.0Luke 24.13-34
On The Road Again
13 Now behold, two of them were traveling that same day to a village called Emmaus, which was seven miles from Jerusalem. 14 And they talked together of all these things which had happened. 15 So it was, while they conversed and reasoned, that Jesus Himself drew near and went with them. 16 But their eyes were restrained, so that they did not know Him. 17 And He said to them, “What kind of conversation is this that you have with one another as you walk and are sad?” 18 Then the one whose name was Cleopas answered and said to Him, “Are You the only stranger in Jerusalem, and have You not known the things which happened there in these days?” 19 And He said to them, “What things?” So they said to Him, “The things concerning Jesus of Nazareth, who was a Prophet mighty in deed and word before God and all the people, 20 and how the chief priests and our rulers delivered Him to be condemned to death, and crucified Him. 21 But we were hoping that it was He who was going to redeem Israel. Indeed, besides all this, today is the third day since these things happened. 22 Yes, and certain women of our company, who arrived at the tomb early, astonished us. 23 When they did not find His body, they came saying that they had also seen a vision of angels who said He was alive. 24 And certain 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 Then He said to them, “O foolish ones, and slow of heart to believe in all that the prophets have spoken! 26 Ought not the Christ to have suffered these things and to enter into His glory?” 27 And beginning at Moses and all the Prophets, He expounded to them in all the Scriptures the things concerning Himself. 28 Then they drew near to the village where they were going, and He indicated that He would have gone farther. 29 But they constrained Him, saying, “Abide with us, for it is toward evening, and the day is far spent.” And He went in to stay with them. 30 Now it came to pass, as He sat at the table with them, that He took bread, blessed and broke it, and gave it to them. 31 Then their eyes were opened and they knew Him; and He vanished from their sight. 32 And they said to one another, “Did not our heart burn within us while He talked with us on the road, and while He opened the Scriptures to us?” 33 So they rose up that very hour and returned to Jerusalem, and found the eleven and those who were with them gathered together, 34 saying, “The Lord is risen indeed, and has appeared to Simon!”
I think our Lord has a great sense of humor. I mean stop and think, where do we get humor? Is it not from God? If so, wouldn’t you think that He likes to pull some funny situations? After His resurrection as you know He winds up popping up in various locations, I think just to blow their minds. Paul commented on this when he wrote in his first epistle to the Corinthians, “and that He was seen by Cephas [Peter], then by the twelve. After that He was seen by over five hundred brethren at once, of whom the greater part remain to the present, but some have fallen asleep. After that He was seen by James, then by all the apostles. Then last of all He was seen by me also, as by one born out of due time.
In today’s scripture we will see mention of Peter seeing our Lord, but not the two guys on the way home to Emmaus.
13 Now behold, two of them were traveling that same day to a village called Emmaus, which was seven miles from Jerusalem.
Would it be very difficult for you to walk 7 miles? Suppose I told you that the 7 miles was straight up a mountain. There is a saying that there are 5 Gospels; Matthew, Mark, Luke, John, and being physically in Israel. If you have never been to Israel then I encourage you if you are ever able to take a vacation there. You will be able to get a clearer vision of the Holy Land and how it affected the events as listed in our Holy Bibles.
If you have ever been in Jerusalem that it is quite above sea level. In fact all roads lead up to Jerusalem. It is surrounded by hills. So, imagine that any travel that you had from or toward this city would be up and down and quite exerting.
Emmaus means ‘spring (of water)’. Look at the wonderful promise that our Precious Holy Spirit tells us through the prophet Isaiah chapter 58 verse 11, “The LORD will guide you continually, and satisfy your soul in drought, And strengthen your bones; You shall be like a watered garden, And like a spring of water, whose waters do not fail. We will all see in this encounter of our Lord Jesus with these disciples how He allows the living waters of His Word to encourage them that all that was written pointed to the events that just happened.
14 And they talked together of all these things which had happened.
The prophet Isaiah is his book in chapter 55 verses 8 and 9 also reminded us that our Lord does things that we in our finite minds would not consider, “For My thoughts [are] not your thoughts, Nor [are] your ways My ways," says the LORD. "For [as] the heavens are higher than the earth, So are My ways higher than your ways, And My thoughts than your thoughts.” So, these guys are heading home all discouraged because they had certain ideas of their own. This is where our Lord Is going to challenge them. Because it is not our opinions that matter but what does the Word of God say is what matters.
15 So it was, while they conversed and reasoned, that Jesus Himself drew near and went with them.
Now picture yourself just walking down the road with someone you know very well, then all of a sudden a person joins you in your walk. How would you react? In today’s world you would be defensive or on guard. In should be understood that it is never safe to go somewhere alone? Do you remember the story of the Good Samaritan? The guy who got mugged was alone, wasn’t he? In this story our Lord pointed out how to love one’s neighbor, “25 And behold, a certain lawyer stood up and tested Him, saying, “Teacher, what shall I do to inherit eternal life?” 26 He said to him, “What is written in the law? What is your reading of it?” 27 So he answered and said, “‘You shall love the LORD your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your strength, and with all your mind,’ and ‘your neighbor as yourself.’ ” 28 And He said to him, “You have answered rightly; do this and you will live.” 29 But he, wanting to justify himself, said to Jesus, “And who is my neighbor?” 30 Then Jesus answered and said: “A certain man went down from Jerusalem to Jericho, and fell among thieves, who stripped him of his clothing, wounded him, and departed, leaving him half dead. 31 Now by chance a certain priest came down that road. And when he saw him, he passed by on the other side. 32 Likewise a Levite, when he arrived at the place, came and looked, and passed by on the other side. 33 But a certain Samaritan, as he journeyed, came where he was. And when he saw him, he had compassion. 34 So he went to him and bandaged his wounds, pouring on oil and wine; and he set him on his own animal, brought him to an inn, and took care of him. 35 On the next day, when he departed, he took out two denarii, gave them to the innkeeper, and said to him, ‘Take care of him; and whatever more you spend, when I come again, I will repay you.’ 36 So which of these three do you think was neighbor to him who fell among the thieves?” 37 And he said, “He who showed mercy on him.” Then Jesus said to him, “Go and do likewise.”
You will note in our Lord’s story that every one of the travelers were by themselves. Knowing this predicament should have caused them even more compassion since it could have been them that was the victim.
16 But their eyes were restrained, so that they did not know Him.
Please note that the two guys did not recognize Him. We should note that this was not the only occasion when there was an indication of non-recognition. This would suggest that there was something about Him in His resurrection body that looked different so that recognition did not happen immediately.
17 And He said to them, “What kind of conversation is this that you have with one another as you walk and are sad?” 18 Then the one whose name was Cleopas answered and said to Him, “Are You the only stranger in Jerusalem, and have You not known the things which happened there in these days?”
We have here an indication that the account was told by someone who was there. His words had brought them to a halt, and they remembered it well. Remember Luke had gone back to Jerusalem to interview eyewitnesses so he is the one who gives us the name of one of the guys.
He expressed amazement to the One that he did not know was not aware of the tumultuous things that had been going on. Isn’t weird that we always feel that people should be aware of what we think is important and if they do not we are amazed. Was He the only one who had been staying in Jerusalem who was not aware of what had happened? This was an exaggeration. There were probably many people in Jerusalem who were as yet unaware of what had happened.
We see our Lord playing along with these guys, not to make fun of them but to educate them on Who The Messiah Is.
19 And He said to them, “What things?” So they said to Him, “The things concerning Jesus of Nazareth, who was a Prophet mighty in deed and word before God and all the people, 20 and how the chief priests and our rulers delivered Him to be condemned to death, and crucified Him. 21 But we were hoping that it was He who was going to redeem Israel. Indeed, besides all this, today is the third day since these things happened. 22 Yes, and certain women of our company, who arrived at the tomb early, astonished us. 23 When they did not find His body, they came saying that they had also seen a vision of angels who said He was alive. 24 And certain 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.”
The two guys first described Who Jesus was from a Jewish, pre-resurrection point of view. He was Jesus the Nazarene, who was a prophet mighty in deed and word in the eyes of both God and man. Jesus was very much seen as a great prophet by His followers. He was seen as the great Prophet like to Moses.
They then went on to describe the acts of those who had condemned Him to the cross. The chief priests and their own rulers had ‘delivered Him up to be condemned to death, and had crucified Him’. It was still something that they could hardly believe. They found it incredible.
They have described the reverent view that they had had of Him, they have emphasized their shock at what had happened to Him, but now they also reveal the hopes that they had had of Him. They had not only seen Him as a prophet, they had ‘hoped that it was He Who would redeem Israel’. He had been their hope.
It was now the third day since these things had come about, and they could not forget that Jesus had often referred to ‘the third day’ after His death in unusual ways. And there was no doubt that rumors about strange things were flying around. For some of their womenfolk, who had gone to His tomb, had not found His body there. It had seemingly disappeared. And not only that, but they had also spoken of seeing a vision of angels who had said that He was alive. For dependable and in their opinion, reliable men, had also gone to the tomb, and they had indeed found the tomb empty as the women had said, and they had not seen Jesus’ body. Him they had not seen, either dead or alive.
25 Then He said to them, “O foolish ones, and slow of heart to believe in all that the prophets have spoken!
‘O foolish ones.’ We can sense the tenderness and slight exasperation that lies behind it. ‘Fools’ would be too strong a translation. He was not expressing any contempt. It was their lack of understanding that He was hinting at, the lack that had put them in this mournful state, not their mental abilities. A ‘fool’ in the Old Testament is regularly someone who is unaware of spiritual realities. He explains why He calls them foolish. It is because He considers them ‘slow of heart’ in that they have refused to believe the many things of which the prophets had spoke concerning the matter. What they had said concerning the women in fact summed them up accurately. They had received good news, but their hearts were slow to take it up. Had they believed the prophets they would have had no such doubts.
26 Ought not the Christ to have suffered these things and to enter into His glory?”
Was that not what the Scriptures had said? This is a lesson for all of us, ‘Is the whole bible true?’; ‘Is there anything that you doubt?’ ‘If you believe in as much kindness as I can relay to you, go see a Pastor and get these questions and doubts answered.
This idea of ‘necessity’ or ‘ought’ appears constantly throughout Luke. It was ‘necessary’ for everything written about Him in the Scriptures to be fulfilled. The Lamb of God, our Lord Jesus Christ was driven along by the divine necessity.
27 And beginning at Moses and all the Prophets, He expounded to them in all the Scriptures the things concerning Himself.
Starting with the first book of the Bible, Genesis to Deuteronomy, and then going on to the prophets, He interpreted to them in all the Scriptures the things concerning Himself which included those concerning the Messiah, taking the word in its widest sense as signifying the Promised One. The words suggest a considerable amount of material, taken from the whole range of Scripture, for the whole word of God points to Himself. I like the saying that the Old Testament has our Lord Jesus concealed and the New Testament has the Son of God revealed.
28 Then they drew near to the village where they were going, and He indicated that He would have gone farther.
We can imagine the fascination with which they listened to Him and recognized how little knowledge of the Scriptures they really had, and may well have regretted reaching their village so quickly.
We can all take note of how our Great Creator is a gentleman. He does not force Himself on us. I always tell people that if you want nothing to do with Him, He will honor your request. However, please remember that He will also honor that request for eternity. The scarcest words anyone can hear for Him is ‘I do not know you.’
29 But they constrained Him, saying, “Abide with us, for it is toward evening, and the day is far spent.” And He went in to stay with them.
Equally correctly they ‘constrained Him’ which also means - strongly pressed Him - to accept a night’s hospitality. Darkness was coming on and the roads could become dangerous for a solitary person, and even though there was a full moon, travelling in the dark could be unpleasant. Besides He must be hungry.
30 Now it came to pass, as He sat at the table with them, that He took bread, blessed and broke it, and gave it to them.
Once indoors they sat Him down for a meal and brought food to the table, and then something happened which must have astonished the two disciples. For as we read our Lord Jesus reached out, took the bread and blessed it and broke it. At first this appeared to break all the rules of Eastern courtesy, for it was the host or master of the feast whose responsibility it was to take the bread, and bless and break it, and distribute it to those who sat at table. The guest was expected to recognize his position. But their initial astonishment disappeared to be replaced by an even greater astonishment, for probably as a result of the way in which He did it they recognized that this was no discourtesy or arrogance. They recognized that the One Who had done it had the right to take charge of the feast, for it was the Master Himself.
31 Then their eyes were opened and they knew Him; and He vanished from their sight.
It was when He performed this action that their eyes were opened and they knew Him, and He then, seemingly immediately, disappeared from their sight. It is very probable that they had a number of times been present at meals where The Master, our Lord Jesus had blessed the bread, and had broken and distributed it, and had therefore recognized the way in which He did it.
The impression is given that He did not partake of the bread. Remember He had said at the Last Supper with the taking of bread and wine was for us to partake ‘in remembrance of Him.’ This sudden disappearance stresses the deliberate nature of His revelation of Himself to these two disciples, and made clear that He was not there as someone who had just come back again. He was there as One Who had risen from the dead and belonged to another world. Once He was satisfied that they knew Him He departed mysteriously, His task accomplished. And they would be continuing witnesses to the resurrection in Jerusalem and Judea once the Apostles had gone.
32 And they said to one another, “Did not our heart burn within us while He talked with us on the road, and while He opened the Scriptures to us?”
Startled the two looked at one another and confessed on how their hearts had been burning within them when He had been expounding the Scriptures to them while they were still on their journey. Now they knew why.
33 So they rose up that very hour and returned to Jerusalem, and found the eleven and those who were with them gathered together, 34 saying, “The Lord is risen indeed, and has appeared to Simon!” 35 And they told about the things that had happened on the road, and how He was known to them in the breaking of bread.
I can tell you from personal experience that when the Lord does something miraculous in your life, you got to go and tell someone. So, the two immediately rose up from the table and returned to Jerusalem. And there they found the eleven gathered together, along with other disciples.
We now come to the climax to which all that has gone before is building up, the appearance of the risen Jesus to His Apostles and His ascension into Heaven. For Luke it is the ultimate moment. He is being revealed as the Son of the Most High. In this passage He comes to them, shows them His hands, and His feet, eats with them and makes clear to them the genuine reality of His resurrection. It is the final earthly evidence of Who He is, which would gradually come home to their hearts as it did so vividly to Thomas.
36 Now as they said these things, Jesus Himself stood in the midst of them, and said to them, “Peace to you.”
While the conversation with the two disciples from Emmaus was going on Jesus suddenly appeared to His Apostles. And there He stood among them and said, ‘Peace to you,’ shalom elechem, the standard Jewish greeting. He wanted to make it seem as natural as possible. Stop and think how you would react if you are talking to someone and turn around and see our Lord Jesus face to face.
37 But they were terrified and frightened, and supposed they had seen a spirit. 38 And He said to them, “Why are you troubled? And why do doubts arise in your hearts? 39 Behold My hands and My feet, that it is I Myself. Handle Me and see, for a spirit does not have flesh and bones as you see I have.”
Then see how our Lord Jesus sought to soothe their nerves. He asked them why they were troubled. Had they not expected Him? Why were their hearts so full of questionings. Had He not promised through His angels that they would see Him? Although He had intended it to be in Galilee, but they had not heeded His directions. And so here He was. No wonder He rebuked them for their unbelief, for in spite of His earlier teaching, they had not believed those to whom He had appeared, when really they should have been expecting Him.
Please take special notice our Lord’s words, ‘flesh and bones’. Do you notice that He did not say ‘blood’? For as you know that was poured out at the cross for as the Scripture says the life is in the blood which He gave for us.
40 When He had said this, He showed them His hands and His feet.
Then He showed them His hands and feet, and told them to handle Him and make absolutely sure for themselves that He really was flesh and bones. For then at least they would surely realize that He could not be a ghost. Ghosts just did not have flesh and bones like He had.
41 But while they still did not believe for joy, and marveled, He said to them, “Have you any food here?” 42 So they gave Him a piece of a broiled fish and some honeycomb. 43 And He took it and ate in their presence.
Again, to remove all doubt not only for the disciples but for all people in the future, our Lord Jesus was not a ghost. He took the food and ate it in their presence.
Having presented what he sees as the ultimate revelation of the earthly Jesus in describing the appearance of Jesus to His Apostles Luke moves rapidly on to His ascension, ignoring most of what took place in the following days in his usual way. Instead he prepares for the opening chapters of Acts which as you know he also wrote.
44 Then He said to them, “These are the words which I spoke to you while I was still with you, that all things must be fulfilled which were written in the Law of Moses and the Prophets and the Psalms concerning Me.” 45 And He opened their understanding, that they might comprehend the Scriptures. 46 Then He said to them, “Thus it is written, and thus it was necessary for the Christ to suffer and to rise from the dead the third day, 47 and that repentance and remission of sins should be preached in His name to all nations, beginning at Jerusalem. 48 And you are witnesses of these things. 49 Behold, I send the Promise of My Father upon you; but tarry in the city of Jerusalem until you are endued with power from on high.” 50 And He led them out as far as Bethany, and He lifted up His hands and blessed them. 51 Now it came to pass, while He blessed them, that He was parted from them and carried up into heaven. 52 And they worshiped Him, and returned to Jerusalem with great joy, 53 and were continually in the temple praising and blessing God. Amen.
Luke ignores all the subsequent appearances in Galilee, for that would take his readers attention away from Jerusalem, and he feels that what he has said has been quite sufficient. He is not writing to skeptics who will analyse his account and compare it with that of others. He is finally proclaiming the truth of the resurrection, which he has adequately done. Now he wants attention to be concentrated on Jerusalem for Acts is to begin in Jerusalem.
We will in fact learn at the beginning of Acts that there were forty days between our Lord Jesus first appearance to His Apostles and His final departure from them, days which are unaccounted for by Luke, and about which he here gives us almost no information. All he does tell us is that during this time Jesus spoke to them of the Kingdom of God. He was preparing them and us for the future.
