Chapter 28. Famous People Who Suffered
Loneliness And Depression
The Disciples Were Depressed, Fearful And Without Hope
When Christ Died.
There are many more examples in the Bible of whole groups of people who
fell into disillusionment and depression at the same time, but we can look
at the followers of Jesus for a final illustration of group depression,
fear, and hopelessness. Most of them were under the false impression that
Jesus had come to rescue them from their enemies, namely the cruel and
ruthless Roman Empire. But when Christ died on the cross, they not only
mourned the loss of their beloved teacher, but also mourned the loss of a
dream, that being, freedom from the oppressive Roman regime. They didn’t
understand that His death and resurrection would free them from far greater
evil enemies: sin, death, and the devil!
The noted author and speaker William Lane Craig describes, better than
anyone I have ever heard, how the disciples were devastated by the
crucifixion, but when the Lord rose from the dead, “The resurrection
turned catastrophe into victory!” Imagine the frightened, depressed and
disillusioned disciples and others, hiding from the leaders who opposed
Jesus, Christian singles. Probably most of them wished they’d never been
born, their despair and fear was so great. Let’s read William Lane
Craig’s description of those depressing three days and the powerful change
the resurrection made:
“It is difficult to exaggerate what a devastating effect the
crucifixion must have had on the disciples. They had no conception of a
dying, much less arising, Messiah; for the Messiah would reign forever (cf.
John 12;34). Without prior belief in the resurrection, belief in Jesus as
Messiah would have been impossible in light of his death. The resurrection
turned catastrophe into victory. Because God raised Jesus from the dead, he
could be proclaimed as Messiah after all (Acts 2:32,36). Similarly for the
significance of the cross- it was his resurrection that enabled Jesus’
shameful death to be interpreted in salvific terms. Without it, Jesus’
death would have meant only humiliation and accursedness by God; but in view
of the resurrection it could be seen to be the event by which forgiveness of
sins was obtained. Without the resurrection, the Christian Way could never
come into being. Even if the disciples had continued to remember Jesus as
their beloved teacher, they could not have believed in him as Messiah, much
less deity.” (Craig, DJRD, as cited in Wilkins, JUF, 159)
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