This page offers Bible study questions for Luke 24, the closing chapter of Luke’s Gospel. It is built for a small group, a Sunday class, or personal study, and each question comes with a leader’s answer or discussion note so you can use the material without preparing a separate lesson. Work through the questions in order or pick the sets that fit your group.
Luke 24 at a Glance
Luke 24 moves from the empty tomb on the first day of the week, through the road to Emmaus, to Jesus appearing in the middle of the disciples in Jerusalem. The chapter follows a sequence of discovery and slow understanding: women bring spices and find the stone rolled away, two travelers walk home sad and puzzled, and a stranger opens the Scriptures to them before they recognize him at the table.
The chapter ends with the risen Jesus commissioning his followers as witnesses, promising the Spirit, and blessing them before he is taken up into heaven. Joy and worship close the Gospel, with the disciples returning to Jerusalem and praising God in the temple.
Observation Questions
Use these questions first, before anyone offers an interpretation. Ask the group to point to the text and describe what it says, without filling in gaps. Let quieter members answer, and write down the observations on a whiteboard so the group can refer back to them later.
Luke 24:5-6
5 Becoming terrified, they bowed their faces down to the earth. They said to them, “Why do you seek the living among the dead? 6 He isn’t here, but is risen. Remember what he told you when he was still in Galilee…
(WEB)
Reading these verses at the start of the session sets the scene of the empty tomb and the angels’ question. The words are short and clear, so reading them aloud helps the group hear the central announcement before the discussion begins.
Luke 24:31-32
31 Their eyes were opened, and they recognized him, and he vanished out of their sight. 32 They said to one another, “Weren’t our hearts burning within us, while he spoke to us along the way, and while he opened the Scriptures to us?”
(WEB)
These verses describe the moment the travelers recognize Jesus and then remember how their hearts burned along the road. Hearing them spoken aloud invites the group to reflect on how recognition and remembrance belong together.
Luke 24:36-39
36 As they said these things, Jesus himself stood among them, and said to them, “Peace be to you.” 37 But they were terrified and filled with fear, and supposed that they had seen a spirit. 38 He said to them, “Why are you troubled? Why do doubts arise in your hearts? 39 See my hands and my feet, that it is truly me. Touch me and see, for a spirit doesn’t have flesh and bones, as you see that I have.”
(WEB)
Reading Jesus’ greeting and his appeal to his hands and feet gives the group a direct sense of the disciples’ fear and his tender reply. The passage is short enough to read slowly and let the questions of doubt and reassurance arise naturally.
Luke 24:44-45
44 He said to them, “This is what I told you, while I was still with you, that all things which are written in the law of Moses, the prophets, and the psalms, concerning me must be fulfilled.” 45 Then he opened their minds, that they might understand the Scriptures.
(WEB)
These verses show Jesus opening the minds of his followers to understand the Scriptures. Reading them aloud helps the group frame the rest of the chapter as a lesson in how God gives understanding of his Word.
Luke 24:50-53
50 He led them out as far as Bethany, and he lifted up his hands, and blessed them. 51 While he blessed them, he withdrew from them, and was carried up into heaven. 52 They worshiped him, and returned to Jerusalem with great joy, 53 and were continually in the temple, praising and blessing God. Amen.
(WEB)
This closing passage describes the blessing, the ascension, and the disciples’ great joy and worship. Ending the reading here reminds the group that the chapter finishes in praise rather than loss, which suits the closing of the session.
Memory Verse for Luke 24
Luke 24:6
He isn’t here, but is risen. Remember what he told you when he was still in Galilee…
(WEB)
This verse is the clear announcement of the chapter: he is not here, but has risen. Memorizing it gives a short, durable answer to the question of where the living Christ is found, and it can be recalled in moments of grief or uncertainty.
A Closing Prayer for the Group
Father, we come to you as those who have heard the good news that Jesus is risen. Open our minds as you opened the minds of the disciples, that we may understand the Scriptures and see you at work in them. Make our hearts burn within us as we walk with you and as we gather around your Word, and give us eyes to recognize your presence in ordinary places. Send us as witnesses of repentance and forgiveness, and give us patience to wait for the power you promise. Teach us to worship and praise you with great joy, whatever this week brings. Amen.
