WHAT HAPPENED DURING THE 40 DAYS AFTER HIS RESURRECTION?

 Today, we want to talk about “THE THINGS THAT HAPPENED IN THE 40 DAYS AFTER HIS RESURRECTION!” 

From the time that Jesus rose again from the grave to the time that He ascended into Heaven was a period of 40 days. “…To whom also He shewed Himself alive after His passion by many infallible proofs, being seen of them forty days, and speaking of the things pertaining to the Kingdom of God” (Acts 1:1-3).

 

The first striking thing that happened was that the Roman elders bribed the guards to lie (Matt. 28:12-15).

 

What did Jesus do between His resurrection and His Ascension? For the next 40 days Jesus taught and ministered to His disciples in what must have been an intensely powerful experience, preparing them for the work ahead after His ascension into Heaven.

 

For many, the story ended with the empty tomb. But that was not the case. The resurrection was not the end of the story. It was the beginning of something new.

 

Jesus had just conquered death, He had just shattered the chains of the grave, the veil torn from top to bottom, the wrath of God satisfied and eternity unlocked for those who believe. 

 

The time between His resurrection and Ascension were packed with power, purpose, and preparation. These days were days of divine appointments, restoration, instruction, commissioning, and if you ever wondered what Jesus wanted most after His resurrection, you are about to find out. You may ask, “Why didn’t He go straight to Heaven after rising from the dead? Why did He keep appearing to people one by one? Why the waiting, the walking, with the wounds still visible in His hands and legs? 

 

Here are a couple of things Jesus did with His disciples during those 40 days.

1. He met with His disciples. He didn’t stand on a mountain and thunder His glory from the skies, He didn’t call down angels to parade Him through Jerusalem as the resurrected King. Instead, He appeared quietly, personally, intimately, one heart at a time. The first to see Him wasn’t a disciple, a priest or a Roman authority. He appeared first to a woman, Mary Magdalene, a woman from whom He cast out 7 demons. 

 

In a world where women were not even allowed to testify in court, Jesus chose Mary Magdalene to be His first witness. She was not influential or powerful. She was simply broken, weeping and loyal to Jesus. This was a woman who the religious elites would have scorned. Yet, Jesus called her by name. And with that one call Mary, every shattered piece of her soul was gathered together. Thereafter, she went from weeping to witnessing. She became the first preacher of the resurrection, sent to tell the trembling men, “I have seen the Lord” (Jn. 20:18). 

 

2. He taught His disciples. We also see in Acts 1:3 that in the 40 days from His resurrection to His ascension, Jesus also took considerable time to speak to His disciples regarding the Kingdom of God.  

 

3. Then came the road to Emmaus. Two disciples were walking away from Jerusalem, away from the chaos, away from confusion, away from frustration, and away from the Cross. They had hoped that Jesus would now redeem Israel (Acts 1:6) but He was dead, and all hopes along with Him. As they walked, a stranger walked along with them, not recognized, not announced, but just present. 

 

And as they poured out their confusion, He did not start by showing them the scares. Two disciples were walking away from Jerusalem, away from the chaos, away from confusion, away from frustration, and away from the Cross. 

They had hoped that Jesus would now redeem Israel (Acts 1:6) but He was dead, and hope along with Him. 

 

As they walked, a stranger walked along with them, not recognized, not announced, but just present. And as they poured out their confusion, He did not start by showing them the scares. He didn’t rebuke them, rather He opened the Scriptures and walked them through the law, the prophets and the Psalms, all pointing to Himself. Their hearts burned but their eyes were kept from recognizing Him until He broke the bread, and suddenly in the breaking they saw Him. 

 

Why these moments, why not a grand return to the temple? Because Jesus wasn’t interested in spectacle. He was after souls. He didn’t come back to show off to the world. He came back to win the wounded. His first moves after the rising weren’t toward thrones or politics, but they were toward pain, broken hearts, lost minds, and paralyzed faith. 

 

Maybe you are on your own road to Emmaus, disappointed, confused, frustrated, unsure of where Jesus is in your pain, or maybe you have been weeping in a garden of your own assuming the tomb is the end of your story. But what if He is already walking beside you? What if the silence is a set-up for your name to be spoken from the lips of the resurrected Saviour?

 

4. After revealing Himself to Mary Magdalene in the garden and to the two disillusioned disciples on the road to Emmaus, Jesus turned His attention to a locked room in Jerusalem. This was a room thick with fear, a room where 10 grown men, men who have walked on water, cast out demons, men who have seen the dead raised, were now hiding behind walls, not because they didn’t believe in Jesus, but because they didn’t know what to believe anymore. 

 

What happened to Jesus was traumatic. And trauma has a way of making even the boldest hearts tremble. The crucifixion had shattered their understanding of power. The Cross was still fresh in their minds, the blood, the screams and the silence that followed, and now there were rumors of an empty tomb. The women said that He was alive. The Emmaus disciples swore that they had seen Him. But these men hadn’t and for them all they had was fear until Jesus came and stood among them. No knocking at the door, no entrance, but just present suddenly and supernaturally.

 

What were His first words: Not but I told you so, why did you doubt Me, where were you when I needed you most? 

No condemnation, no shamming, but just this: “Peace be with you” (Jn. 20:19). This is the kind of peace that settles storms in human hearts. This is the kind of peace that surpasses all understanding (Phil. 4:7). Then, He showed them His scares. It was still open enough to be touched. Why? Because Jesus didn’t hide what He endured. He revealed it.

 

The Gospel of John said that Jesus breathed on them and said, “Receive ye the Holy Spirit” (Jn. 20:22). After travelling with the two disciples on the road to Emmaus, Jesus showed up twice to the apostles, and a second time for Thomas. This was in Jerusalem.

 

But Thomas, one of the twelve, was not with them when Jesus appeared in their midst (Jn. 20:24). 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 finger into His side, I will not believe” (Jn. 20:25). It was not unbelief rooted in rebellion, but it was heartbreak wrapped in honesty. 

 

2 Corinthians 5:7 says, “We walk by faith, and not by sight (senses).”

 

This is remarkable: Jesus didn’t rush to rebuke Thomas for his doubt. He waited for 8 days before going to address the issue. And after eight days again His disciples were within, and Thomas with them: then came Jesus, the doors being shut, and stood in their midst, and said, “Peace be unto you.” Then Jesus said to him, “Thomas, reach hither thy finger, and behold My hands; and reach hither thy hand, and thrust it into My side: and be not faithless, but believing” (stop doubting and believe) (Jn. 20:27). And Thomas answered and said unto Him, “My Lord and my God” (Jn. 20:28). Jesus said unto him, “Thomas, because you have seen Me, you have believed: blessed are they that have not seen, and yet have believed” (Jn. 20:29, 1 Pet. 1:7-8). This was faith anchored in the Word, confirmed by the Spirit, and now handed over to us by those who saw, and doubted.

 

5. He ate physical food in His resurrected body. To prove He was not a ghost, or just a vision, Jesus sat down and ate broiled fish with His disciples. It was not just a spiritual resurrection. It was physical, real and alive.

 

Then Jesus commissioned Peter instructing him to feed His sheep. Jesus rewrites the past with mercy. Jesus was not just restoring Peter, He was commissioning him. 

 

6. He gave the Great Commission to them and ascended into Heaven. Before He ascended to Heaven, Jesus gave His disciples a command saying, “Go ye into all the world…” (Matt. 28:18-20). 

 

The Great Commission is the doctrine of Christ and it contains the following ingredients: Jesus took His 11 disciples to a mountain in Galilee, the very place He told them to meet Him (Matt. 28:16). Here He gave them a charge saying, “All power is given unto Me in heaven and in earth. Go ye therefore, and teach all nations…” (Matt. 28:18-20). This was a command. It was not like go and do it when you like. 

He didn’t say, “Go to church.” He didn’t say, “Get people to agree with you.” He said, “Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost.” He said, “Make disciples of all nations.” Not just preaching sermons, but by living a life that invites (attracts) others to the Kingdom of God. Wherever you go, wherever you are, make disciples.

a) Go with My power (Matt. 28:18). b) Go with My programme not your own programme. Jesus said, “Go…and teach all nations.” We are to bring converts into the fellowship of the church with the aim of teaching them to become the disciples of Christ (Col. 1:28; Eph. 4:12-13).

c) Go with My presence (Matt. 28:20). d) No geographical restrictions (Mk. 16:15). e) No class restrictions (Mk. 16:15). f) No racial restrictions (Mk. 13:10; Acts 1:8). g) No further delay! No procrastination! Any further delay will cause more waste. The harvest is ripe but the labourers are very few (Matt. 9:36 – 37; Jn. 4:35-38).

 

7. He ascended into Heaven. Then as they watched, He ascended into Heaven. Not a myth! Not a metaphor! 

They saw Him rise. Jesus didn’t just rise to prove death was defeated. He rose to launch a new movement: to offer redemption, to change the course of human history.

 

8. One last note worth mentioning before I close: Why did Jesus stay exactly 40 days on earth after resurrection before ascending to heaven?

 

Jesus remained on earth for this length of time to solidify His victory over death, poverty and sickness.

He needed to prepare His disciples for the work that was ahead. The 40 days were not just for Jesus to reveal Himself physically to His followers. They were a period of (1) preparation and (2) transition.

 

The 40 days after His resurrection was a time of teaching, restoration and commissioning.

In the Bible, “40” is the number that signifies two things: 1) preparation, and 2) transition. 

For instance: a) Moses spent 40 years in the wilderness being prepared to lead the Israelites out of Egypt and through the wilderness. The end of the 40 years marked a critical transition in his life from being a shepherd leader overseeing a flock of sheep to a shepherding leader who oversaw the people of God.  

b) We also see Elijah being prepared for his transition and new assignment as a prophet of God, during the 40 days that he made his way to Mount Horeb (1 Ki. 19:8).  

c) And even Jesus Christ Himself, spent 40 days in the wilderness for His preparation and transition into the start of His earthly ministry.  

d) In Jonah, Nineveh was given 40 days to repent before God brought judgement. Jesus gave Israel 40 years to repent, and were destroyed by Rome (70AD).

Watch out for the next Edition of Good News from the Pulpit!

• Your Friend, I. I. Madubunyi (Senior Pastor, HOG).