“They got up
and returned at once to Jerusalem. There they found the Eleven and those with
them, assembled together and saying, “The Lord has risen indeed, and has
appeared to Simon!” (Luke 24:33,
34 – ESV).
The
word “indeed” functions as a reinforcement of the statement that was made. For
example, “A friend in need is a friend indeed.”
Or,
“So if the Son sets you free, you will be
free indeed” (John 8:36). The word “indeed” reinforces the certainty of
Jesus’ liberation – Jesus’ freedom is as certain as it can be, coming from the
most powerful Liberator.
What
was it that emboldened the disciples to affirm, “The Lord has risen indeed?”
In
this particular context (Luke 24:33) the disciples were proclaiming Jesus’ resurrection
based on Peter’s testimony: “The Lord has
risen indeed and has appeared to Simon.” Simon’s testimony reinforced the
women’s testimony so the disciples were able to say “Jesus has risen indeed.”
What
other “testimonies” are there that support the fact that Jesus rose from death?
We
have Jesus’ “testimony” or promise – He spoke about it.
“And he said,
“The Son of Man must suffer many things and be rejected by the elders, chief
priests and teachers of the law, and he must be killed and on the third day be
raised to life” (Luke 9:22).
There
is the “testimony” of the empty tomb: Mary, then Peter and John were the first
ones to see the empty tomb.
“Early on the
first day of the week, while it was still dark, Mary Magdalene went to the tomb
and saw that the stone had been removed from the entrance”
(John 20:1).
There
are testimonies of other witnesses. On one occasion there were more than five
hundred, many were still alive at time of writing.
Today, the Church boldly proclaims: “The Lord has risen indeed!”