The beauty of the scriptures is indisputable. But their revelatory substance, vast and deep in nature, contains a potency that is hard to describe. Every word is pregnant, every word infused with deep meaning, fascinating connections, but most of all, every word wields the power to point toward God and God’s truth in deeply powerful, transfiguring ways. Jesus’ post-resurrection appearances express a particular richness of this special metaphorical infusion. But they also pack a power punch of what it means to be “real.” How important it is to God that Jesus, we, what we do in our lives and mission, and all that is dear to us, are valuable and vital and “real.” Real and in real time! Not just in a distant future, but in the real world, here and now.

For Jesus’ disciples, these words are the …