[Machine transcription]
Jesus is risen. Hallelujah. What did they see? What did they see? There they were,
these two men walking on the road, on the village, to the road, on the road to the
village of Emmaus, engulfed in a deep conversation about the things that had
happened. Now with each step, they were putting more distance between themselves
in Jerusalem. While they were talking and discussing these things with each other,
Jesus drew near and he joined them as they walked. At this time, along the
roadways, it was not uncommon for an individual to join with a group, for
there was always safety in numbers against the robbers who were waiting to
ambush, but what did they see?
They saw a man.
They saw a man that was walking alone in the same direction as they were traveling, maybe
possibly in Jerusalem.
He was there celebrating the Passover like so many other people, and now he was heading
to his home to go to work again.
So the text states that their eyes were kept from recognizing him.
Jesus interjected at this point with them, what’s this conversation that you’re holding
with each other as you walk?
What’s the focus of this deep, intense conversation that you’re having with one another?
They stopped.
They stopped, their emotions were obviously seen on their face, sheer sadness.
What did they see?
They were shocked that they saw a man that had no knowledge of all the things that had
happened in Jerusalem these past days.
These two men assumed that every person in the region knew what had happened that shattered
so many lives, thus Cloapis questions because of the man’s state of not knowing.
This opened the door for Jesus to ask, what things?
So many times in His ministry, Jesus would answer a question with a question for the
purpose of leading that person who was asking the question to a greater knowledge of the
truth.
With Jesus’ question of what things, I can see them verbally responding at the same time
trying to talk over one another.
Their intense discussion all along the road was all about the things that happened.
It was about Jesus of Nazareth.
They were like a floodgate.
A floodgate that opened as they described all the things that happened to Jesus from
His arrest in the garden all the way to His death by crucifixion on a hill outside of
Jerusalem called Golgotha.
But the words changed.
They changed from being descriptive to their desires.
Jesus was to be the one who had â they’ve been waiting for to redeem Israel, the promised
Messiah, the Christ.
That even heard that the tomb was empty and that there was a vision given to a couple
of disciples proclaiming that He was alive, but it was now the third day.
It had passed and they had not seen Jesus.
In other words, their hopes had been shattered.
Their hopes had been shattered by a cross and three spikes.
This was their hermeneutics.
This was their interpretation of the events in correlation to the sacred scriptures.
Their conclusion of their hermeneutics led them to despair, hopelessness, and unbelief.
Jesus was not the one.
But you need to understand that their theology was piecemealed with only portions of the
Holy Scriptures.
But this is nothing new.
It happens today.
If it be intentionally or accidentally, you have this thing that happens where people
will pick portions of the Bible and they develop their own hermeneutics, their own interpretation
of God, creation, life, sin, salvation, marriage, heaven, gender, Jesus.
And the list, it goes on and on to be included or excluded of things that fit into their
end game.
These two men on the road wanted a Savior to overthrow Rome, its rule over Israel.
And for this one to sit on the throne of David and to be an earthly king.
This past week, I went into a convenience store to get a cup of coffee.
As usual, I was wearing a clerical collar, and as the coffee was filling my cup, a man
approached me.
He was seeking counsel about his girlfriend.
I asked, are you a believer?
Are you a Christian?
question, are you a disciple of Jesus?
His response was, well, I see him as a good man, but I don’t believe at all.
I guess I am more of what you would call spiritual.
Taking pieces of the Bible, mixing it all up with all other stuff, he professed a belief
that was empty of God’s grace and mercy, which only would lead him into despair and hopelessness.
For the next 20 plus minutes, we stood there in the middle of the store and we talked.
We talked about the Bible.
We talked about who Jesus is.
We talked about the gifts of God and this whole entire time people were coming and going to the coffee bar
We concluded our conversation
With the conversation about his girlfriend his question
exchanging names and phone numbers and
Even agreed to take a picture with me
before we separated and went our separate ways and
And when I went to pick up my cup from the machine, 30 minutes later, the coffee was
still hot.
What happens next in our text, may these two men burn.
It is at this point Jesus will reveal Himself to them, but not by opening their eyes to
recognize Him.
him, he goes to where they are, and it is there he tells them that their hermeneutics
are incomplete for the lack of resource materials.
The complete source and norm for faith and life, oh foolish ones.
And so slow of heart to believe all that the prophets had spoken.
And He takes them into the Word of God and He points to them the full ministry of Christ
who was to come into the world.
Was it not necessary that the Christ should suffer these things and enter glory?
To enter His glory?
The cross and the three spikes that had shattered their hopes, the hopes of these two men and
And so many others is actually the means by which God would shatter the hold of sin, death,
and the power of the devil upon the world.
This is the only place in the Gospel of Saint Luke where Jesus refers to Himself as the Christ.
You had the Word talking about the Word by taking these two men into the Word.
And when I see Jesus engage these two men at this point the way he does, I often
recall the words that he would speak to Thomas one week later behind closed
doors. Have you believed because you have seen? You have seen me? Blessed are those
who have not seen and yet have believed. Beginning with Moses and all the prophets
God’s, Jesus interpreted to them in all the Scriptures the things concerning Himself.
From the beginning to the end, He pointed them to the prophecies about the promised
Messiah and He showed them how and when Jesus.
He showed Himself fulfilling them all, including His suffering, His death, and His resurrection.
What did these two men see?
They saw a man well-versed in the sacred Scriptures.
They heard the fullness of God, and they saw the errors of their own hermeneutics and their
own interpretation, their own confession of faith about the promised Messiah in contrast
to the truth and purity of the unpacking of the sacred Scriptures given by this man, by
the power of the Word and the working of the Holy Spirit that was witnessed to by
Jesus concealed, these men believed in Jesus revealed who hung on the cross
with spikes through his hands and his feet to be the Christ, the promised
Messiah, the Savior of the world. Even though they had not seen him with their
own eyes of their heads, they believed in Him through the eyes of faith. Through
the blood shed on the cross, they have the forgiveness of their sins. Salvation
from God’s wrath, life now and into eternity. They arrived at their
destination. And after an invitation, Jesus accepted their hospitality. So often
after preaching and teaching, Jesus would perform a miracle. They were the
exclamation marks. Everything that he had spoken to the hearer is true, and the
miracle was to point them back to his words as a confirmation. And this night
would be no different. Sitting at the table, the visitor becomes the host over
the meal. Jesus takes the bread, blesses it, breaks it, and gives it to them in the
same way that Jesus kept their eyes from recognizing him earlier on the road. He
now opens their eyes and they recognize him and then he vanishes where Jesus had
initially called them all foolish ones in slow of heart to believe all that the
prophets had spoken were now saying did not our hearts burn within us while he
was talking to us on the road and while he opened to us the scriptures what did
they see? They saw Jesus, the Son of God, the Savior of the world, and they could
not keep this news to themselves. In the darkness of the night, they journeyed
back to Jerusalem. On the same road that Jesus had witnessed to them, they were
traveling to witness the good news to the eleven and to the others who had
gathered with them. These two disciples proclaimed, the Lord has risen indeed and
has appeared to Simon. They proceeded to tell all that had happened on the road
and how he was made known to them in the breaking of the bread.” The same word, the
same truth is revealed to us as it is connected to the waters of holy baptism
that gives life and gives the gift of salvation. It is unpacked and proclaimed
to us each and every Sunday. It is connected to bread and wine, becoming the
true body and blood of Christ, given to you for the forgiveness of your sins. In
our daily lives, when we read, mark, learn, and inwardly digest the Bible, the sacred
scriptures, the Word is revealed to us. He too is working in our lives. What do
you see? Jesus is coming to you. He has, He is, and He will. The peace that passes
all understanding, keep your hearts burning and your minds full of His truth.
Amen. Jesus is risen! Amen.
