The Day Is Far Spent! Our Departure Is At Hand!

Luke 24:28, “And they drew nigh unto the village, whither they went: and he made as though he would have gone further. 29But they constrained him, saying, Abide with us: for it is toward evening, and the day is far spent. And he went in to tarry with them.”

Jesus would have continued on His journey except that His disciples constrained (to cause a person to give in to pressure) Him to “abide with us.” Jesus’ disciples compelled Him to stay with them. As I read these words, I am drawn to the idea that they compelled Jesus to abide with them. The day was gone and twilight was coming on. The end of the day had come signaling the end of the day’s work.

We will soon come to the end of our day and the end of our work. The day is almost gone and twilight is coming on. What we do for Christ we must do it quickly. We must use the precious time He is giving us to finish His work. Jesus said of Himself in John 9:4, “I must work the works of him that sent me, while it is day: the night cometh, when no man can work.” The night is upon us and no one will work. The time for work will be over. Nothing can distract or detour us from the mission Christ has given us. Complete TRUST in the leading of the Holy Spirit is essential to our victory and the salvation for all who will hear this message!

There were many distractions for Christ’s disciples following His death. They must have been in a state of spiritual and emotional distress. The Church was a total wreck with the leaders scattered for fear of their own lives. Try to put yourself in their places. How would you feel if the same thing happen to you? I can think of a few: betrayed, fearful, denial, deserted, hopeless, defeated, disbelief, anger and the list could go on. The main point being that they had to recover from all these feeling and experiences because they had a mission to finish.

One of the most debilitating emotions the disciples must have experienced at the death of Jesus was that of anger. It has been said that Jesus was who He said He was or He was the greatest con artist of all time. If Jesus was not the Messiah, how could He have been so cruel to perpetuate such a hoax? His disciples had loved Him with all their hearts. They had been loyal followers and it was unthinkable that He would betray them in such a fashion. If Jesus was not the Messiah, how could He have performed such miraculous feats as He did? By what power, or authority, or slight of hand, or human trickery could He have done such miracles. The disciples had seen Him stop funeral processions and raise the dead. He appeared to heal the sick, open blind eyes, heal the lame and all manner of diseases. They were with Him when He fed the multitudes (5000 and 4000) with only a few loaves and fishes. The disciples themselves collected the leftovers which amounted to more than what they had at the beginning. How did He accomplish that if He was not who He said He was? How could He have performed such miraculous feats in such flawless fashion that they (the disciples) could be so completely fooled?

And if He was the Messiah, how could God have allowed Jesus to be taken from them? Jesus, who was the foundation and head of the Church. It was upon the understanding that He was the Son of God that this New Movement was established. Matt. 16:13, “...he asked his disciples, saying, Whom do men say that I the Son of man am? 14And they said, Some say that thou art John the Baptist: some, Elias; and others, Jeremias, or one of the prophets. 15He saith unto them, But whom say ye that I am? 16And Simon Peter answered and said, Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God. 17And Jesus answered and said unto him, Blessed art thou, Simon Barjona: for flesh and blood hath not revealed it unto thee but my Father which is in heaven. 18And I say also unto thee, That thou art Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church; and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it.” Jesus' promise was to build and establish His Church upon the revelation that He was the Son of God. Why would God taunt them with the promise of salvation and deliverance and then abandon them at the 11th hour? How could God really love them and allow such a thing to happen? The disciples were looking at the circumstances. How could they understand the revelation that Jesus was the Son of God and miss the prophecy of His death, burial, and resurrection?

We can apply the same principle to our relationship in Christ. How can we receive the revelation that Jesus is the Son of God, our Savior, our Messiah and fail to embrace other promises relative to our walk with Him? God has always been faithful! He is faithful now! He will always be faithful!

Hebrews 9:28, “So Christ was once offered to bear the sins of many; and unto them that look for him shall he appear the second time without sin unto salvation.” Jesus Christ is everything we need as believers in His gift of life through the sacrifice of His life on the cross. However, the culmination of our faith will be at His appearing to catch away those who are ready and looking for His coming. The night is upon us and no one will work. The time for work will be over. Nothing can distract us from the mission Christ has given us. Complete TRUST in the leading of the Holy Spirit is essential to our victory and the salvation for all who will hear this message! The day is far spent! Our departure is at hand!