(Matthew 28:20).
No human being could give us such a comforting and encouraging promise! Jesus spoke these words after His resurrection and before He ascended into heaven!
During those intervening 40 days He was preparing them for what was to come. And He instructed them to wait in Jerusalem for the special Gift God had promised to send them (John 14-17). He had told them that His physical presence would be replaced by His Holy Spirit to live in each of them. They obeyed, waited, and received the miraculous Gift on the day we still call Pentecost -- 50 days after Passover!
Notice the verbs: they obeyed, waited, and received! A picture of our own daily walk with Jesus! He always keeps His promises! So we, too, obey, wait, and receive!
Greek scholars tell us that the original Greek word order would be, "I with you am" -- reminiscent of the Hebrew expression God gave Moses in Exodus 3:14 -- "I am who I am!" Jesus is the great "I am!"- the eternal God who was, and is, and is to come! He is now and will be forever!
He alone is the Alpha and Omega as He reminds us again in Revelation 22. Always, forever, our Immanuel! How blessed we are that He shared that with us! And He wanted them to understand that before He left!
He would, through the Holy Spirit, always be with them!
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(Probably the disciples would say that the best day of their lives was Resurrection Day! But I think Jesus would say that the best day for Him was 40 days later -- Ascension Day! He had finished the work He had come to do -- now He was leaving it in their hands! Now He was going Home!)
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