It may have been, as Jesus hung on the cross, that there was a near-total silence in the courts of Heaven. But, upon hearing his cry, ‘It is finished!’ there erupted cheers and shouts and fireworks and jubilant dancing. The Father’s mission of Love was just completed. Following that, there would have been three days of excited preparations as all worked and waited with bated breath for that moment when Jesus’ time in the tomb ended and he rose up and walked out again to take a deep, satisfying breath of the crisp, early morning air. Maybe there was even a cohort of angels silently hovering at attention overhead to greet the Risen Savior, God’s beloved only Son. It may have been silent on earth, but it was anything but quiet in Heaven as the celebration of the greatest victory of all time and eternity resumed in earnest! (could that be when the earth’s tilt was created??). The way was finally cleared. God’s children would be coming home!
Back on earth, Jesus spent the next forty days re-affirming his enduring love for his closest friends and followers. It was also a time of recapping his teachings on the Kingdom and prepping these men for the next critical phase of their discipleship, their ‘without-him’ participation in God’s Plan ‘A.’ These surreal days brought challenges to all their pre-suppositions, their prejudices, their lofty dreams.
Holy Week, for the twelve, was lived with a jumble of hope, fear, confusion, despair, defeat, disbelief, and finally, a sorrowing deeper than anything they’d ever known. Then came Sunday, with stunning news of Jesus’ resurrection! After he appeared to them, a kind of sizzling awareness began spreading inside, making them keenly aware that they were in a new season, a different day, with a slowly dawning realization that things would never be the same again.
I can imagine them at each meetup with Jesus, soaking up every moment, savoring the time, listening with greater attentiveness to his every word, searching for the Kingdom meaning behind every repeated teaching. Even little asides, what seemed like casual comments would have been investigated and held onto for further discussion when they were alone. And since Jesus had told them on several occasions that he was returning to the Father, a sense of urgency to ‘get’ all they could made them more sober students than ever.
As 21st Century disciples, it may be that paying closer attention to Jesus’ teachings is an invitation to us as well. We are his hands and feet and heart for an anxiously waiting, desperately wounded world. And we know that everyone gets to play. Looking forward to seeing all you learning, growing, disciples tomorrow at 10 AM, 3 PMUK. PD
Don graduated from Regent University in 1988 and moved to France for seven years, coming back to the US briefly to marry Sue in 1990. The work in France included working in a Christian School and helping plant a church before returning in 1995. He’s been pastor of Peninsula Vineyard since 1999. He enjoys counseling, especially married couples, traveling back to France (with Sue), reading, doing Sudoku puzzles and sleuthing out good, dark chocolate. Don serves as the senior pastor of the Vineyard Church Peninsula, in Newport News, Virginia.