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.’”
—John 20:17

Jesus appears in his glorified body to his disciples. Each moment lasts for just that, a moment, as Jesus reminds them HE is not the one to stay with them. In Mark‘s Gospel, he even says, “do not hold onto me.”

Consider this: Jesus remains as one single being as he returns to his disciples after the resurrection. He does not appear in multiple places at the same time. Jesus, in his glorified body, remains somewhat limited by time and space even though he can now show up in a room with closed doors (John 20:19).

In these next weeks at South, we will explore several occasions where Jesus shows up as still one single being before he instructs his disciples to wait on his Spirit and ascends to his Father in Heaven. Notice how Jesus comes from the Father to complete his unique task in the process of our redemption. Yet, even in his resurrection, he sees the necessity of handing off the task to someone else, for he alone had limitations in his unique bodily form.

Those of us who love Jesus and connect with his unique person of the Trinity can also be guilty of taking hold of Jesus and not wanting to let him go. We’d prefer to have God show up to us as friend, companion, and faithful guide. So, when God moves us into a different season in our spiritual journey – one where God feels absent, abstract, or mysterious, we long to return to what we once had.

Can you identity which person of the Trinity you connect more with? What might it look like to let go of that person of the Trinity to more fully embrace the fullness of who God is today. Perhaps you could honor the holiness or authority of the Father. You could take a walk with Jesus and talk with him as a friend or teacher. You could feel his tangible presence in your spirit or worship him in spirit and truth.