Scripture Daily

Context No. 1758 of 4322 · Luke

Context · Reflection

Luke 24:42-53: in context

42They gave him a piece of a broiled fish and some honeycomb. 43He took them, and ate in front of them. 44He said to them, “This is what I told you while I was still with you, that all things which are written in the law of Moses, the prophets, and the psalms concerning me must be fulfilled.” 45Then he opened their minds, that they might understand the Scriptures. 46He said to them, “Thus it is written, and thus it was necessary for the Christ to suffer and to rise from the dead the third day, 47and that repentance and remission of sins should be preached in his name to all the nations, beginning at Jerusalem. 48You are witnesses of these things. 49Behold, I send out the promise of my Father on you. But wait in the city of Jerusalem until you are clothed with power from on high.” 50He led them out as far as Bethany, and he lifted up his hands and blessed them. 51While he blessed them, he withdrew from them and was carried up into heaven. 52They worshiped him and returned to Jerusalem with great joy, 53and were continually in the temple, praising and blessing God. Amen.

The risen Jesus, eating a piece of fish before his startled disciples to show he is truly raised, reminds them that everything written about him in the law, the prophets, and the psalms had to be fulfilled. Then, the text says, he opened their minds to understand the Scriptures. He shows them how it was written that the Christ would suffer and rise and that repentance and forgiveness would be preached to all nations. He blesses them, is carried up into heaven, and they return to Jerusalem with great joy, continually praising God.

A small but vital line sits at the center of this scene: he opened their minds to understand the Scriptures. These were people who had known the Scriptures all their lives, and yet they had not understood how they pointed to the suffering and rising Christ; the meaning was there, but they could not see it until Jesus opened their minds to grasp it. Understanding the word of God, it turns out, is not merely a matter of intelligence or study; it requires God to open our minds, to give us eyes to see what is there. This is humbling and hopeful at once. Humbling, because it means we cannot simply master the Scriptures by our own cleverness; the true understanding, the seeing of Christ in them, is a gift that God must give, minds that he must open. And hopeful, because it means understanding is available to any who ask, not reserved for the learned; the same Lord who opened the disciples' minds can open ours. This shapes how we come to the Scriptures. Rather than approaching them only as a text to be analyzed by our own powers, we come asking God to open our minds, to give us understanding, to show us Christ in the pages. The disciples had the Scriptures for years without grasping their center; then Jesus opened their minds, and they saw. So we do well to pray, as we read, that God would open our minds too, that we might understand, and see in the whole of Scripture the Christ to whom it points. And notice the fruit: with their minds opened and Christ understood, the disciples returned with great joy. To understand the word rightly, to see Christ in it, is a source of deep joy.

Do I come to the Scriptures relying only on my own cleverness to understand them, or do I ask God to open my mind, as Jesus opened the disciples', to give me understanding and to show me Christ in the pages, trusting that the true understanding is a gift he gives to those who ask?

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