Two disciples were going to a village called Emmaus, about seven miles from Jerusalem. They were talking with each other about everything that had happened. As they talked and discussed these things with each other, Jesus himself came up and walked along with them; but they were kept from recognizing Him. He asked them, "What are you discussing together as you walk along?" ...
Then their eyes were opened and they recognized Him, and He disappeared from their sight. 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?" (Luke 24:13-32)
In our journeys through life, we learn more about Jesus and how God is working in our everyday circumstances when we walk the road with others, sharing our insights, our questions, and new growth in relationship with Him. Are not our hearts burning within us whenever we do this?
On the day that the Lord rose from the sepulcher, two of His followers set off on a journey from the city of Jerusalem towards a small village called Emmaus. It was a distance of seven miles. As they walked, they spoke sadly with one other. They were sad because, though they had hoped that Jesus of Nazareth would redeem Israel, He had instead been put to death on the cross.
The two men had indeed heard the reports of the women at the sepulcher that Jesus had risen, that He was still alive. It is obvious, though, that they did not really believe these reports. They thought Jesus was dead, which is why they talked so sadly as they walked along the road.
Not much is known about these two followers of the Lord. We know that they knew the apostles. We also know that one of them was called Cleopas. But we don't really know just who they were; nor do we know why it was that they were traveling towards Emmaus. In fact, nobody even knows for certain exactly where the village of Emmaus was located.
These external details, though, are relatively unimportant, for in a deeper sense each one of us is familiar with these sad men, and each one of us can understand something of what their journey was like. These men represent a state that each one of us will experience, and the journey to Emmaus is a journey which each one of us must make. There will come a time, inevitably, when we also set off sadly along this road to Emmaus.
The two men were sad because they felt disillusioned. They had trusted in the Lord. They had hoped that He would prove to be the long-awaited Messiah. Now they were disappointed, because the high hopes they had had now seemed to have been misplaced. Jesus of Nazareth was dead. He had been condemned to death and crucified, and it was now the third day since His execution.
This is why the two men of our story lost their vision of the Lord in Jerusalem. It was there that the Lord was crucified and appeared to die. We too can lose our vision of the Lord. We have the Writings, and we may read them and understand many wonderful things within them. Nevertheless, in certain states these wonderful teachings can seem dead, dry and devoid of life. We fail to see them as the living words of the Lord Himself. He seems to be absent from those very teachings which He Himself has given. So too, it was in Jerusalem, in His very own city, that He was crucified and appeared to die.
Nevertheless, the Lord is still with us. He joined the two men on their journey to Emmaus. But they didn't recognize Him. Their eyes, it is said, "were restrained" (Lk. 24:16). They didn't know who He was until later on. So too, with us, the Lord can seem absent, and His Word can seem empty. We can lose our sense of vision. Yet, all the time, whilst we are trying to do what is right, the Lord is walking beside us, even though we don't recognize Him. And His desire is that in time our vision will be renewed.
This is what happened eventually to the two disciples. As they continued towards Emmaus, the Lord first of all began to explain to them the many things in Scripture that spoke of Him. So too with us. As we continue to walk towards Emmaus -- apply what we know to life -- we begin to see once more the real meaning and significance of the Word. We begin to see new things within the teachings of Divine revelation. As the Lord explained His Word to the two disciples, their hearts, it is said, burned within them. They were deeply affected by what this man was teaching them about the Word.
Yes, it is a sad journey at times. It can be sad, and hard, because there are obstacles, evils, in the externals of our minds, evils which at times remove all sense of delight in the doing of what is good, and make the Word and religion itself to appear but a meaningless exercise and duty. Our vision of the Lord can grow dim, very dim, on the way to Emmaus. But it is on this very journey that we will eventually meet the Lord. If we continue along the road towards Emmaus, if we continue to strive to live the truth in the external concerns of everyday life, then those very evils which cause us to feel unhappy, gloomy and sad, will be cast aside. We will come to feel an ever-increasing sense of delight and happiness in living the teachings of the Lord. And with this sense of delight we will be given to see, to see beyond any doubt at all, that the teachings of the Word are true, and full of life, and that they are the words, indeed the voice, of the living
God Himself. Our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ is alive. He is with us. He is alive forevermore.
Then their eyes were opened and they recognized Him, and He disappeared from their sight. 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?" (Luke 24:13-32)
In our journeys through life, we learn more about Jesus and how God is working in our everyday circumstances when we walk the road with others, sharing our insights, our questions, and new growth in relationship with Him. Are not our hearts burning within us whenever we do this?
On the day that the Lord rose from the sepulcher, two of His followers set off on a journey from the city of Jerusalem towards a small village called Emmaus. It was a distance of seven miles. As they walked, they spoke sadly with one other. They were sad because, though they had hoped that Jesus of Nazareth would redeem Israel, He had instead been put to death on the cross.
The two men had indeed heard the reports of the women at the sepulcher that Jesus had risen, that He was still alive. It is obvious, though, that they did not really believe these reports. They thought Jesus was dead, which is why they talked so sadly as they walked along the road.
Not much is known about these two followers of the Lord. We know that they knew the apostles. We also know that one of them was called Cleopas. But we don't really know just who they were; nor do we know why it was that they were traveling towards Emmaus. In fact, nobody even knows for certain exactly where the village of Emmaus was located.
These external details, though, are relatively unimportant, for in a deeper sense each one of us is familiar with these sad men, and each one of us can understand something of what their journey was like. These men represent a state that each one of us will experience, and the journey to Emmaus is a journey which each one of us must make. There will come a time, inevitably, when we also set off sadly along this road to Emmaus.
The two men were sad because they felt disillusioned. They had trusted in the Lord. They had hoped that He would prove to be the long-awaited Messiah. Now they were disappointed, because the high hopes they had had now seemed to have been misplaced. Jesus of Nazareth was dead. He had been condemned to death and crucified, and it was now the third day since His execution.
This is why the two men of our story lost their vision of the Lord in Jerusalem. It was there that the Lord was crucified and appeared to die. We too can lose our vision of the Lord. We have the Writings, and we may read them and understand many wonderful things within them. Nevertheless, in certain states these wonderful teachings can seem dead, dry and devoid of life. We fail to see them as the living words of the Lord Himself. He seems to be absent from those very teachings which He Himself has given. So too, it was in Jerusalem, in His very own city, that He was crucified and appeared to die.
Nevertheless, the Lord is still with us. He joined the two men on their journey to Emmaus. But they didn't recognize Him. Their eyes, it is said, "were restrained" (Lk. 24:16). They didn't know who He was until later on. So too, with us, the Lord can seem absent, and His Word can seem empty. We can lose our sense of vision. Yet, all the time, whilst we are trying to do what is right, the Lord is walking beside us, even though we don't recognize Him. And His desire is that in time our vision will be renewed.
This is what happened eventually to the two disciples. As they continued towards Emmaus, the Lord first of all began to explain to them the many things in Scripture that spoke of Him. So too with us. As we continue to walk towards Emmaus -- apply what we know to life -- we begin to see once more the real meaning and significance of the Word. We begin to see new things within the teachings of Divine revelation. As the Lord explained His Word to the two disciples, their hearts, it is said, burned within them. They were deeply affected by what this man was teaching them about the Word.
Yes, it is a sad journey at times. It can be sad, and hard, because there are obstacles, evils, in the externals of our minds, evils which at times remove all sense of delight in the doing of what is good, and make the Word and religion itself to appear but a meaningless exercise and duty. Our vision of the Lord can grow dim, very dim, on the way to Emmaus. But it is on this very journey that we will eventually meet the Lord. If we continue along the road towards Emmaus, if we continue to strive to live the truth in the external concerns of everyday life, then those very evils which cause us to feel unhappy, gloomy and sad, will be cast aside. We will come to feel an ever-increasing sense of delight and happiness in living the teachings of the Lord. And with this sense of delight we will be given to see, to see beyond any doubt at all, that the teachings of the Word are true, and full of life, and that they are the words, indeed the voice, of the living
God Himself. Our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ is alive. He is with us. He is alive forevermore.
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