How does Luke 24:40 affirm the physical resurrection of Jesus Christ? Context Within the Resurrection Narrative Luke 24 places us in the upper room on Resurrection Sunday evening. The disciples are startled by Jesus’ sudden appearance (Luke 24:36-37). Immediately, He moves to reassure them that what they are witnessing is not a ghostly vision but His literal, bodily return from the dead. Verse 40 captures the pivotal moment: “ ‘Look at My hands and My feet. It is I Myself. Touch Me and see— for a spirit does not have flesh and bones, as you see I have.’ And when He had said this, He showed them His hands and His feet.” (Luke 24:39-40) Eyewitness Confirmation: Hands and Feet • Jesus deliberately directs attention to the very limbs that bore the nails, the unmistakable evidence of crucifixion. • Inviting the disciples to “Touch Me and see” proves He expects their physical senses—sight and touch—to verify His identity. • The phrase “flesh and bones” underscores substance; ghosts or visions possess neither. • Verse 40’s simple statement, “He showed them His hands and His feet,” seals the proof by rooting the resurrection in observable reality. Continuity of Identity • The wounds are still present, linking the crucified Jesus to the risen Jesus (see also John 20:20, 27). • This continuity invalidates any claim that the resurrection was merely spiritual or symbolic; the same body that hung on the cross now stands alive before them. • In Acts 1:3 Luke later summarizes, “After His suffering, He presented Himself to them with many convincing proofs...” —Luke already highlighted the foremost proof here. Contrast with a Spiritual-Only Resurrection • By inviting touch, Jesus refutes docetic ideas (the notion that He only seemed to have a body). • Luke’s emphasis on “flesh and bones” lays a foundation for later apostolic teaching: “For in Him dwells all the fullness of the Deity bodily” (Colossians 2:9). • A merely spiritual resurrection would leave sin undealt with and death unconquered; a bodily resurrection proclaims victory over both (1 Corinthians 15:17-20). Corroborating Scriptures • John 20:19-20 — The same scene, adding that the disciples “rejoiced when they saw the Lord.” • 1 John 1:1 — “...what we have heard, what we have seen with our eyes, what we have looked at and touched with our hands... the Word of life.” • Acts 10:40-41 — Peter testifies that Jesus “appeared... not to all the people, but to witnesses... who ate and drank with Him after He rose...” • 1 Corinthians 15:3-8 — Paul lists numerous physical appearances, anchoring the gospel in verifiable history. Implications for Our Faith • Assurance of Salvation: A risen body validates the sufficiency of the cross; death truly is defeated. • Hope of Our Own Resurrection: “He will transform our lowly bodies to be like His glorious body” (Philippians 3:21). • Motivation for Witness: The disciples moved from fear to bold proclamation after this tactile encounter; the same certainty fuels our testimony today. |
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