This is Abe Vucekovich's Sunday message at our Re-Life Easter Conference which was held at Hudson, IL, home of Doug Browning.
Luke 24:13-35
KV: 24:26-27
‘Did not the Messiah have to suffer these things and then enter his glory?’ And beginning with Moses and all the Prophets, he explained to them what was said in all the Scriptures concerning himself.
Jesus is for everyone. One of Luke’s themes in his Gospel is that Jesus is for everyone. In Christian and Alex’s messages yesterday we saw several unique events to Luke's Gospel concerning Jesus' death and resurrection. The women who wept by the road, Simon of Cyrene, the criminal crucified next to Jesus, the centurion at the cross, Joseph of Arimathea, the women at the tomb—all these people seem kind of insignificant. But Luke was inspired by God to show that Jesus came for common, everyday people like you and me. In today's passage we follow two ordinary people on a long walk on a Sunday afternoon. At first their walk was not a very pleasant one. They were very sad and heavy-hearted. But while walking they met someone, and by the end of the day they were headed back the other way. They become completely different people. What happened to them on the road? Luke uniquely tells us about this event, this road, these two ordinary people. Have you ever felt that you're just going through life, not really knowing why or where you're headed? Have you ever felt that you're just not that important? Today, let's join these two people on their journey. May we learn how even ordinary people like us today can meet the Risen Jesus and have real resurrection faith.
- On the Road (13-24)
This passage begins with two people walking down a road outside of Jerusalem, headed to the suburb of Emmaus on a Sunday afternoon. Who were these two travelers? As we’ve seen in this morning’s Bible study, these two were disciples of Jesus, but they were not two of the eleven or the women. They could have been two of the “others” mentioned in verse 9. They could have been two of the seven-two in chapter 10 that Jesus sent out in pairs to spread the gospel. We are only given the name of one of these two disciples, Cleopas. We also find that the two are headed to their home in Emmaus. Some Bible scholars believe that the two were actually a married couple. But why were they leaving Jerusalem? It’s likely they left to get away from the dangerous situation for Jesus’ followers. But really they were lost. They lost their leader whom they had followed for over three years. They lost their hope and didn’t know what to do with their lives. So they headed home. The tragic death of Jesus left them so confused and full of unanswered questions.
When tragedies occur, we all want to know why. Especially when bad things happen to good people we all really want to know why. There's a Korean missionary family living in Iowa with two young children. During the past year this family was struck by tragedy when the mother was diagnosed with lung cancer, unexpectedly. Despite the doctor's best efforts and the prayers of many people the cancer spread to her bones and she’s now in her final stages. She could pass any day. It’s going to be incredibly hard for the husband and two children. Why did God allow this tragedy to happen? Human tragedies put us in a state of shock. We get disoriented and who knows how long it will take to get us back to some kind of normalcy.
Look at verses 15-16. The Risen Jesus himself came up and walked along with them, but they were kept from recognizing him. Jesus, the one they followed for the past three and half years, the one they had fallen in love with and gotten to know as their Teacher and Lord, the one they had given their lives to, the one they had just seen crucified—Jesus was there walking along next to them. This is wild; how could he be alive again? And even more, how could they not recognize him? Look at verse 16b. …they were kept from recognizing him. Who was keeping them from recognizing Jesus? There was nobody else there on the road trying to hide Jesus. It seems that God was keeping them from recognizing Jesus. Why would God keep anyone from recognizing the Risen Jesus? Maybe they had been crying so hard that they couldn’t even see properly. Our best guess is they were just not ready to see Jesus.
Let’s look at verse 17. He asked them, ‘What are you discussing together as you walk along?’ They stood still, their faces downcast. When this stranger asks them a simple question, they couldn’t answer. They were brokenhearted. They couldn’t even begin to talk. Their downcast faces show us how helpless they were. This is how we react if ever we are confronted by the reality of death--we don't know what to say. Look at verse 18. Then one of them, his name was Cleopas, said, ‘Are you the only one in Jerusalem who hasn’t heard what’s happened during the last few days?’ Initially he was too sad to talk, but when Celopas thought about it, he looked at this stranger and said, Dude, where have you been? I can’t believe you don’t know what we’re talking about. But Jesus quietly and humbly responds by saying What things? Of course Jesus knew what happened, but he was inviting them to begin to get it all out.
And they did. Look at verses 19b-21. The first thing they said was About Jesus of Nazareth! They just could not get him off of their minds. Jesus of Nazareth--nobody else was ever like him. Have you ever meet someone who was like amazing, like nobody else you’ve ever met? Jesus was that and so much more. Jesus' words were so powerful and so true. But he wasn't just a preacher, the things he did, nobody else ever did the things Jesus did. They were not just fantastic miracles you see in Hollywood special effects but he showed mercy and compassion to ordinary, lonely, sorrowful, weak and abandoned people. Jesus' actions showed them how deeply he understood people who were aching with life's agonies and pains. No one ever understood people like Jesus. No one ever cared for people like Jesus did. In our capitalistic society people get hit with hardships and difficulties and they're brushed aside with a--Sorry, tough luck, that's life. But Jesus saw each person preciously, even wounded and damaged people. And everyone knew it. This Jesus, with trumped up charges, was flogged and led out to be crucified. It was just too much for these two to handle. Look especially at verse 21a. The life and ministry of Jesus gave people an amazing hope that no one had had for a long time. When someone great like Jesus appears, people who don't have hope start to have hope. But the one who had kindled such an amazing hope was killed. The whole world has found hope in Barack Obama, especially the black community in our country, which has been marginalized for so long. It would be like if he suddenly was associated. After so much promise it would leave so much sorrow. This was how these disciples felt.
Now look at verses 21b-24. As if the tragic death were not enough these disciples were also trying to wrap their minds around the weird events of that morning. The women said Jesus' body was missing. Then some disciples saw that that was true. They didn't know what to make of this. They must have surmised that Jesus' enemies opened his tomb, took his body, and threw it out somewhere, and didn't tell anybody, maybe they burnt it. They hated Jesus so much that they wouldn't even let him rest in peace or have a proper burial. They must have felt discouraged and confused and now they were on this road to Emmaus, but really on a road to nowhere, lost in a deep despair.
It's like life. We get our hopes up, and we get them crushed. We run away from things we don't understand, but we head in a direction that doesn't really go anywhere. What's amazing is that in this passage the Risen Jesus comes along with these two and goes with them the wrong way on their road to nowhere. He listens to them. In the same way Jesus joins us where we are, listens to us, and helps us on our way. We just have to welcome him along with us.
- The Opened Scriptures
After listening to them, how did Jesus begin to help them? Let’s read verses 25-26. He said to them, ‘How foolish you are, and how slow to believe all that the prophets have spoken! Did not the Messiah have to suffer these things and then enter his glory?’ Whoa, Jesus is being a little harsh don’t you think? What happened to Jesus the compassionate guy that everybody liked? Jesus calls them fools--why? Because they were slow to believe what he had already told them. Earlier in this chapter the angel reminds the women at the tomb: Remember how he told you, while he was still with you in Galilee: 'The Son of Man must be delivered over to the hands of sinners, be crucified and on the third day be raised again’ (6). When Jesus was still alive, he told his disciples that he would die and rise again. You would think that if they were searching for answers one of them would have remembered, Oh yeah, didn't Jesus mention once or twice that he was going to die and rise again?
He did tell them, more than once or twice. He first tells them, The Son of Man must suffer many things and be rejected by the elders, the chief priests and the teachers of the law, and he must be killed and on the third day be raised to life (Lk9:22). Pretty clear, isn't it? He later takes his disciples aside and says We are going up to Jerusalem, and everything that is written by the prophets about the Son of Man will be fulfilled. He will be delivered over to the Gentiles. They will mock him, insult him and spit on him; they will flog him and kill him. On the third day he will rise again (Lk18:31-33). Again, pretty clear right? Why couldn’t they remember? It's because they had selective hearing. Like them, we hear what we want to hear.
When I was younger, my dad used to tell me before leaving the house that if I took out the garbage I could watch cartoons. When he would come home later he found me in front of the TV but the garbage still sitting in the kitchen. When he asked me why I didn’t take it out I honestly told him, Dad, you said I could watch TV, you never told me about the garbage. Another example of selective hearing may be in a relationship between a husband and wife. A husband may complement his wife several times That dress looks great on you honey. Is that new perfume? Have you lost weight? You look very beautiful today. But he may slip up once and say I think don't think you have to wear so much makeup. She may respond by saying All you ever do is criticize and judge me, I’m never good enough for you! We hear only what we want to hear.
What these two wanted to hear was that their Lord Jesus was going to be victorious, that he was going to be the Messiah King and restore a new free Israel. His suffering and death did not fit into their plans. In effect, they created their own Jesus. We too create our own Jesus when we want him to do what we want him to. Frankly, we don't like to hear about his death and resurrection because we don’t like suffering, or death, or repentance. Like his disciples we have some other interest, some other hope in this world that we hope Jesus with fulfill. So we create our own Jesus. How can we know the real Jesus?
We can find the real Jesus in the Bible. Look at verse 27. As they walked along the road Jesus opened the Scriptures to them, all the way from In the beginning. Jesus was their Bible teacher. Jesus probably quoted Genesis: And I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and hers; he will crush your head, and you will strike his heel (Ge3:15). He also may have showed them the Psalms: …you will not abandon me to the realm of the dead, nor will you let your faithful one see decay. You make known to me the path of life; you will fill me with joy in your presence, with eternal pleasures at your right hand (9b-11). He may have showed them Isaiah: Yet it was the LORD's will to crush him and cause him to suffer, and though the LORD makes his life an offering for sin, he will see his offspring and prolong his days, and the will of the LORD will prosper in his hand. After he has suffered, he will see the light of life and be satisfied (10-11a). These verses show that Jesus is the one who would crush the head of Satan. Jesus is the one who would not see decay. Jesus is the one who was crushed and who suffered, giving his life as a sin-offering. Jesus is the one who would see the light of life through his resurrection. Jesus is the one who came to save us from the power of sin and death and Satan. This is the real Jesus, the Jesus of the Bible.
Let's read verse 27. And beginning with Moses and all the Prophets, he explained to them what was said in all the Scriptures concerning himself. When we read this verse, it sounds like it would have been a long, drawn out, boring Bible study. But it was not. When Jesus started explaining how the Old Testament prophesies were fulfilled in all the details of his death and resurrection, the disciples were amazed. It was mind-blowing that there was this much corroborating evidence to prove that Jesus' death and resurrection was God's will. The more Jesus explained to them from the Scriptures, the more the disciples' hearts began to beat again. They must have at last said, Whoa, we get it, it all makes sense! Their broken, dead hearts, were healed, their sorrow was turned to joy, their fear melted away because they realized the true Jesus: Jesus had to suffer, he had to die, and then rise again. It had to happen so that God could be with us.
First of all we can see here how to really have resurrection faith. Putting our faith in the resurrection is not a blind acceptance, or psyching ourselves emotionally that Jesus rose from the dead. It's not about having a hyper-spiritual experience. It's not for a small elite group of people. It's not about believing it just because someone told me to. Putting our faith in the resurrection is a process, a journey of looking at the Scriptures, looking at God's promises, looking at the account of Jesus' life, death, and resurrection in the Gospels until resurrection faith clicks in our hearts. It becomes our own personal conviction. It's something that no one can take way. This happened to these two ordinary disciples on the road, it can happen to us too.
We can see something else here. Let's look at verse 27 one more time. This verse shows us the importance of a good Bible teacher. These two would never have understood what had happened or what the Scriptures had meant if the Risen Jesus had not come along with them, joined them on their journey, listened to them, and explained his death and resurrection through the Scriptures. Essentially Jesus himself knew his death and resurrection would mean absolutely nothing if he did not show these two in the Scriptures what it meant. In the same way, we today have no way of understanding what the gospel really means unless there is someone there to open the Bible to us. Since people so need a good Bible teacher, who then are the good Bible teachers? Is it only the risen Jesus who can teach the Bible? In Luke's sequel, the book of Acts, we see Philip, a promising young man in the early Christian church. He met Jesus through the gospel. One day he met this Ethiopian eunuch and was surprised to see him reading the book of Isaiah and asked him, Do you get what you're reading? The eunuch responded, How can I unless someone explains it to me? So Philip got up in the chariot with him and began to open the Scriptures and explain to him that it was all about Jesus. The eunuch was so moved that he received the gospel personally and was baptized. From Luke's point of view anyone who has personally accepted the gospel can open the Scriptures to others. This becomes our new direction in life.
May we not hold on to our own version of Jesus, but listen to who he is and what he says in the Bible, and come to know him. May God help us to look at the Scriptures until we can personally believe the resurrection. May God help us to learn how to open the Scriptures to others, like Jesus did. May God make opening the Scriptures our life direction.
- Opened Eyes and Burning Hearts
When they got to Emmaus, Jesus acted as if he was going farther. Why? He wanted them to welcome him in. Look at verse 29. They urged him to stay. Luke is emphasizing something important here. When we first met these two on the road, they had aching questions in their hearts. They just couldn't let things go. They really were yearning to see their Master Jesus again. And now, after having the Scriptures opened to them they didn't just say Okay, thanks a lot, man, have a good one. Their hearts were still yearning; they still really wanted to be with Jesus again. This is so deep. We'd like to think that resurrection faith is studying the Bible until we get the correct answer, and that's it. But their yearning for Jesus shows that this journey couldn't be over, even after the Bible study on the road, unless they welcomed Jesus.
The two disciples were being very hospitable. They knew it was late and that their new friend was tired, so they got him comfortable, gave them their best chair, put his feet up, got him a cup of coffee, and made him as comfortable as possible. They wanted to thank him for listening to them and opening the Scriptures to them. They sat down to eat and were undoubtedly hungry. Usually the host breaks the bread at the table in Jewish culture. So as Cleopas went to break the bread, their guest strangely, and almost rudely, took the bread basket himself. The two watched him carefully, wondering what in the world he was doing. Then they saw him break the bread with his hands and tear it exactly in two, just the way Jesus did. Then their eyes were opened, and they recognized, it was Jesus! Suddenly they remembered all the meals and times they were with Jesus, and in an instant they realized they really had been foolish, they really had been blind! And yet Jesus didn't leave them alone, he was so patient and humble with them, he loved them and they really mattered to him, that he came all the way to Emmaus with them. When they realized it was Jesus, he disappeared. This shows that when we finally meet Jesus personally, he doesn’t want us to just sit around holding on to our moment with Jesus for ourselves.
The two's mouths dropped to the floor. Their hearts were racing, they couldn't believe it. They asked each other, Were not our hearts burning within us while he talked with us on the road and opened the Scriptures to us? After meeting the Risen Jesus personally, they realized where they really should be going. Even though it was late, they immediately turned right back to Jerusalem leaving their hot food on the table, they might have even run all the way back. They joined the rest of the disciples and believers and told them in shortened breaths everything that had happened. They found their road, their direction, their life, their purpose. They were in Jerusalem, even though it was a very hard and scary place to be. But it was right where God wanted them to be. One of the biggest questions of college students is, What do I do after college? This passage shows us that when we meet the Risen Jesus, we find what our real direction should be. And it may turn out to be exactly where we really didn't want to be in the first place.
Now that my college journey is almost over, I have several paths ahead of me--I can continue studying, write stories and poetry, maybe teach, or take a break and go into the wild and just look at trees all day. I've been asking Where is my life going? Which path do I take? I've struggled a lot with meaninglessness in life and in myself and in college have stayed up countless nights with thoughts of death and feeling absolutely insignificant. This meaninglessness has skewed my future and I’m afraid of going down any path. But in preparing this message, with all the questions aching on my heart, Jesus met me on my road to nowhere, listened to me, rebuked me, and showed me who he is in the Scriptures. When I recognized Jesus who overcame meaninglessness and death for me, I found where I should be going. Looking forward, I hope that in my life I can bear witness to Jesus who gives me life and live to show others who he is in the Bible.
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