John 20:17

[stello]

Good morning everyone!!

John 20:17
Jesus said, "Do not hold on to me, for I have not yet ascended to the Father. Go instead to my brothers and tell them, 'I am ascending to my Father and your Father, to my God and your God.'"

Anyone know what Jesus meant here?

stello

[lareli]

I heard someone once explain that this had to do with the Holy Spirit. They had to let Him go and not hold onto Him so that He could ascend to God and then send the Holy Spirit to dwell in them.

[lilitalienboi16]

Good morning everyone!!

John 20:17
Jesus said, "Do not hold on to me, for I have not yet ascended to the Father. Go instead to my brothers and tell them, 'I am ascending to my Father and your Father, to my God and your God.'"

Anyone know what Jesus meant here?

stello

Hi Stello,

Jesus emptied Himself of His divinity, His former power and glory, took on flesh so that He could die.

Php 2:6  In God's own form existed He, and shared with God equality, deemed nothing needed grasping.
Php 2:7  nevertheless empties Himself, taking the form of a slave, coming to be in the likeness of humanity,
Php 2:8  And being found in fashion as man (that is as FLESH and BLOOD), he humbled himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross.

He was raised back spirit (God is spirit):

1 Corinthians 15:43-45
43 It is sown in dishonour; it is raised in glory: it is sown in weakness; it is raised in power:
44 It is sown a natural body; it is raised a spiritual body. There is a natural body, and there is a spiritual body.
45 And so it is written, The first man Adam was made a living soul; the last Adam was made a quickening spirit.

So what I believe we are seeing from Jesus in that passage is Him speaking of His former power and glory which He possessed being that He is God and before He emptied Himself:

John 17:4-7 I have glorified thee on the earth: I have finished the work which thou gavest me to do. And now, O Father, glorify thou me with thine own self with the glory which I had with thee before the world was. I have manifested thy name unto the men which thou gavest me out of the world: thine they were, and thou gavest them me; and they have kept thy word.

When He returns it will be in power and glory,

"For the Son of man shall come IN THE GLORY OF HIS FATHER with His angels; and then He shall reward every man according to his works" (Matt. 16:27).

"Whosoever therefore shall be ashamed of Me and of My words in this adulterous and sinful generation; of him also shall the Son of man be ashamed, when HE COMES IN THE GLORY OF HIS FATHER with the holy angels" (Mark 8:38).

"For whosoever shall be ashamed of Me and of My words, of him shall the Son of man be ashamed, when HE SHALL COME IN HIS OWN GLORY, AND IN HIS FATHER'S [GLORY], and of the holy angels" (Luke 9:26)..

This is what came to my mind on reading the verse.

Hope it is helpful.

God bless,
Alex

[stello]

Ok i understand, Jesus had to return so that the Holy Spirit would come.

stello

[Kat]

Hi stello, it is true that Christ did have to ascend to the Father before the Holy Spirit would come. In this verse when you consider that the disciples all knew that Jesus had just died and they were uncertain about what He had spoken to them about His resurrection. So here is Mary mourning and seeing Jesus for the first time since His crucifixion, she was overjoyed and fall on His feet and was clinging to Him. His response was not a rebuke, but just gently letting her know that He would be there a little while and was not going back to the heavenly realm immediately... she didn't need to hold onto Him as if He might be gone again at any moment, she could relax, so to speak.

Here is an email where Ray answer this question.

http://forums.bible-truths.com/index.php/topic,5343.0.html -------

It isn't that Jesus didn't want them to "touch" Him, for they DID "touch" him:  "And as they went to tell His disciples, behold, Jesus met them, saying, All hail.  And they came and HELD HIM BY THE FEET, and worshiped Him."  (Matt. 28:9)

This is the very same even that took place in John 20:17, where Jesus said: "Touch me not..."  The word touch means to "Cling."  Jesus didn't want them to KEEP HOLDING HIM, as they did not want to let him go. Not that they couldn't give him a little touch on the arm or something.

God be with you,
Ray