Last Days With Jesus

Like many who love Jesus, I often find myself envious of His Disciples. Though their lives weren't easy, particularly in the latter days, under persecution, I am, I'll admit, jealous that they were able to sit at Jesus' feet, learning directly from Him, witnessing firsthand His miracles. But perhaps the part of which I am most envious is that about which there seem to be the fewest details.

The former account I (Luke) made, O Theophilus, of all that Jesus began both to do and teach, until the day in which He was taken up, after He through the Holy Spirit had given commandments to the apostles whom He had chosen, to whom He also presented Himself alive after His suffering by many infallible proofs, being seen by them during forty days and speaking of the things pertaining to the kingdom of God. (Acts 1:1-3)

Imagine: You have spent nearly three years of your life with a great Rabbi. A teacher and a prophet. You have witnessed His miracles, and by His words and deeds have come to suspect -- even believe -- that He is the long-awaited Messiah. It tore your heart out when He was killed, and made you question everything you thought you knew. But then, three days later, He comes forth from the Grave, leaving an empty tomb behind Him. 

Would you not look at Him, even now, with entirely new eyes? Would you not finally understand what you had already believed: that this Man was indeed the Son of God? 

Luke says in the opening to Acts that Jesus spent forty days between His Resurrection and Ascension with His disciples. We'll learn more in later verses about the last of those forty days, but imagine! Imagine forty days in the presence of God -- now knowing, having the proof of your belief, that God is exactly who He is!

Some day, you and I will stand in that very same presence -- and not for a mere forty days! Some day, you and I will be rewarded for our faith just as Christ's disciples were: by finally sitting at the feet of our Messiah!

Road Weary

The one constant in my married life has been travel. With families at least six hundred miles apart, visiting always meant travel. Whether we lived in Michigan and had to drive to New York, or whether it was the other way around, and now that we live in Wisconsin, the word "vacation" is pretty much synonymous with "Road Trip." And, though they are never short trips -- in general it would be 10 to 12 hours in the car, depending on how tired we were, how often the kids had to use the restroom, how many cups of coffee we needed -- we almost always drive straight through, with no overnight stops.

Needless to say, by the time we get to our destination, there is nothing more wonderful than the welcoming arms of my parents or in-laws and the words, "the bed is made. We'll watch the kids."

We grow weary in our travels on this Earth, too. Bone tired. Exhausted to our very souls. But how wonderful to know that, even as we travel straight through and full out, we can keep our eyes ahead and know that, at the end of the road are the welcoming arms of The Father, and a nice, clean room.

As Jesus said to His disciples,

"Do not let your hearts be troubled. You believe in God; believe also in me. My Father’s house has many rooms; if that were not so, would I have told you that I am going there to prepare a place for you? And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with me that you also may be where I am. You know the way to the place where I am going.” (John 14: 1-4)

Even now, Jesus is putting out the good linen and setting a glorious table, preparing to welcome us home.