HE+ Opened Their EYES ...

Resurrection Season

Day 12

of the 40 Days The LORD JESUS CHRIST

spent with His+ Disciples,

in His+ Glorified Body,

AFTER HIS+ RESURRECTION !

+  +  +

Knowing that CHRIST

being raised from the dead dieth no more;

Death hath no more dominion over HIM+.

Romans 6: 9

+  +  +

How

Did HE+ Open Their Eyes ?

 And it came to pass,

as HE+ sat at meat with them,

 HE+ took bread,  and blessed it,

and brake,  and gave to them.

 

And their eyes were opened,

and they knew HIM+ !

 and HE+ vanished

out of their sight.

Luke 24: 30-31, 

The men of the Company of JESUS, walking to Emmaus

 

Let us notice what JESUS did to open their spiritual eyes.

• HE+ sat with them.

• HE+ took Bread.

• HE+ blessed it.

• HE+ brake it.

• HE+ gave it to them.

HE+ instituted the Bread and Wine as His+ Body and Blood during the Last Passover meal HE+ kept with His+ Disciples.

That unleavened Bread was His+ Body, broken for us.

And when HE+ had given thanks,

HE+ brake it, and said,

 

Take, eat: this is My+ Body,

Which is broken for you:

this do in remembrance of ME+.

I Corinthians 11:24

 

How do WE

open the spiritual eyes

of those around us ?

We must do the same thing for others

which Our LORD did for us. 

 

• We must be with them ... in some way, making some kind of contact with them.

• We take BREAD with us... that is , the Body of our LORD JESUS. This is not BREAD from wheat, but HE+ that lives within us, goes along with us in our contact.

 

HE+ is THE  Bread+ of Life

and HIM+ we take with us to share.

• We ask HIM+ to bless --- to sanctify and multiply --- this, His+ Bread of Life, that accompanies us wherever we go... and with whomever we are around.

• We break this Bread+ that lives within us.

  How ? 

• We go the second mile, we take the lowest seat, we turn the other cheek, we render good for evil. We share the Truth in love. ( Love is not "love" without Truth .) In short, we pick up our Cross also, and die daily.

• And in so doing, we GIVE others the Bread+ of Life, the broken Body of our CHRIST.

+  +  +

In any situation, people will give Followers of JESUS their attention WHEN they see them turn the other cheek, WHEN they see them go the second mile, WHEN they actually witness someone returning good for evil. The witness of the Broken Bread+, the Broken Body of CHRIST , goes forth.

That kind of witness speaks

LOUDER THAN WORDS.

For some, it will draw them to HIM+. For others, it will cause them to ponder why someone turned the other cheek when he did not have to.

That may chase some people away, but it will bother them in one way or another the rest of their life; they will not forget it because it is incomprehensible to them.

But the natural man receiveth not the things

of the SPIRIT of GOD:

 

for they are foolishness unto him:

neither can he know them,

because they are spiritually discerned.

I Corinthians 2:14

+  +  +

We "open" the spiritual eyes of others when we WALK like JESUS walked, laying down His+ rights, His+ Life , for the unrighteous ... such as we were and sometimes still are.

He that saith he abideth in HIM+

ought himself also so to walk,

even as HE+ walked.

1 John 2:6,

Courtesy of Bible Gateway.com

When we lay down our “rights”, when we refuse to retaliate in order to obey JESUS, and follow His+ example, the Witness for HIM+ goes forth.

It is the LOUDEST witness we can give. It is also the SUREST witness we can give; there is no doctrine that can refute it.

There is no confusion about Whom+ we follow... when we do that. Others know immediately that we are NOT of the world.

Immediately, their eyes are opened to this one Truth:  There is something DIFFERENT about us. 

WHAT is it that makes us different ?

It is Who+ we follow.

 

Then JESUS said unto them,

Verily, verily, I+  say unto you,

Moses gave you not that bread from Heaven;

but My+  FATHER giveth you

the true Bread from Heaven.

For the BREAD+ of GOD is HE+

which cometh down from Heaven,

and giveth life unto the world.

Then said they unto HIM+, LORD,

evermore give us this bread.

And JESUS said unto them,

I+  am

the BREAD+ of Life:

HE+ that cometh to ME+

shall never hunger;

and HE+ that believeth on ME+

shall never thirst.

John 6: 32-35

Scriptures courtesy of Bible Gateway.com

+  +  +

Their EYES Were HOLDEN ...

Day 9

of the 40 Days

of the Resurrection Season

 

when The RISEN LORD JESUS CHRIST

appeared to His+ Company of believers

in His+ Risen, Glorified Body

which could never die again.

 

Their Eyes Were Holden ...

 

The men walking to Emmaus had a problem: their eyes were holden and they could not recognize The RISEN LORD JESUS.

 

  But their eyes were holden

that they should not know him.

Luke 24:16

 

The men, one named Cleopas, were of the Company who followed JESUS and who were with the band of disciples gathered together the First Day of the week. They were present when the women reported that they had seen an Angel who told them HE+ had risen from the dead and was ALIVE !

 

 HE+ is not here, but is risen:

remember how HE+ spake unto you

when HE+ was yet in Galilee,

 

Saying,

The SON+ of Man must be delivered

into the hands of sinful men,

and be crucified,

and the third day rise again.

 

And they remembered His+ words,

 

And returned from the sepulchre,

and told all these things unto the eleven,

and to all the rest.

 

It was Mary Magdalene and Joanna,

and Mary the mother of James,

and other women that were with them,

which told these things unto the apostles.

 

And their words seemed to them

as idle tales,

and they believed them not.

Luke 24: 6-11

 

The two men were present when Peter ran to the tomb and found it empty and reported back to the Company of believers.

 

 Then arose Peter,

and ran unto the sepulchre;

 

and stooping down,

he beheld the linen clothes

laid by themselves,

 

and departed,

wondering in himself

at that which was come to pass.

Luke 24:12

 

Then, these two followers of JESUS embarked on a journey to Emmaus, a village about 7 miles away. As they walked, The RISEN CHRIST drew near and joined Himself+ to them ... but they did not recognize HIM+ !

 

It was fully day, for the women and Peter had come and gone from the sepulchre and reported back to the Company about their findings ... likely, with a storm of discussion... which would have given time for the sun to rise.

 

As the men walked in daylight with the unrecognized but RISEN LORD, HE+ asked them what manner of things were they discussing as they walked, being sad ?

 

After Cleopas exclaimed his surprise that this "stranger" was unaware of what had happened at the Passover, the two men expounded to HIM+ the events of the Crucifixion plus the reports of the Empty Tomb. It was the third day since all these terrible things happened.  

 

The surprising response of this "stranger" to their explanations was:

 

O fools,

and slow of heart to believe all

that the prophets have spoken:

 

Ought not CHRIST

to have suffered these things,

and to enter into His+ glory?

Luke 24:25-26

 

Then HE+ expounded to them the Scriptures from Moses and all the prophets concerning the CHRIST, Himself+.

 

However, their eyes were still holden ... and they yet did NOT recognize The RISEN LORD being with them and talking to them.

 

Do we recognize HIM+ when HE+ is among us today...

 

or are our eyes so fixated

on knowing ABOUT HIM+

that we do not discern

His+ Presence ?

 

Are our eyes so fixed on the things of this world...

 

that we cannot discern His+ Voice

from other voices...

especially the voice

of our own troubles

and concerns ?

 

When The RISEN LORD called these two serious-minded and sad believers "FOOLS !" , it was a stern rebuke, one of the hardest rebukes HE+ spoke in the New Testament.

 

Un-belief ,

even when in grief, sadness, and confusion,

earned these two believers

HIS+ stern rebuke

for their stubbornness.

 

+  +  +  

 

We do not know WHY they refused to believe the report that HE+ had risen from the dead and was ALIVE and had indeed appeared to the women, whom they all scoffed at. We can only surmise that they were still in shock and heart-broken.

 

That was no excuse,

according to

The LORD'S up-braiding !

 Yet, in His+ great mercy and kindness, The RISEN CHRIST JESUS opened their eyes at the Breaking of Bread, His+ Body.

 

What "eyes" ? 

 

HE+ opened the eyes

of their hearts

so they could "see"

with their spirit

 

WHO+ HE+ was,

The LIVING LORD JESUS CHRIST,

standing there among them

... all that time.

+  +  + 

 

DEAR LORD JESUS,

 

Open my eyes that I may see YOU+ instead of the things that crowd YOU+ out of my vision.

 

Open my eyes that I may see YOU+ instead of my troubles and concerns that loom so large.

 

Help me to stop focusing upon this temporary world and its crushing and certain evil and rather, let me see YOUR+ hand fulfilling prophecy for YOUR+ soon return.

 

I want to know YOU+, O my LORD CHRIST, not simply know things about YOU+.

 

Be THOU+ my vision, O LORD JESUS, I pray,

 

for YOU+ have risen from the dead

and YOU+ are LORD. 

Every knee shall bow,

every tongue confess

that JESUS CHRIST is LORD !

 

Amen and amen,

and thankfully so !

+  +  +

40 DAYS and 40 NIGHTS ... The RESURRECTION SEASON !

DAY 6 

of the Resurrection Season

of the Christian Calendar

The former treatise have I made, O Theophilus, of all that JESUS began both to do and teach,  Until the day in which HE+ was taken up, after that HE+ through the HOLY SPIRIT had given commandments unto the apostles whom HE+ had chosen: 

To whom also HE+ shewed Himself+ alive 

after His+ Passion by many infallible proofs, 

being seen of them forty days, 

and speaking of the things pertaining 

to the Kingdom of GOD:

Acts 1: 1-3

+  +  +

Forty days and nights --- unlike ANY other 40 days and nights ever had been or ever will be on planet earth --- were 40 VERY ACTIVE days and nights. 

Disciples were moved from  a despair they could hardly live with to  a  JOY that they could hardly contain in their natural bodies. 

In fact, the brothers walking to Emmaus were SO ENLIVENED by contact with the Resurrected, Living LORD , that they turned around and walked BACK TO JERUSALEM  that very same night ... a matter of nearly 7 miles ! --- just to share the fact : 

JESUS IS RISEN !

What did The Risen LORD talk to them about during that 7 mile journey from Jerusalem to Emmaus ? 

 

Then HE+ said unto them, 

O fools, 

and slow of heart to believe 

all that the prophets have spoken: 

Ought not CHRIST 

to have suffered these things, 

and to enter into His+ Glory?   

And beginning at Moses and all the prophets,  

HE+ expounded unto them 

in all the Scriptures 

the things concerning HIMSELF+.

Luke 24:  25- 27 

+  +  +

 Earlier, verse 16 tells us that their eyes were holden, that they might not know Who+ HE+ was, as they expounded to HIM+ their puzzlement over His+ death. 

From the very words of these brothers, they had TRUSTED in CHRIST, so they were quite confounded at the works of GOD.  

Apparently, they did NOT trust the witness of the women of their company who found His+ Tomb empty ... and had talked with an Angel !  

HOW OFTEN HAVE WE OURSELVES

REJECTED THE  WITNESS 

OF THE LIVING CHRIST ?

Why do we make The LORD "prove" HIMSELF+ to us, over and over again?  

Yes, we "agree" in our minds... but do we ALWAYS AFFIRM in our hearts the Truth, when we are faced with great and serious difficulties ? 

The LORD,  The LIVING LORD, The RESURRECTED JESUS, up-braided the brothers ... and it was NOT GENTLE. 

"O, fools ... "

The LORD called these brothers !  

and slow of heart to believe 

ALL

that the prophets have spoken:

 

 The LORD JESUS+ revealed HIMSELF+ to them only in the breaking of the Bread, His+ Body,  because their minds were fixed on "what they knew"  or thought they knew.  

Unbelief is like that.  

The LORD had to share with them the Crucified CHRIST, alas,  before their eyes were opened to the Resurrected, Living CHRIST !

The breaking of the Bread, HIS+ Body, was required to move them from unbelief to FAITH ... that living trust in CHRIST to be exactly WHAT HE+  said HE+ is ! 

IS CHRIST REQUIRED 

to do that for us too ? 

Must  HE+ prove Himself+ over and over again to us before we move from unbelief to faith in HIM+, faith in His+ Victory over death, hell, and the grave ?  

Do we continue to live in despair in secret, tormenting areas of our lives ?

Must HE+ upbraid us, also ?

+  +  +

Dear Heavenly FATHER, 

O, THOU WHO hast given  us Thy SON+ and made us meet to be partakers with HIM+ in glory,  I stand ashamed before THEE for my unbelief. 

I repent and forsake my clinging on to unbelief even when I know The LORD JESUS is ALIVE and LIVES ever to make intercession for us. 

Turn my vision from myself and onto the Victory in CHRIST.  

Turn my vision from the affairs of this world and onto the Coming Return of CHRIST, when HE+ makes all things new and puts to flight the workers of evil, high and low. 

Grant me that Living victory, entrusting my care and keeping unto HIM+ Who+ lived and died, and "Behold,"  HE+ said, " I+  AM  ALIVE FOR EVERMORE! " 

 In the Mighty and LIVING Name of our Resurrected LORD JESUS CHRIST, I lift these prayers to THEE, O FATHER. 

+  +  +

Glory be to GOD ON HIGH ! 

HalleluJAH ! CHRIST IS RISEN ! 

HE+ is risen INDEED ! 

+  +  + 

HE+ LIVES! Resurrection of Jesus Christ, The HOPE of The Human Race

Jesus is ALIVE ! 

Life will never be the same.

 

Life is not about making money, buying endless things, being popular and well thought-of.

 

Life is about an ETERNITY with The ONE+

Who created you and all that exists.

 

HE+ came to us from another realm, another dimension, the heavenly-celestial dimension.

 

HE+ came to HIS+ own but they would not receive HIM+.  Many who say they are HIS+ still do not receive HIM+.

But HE+ is ALIVE! 

 

The Disciples saw HIM+ die a hard and painful death, complete with reviling and mocking. They heard HIS+ Words from the Cross. They watched the Roman soldier shove a razor sharp Roman lance into HIS+ heart to make certain HE+ was dead.

 

Joseph and Nicodemus lovingly removed HIS+ battered body from the Cross, wrapped it,  and placed it in Joseph’s tomb.

 

The religious leaders besought Pilate for a Roman guard detail to be placed to guard the tomb. Pilate gave them a watch, a squad of soldiers numbering 4 soldiers, which was changed every 4 hours, a total of 16.   The  penalty in the Roman army for allowing your “Prisoner” to escape was death.

When JESUS came out of the Tomb these hardened Roman soldiers passed out and became as dead men. Angels rolled the stone away. Their appearance was like lightning.

The SON+ of GOD is Alive and at The Right Hand of The Eternal GOD HIS+ Father, and will soon come again as HE+ promised. A Day of rejoicing for HIS+ Children, a day of terror for HIS+ enemies.

 

LIGHT OF THE WORLD, 

HE+ is Alive. 

Nothing will ever be the same again.

 

CHRIST IS RISEN!   

HE+ IS RISEN INDEED!  Hallelujah!!  

Come LORD JESUS!

They Have Stripped ME+ of My+ Garments

This is a  3-minute chant from the English Orthodox Byzantine Church, traditionally done on Holy Thursday before the Crucifixion of CHRIST JESUS. 

( It has a surprise ending; be sure to listen to the last stanza. ) 

While we can only count "3 nights and 3 days"  from a Wednesday Crucifixion, with two Sabbaths in that Passover week,  we join with other Christians in the Commemoration of The LORD'S Crucifixion on the western Christian world's "Good Friday" ... since the commemoration itself is not a matter of Salvation. 

  They Have Stripped ME+ 

of My+ Garments 

English Orthodox Byzantine Chant

EnglishOrthodox Chants

Holy Thursday, They Have Stripped Me of My Garments - English Orthodox Byzantine Chant Published on Jul 18, 2014 

Chanted by Vassilis Hadjinicolaou.

 

  They Have Stripped ME+ 

of My+ Garments  ... 

for the LAST TIME ! 

+   +   + 

MARANATHA!  

Come, LORD JESUS !  

 

* We have portrayed in this video Christian ART; we do not worship images nor icons. / Sr. Judith Hannah  + + +