On the road to Emmaus
[0:00] Thank you, Mark, for leading us through our time together so far.! If you don't know who I am, my name is Daniel.
[0:10] I'm one of the ministers of the church here. And I'll be helping us think about this passage, Luke 24. But before we go there, let's just say a prayer together.
[0:21] Let's pray. Father, as we come to this, your words, we pray that you would be at work speaking to each one of us.
[0:36] We pray that we would see and delight in the Lord Jesus together this morning.
[0:47] And we ask this in Jesus' name. Amen. In the last century, we have seen, apparently, seen the war to end all wars.
[1:03] And yet, we look at our news and we see there is war. Where do we find hope for peace?
[1:15] Half the world, at least, seems to be in crippling debt. Where do we find hope of being free from debt?
[1:26] According to recent news reports, violence in schools have increased over 50% since the pandemic. And reading at least one article, some are saying that young people just don't have hope.
[1:43] Where can they find hope? The other week, I queued for about 15 minutes outside our doctor's surgery to try and get a doctor's appointment.
[1:54] The NHS seems to be struggling. Where do we find hope when we're feeling sick? Understandably, you may look at the world around us and feel a bit hopeless.
[2:08] Look at the world, look at the nation we live in, look at the city and feel hopeless. Well, this morning, we're going to come back in time to about 2,000 years ago.
[2:22] And we're going to join two men taking a walk to a place called Emmaus, about seven miles away from Jerusalem. They are men who are talking about the events of the weekend.
[2:38] Just as maybe some people are out walking in Brighton this morning talking about the marathon and Arsenal beating Brighton Hove Albion 3-0 or something like that.
[2:51] Well, these two men, they're talking about the events of a weekend, an extraordinary weekend. about 2,000 years ago.
[3:04] And they are two people who we find are feeling pretty hopeless. They are feeling downcast. Where is the hope? They are wondering.
[3:18] I've got two points this morning. First of all, we're going to see the hopeless. See the hopeless. We've got the introduction to the passage there in verse 13.
[3:30] It's what I've said. Now that same day, two of them were going to a village called Emmaus. Verse 15 says, As they talked and discussed these things with each other, Jesus himself came up and walked along with them.
[3:50] We saw last week, the tomb was empty. Jesus has risen. And now the risen Jesus appears on the scene. But these two men don't realize that it's him.
[4:02] The last person they were expecting to see, of course, was the risen Jesus. We'll see that as we hear their conversation with him. And Jesus says to them this in verse 17.
[4:16] He asked them, What are you discussing together as you walk along? And here we see, They're feeling downcast. They're feeling hopeless. They stood still.
[4:29] Their faces downcast. We've got one of their names. Verse 18. And he asked him, Are you the only one visiting Jerusalem who does not know the things that have happened there in these days?
[4:46] Just as if somebody asked us, What is going on outside in Brighton? Do you not know there is a marathon happening this weekend in Brighton?
[4:59] You must be the only person that doesn't know you. They're discussing the events of the weekend. What particularly are they discussing?
[5:12] Jesus asked them, What things were they discussing about Jesus of Nazareth? And there in verse 31, We see again their hopelessness.
[5:23] We had hoped that he was the one who was going to come to redeem Israel. And what is more, It's the third day since all this took place. But he's dead.
[5:35] They're hopeless. They're downcast and they're hopeless. They'd hoped that Jesus was going to come and free Israel from all their enemies. Conquer the Romans.
[5:45] Free Israel. Free Israel. But Jesus is dead. That's what they're fixated on. And yet we probably want to say to them as we're reading this passage, Like you would in a pantomime.
[6:01] He's behind you. No, he's beside you. He's there. He's with you. Jesus has risen. There is hope in death. But they don't see it.
[6:12] They are kept from seeing Jesus. What else are they discussing about Jesus? Well, verse 20, verse 19 even.
[6:24] He was a prophet, powerful in word and deed before God and all the people. The chief priests and our rulers handed him over to be sentenced to death. And they crucified him.
[6:36] He was brilliant, they said. He was a prophet. He did wonderful things. Everything he said and done was wonderful. He was powerful. That's who he was.
[6:48] That's how we'll remember him. But now he's dead. He was handed over. Sentenced to death. Was crucified on a cross. They're fixated upon the death of the Lord Jesus Christ.
[7:03] And of course, death is final. They don't have any hope in death. And yet all the clues are there for them. They've spoken in verse 21.
[7:16] It's the third day since all this took place. Jesus said on the third day he'll rise again. Verse 22. In addition, some of our women amazed us.
[7:27] They went to the tomb early this morning but didn't find his body. There's an empty tomb. The clues are there in what they're saying. In verse 24.
[7:39] Then some of our companions went to the tomb and found it just as the women had said. But they did not see Jesus. Because in their minds he is dead.
[7:52] And yet the pieces of the puzzle are there in front of them. Just this last week, Becky and I have rediscovered the joy of playing Wordle.
[8:03] I wonder if you remember that game from a few years ago when it felt like everybody was playing it. Maybe you still do. So often I get to kind of go four or five and just think, why is it not this word?
[8:21] Why can't I get another word in my head? Why won't this letter work in here? And yet the letters I haven't used, the clues, they're staring at me in the face.
[8:34] The green and the yellow letters are helping me to piece together it. But I just can't see it sometimes. Or Clopas and friends.
[8:46] That's the case for them. The clues are there. They're staring them in the face. And the risen Jesus is even walking beside them.
[8:57] They still can't see it. How slow they are. That's what Jesus says to them. Verse 25. How foolish you are and how slow to believe all that the prophets have spoken.
[9:13] They've been given brains to work these things out. But they cannot do it. They don't get it. They believe that Jesus is dead. They are hopeless.
[9:24] And they are downcast. So Jesus is going to begin teaching them. Verse 26. Did not the Messiah have to suffer these things and then enter his glory?
[9:39] And so begins his seminar. Verse 27. Beginning with Moses and all the prophets, he explained to them what was said in all the scriptures concerning himself.
[9:52] And I've often wondered to myself, what would it be like to hear Jesus explaining the scriptures? Pointing them to what they say about himself.
[10:06] Well, I'm not going to attempt to do what Jesus did for a few hours on that trip. But perhaps, perhaps he turned them to somewhere like Psalm 22.
[10:22] Maybe you want to turn there with me. Psalm 22. Psalm 22. A psalm which David writes.
[10:35] And yet, if we read the crucifixion accounts and then read Psalm 22. All over this psalm, we see it speaks of the Lord Jesus.
[10:47] Just there in verse 1. My God. My God. Why have you forsaken me? Why are you so far from saving me?
[10:59] So far from my cries of anguish? Or down in verse 6. But I am a worm and not a man. Scorned by everyone.
[11:10] Despised by the people. All who see me mock me. They hurl insults. Shaking their heads. He trusts in the Lord, they say. Let the Lord rescue him.
[11:21] Let him deliver him. Since he delights in him. Do you remember the mocking? The scorning? Of the Lord Jesus as he went to the cross?
[11:34] Do you remember them crying? Calling out to him. Things like verse 8. He trusts in the Lord, they say. Let the Lord rescue him. Let him deliver him. He speaks of Jesus.
[11:47] Or verse 17 and 18. All my bones are on display. People stare and gloat over me. They divide my clothes among them. And cast lots to my garment.
[12:00] A verse which is quoted in the New Testament. In the crucifixion accounts. But as Jesus said to these men on the road to Emmaus.
[12:12] The Messiah must suffer. But then enter his glory. The psalm ends in glory. Verse 29. All the rich of the earth will feast and worship.
[12:24] All who go down to the dust will kneel before him. Those who cannot keep themselves alive. Posterity will serve him. Future generations will be told about the Lord. They will proclaim his righteousness.
[12:37] Declaring to a people yet unborn. He has done it. It ends in victory. It ends in glory. He has done it. He has done the work of salvation.
[12:49] In his suffering. Or maybe Jesus turned them to Isaiah 53. I guess a passage many of us know very well.
[13:03] Isaiah 53. And just to remind you of some of those verses. Which speak so clearly again of the Lord Jesus.
[13:14] Who would suffer for his people. Verse 4. Surely he took up our pain and bore our suffering. Yet we considered him punished by God.
[13:25] Stricken by him and afflicted. But he was pierced for our transgressions. He was crushed for our iniquities. The punishment that brought us peace was on him. And by his wounds we are healed.
[13:39] We were like sheep have gone astray. Each of us has turned to our own way. And the Lord has laid on him the iniquity of us all. Maybe the Lord Jesus read those words.
[13:50] To those two men on the road to Emmaus. And said does that not speak of the Messiah. The one that you said was crucified. He took up your pain.
[14:03] And your suffering. He was pierced for your transgressions. But again there's glory as well in Isaiah 53.
[14:15] Verse 11. After he has suffered he will see the light of life. And be satisfied by his knowledge. My righteous servant will justify many. And he will bear their iniquities.
[14:28] Suffering and then glory. The light of life. Maybe the Lord Jesus opened up those verses.
[14:42] Maybe he took them to verses we've looked at with Phil recently. In Zechariah they will look on me. The one they have pierced. And they will mourn for him as one mourns for an only child.
[14:54] And grieve bitterly for him as one grieves for a firstborn son. Pointing us again to the Lord Jesus who would suffer for his people.
[15:07] Last Sunday evening some of us spent some time looking at various Old Testament passages. Which helped to show us God's resurrection power. We know to tell so many of the scriptures spoke on the third day.
[15:22] On the third day the Lord provided a ram to be sacrificed in the place of Abraham's son Isaac. On the third day the Lord provided water for his thirsty people in the desert.
[15:34] On the third day Queen Esther with the Jewish people under the sentence of death. Enters the king's presence. And essentially brings her nation from death into life.
[15:48] We saw that third day pattern. And we ended on these verses. Come. From Hosea. Come. Let us return to the Lord. He has torn us to pieces.
[15:59] He will heal us. He has injured us. He will bind up our wounds. After two days he will revive us. On the third day he will restore us.
[16:11] That we may live in his presence. Let's speak of what the Lord Jesus has done in his resurrection. On the third day he will restore us. We may live in his presence.
[16:26] Scriptures. The scriptures. They speak of the Messiah. The one who has come for his people. Who would suffer. But also be raised and be glorified.
[16:39] They speak of him. They speak of hope. To these men who are feeling hopeless and downcast. The promised Messiah come for Israel and for the world.
[16:54] Who would come to defeat. To conquer. Not the Romans. But conquer the evil one. Conquer the enemy which we face. Death.
[17:06] By rising himself from the dead on the third day. They speak of him. Hope. For the hopeless. And downcast.
[17:19] And that hope is standing beside these two men. As they walk to Emmaus. They believed he had died.
[17:30] They believed he was dead. But he is walking beside them alive and well. And the root of the problem of their hopeless and downcast hearts.
[17:46] Is that they don't believe. That's what Jesus says to them. How foolish you are. How slow to believe. All the prophets have spoken. They just don't believe it.
[17:56] If you are feeling hopeless. If you are feeling hopeless. And downcast this morning in some way. I encourage you to look here at Jesus.
[18:10] And see that he has risen again. We can find our hope in life and death. In this one who walks beside these two men. Who has conquered the grave.
[18:21] See the hope that Jesus gives us. Is not. That he will give us our dream job. Or give us a new car.
[18:33] Or give us a husband or wife. Or freedom from certain sicknesses. Whilst on this earth. No. The hope we have in the risen Jesus.
[18:43] Is even greater than those temporary things. He provides us with freedom. From hopelessness and fear of death.
[18:54] He provides us with freedom. To be who we're made to be. People living. For our creator gods. He provides us.
[19:09] With freedom from the power and slavery of sin. And we have new life in him. He gives us the certain hope of life forever with him.
[19:25] The risen Lord Jesus gives hope to the hopeless. And downcast. And so though we may live in a world.
[19:36] Which we may look at. And think where is the hope. There is just pain. And struggle. And hardship. And sickness. And death.
[19:49] The risen Jesus fills us with new. And living. And eternal. Hope. This morning. Luke wants us to see.
[20:02] And to know. With great certainty. That the risen Lord Jesus has come. For sinful people. He has died.
[20:13] For sinners upon the cross. Taken. The penalty that our sins deserve. On the cross. And he has risen again. He has crushed death. And Satan under his feet.
[20:24] The price has been paid. The sacrifice has been accepted. Do you believe that this morning? That's what these men needed to hear.
[20:40] And to know. In their hopelessness. In their feelings of being downcast. They needed to see. And know that. The person standing beside them.
[20:51] Was the risen Lord Jesus Christ. Hope. In the face of death. Was walking beside them. Salvation for the world.
[21:04] Was walking beside them. The resurrection. And the life. Was walking beside them. And yet even after this amazing seminar.
[21:19] With the risen Lord Jesus. They still. Did not see him. But they were clearly amazed by him. They didn't want him to go. As verse 28 says.
[21:30] As they approached the village. To which they were going. Jesus. Continued on. As if he were going further. But they urged him strongly. They really did not want him to go.
[21:42] Stay with us. For it is nearly evening. The day is almost over. So he went. He went in to stay with them. They were captivated.
[21:53] By the risen Lord Jesus. Even though they didn't see. Who it was yet. But. They did not want him to go. And so as they arrived in Emmaus.
[22:07] Jesus came. Into the house. And they began to see. Jesus. They began to see. Jesus. Verse. 30.
[22:18] When he was at the table with them. He took bread. He gave thanks. He broke it.
[22:30] And began. To give it to them. And suddenly. Something happened. Verse 31.
[22:40] Then their eyes were opened. And they recognized Jesus. Jesus. As Jesus took the bread. And broke it. And gave thanks. For it. Maybe it reminded them.
[22:52] Of Jesus standing. Amongst a crowd. Of 5,000 odd people. And lifted his eyes. To heaven. And gave thanks. And distributed bread.
[23:04] And fish. To all the people. Maybe it reminded them of that. Or hearing. That story. Or perhaps. And we don't know. If they were around. At that meal.
[23:15] On the night. Before. Jesus. Was betrayed. When he took bread. And gave thanks. And passed it. To his disciples. Maybe they heard of it.
[23:27] And it clicked. In their minds. This is Jesus. Whatever it was. Their eyes were opened. To see.
[23:38] The risen Lord Jesus. We've got it. That final piece. Of the puzzle. Is in place. That final letter. You need. To make up a word.
[23:48] In word. And it's in place. We've got it. We see the answer. It's him. It's Jesus. Those women were right. After all.
[23:59] The tomb was empty. Because Jesus has risen. But then very quickly. Verse 31 says. He disappeared. From their sight.
[24:10] Like he vanishes. But he doesn't need. To be there anymore. They've now seen. With their eyes. They now know.
[24:22] In their minds. Jesus. Who they thought. Was dead. Which made them feel. Downcast and hopeless. They now saw.
[24:33] That he was alive. And well. We see it now. And that's all. They needed to know. If you feel like. You're slow to understand things.
[24:44] I know I am. We can take encouragement. From these two men. Can't we? They had Jesus. Staring at them. In the face. Walking by them. Speaking to them.
[24:55] For hours. And they didn't see him. But now. They've come to understand. Now it makes sense. And they look back.
[25:07] On their walk. Reflected on them. On the walk. And said this. To each other. Verse 30T. We're not. We're not. Our hearts. Burning within us.
[25:18] While he talked with us. On the road. And opened up. The scriptures to us. We're not. Our hearts. Burning inside. Like a fire was lit.
[25:29] And was. Burning away. Inside of us. A sense of great awe. And excitement. About the things. That the risen Lord Jesus. Was saying to us.
[25:40] We saw. The Messiah. Did have to suffer. But we saw. That he'd be glorified. We saw. That he'd be risen.
[25:50] From the dead. Weren't we feeling. Excitement. And now. We have seen him. Our hearts. Were burning.
[26:02] And they couldn't help. But go and tell. The others. Verse 33. They got up. Returned. At once. To Jerusalem. There they found. The eleven.
[26:13] And those. Assembled with. With them. And said. It is true. The Lord has risen. And has appeared. To Simon. It is true. We have seen him.
[26:24] He has. Risen. Christian. This morning. The Lord Jesus Christ. He has. Risen. From the dead.
[26:38] Are you delighting. In that truth. Today. Jesus has died for you. And risen again. You can have. You have new life in him. You delighting in that.
[26:49] This morning. Are you wanting to. Get into the scriptures. And. And see him. See the risen Lord Jesus.
[26:59] For that. That's where we see him. Revealed to us. In the pages of scripture. Without him. Without that.
[27:11] What do we have? Without the Lord Jesus. There is no hope. Without the Lord Jesus. Risen from the dead. Where is our hope? This is where we see him. This is how we know.
[27:23] The hope that we. We can have. What about parents. With your children. Is something you're.
[27:34] Delighting. Wanting. To do. Show him. Jesus. In the pages of scripture. Surely. There's nothing better than that. Show them.
[27:46] Jesus. Who. Who. Humbly. Came. From heaven. To. This earth. Show them. Jesus. Who had compassion. On the. Lepers.
[27:56] On the. The demon. Possessed. On the blind. On the sick. The poor. Show them. Jesus. Show them. Jesus. Who. Swap places.
[28:08] With a criminal. To. To hang on a cross. And die. In our place. Show them. Jesus. Who.
[28:18] In his death. Has made a way. For us. To have peace. With. God. Show them. Jesus. Who. Stands. Walks.
[28:30] With these. Two men. By the road. Of Emmaus. Alive. And well. Death. Could not. Hold him. It's in the pages.
[28:42] Of scripture. We're going to see him. That's where we need. To go. This. Banner. It's slightly. Covered up. But it says. That we as a church.
[28:53] We're Christ. Centred. And we're. Bible based. Bible based. We must. Be getting. Into the scriptures. We must be.
[29:04] Looking at them. And seeing. Jesus. Jesus. We must. Jesus. We must. As a church. Be. Preaching Christ.
[29:14] Have him. At the center. Of all. That we do. So we. As a church. We speak.
[29:25] The name. Of Jesus. To a. Hopeless. World. God. We speak. The name. Of Jesus. Who. Brings. Peace.
[29:36] With God. To a world. Filled. With not much. Peace. At all. We speak. The name. Of Jesus. Who brings. Healing. To our.
[29:47] Sin sick. Souls. Even if. We can't. See a doctor. For our own. Physical. Sickness. Jesus. We speak. The name.
[29:57] Of Jesus. The risen. Jesus. Who says. The debt. You owe. To God. For your sin. It's been paid. In full. Trust me. For your salvation.
[30:10] We speak. The name. Of the risen. And ascended. Lord Jesus. Who brings. Eternal. Life. In the face. Of death.
[30:21] Yes. We speak. The name. Of the risen. Jesus. Who brings. Hope. Into this world.
[30:32] Into this nation. Into this city. Where it feels like. There is no hope. At all. Imagine.
[30:42] What. What Calvary. Church. Can do. If we're a people. Whose hearts. Are burning. With love. For him. As we. We open. The scriptures. Together. And see.
[30:53] Jesus. Imagine. What Calvary. Church. Can do. If we're. Filled. People. Whose hearts. Are burning.
[31:04] To speak. The name. Of the risen. Jesus. This risen. Jesus. Who stands. Beside.
[31:14] These men. On the road. These men. Who felt. Hopeless. And downcast. Who leave. That walk. Their hearts.
[31:24] Burning. And excited. To tell. The others. He has risen. Again. And Luke. 24. Is not over.
[31:36] Do you come back. This evening. And hear Steve. Speak to us. On some of the rest. Of the chapter. But for now. Let's pray. Let's pray.
[31:46]