Happy Easter!! He is risen! He is risen indeed!!
How was your Lenten and Holy Week experience different in 2022? Write down the high points and reflect on what the last couple of months have meant to you.
So, where can we go following the magnificent miracle of Jesus rising from the dead on Easter morning? What can top this experience? The truth is that God’s story is not over and those who love Him will continue to experience His way together.
You might be familiar with the stages of the cross. We have walked through these events during our Lenten/Holy Week season. The events after Jesus was raised from the dead extend God’s story and can be gathered under the title The Stations of the Resurrection or the Via Lucis (Way of Light). This is a fitting name since, through the cross, a person comes to the light.
This week, we’ll walk through seven events that Jesus and His followers experienced after His resurrection. There are more stations that we could explore, but seven will suffice. Along the way, we’ll read the appropriate Scripture passages, meditate on them, and pray. You might want to spread the seven out over the week. If you are studying with a group, perhaps you could assign different stations to different people and report back what you learned at the end of your time together.
Seven Stations of the Resurrection
I. Jesus appears on the road to Emmaus.
Read Luke 24:13-35.
How did Jesus reveal Himself to His disciples in this story? Why didn’t they recognize Jesus as He walked with them?
When we break the bread and drink the cup as we do when we participate in Holy Communion, we can recognize Jesus in new ways. What does the celebration of the Lord’s Supper mean to you?
Lord, open my eyes to recognize Your presence as You walk with me through life. You promise You’ll never leave or forsake me. Open my eyes so that I may see You everywhere and every day. Amen.
II. Jesus appears to the disciples in Jerusalem.
Read Luke 24:36-49.
What was the disciples’ reaction to seeing Jesus? How did Jesus calm their fears?
Jesus prioritized the disciples’ understanding of the Holy Scriptures about Him. Today, He sends the Holy Spirit to enlighten and empower us to respond rightly to every circumstance. How have you experienced the Spirit in your life?
Lord, open my mind to understand Your holy word. Help me to respond to Your Holy Spirit by obeying Your word everywhere and every day.
III. Jesus strengthens doubting Thomas’ faith.
Read John 20:19-31.
What event did Thomas miss? Why do you think he wasn’t with the rest of the disciples? When he found out, what was his reaction? How did Jesus reach out to Thomas?
Can you think of a time when you missed out on an event and had to settle for hearing what happened secondhand? How willing were you to believe the reports of the people who had been there? Have you ever stayed away from the action because you had a cynical attitude? Jesus transcends our small and petty mindsets and strengthens our faith when we come to Him.
Lord, open up my perspective about You and fill me with hope and belief. I want to have a strong faith in You everywhere I go and every day I live. Amen.
IV. Jesus appears to the disciples by the sea of Tiberius.
Read John 21:1-14.
It seems that some of the disciples returned to their former job as fishermen. What were the circumstances in which Jesus revealed Himself to these men? Think back to Jesus’ call to Peter in Luke 5:1-11. Do you see any similarities? Who recognized Jesus first? But, who jumped into the water? What do you think is the significance of Jesus’ having a meal with some of His disciples right there on the beach?
What reason does John give for writing his gospel? What about you? Do you believe that Jesus is the Christ? The word Christ means that Jesus was anointed by God and called as His Son to be the Savior of the world. When did you first believe in Jesus?
Lord, open my capacity to experience Your life in me everywhere and every day. Your life is eternal and because You live in me, I will live in eternity with You forever. Who in my life needs to know this good news? Give me the opportunity and courage to tell them. Amen.
V. Jesus forgives Peter and calls him to feed His sheep.
Read John 20:15-19.
In part two of the closing chapter of John’s gospel, he shows how Jesus forgave and reinstated Peter in a leadership role. How many times did Peter deny Jesus in Luke 22:54-61? How many times does Jesus ask Peter if He loves Him in John 21:15-17? In spite of everything, what does Jesus command Peter to do in John 21:19?
No matter what we have done, Jesus’ command to us is the same as it was to Peter: “Follow Me.” What keeps you from wholeheartedly following Jesus? Jesus required Peter’s love. When we know we are forgiven like Peter was, we cannot help but love the one who forgives us.
Lord, I love You. Help me understand the depth of Your love and forgiveness toward me. Increase my gratitude and love for You so that I feel it everywhere and every day. Amen.
VI. Jesus gives the Great Commission.
Read Matthew 28:16-20.
When the eleven disciples saw Jesus, what did they do? Why is this important? What was Jesus’ command based on? What is His command and what is His promise?
Helping others become and grow as followers of Jesus is a key component of the Christian life. But, this endeavor is rooted in something even more important and this is the acknowledgment that Jesus is the Lord of my life. If Jesus is truly my Lord, then I will obey His command.
Lord, open my heart to worship You. When I give myself to You, everywhere and every day, I will not be able to keep from obeying Your command to make disciples as You did. Amen.
VII. Jesus ascends into heaven.
Read Luke 24:50-53 and Acts 1:1-11.
Before Jesus ascended into heaven, He spent 40 days with His followers. What did He talk to them about (Acts 1:3)? Acts 1:4 hints that perhaps they still did not understand what Jesus meant by His kingdom. What was Jesus’ answer to their question in Acts 1:7-8? What happened next? What did Jesus expect the Christ-followers to do after He ascended into heaven? According to Luke 24, what was Jesus doing as He ascended (24:51)?
Lord, there are many things that I don’t understand about Your kingdom. I do know that You are my King. Help me wait for Your Holy Spirit before I act or speak, everywhere and every day. Amen.
The next major event is the best one yet. In Acts 2, the Holy Spirit descends upon the Christ-followers. You can catch up on the Bible studies about this event at NorthlandChurch.net/DiggingDeeper.
Transitions, as we know, are part of life. We experience personal, familial, vocational, cultural, national, and even organizational transitions. In fact, Northland is a church in the midst of change and transition. We have called our new lead pastor, Dr. Josh Laxton. Interestingly, while we experience a myriad of transitions in a lifetime, there is a difference between change and transition. Change is situational whereas transition is psychological. In other words, transition involves processing the change.
Transitions, as we know, are part of life. We experience personal, familial, vocational, cultural, national, and even organizational transitions. In fact, Northland is a church in the midst of change and transition. We have called our new lead pastor, Dr. Josh Laxton. Interestingly, while we experience a myriad of transitions in a lifetime, there is a difference between change and transition. Change is situational whereas transition is psychological. In other words, transition involves processing the change.
After experiencing a change and transition, we can look back and see that we were changed—or better yet transformed. And who you became, the kind of transformation that occurred in that transition was the direct result of how you processed or didn’t process the change.
In this series, Transitions, we will take you on a journey through Scripture looking at various transitions in the life God’s people as well as various passages that deal with how we should process changes in our life. Our hope and prayer in this series is that you will learn how to process the various changes in life and allow the Holy Spirit to use transitions to conform you more into the image of Jesus.
» April 23-24
TRANSITIONS |An Unbeliever in Transition | Student Ministries Pastor Rob Hemphill
» April 30- May 1
TRANSITIONS | Belief and Transition | Lead Pastor Josh Laxton
» April 23-24
TRANSITIONS |An Unbeliever in Transition | Student Ministries Pastor Rob Hemphill
» April 30- May 1
TRANSITIONS | Belief and Transition | Lead Pastor Josh Laxton
Sundays, January 16 through February 6 at 12:15 p.m.
Belong & Grow is a 4-week class that introduces you to Northland Church and helps you find your place in our community. Pastors and ministry leaders will unpack Northland’s unique vision, mission, and beliefs about God and the role of the Church in the world.
Thursday, May 12 at 7 p.m.
Matthew West is a five-time GRAMMY® nominee, a multiple ASCAP Christian Music Songwriter/Artist of the Year winner and a 2018 Dove Award Songwriter of the Year (Artist) recipient.
