Instructions (Luke 24:44-49)

When we compare the four Gospel accounts it is clear that Luke compresses together in this passage some details that took place over the next forty days. After all, if we did not know otherwise, we would assume that the ascension took place that same evening whereas we know that it would be another forty days until it took occurred (Acts 1:3). A lot depends on how we interpret the word ‘then’ that occurs in verses 44 and 45. Does it mean that he said those words immediately or does it mean that he said them sequentially over a period of time? It looks to me as if it is sequential, presented here as a summary of his teaching given to his disciples during those days.

John tells us that Jesus said something else when he met with the disciples on this occasion: ‘And when he had said this, he breathed on them and said to them, “Receive the Holy Spirit. If you forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven them; if you withhold forgiveness from any, it is withheld’ (John 20:22-23). Obviously, Jesus could have said on that evening what Luke includes in verses 45-47, but it is possible that he said them later on during the forty days between Jesus’ resurrection and ascension when he was teaching his disciples about the kingdom of God.

The message and the Old Testament

People have their own suggestions to make about how the teaching of Jesus can be summarised. But here he gives his own summary in verse 44: ‘that everything written about me in the Law of Moses and the Prophets and the Psalms must be fulfilled.’ He does not say that everything has now been fulfilled. Rather, he stresses that all will be fulfilled eventually. Then he selects two matters from the range of options and mentions them in verses 45-47. Both these matters are connected to the Messiah. The first matter is that he would suffer and be raised from the dead – that matter has just been fulfilled; the second matter is yet to happen as he speaks, which is that ‘repentance for the forgiveness of sins should be proclaimed in his name to all nations, beginning from Jerusalem.’  

We would have no difficulty in identifying well-known Old Testament passages that speak of his suffering and his resurrection. Psalm 22 and Isaiah 53 come to mind because they describe One who suffers unto death, but who then proceeds to reign over a global kingdom, which can only mean that he would experience resurrection. There are other Old Testament passages that have the same kind of details, and we know that Jesus taught that the experience of Jonah spending three days in the belly of the fish pictured Jesus’ death and resurrection. Another reference for his resurrection is Psalm 16.

But what about the other detail about the proclamation being made to all the nations about repentance? One verse that mentions this is Psalm 22:27: ‘All the ends of the earth shall remember and turn to the Lord.’ Turning to the Lord is a way of describing repentance, illustrating how sinners leave where they are and come to the Lord. Then there are the words found in Isaiah 45:22: ‘Turn to me and be saved, all the ends of the earth! For I am God, and there is no other.’ A third prediction is recorded in Isaiah 59:19-20: ‘So they shall fear the name of the Lord from the west, and his glory from the rising of the sun; for he will come like a rushing stream, which the wind of the Lord drives. “And a Redeemer will come to Zion, to those in Jacob who turn from transgression,” declares the Lord.’

The outcome of declaring the message of repentance is forgiveness of sins. When a penitent sinner comes to the Lord, trusting in the gospel offer of mercy and pardon, he discovers that the blessing is full forgiveness and free forgiveness; full in that all his sins are pardoned and free in that he contributes nothing toward his forgiveness. That sinner will understand to some degree the nature of his sinfulness as unpleasant and obnoxious in the sight of God, but he will have no idea of the number of sins that he has been forgiven.

In what manner is the announcement to be made? Jesus says that it is to be made in his name. This means that the preachers are representing him, speaking as if he was preaching himself,  and it means that they are acting on his authority, the authority of the One who has been highly exalted and given the name that is above every name. An immediate pardon can be announced in the name of Christ on those who repent of their sins and trust in him.

There is disagreement regarding how the phrase ‘beginning at Jerusalem’ should be interpreted. Some say it is part of the prophetic message that was given in the Old Testament and that there are passages that include the name of Jerusalem in them. Others say that the phrase belongs to what follows, which would mean that it would be in Jerusalem that the apostles would first bear witness. Maybe it does not matter which option is accepted because both suggestions are true, although it may be more difficult to locate an Old Testament reference that specifies that the growth of the kingdom would begin in Jerusalem.

Whatever be the precise reference of the phrase, we can see that there is something very striking about Jesus including the city in his statement. It was the place where he had been rejected by the residents, where he had been crucified in public view by the Roman authorities, where various groups had combined together to get rid of him. From one point of view they were the biggest of sinners, the city over which he wept because of their rejection of him and his gospel. Yet even as we read his instruction about this matter, we can see that there is a sense of anticipation in his explanation of the progress of the gospel.

The role of the apostles (v. 48)

What did it mean for the apostles to be witnesses? It was certainly a role that they took seriously, and it was frequently how they described themselves. Here are some examples. Years later, when writing his first letter, Peter described himself in this way to fellow believers: ‘So I exhort the elders among you, as a fellow elder and a witness of the sufferings of Christ, as well as a partaker in the glory that is going to be revealed’ (1 Pet. 5:1).

It was also the way that he and John described themselves to the authorities when they tried to hinder the spread of the gospel message: ‘But Peter and the apostles answered, “We must obey God rather than men. The God of our fathers raised Jesus, whom you killed by hanging him on a tree. God exalted him at his right hand as Leader and Saviour, to give repentance to Israel and forgiveness of sins. And we are witnesses to these things, and so is the Holy Spirit, whom God has given to those who obey him”’ (Acts 5:29-32).

It was how the apostles described themselves when taking the gospel to new places. When taking the gospel to Cornelius the Gentile soldier in Caesarea, Peter said this about himself and his fellow apostles: ‘And we are witnesses of all that he did both in the country of the Jews and in Jerusalem. They put him to death by hanging him on a tree, but God raised him on the third day and made him to appear, not to all the people but to us who had been chosen by God as witnesses, who ate and drank with him after he rose from the dead. And he commanded us to preach to the people and to testify that he is the one appointed by God to be judge of the living and the dead. To him all the prophets bear witness that everyone who believes in him receives forgiveness of sins through his name’ (Acts 10:39-43).

Paul also referred to this role of the apostles in Act 13:30-31 when he was preaching in the synagogue in Antioch in Pisidia: ‘But God raised him from the dead, and for many days he appeared to those who had come up with him from Galilee to Jerusalem, who are now his witnesses to the people.’ Paul regarded the original disciples as special witnesses.

So they bore witness to the death, resurrection and exaltation of Jesus. The witness is not about the actual events because they did not see them. They were not present at the cross when Jesus died, they were not present when he rose again (although they met him later that day), and they were not present in heaven to see his exaltation (although they saw him ascend). True, they had seen him as he was arrested, and they had seen him risen from the dead, and they saw him ascend to glory. Rather they bore witness in that they could explain what had happened to Jesus.

From one point of view, Jesus was saying that there were two credible types of witness to who he is, what he did and where he is now. One was the Old Testament which he enabled the apostles to understand, and the other was the explanations which he enabled them to understand during those forty days that he was with them. But something was also needed for them to be effective witnesses, and he went on to say what it was.

The coming of the Spirit (v. 49)

The words of this verse are about the Holy Spirit, although his name is not mentioned here. This coming of the Spirit will be a fulfilment of a promise made by the heavenly Father. Two interpretations have been given regarding this promise. One is that Jesus was referring to promises found in the Old Testament about the coming of the Spirit, such as the one from Joel that Peter later quoted on the Day of Pentecost (Acts 2). The other is that Jesus was referring to some of the features of the covenant of redemption made by God in eternity. Personally, I would say that both are true since the promise could only be in the Old Testament because it had been agreed in that eternal covenant.

Jesus says that he personally will send the Spirit. Some read this as a proof of his deity. Yet I would suggest that he is referring to his role and not to his divine identity. The role that he mentions is that he is the Mediator or the Administrator of the terms of the eternal covenant we have mentioned. In order to fulfil those roles, he has been given all authority in heaven and on earth.

What would happen when the Spirit came? They would be clothed with divine power from heaven. It is not so much that the Spirit left heaven to live on them, as it were, but that they would in contact with and enveloped by divine power. The effects of the presence of this power would be like that of a visible garment on an individual.

Perhaps we can think about it in this way? Imagine seeing a man wearing a brown suit. We tell a friend that we have seen him. The friend asks us, ‘What was he wearing?’ We reply, ‘A brown suit.’ It was easy to see and therefore easy to say. Imagine seeing an apostle. We tell a friend that we saw one. The friend asks, ‘What was he wearing?’ We would reply, ‘He was clothed in power.’ It would have been easy to see and therefore easy to say. The possession of this power was connected to their witnessing, as Luke tells us in Acts 1:8: ‘But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.’ And we can see from the Book of Acts that the apostles had great power from heaven as they began their witness in the city of Jerusalem.

Whenever the word ‘behold’ is used, it describes a significant event. The coming of the Spirit on the Day of Pentecost was an event of profoundest importance. The third person of the Trinity would be with his servants as they took the message of the gospel to the world, and the Lord enabled them to perform great signs as divine confirmation that they were the authentic agents of the exalted Messiah.

This meeting between Jesus and his disciples was one that brought great blessings to them, undeserving as they were. The role he gave them to fulfil and which the Holy Spirit enabled them to fulfil ensured that the world would never be the same. Their message is still declared today and the Holy Spirit is present to bless it.