Luke 24:13-35 (ESV)
On the Road to Emmaus
13 That very day two of them were going to a village named Emmaus, about seven miles from Jerusalem, 14 and they were talking with each other about all these things that had happened. 15 While they were talking and discussing together, Jesus himself drew near and went with them. 16 But their eyes were kept from recognizing him. 17 And he said to them, “What is this conversation that you are holding with each other as you walk?” And they stood still, looking sad. 18 Then one of them, named Cleopas, answered him, “Are you the only visitor to Jerusalem who does not know the things that have happened there in these days?” 19 And he said to them, “What things?” And they said to him, “Concerning Jesus of Nazareth, a man who was a prophet mighty in deed and word before God and all the people, 20 and how our chief priests and rulers delivered him up to be condemned to death, and crucified him. 21 But we had hoped that he was the one to redeem Israel. Yes, and besides all this, it is now the third day since these things happened. 22 Moreover, some women of our company amazed us. They were at the tomb early in the morning, 23 and when they did not find his body, they came back saying that they had even seen a vision of angels, who said that he was alive. 24 Some of those who were with us went to the tomb and found it just as the women had said, but him they did not see.” 25 And he said to them, “O foolish ones, and slow of heart to believe all that the prophets have spoken! 26 Was it not necessary that the Christ should suffer these things and enter into his glory?” 27 And beginning with Moses and all the Prophets, he interpreted to them in all the Scriptures the things concerning himself.
28 So they drew near to the village to which they were going. He acted as if he were going farther, 29 but they urged him strongly, saying, “Stay with us, for it is toward evening and the day is now far spent.” So he went in to stay with them. 30 When he was at table with them, he took the bread and blessed and broke it and gave it to them. 31 And their eyes were opened, and they recognized him. And he vanished from their sight. 32 They said to each other, “Did not our hearts burn within us while he talked to us on the road, while he opened to us the Scriptures?” 33 And they rose that same hour and returned to Jerusalem. And they found the eleven and those who were with them gathered together, 34 saying, “The Lord has risen indeed, and has appeared to Simon!” 35 Then they told what had happened on the road, and how he was known to them in the breaking of the bread.
Dear Friends in Christ,
It’s been described as one of the best forms of exercise there is. You don’t need an expensive membership to a fitness center to do it. You don’t need a basketball, baseball, football, or any other kind of ball. You don’t have to worry about major wear and tear on your knees, your shoulder, your elbow, or any other part of your body. All you need is a comfortable pair of tennis shoes and the motivation to get out of that easy chair and do it several times a week. You know what I’m talking about, don’t you? I’m talking about walking. Few forms of exercise offer as much cardiovascular and other benefits for the body than good old fashioned walking.
Well, as great an exercise as walking is, today I want to talk to you about an even more beneficial exercise – what I’m going to call walking with Jesus. In our text for today we see 2 disciples of Christ who were not part of the original 12 doing just that. So let’s take a look at the good it did for them and see what we can do about deriving the same benefits for ourselves.
First a little background. Though we are not given the name of one of these disciples, we are told that the other one was called Cleopas, or some translations render it Clopas. While I was working on this part of my sermon I learned something quite interesting about this man that I had never heard before. It came from one of the notes in the Lutheran Study Bible. And that is that according to early church historians Cleopas was the brother of Jesus’ earthly father Joseph, meaning that he would have been Jesus’ uncle. Well, regardless of whether that was true or not, it was Easter afternoon. And Cleopas and his friend were making their way back to the village of Emmaus which was about 7 miles from Jerusalem. I think it would be safe to assume that they were taking this long walk snot to get some exercise, but simply because they just needed to get away. The events of the last few days had really rocked their world. Everything had happened so fast. They were confused and anxious. Sorrow filled their hearts and perhaps tears their eyes as they thought about the great prophet from Nazareth whom they had come to love and respect so much. They had really begun to believe that he was the Promised One, the Messiah that the Jews had been anticipating for so many centuries, but the events of the past week had caused their hopes and dreams to collapse like a house of cards. Then, to add to their confusion, they had heard reports earlier that day that the body of their Master was no longer in the tomb. They vaguely recalled that he had said something about rising on the 3rd day, but if that had happened, then where was he? They just couldn’t put the pieces of the puzzle together.
Now before we become too critical of these disciples for their lack of understanding concerning these things that Jesus had said would happen, let us take note of the one good and wholesome thing they were doing. They were sharing. They were opening up their hearts and minds to one another. In other words, they were doing what a lot of people in our high-tech society are no longer very good at doing. They were communicating.
Whenever I do premarital counseling with a couple, one question I like to ask them is: “Minus finances, what would you say is the biggest problem area in marriages today?” Almost in unison every couple says, “Communication.” And oh how true that is. “My husband just doesn’t talk to me. He’s either got his nose in his cell phone or his eyes glued to the TV. He never lets me into his mind or his world and he never seems to be interested in what’s going on in mine.” Such is the desperate cry of many a woman in our society today.
Or what about the lack of communication that goes on in families these days. I’ve done a little research in recent years and have discovered that the family meal at suppertime where everyone sits down together and eats together and talks together has become almost non-existent in peoples’ homes. That’s sad because the type of communication that used to take place around the dinner table served as a bonding factor that drew families together and helped to build strong and enduring relationships. So I’d like to encourage and challenge all of you to really work hard at re-establishing the family meal in your home so that the communication level around your house might improve dramatically. And make sure that if you do get the whole family together for a meal that all cell phones and other electronic devices are not allowed at the table. Few things sadden me more than to see families eating out at a restaurant but each one has their nose in their own device, texting someone, talking to someone, playing some game, or listening to some music.
But getting back to our story. We see that as these 2 disciples expressed their concerns to one another, they were joined by a third party. Now we know him to be Jesus, but we’re told that they were somehow kept from recognizing him. And as Jesus inquired of them what they were talking about and why they looked so sad and downhearted, they shared with him what they’d been discussing. And what does Jesus do? Well, he first of all gently reprimands them for their weak faith and lack of understanding. But then he begins what I’m sure must have been the finest and most unforgettable Bible study that anyone has ever been a part of as he takes them back into the Old Testament and explains to them all the parts that related to him. And oh, how they listened. Oh, how they hung on his every word as they walked along together!
What about you, my friends? Do you do the same whenever you have the opportunity to hear God’s Word proclaimed to you? Or do you come to church distracted? Do you show up for worship with your mind cluttered with a multitude of things – the meals you have to prepare that week, the pile of work sitting on the desk in your office that needs to be done, the pile of laundry in your home that just keeps growing with each day that it doesn’t get done? Our to-do list is practically endless, isn’t it? And because of that it’s so easy to allow our minds to drift during the worship service. Sometimes I can even see it in your eyes – that glazed look that lets me know that though your body may be here, but your mind is a million miles away. And don’t think for a moment that I haven’t been guilty of doing the same thing myself when I’ve been sitting in the pew. And don’t think for a moment that it never happened in the Bible.
You ever heard the story of Eutychus in the book of Acts? Let me read it to you:
On the first day of the week we came together to break bread. Paul spoke to the people and, because he intended to leave the next day, kept on talking until midnight. There were many lamps in the upstairs room where we were meeting. Seated in a window was a young man named Eutychus, who was sinking into a deep sleep as Paul talked on and on. When he was sound asleep, he fell to the ground from the third story and was picked up dead. Paul went down, threw himself on the young man and put his arms around him. “Don’t be alarmed,” he said. “He’s alive!” Then he went upstairs again and broke bread and ate. After talking until daylight, he left.
I’ll bet many of you didn’t know that story was even in the Bible. And lest you be tempted to use it as a way of justifying your own periodic naps or lapses of attention during the worship service, let me make a few comments about worship in the hopes of helping you get the most out of it. Understand, first of all, that worship does require thought. It takes concentration if it is to fulfill its intended purpose. And if we do that, if we give worship our full and undivided attention, then it can become one of the most meaningful and uplifting experiences that we could ever engage in. All of a sudden the hymns are no longer just words on a page, but they become prayers and praises proclaimed in a musical setting. The Scripture lessons are no longer just readings for the day that we have to endure, but they become God himself speaking to us through his holy, inspired, and infallible Word. The order of service, or the liturgy, is not just a series of responses between pastor and people, but it becomes an exchange of blessings, a confession to God and to each other of what we believe about him and what we believe about ourselves. And the sermon hopefully becomes more than just a 15-18 minute lecture or discourse in which you can catch a few winks or plan out your week, but it becomes a time where the truths of God’s Word are made relevant and meaningful and applicable to your everyday life.
So my friends, when you come to church, come with the right mind-set. Come with a listening attitude. Come with the intention that you’re going to pay attention. Come expecting to get something out of the worship and to put something into it. And you will not go home disappointed. God will see to that.
Then getting back to our story one more time. The walk with Jesus comes to an end as Emmaus is reached. When Jesus acts as though he’s going to continue on his way, the 2 men persuade him to stay and have a meal with them. And as they sit down together to eat, the eyes of the 2 disciples are finally opened and they recognize their walking companion as none other than their risen and living Lord, but at that moment, in his glorified body, he vanishes from their sight. And then they speak those memorable words which describe how I hope all of you have felt at some time or another when the Word of God touched or impacted your life in some special way. They said: “Were not our hearts burning within us while he talked with us on the road?” And then notice what happens to them. All of a sudden these walking disciples become the running disciples. These doubting disciples become the devoted disciples. These bewildered disciples become the believing disciples who now have an important job to do. So immediately they hightail it back to Jerusalem to tell the others what had happened to them. Only now they are filled with inexpressible joy that can only be attributed to that wonderful walk they had with their once dead, but now very much alive Lord. That’s the kind of difference that the resurrection of Jesus made in their lives.
And how is it with you, my friends? Did the rather unusual online Easter service that we had 2 weeks ago fill you with an indescribable and inexpressible joy that comes from knowing that because he lives, you shall live also? Did that service give you comfort and assurance that the One who is your living Savior now stands beside you and walks with you through all circumstances of life, both favorable and unfavorable?
I’m sure that for many of you Easter did just that. It should do that. It was meant to do that. But perhaps now the emotional crescendo that that joyous day and festive celebration brings with it has faded a bit and it’s back to business as usual as far as your Christianity is concerned. If that describes you, I really don’t think that should surprise you for because we are less than perfect human beings, our spiritual life as well as our emotional life is going to be made up of peaks and valleys. The important thing to remember though is that whether we’re on the mountaintop or in the deepest, darkest pit we have a living Savior who invites us to walk with him, to talk with him, to share with him, and to listen to him as he speaks to us through his Word. And even though the result may not always be the emotional high of Easter, it will be the quiet assurance that the One who created you, the One who redeemed you, and the One who loves you far more than you will ever know or comprehend is there for you always, even to that day when you will join him with the countless throngs of saints and angels in the beauty and glory and splendor of his heavenly kingdom.
Until then, if you want a good exercise program to follow, try walking, not just around the block or through the park, but try walking with Jesus every moment of every day. Not only will you feel better spiritually, emotionally, mentally, and perhaps even physically, but in the end you will discover that the benefits of this kind of exercise program are literally out of this world. Amen.