The Lord’s death and resurrection, when viewed in connection with the
\nOld Testament dispensation, summed it up and brought it to an end. The
\nLord remained on earth for forty days after His resurrection to prepare
\nHis disciples for the new age of grace. During these days there were
\nappearances and disappearances. The appearances were necessary in order
\nto prove again and again that He was indeed risen from the dead. The
\ndisappearances were necessary in order to school His disciples to live
\nby faith and not by sight since His bodily presence was soon to be
\ntaken away. In this period there were seven important openings.({{Acts
\n1:3}})<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
The Opening of the Tomb<\/strong> The Opening of the Heavens<\/strong> The Opening of the Eyes<\/strong> The Opening of the Future<\/strong> The Opening of the Scriptures<\/strong> The Opening of Their Understanding<\/strong>
We are told in {{Mark 16:1}} that
\ncertain women brought sweet spices to anoint the body of the Lord and
\nfound the huge stone already rolled away from the door of the tomb.
\nThere had been an earthquake ({{Mt. 28:2}}), and an angel from heaven
\nhad moved it. The guards who were on duty became “as dead men.” No one
\nsaw Jesus come out of the tomb. The stone was not rolled away to let
\nJesus out—He was already out—but to let the disciples in that they
\nmight see the evidence that He had risen. The Lord did not have to
\nstruggle out of clothes to rise. In quiet and calm control, He rose
\nwithout disturbing the grave clothes. The Lord opened the door of death
\nand rose triumphant over it.\n<\/p>\n
{{Mark 16:19}} tells us,
\n“He was received up into heaven.” “Thou hast ascended on high” ({{Ps.
\n68:18}}) means that He did so by His own inherent power, and was given
\na royal welcome. The language of the psalm is that of a military
\ntriumph—the Lord having defeated all the hierarchy of hell and fully
\naccomplished man’s redemption. Thus in {{Psalm 24}} we see heaven
\nopening its gates to receive Him. “Lift up your heads, O ye gates; and
\nbe ye lift up, ye everlasting doors; and the King of glory shall come
\nin. Who is this King of glory? The Lord strong and mighty, the Lord
\nmighty in battle.” He opened those gates, and open they remain until
\nthe last of His believing people pass through to sit with Him in
\neverlasting glory.\n<\/p>\n
“And their eyes were opened”
\n({{Lk. 24:31}}), so that “they knew Him.” The prophets had declared
\nthat He would do this ({{Isa. 35:5}}). The first reference of this
\nscripture may have been to physical eyes. Few of such eyes were opened,
\nbut millions of spiritual eyes have been opened since, and all such now
\nknow the Lord. All His followers need this touch of His risen life. We
\nread of the two going to Emmaus that “their eyes were holden that they
\nshould not know Him” ({{Lk. 24:16}}); that Mary in the garden was
\nactually standing near Him yet “knew not that it was Jesus”; that the
\ndisciples who had gone back fishing “knew not that it was Jesus”
\nstanding on the seashore. All needed their eyes opened that they might
\nknow Him in resurrection life.\n<\/p>\n
“Verily, verily, I say unto
\nthee,” said the Lord to Peter, “When thou wast young, thou girdest
\nthyself, and walkedst whither thou wouldst: but when thou shalt be old,
\nthou shalt stretch forth thy hands, and another shall gird thee, and
\ncarry thee whither thou wouldst not. This spake He, signifying by what
\ndeath he should glorify God” ({{Jn. 21:18-19}}). The Lord in these
\nwords told Peter two things. First, he would live to be an old man and,
\nsecondly, by which exit door he would depart out of this world. When
\nPeter turned and saw John following, he asked the Lord, “What shall
\nthis man do?” The Lord answered, in effect, that that was not Peter’s
\nbusiness. John’s future, too, was in the hands of the Lord. So are all
\nour futures.\n<\/p>\n
“Did not our heart burn
\nwithin us…while He opened to us the Scriptures?” ({{Lk. 24:32}}). The
\ntwo on the way to Emmaus were in the depths of despondency. The cross
\nhad blasted their hopes of an immediate earthly kingdom. But the Lord
\nappeared to them, and though they did not recognize Him, He walked with
\nthem. In that walk He opened up a new ministry of finding Christ in all
\nthe Scriptures. “Beginning at Moses and all the prophets, He expounded
\nunto them in all the Scriptures the things concerning Himself.” As He
\ndid so, their heart burned within them. They were lifted out of their
\ndespair. The opening of the Scriptures set their hearts aflame.\n<\/p>\n
“Then opened He
\ntheir understanding, that they might understand the Scriptures” ({{Lk.
\n24:45}}). Education is not the key to such understanding, though no one
\nwould despise it. Many of the best teachers of the Word of God have had
\nlittle in the way of formal education. Worldly philosophers have no
\nclue to such understanding. But humble believers with very little
\neducation have often gone down into the depths of the Word and come up
\nwith hands laden with jewels of divine truth.\n<\/p>\n