itsaboutGod, yes indeed

Reflecting on the path. . .
Updated September 26, 2003

DS
September 26, 2003

What has happened?

Luke 24.18
Then one of them, his name was Cleopas, said, "Are you the only one in Jerusalem who hasn't heard what's happened during the last few days?"

Cleopas asks Jesus this question. Funny, Jesus is the only one who did know what was happening.

We need, I need, to continue to learn to trust God when things seem the most bleak and dark. I know. This seems so "cliche," and we could dismiss it as such if we did not have such powerful evidence in Scripture that not only supports but promotes this thought.

And we can find no better evidence of this than Luke's account of the few days surrounding Jesus' crucifixion and resurrection. As we will see – It's a pretty good idea that when we ask "What has happened?" that we don't forget to ask God.

What was striking to me this morning was the absolute disappointment, discouragement and disillusionment experienced by the disciples, topped of with a nice fluffy layer of confusion for good measure.

And God let it happen. He let them hang there.

All the while, in this three day span, our God was doing the greatest thing that this world had ever seen or ever would see: Jesus would be resurrected from the dead.

In Luke 24.19 Jesus responds to a very exasperated Cleopas with this question: "What has happened?"

Cleopas, amazed that Jesus was not current on the events of the last few days, had just asked Jesus: "Are you the only one in Jerusalem who hasn't heard what's happened during the last few days?"

Haven't you heard? The wheels were coming off the disciples hopes, their Messiah had just been betrayed by their own religious leaders, Jerusalem was rocked with confusion and darkness, and Cleopas could hardly believe that Jesus had not heard what was going on.

Some key contrasts:
What seemed to be happening versus what was happening.
The message that the events communicated versus the words of Jesus. He had told them, remember, that this would happen.
The religious and political instability versus the Rock-solid nature of God carrying out his salvation work.

Jesus asked them: "What has happened?" But they should have asked him. And again we see, he left them hanging. They had to walk through the darkness to come to the light. He began explaining to them everything in the Scriptures that referred to him.

To continue What Has Happened?