Emmaus...Walk the Talk

Luke 24:25 And He said to them, “O foolish men and slow of heart to believe in all that the prophets have spoken!”

Luke 24:13-35 is the account of the post-resurrection appearance of our Lord to two disciples as they walked from Jerusalem to the village of Emmaus. This event takes place on resurrection Sunday, after the women had gone to the tomb and found it empty. These two disciples were talking with each other about the things that had happened over the past three days. The arrest, scourging, crucifixion, death, and burial of the man they called Messiah. To these disciples on the road to Emmaus, this was a very sad day (Luke 24:17b “…and they stood still looking sad.”)

While these two disciples were walking, talking, and mourning over the events of the past three days, Jesus Christ approached them and started walking with them, but they didn’t recognize Him (Luke 24:15-16). Jesus gives these two disciples an opportunity to proclaim the "good news" to a stranger. He swings the door wide open for them to share with someone the HOPE that they have in Christ when He asks them in verse 17 “What are these words that you are exchanging with one another as you are walking?” but they miss the opportunity. They miss the opportunity because they leave out the resurrection, and without the resurrection there is no HOPE and there is no joy, because there is only death…no life. These disciples, who know that the tomb is empty, don’t believe that He has risen (Luke 24:21). This is why they mourn instead of rejoicing.

Jesus sees and corrects the problem in verses 25-27. Their problem is that they don’t know the Scriptures (specifically the Scriptures that deal with Messiah). Their problem is with faith, and faith only comes by hearing the Word of God (Romans 10:17). So Jesus gives them joy by teaching them TRUTH. The TRUTH is that Christ has risen from the dead, and it is HE that is going to redeem Israel, and that Christ is Jesus of Nazareth. When they finally get the whole truth, they rush back to Jerusalem and share the "good news" with the rest of the disciples (Luke 24:33-25).

As believers, we can learn a lot from the experiences of these two disciples on the road to Emmaus, because we make the same mistakes when God swings the door wide open for us to share the HOPE that we have in Christ. For some reason we too leave out the resurrection, but make no mistake, without the resurrection, there is no HOPE.

What can we learn from the Emmaus walk of these two disciples:

1. God opens the door for us to share the gospel when we least expect it. We must be prepared at all times. Are you prepared to share the GOOD NEWS of Jesus Christ at this very moment? Proper preparation will give you complete confidence in what you are saying. If we are timid when it comes to giving the Gospel, it is probably because we are ill prepared. We must be ready! 2 Timothy 4:8 “preach the Word; be ready in season and out of season.”

2. The gospel without the resurrection is not GOOD NEWS. We must be clear when we proclaim the gospel of Jesus Christ. We must never leave out the fact that Christ not only conquered sin at the Cross, but also conquered death when He walked out of the grave. Our HOPE is in HIS life. 1 Corinthians 15:17 “and if Christ has not been raised, your faith is worthless; you are still in your sins.” We must never proclaim the gospel without the resurrection! The good news of Christ, the power of the gospel, is that Christ died for sin that He was buried, and rose from the grave three days later (1 Cor 15:1-4). This is the message of power that leads to salvation (Romans 1:16). The resurrection is important!

3. Faith is from the Word of God, not the words of men. Only when we search the Scriptures is our faith strengthened. Cleopas and the other unnamed disciple believed logic, not Scripture. They believed that the body was not in the tomb, but not resurrected. They believed that someone took Jesus’ body, not that God raised Him from the dead. They believed the women and not the Word. Jesus dealt with their unbelief by teaching them the Scriptures. He will deal with your doubt in the same way. It is the Word that is powerful (Hebrews 4:12), not the opinions of man. The Word of God can transform your foolishness into faith, your doubt into confidence, and your questions into answers. How well do you know the WORD? Search the Scriptures and gain confidence with your presentation of the GOOD NEWS of CHRIST.

God could give you an opportunity to share your faith today. Are you ready? Are you confident? Learn from the experience of theses disciples on the road to Emmaus and gain the confidence you need to proclaim our “so great salvation” in the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus Christ. That is our hope! That is our joy! That is our confidence! That is our Life!