Then he said to them, “These are my words that I spoke to you while I was still with you—that everything written about me in the law of Moses, the prophets, and the psalms must be fulfilled.” Then he opened their minds to understand the scriptures, and he said to them, “Thus it is written, that the Messiah is to suffer and to rise from the dead on the third day, and that repentance and forgiveness of sins is to be proclaimed in his name to all nations, beginning from Jerusalem. You are witnesses of these things. And see, I am sending upon you what my Father promised; so stay here in the city until you have been clothed with power from on high.” Then he led them out as far as Bethany, and, lifting up his hands, he blessed them. While he was blessing them, he withdrew from them and was carried up into heaven. And they worshiped him, and returned to Jerusalem with great joy; and they were continually in the temple blessing God. (Luke 24:44-53, NRSV)
Then He opened their minds to understand the scriptures…
Have you ever had your mind opened to understanding of the scripture?
When I have read something in the bible or been told something by someone in the context of a biblical story, and my eyes were opened to see things in a way I have never before, I will be honest it scares me sometimes. My world is rocked in a way I did not think possible. But is this not what happened to the Pharisees and the Jews of Jesus’ day? They thought they had the whole religious system worked out and knew what they had to do to make it to heaven, and then Jesus comes along and turns all of that on it’s head…
We think we have it all figured out, but all we really know is what we want to know. Our eyes can deceive us and we should not trust them. If our mind is not willing to see what is actually there our eyes will only see what we want to see. We can blind our selves to reality, because it can’t be possible. If only we would allow our minds o be open and accepting of what we are being given, then we can truly see.
And I wonder from the ending of this snippet of scripture if the disciples minds were really opened. They spent all of their time in the temple. Yes they were blessing God, but they were continually in the temple. If they really got what Jesus told them, why weren’t they out telling everybody? Well this is not where the story ends, and it continues in Acts and that is what happens.
And remember that just because you are opened minded it does not mean you believe every perspective you are hearing, it merely means you can hear where another human being is at and accept them where they are, like Christ did for you. Having an open mind means you are willing to accept others as they are where they are and hear them, again just as Christ did for you.
So open your mind and cling to your faith and allow God to work through you.
aSacredRebel 