The Lord Has Risen Indeed!
Luke 24:13-35
Introduction
Last week we covered some crucial points in our understanding of this passage. We learned together that unbelief or confusion about the person of Christ and the Scriptures will result in spiritual blindness. In order to understand the Bible, one must believe the things the Bible teaches us.
We also learned that unbelief also produces grief and sadness. At the very time the disciples should have been celebrating the resurrection, they were mourning the death of their Messiah who wasn’t dead…why do you search for the living among the dead?
We also learned God’s perspective on the resent events…how that the cross was necessary for the salvation of His people and to enter into glory.
As we think through these issues today, I want to discover with you exactly what it was that the disciples did not believe that caused their blindness. We understand the principle now that unbelief produces spiritual blindness but I want to take us a little deeper in this passage to find out what they failed to believe. I think with the Holy Spirit’s help, we also can have our eyes opened to the things they failed to believe and perhaps we can avoid their dilemma of blindness.
Primary Claim of the Text
Spiritually blind eyes can only be opened with a proper understanding of the Lord Jesus Christ as found in God’s Word.
Human Condition Met By the Text
The passage today, addresses the great need we have to see Jesus correctly in the Word of God. If we don’t see Jesus there and understand Him and His commandment from God’s Word then we will be eternally lost. Just as these two disciples needed to see and believe, so too we need spiritual vision as given in God’s Word.
Please hear God’s Word for GCC today…
Luke 24:13-35 (ESV)
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.
1. Eyes Are Blind
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.
A. They failed to believe the Person of Christ
Concerning Jesus of Nazareth, a man who was a prophet mighty in deed and word before God and all the people,
They understood some of who Jesus is. He is a mighty prophet. He is powerful in word and deed. He is all that. He is much more than just a miracle working Prophet. He is the Son of God. In order for their eyes to be opened, they had to understand that Jesus is God’s Son and not just a mighty Prophet. No one knows what OT passage it was that Jesus used to open their eyes to the fact that He is the Son of God or deity. He needed to take them from Mighty Prophet to Son of God…
Isaiah 9:6-7 (ESV)
6 For to us a child is born, to us a son is given; and the government shall be upon his shoulder, and his name shall be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.
7 Of the increase of his government and of peace there will be no end, on the throne of David and over his kingdom, to establish it and to uphold it with justice and with righteousness from this time forth and forevermore. The zeal of the LORD of hosts will do this.
Or perhaps He took them to one of the Psalms such as the one quoted in Hebrews 1:8…
Hebrews 1:8 (ESV)
8 But of the Son he says, “Your throne, O God, is forever and ever, the scepter of uprightness is the scepter of your kingdom.
Psalm 45:6 (ESV)
6 Your throne, O God, is forever and ever. The scepter of your kingdom is a scepter of uprightness;
or perhaps Jesus went to the account of Isaiah in the Temple where He saw the Lord Almighty high and lifted up and the train of His robe filled the Temple. Where the angels continually cried out Holy, Holy, Holy. Where the foundation shook from the reverberation of praise and glory…(Isaiah 6).
John 12:37-41 (ESV)
37 Though he had done so many signs before them, they still did not believe in him,
38 so that the word spoken by the prophet Isaiah might be fulfilled: “Lord, who has believed what he heard from us, and to whom has the arm of the Lord been revealed?”
39 Therefore they could not believe. For again Isaiah said,
40 “He has blinded their eyes and hardened their heart, lest they see with their eyes, and understand with their heart, and turn, and I would heal them.”
41 Isaiah said these things because he saw his glory and spoke of him.
B. They failed to believe that God was behind the cross
20 and how our chief priests and rulers delivered him up to be condemned to death, and crucified him.
We all know that from our study of the Cross of Christ that it was God who was completely in control working to bring about the death of His Son for the redemption of a people. It seems all they knew was that the evil religious leaders were behind it and they were the ones who carried it out. They didn’t understand that God was orchestrating Jesus’ death.
Jesus needed to open up the Scriptures and show them that even though the religious leaders carried it out, it was God who had decreed it and brought it about…
Isaiah 53:10 (ESV)
10 Yet it was the will of the LORD to crush him; he has put him to grief; when his soul makes an offering for guilt, he shall see his offspring; he shall prolong his days; the will of the LORD shall prosper in his hand.
This was probably one of the places Jesus took them because this is the text Peter uses at Penticost in Acts.
Acts 2:22-23 (ESV)
22 “Men of Israel, hear these words: Jesus of Nazareth, a man attested to you by God with mighty works and wonders and signs that God did through him in your midst, as you yourselves know—
23 this Jesus, delivered up according to the definite plan and foreknowledge of God, you crucified and killed by the hands of lawless men.
C. They failed to believe the scope of redemption
As with most pious Jews in their day, they thought the Messiah was only for Israel. They believed that when the Messiah came He would liberate them from Roman oppression and free them to rule over themselves.
21 But we had hoped that he was the one to redeem Israel.
Their view of the work of the Messiah in redemption was too small. When Jesus died and Israel was still under Roman control their hopes were dashed. In reality though the work of the Messiah was infinitely greater than to just redeem Israel. Jesus Christ’s death would not only save believing Jews but would also save believing Gentiles. The scope of redemption is every tongue, tribe, nation and people. Jesus no doubt opened up the Scriptures concerning the scope of redemption.
The scope of redemption is what Paul is arguing for in the Book of Galatians. God saves more than just the Jews. In fact, the Jews must believe like Abraham believed if they are to be converted and be saved.
Galatians 3:6-9 (ESV)
6 just as Abraham “believed God, and it was counted to him as righteousness”?
7 Know then that it is those of faith who are the sons of Abraham.
8 And the Scripture, foreseeing that God would justify the Gentiles by faith, preached the gospel beforehand to Abraham, saying, “In you shall all the nations be blessed.”
9 So then, those who are of faith are blessed along with Abraham, the man of faith.
The reason Abraham heard the Gospel was so that he could believe and through his seed Jesus Christ would come to extend salvation to not only Jews but to Gentiles as well.
These disciples needed to see the full extent of redemption…Jews and Gentiles.
D. They failed to believe Jesus’ own words
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.”
They were blind to Jesus’ former words. They were blind to the power of the resurrection. Their disbelief caused their hopes to be gone and cause despair and grief to take their place. Sadness in the place of joy all because they did not believe.
No doubt, Jesus spoke to them about Psalm 22. No doubt in the course of the next 50 days our Lord had multiple Bible studies where He opened the Scriptures to His beloved disciples. As they beheld the glory of Christ from the Scriptures their eyes were even opened more and more to His glory as they began to see how from the very beginning even from as early as Genesis 3:15, Jesus was promised to the world, the One who would crush Satan’s head on the cross.
2. Eyes Are Opened
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.
As we study the OT we come to the conclusion that from the very beginning Christ is promised. This is seen most clearly as one travels through the Bible with Christ in mind and seeing that is is through Christ, God can look upon His people with favor. This is seen as God has made and remade covenants with man. Each covenant is God promising to be the their God and the people being His people. This continual promise is brought about through Jesus Christ. He kept our part of the bargain…to be God’s people and God, of course, keeps His end of the bargain to be our God.
God made covenants with Abraham, Noah, and David. At each step in redemptive history God makes or renews His covenant with man.
We are currently approaching in our Bible reading Jeremiah 31. It’s in this chapter that Jeremiah speaking for God tells those in Judah and Israel who are soon to be captured and marched off to captivity because of they’re sin of forsaking God, that there is coming a day when God brings about a New Covenant. This New Covenant is not like the Old Covenant. The Perfect Savior Jesus Christ brings it about.
Jeremiah 31:31-34 (ESV)
31 “Behold, the days are coming, declares the LORD, when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and the house of Judah,
32 not like the covenant that I made with their fathers on the day when I took them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt, my covenant that they broke, though I was their husband, declares the LORD.
33 For this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, declares the LORD: I will put my law within them, and I will write it on their hearts. And I will be their God, and they shall be my people.
34 And no longer shall each one teach his neighbor and each his brother, saying, ‘Know the LORD,’ for they shall all know me, from the least of them to the greatest, declares the LORD. For I will forgive their iniquity, and I will remember their sin no more.”
When Jesus takes the disciples through the OT explaining from Moses to the Prophets just how all of them are referring to Him and that His death was a planned event even from the very beginning. Also, as He explains to them that He is more than a Prophet but the very Son of God and how His death and resurrection is for all who believe from the very beginning to the very last day and how the scope of redemption includes Gentiles of every tongue and nation as well as believing Jews. And as He explains that He was God’s Covenant-Keeper for all whom God chooses and as He sits down with them and by breaking the bread and blessing it their eyes open and the scales fall away and they can truly, for the first time, see clearly Jesus Christ. And Just as they see Him clearly, He vanishes and leaves them alone.
3. Hearts are Warmed
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.
Can you see the change in these disciples? They were no longer walking home in discouragement and unbelief. The Lord opened the Scriptures and opened their eyes to all His is and all that had been done. They now believe the Bible and the resurrection.
Notice, it is still dark, still the same day. Their news could not wait until morning. The disciples needed this information and they had to share it…Jesus Christ has risen!
They relayed the account to the larger group, all that had happened and how that as soon as He broke bread with them, their eyes were immediately opened to who this Traveler was.
Their hopes were no longer buried in the tomb with their dead Messiah. They were no longer looking for the living among the dead. They were no longer confused about all that Jesus had previously told them. They understood, they saw truly who Jesus was and they believed!
This news of the risen Lord is soothing ointment for their souls it is news that adds life to discouraged followers. It takes those who even had denied their Lord and transforms them into faithful followers…
1 Peter 1:3-9 (ESV)
3 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! According to his great mercy, he has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead,
4 to an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading, kept in heaven for you,
5 who by God’s power are being guarded through faith for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time.
6 In this you rejoice, though now for a little while, if necessary, you have been grieved by various trials,
7 so that the tested genuineness of your faith—more precious than gold that perishes though it is tested by fire—may be found to result in praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ.
8 Though you have not seen him, you love him. Though you do not now see him, you believe in him and rejoice with joy that is inexpressible and filled with glory,
9 obtaining the outcome of your faith, the salvation of your souls.
Primary Claim of the Text
Spiritually blind eyes can only be opened with a proper understanding of the Lord Jesus Christ as found in God’s Word.
Exhortation to Godliness
Do you have a living hope today? Does the fact that Jesus rose from the grave change the way you view life and the world? Like the two disciples who met Jesus along the Road to Emmaus and just had to turn around and travel back to share this amazing news that Jesus has risen indeed, you too have a message to share…Jesus Christ has risen indeed!
