Luke 24:36-40

Luke 24:36 (KJB)
And as they thus spake, Jesus himself stood in the midst of them, and saith unto them, Peace be unto you.

While they were speaking to each other about the resurrection of Jesus, all of a sudden Jesus stood in the midst of them and pronounces the Jewish greeting to them “Shalom” or Peace. It conveys a greeting of a wish for well-being for the body, soul, and spirit. (John 14:27 KJV) Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, give I unto you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid. It was also a binding peace which brought an end to hostilities between two parties, especially with God. (Rom 5:1 KJV) Therefore being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ:

Luke 24:37 (KJB)
But they were terrified and affrighted, and supposed that they had seen a spirit.

Here the discussion was going on concerning the resurrection of Jesus and even that fact the Jesus appeared to Peter and to the two disciples on the road to Emmaus. Now Jesus stands in their midst and they became terrified and filled with fear thinking they were seeing a spirit. Even at this point there was still an air of unbelief because on one hand they were speaking of the resurrection and on the other hand they were frightened when Jesus came into their presence. It was like the reality of the resurrection had not yet penetrated their thinking.

Luke 24:38 (KJB)
And he said unto them, Why are ye troubled? and why do thoughts arise in your hearts?

Jesus then asks them why are they so troubled? Why were they so disquieted in their spirits? Then Jesus asks them why are they reasoning in their hearts? A moment ago, they were discussing the resurrection and the appearances of Jesus and it seemed when He was standing there right in front of them, they had disbelieved everything they were saying. Jesus had a message of hope for them and that message was that He had been dead but is now very much alive. It will be something every believer will experience that dies before the Lord’s return.

Luke 24:39 (KJB)
Behold my hands and my feet, that it is I myself: handle me, and see; for a spirit hath not flesh and bones, as ye see me have.

Then Jesus gives them a command to behold or see His hands and feet. They may have had the nail prints in them yet, showing them that He was not a spirit but that he was flesh and bones. It is another mystery aspect of the resurrected body. It had flesh and bones and was not subject to the physical laws of this world. He had asked the disciples to actually touch and handle Him to assure them that they were not seeing a spirit but that they were actually seeing the resurrected Lord. (Eph 5:30 KJV) For we are members of his body, of his flesh, and of his bones. Now the Bible is teaches us that those who are in Christ are members of His body. This we understand, but of his flesh and bones? When the Lord Jesus Christ rose from the dead, He came out of the grave bodily, not a spirit. Some teach that Christ only rose in Spirit. If that is the case, then His grave would be with us today, and believe me the enemies of Christ would have definitely handed down the location of His grave to every generation, but they can’t, because where ever it was, it is now empty.

When Eve was formed from Adam’s rib, the Scripture teaches: (Gen 2:23 KJV) And Adam said, This is now bone of my bones, and flesh of my flesh: she shall be called Woman, because she was taken out of Man. God took Eve from the rib of Adam and when the church was formed, the side of the Lord Jesus was punctured by the soldier with the spear and out came water and blood. The church was formed the same way Eve was. We are one flesh with Christ as we are married to him, just as Eve was one flesh with Adam when they were married. It is the principle that we have seen in this chapter. There is such an intimacy between Christ and the church, that it is symbolized as us being a member of his physical body. Remember in John 6, when the Lord Jesus Christ was speaking of eating His flesh and drinking His blood? This was also symbolic of being such an intimate part of the Lord Jesus. The church as the wife of Christ, are enjoined as one, which is symbolized by the marriage relationship.

Luke 24:40 (KJB)
And when he had thus spoken, he showed them his hands and his feet.

Then Jesus definitely showed them His hands and feet which had the nail prints in them. This was also significant because if Jesus only rose in spirit, then there would be no marks on Him but here He is showing them the marks of the nails on His hands and feet. This also meant He was standing there in a physical body. Thomas was not present but the reason he believed was because he saw the actual nail prints in the hands of Jesus. (John 20:25 KJV) The other disciples therefore said unto him, We have seen the Lord. But he said unto them, Except I shall see in his hands the print of the nails, and put my finger into the print of the nails, and thrust my hand into his side, I will not believe.

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