truth (Luke 24:49; cf. Acts 1:8). 6. When someone recognizes the blessing of God, praise should be the first response (Luke 24:50-53). CONCLUSION:

7 A witness is simply a person who testifies concerning what he has personally seen or experienced. Conversely, a false witness is someone who testifies that he has seen something or experienced something when he has not. Jesus commissioned His disciples to be truthful witnesses concerning His sufferings on the cross, His death, and His resurrection on the third day. He realized that He was giving His disciples a humanly impossible assignment. He knew that men would love darkness rather than light (John 3:19) and that many would strongly resist the witness of the disciples. Because the Lord never demands of His disciples what He Himself will not empower them to do, so that in Christ they can do all things, He made special provision for them. He sent the Holy Spirit to empower them for witness. Jesus commanded His disciples to wait in the city of Jerusalem until they were endued with power sent down from heaven (Luke 24:49). The eager disciples had to wait for special power before they attempted to fulfill their work as witnesses. This provision came on the Day of Pentecost (Acts 2:1-11), resulting in the disciples giving a powerful witness to the death, resurrection and ascension (exaltation) of Christ (2:22-36). Just as the first disciples, we are called to be good witnesses of the new life that we have received through our Lord Jesus and what He has done for us. To be effective in this task, we, like them, must have the power of the Holy Spirit working in our lives. PRAYER: Father in Heaven, one of our main enemies is busyness. Busyness keeps us distracted so we are not able to pause and think Your thoughts. Allow us to pause right now and marvel at what Jesus finished work means. May we confidently continue the first disciples missionary witness and pass on to others what we have received, in Jesus name, amen. THOUGHT TO REMEMBER: Bear witness to Christ s death, resurrection and ascension. ANTICIPATING NEXT WEEK S LESSON: Next week s lesson is Taking New Life to Those in Need and will show that those with new life in Christ will reach out to help those who are in need. Study Acts 9: Lesson Summarized By: Renee Little Jesus Is All Ministries WORKS CITED Summary and commentary derived from Standard Lesson Commentary Copyright 2009 by permission of Standard Publishing. Reprinted by permission of The Incorporated Trustees of the Gospel Worker Society, Union Gospel Press, P.O. Box 6059, Cleveland, Ohio (Web site: The Pulpit Commentary, Spence-Jones, H. D. M. (Hrsg.), Bellingham, WA : Logos Research Systems, Inc. The Word For You Today, Atlanta, GA. The KJV Parallel Bible Commentary, by Nelson Books.