28 As they approached the village to which they were going, Jesus continued on as if he were going farther. 29 But they urged him strongly, "Stay with us, for it is nearly evening; the day is almost over." So he went in to stay with them.
30 When he was at the table with them, he took bread, gave thanks, broke it and began to give it to them. 31 Then their eyes were opened and they recognized him, and he disappeared from their sight. 32 They asked each other, "Were not our hearts burning within us while he talked with us on the road and opened the Scriptures to us?"
33 They got up and returned at once to Jerusalem. There they found the Eleven and those with them, assembled together 34 and saying, "It is true! The Lord has risen and has appeared to Simon." 35 Then the two told what had happened on the way, and how Jesus was recognized by them when he broke the bread.
Dig Deeper
One of my favorite stories in the entire Bible is the moment when Peter and the other disciples were fishing after Jesus’ death and they looked up and saw Jesus walking on the beach. The whole memorable scene is described in John 21. Peter rushes to the beach to see if it is really Jesus and finds that it is. This was the same Peter who had promised to be loyal to Jesus right to his own death if need be and vehemently denied that he would ever deny Jesus the way Jesus predicted that he would. Sadly, we all know that Peter did deny Jesus on three occasions. As John described those scenes of Peter’s denial, he very specifically uses an uncommon word in the New Testament to give us the detail that during his denials, Peter was standing next to a coal fire, warming himself on the chilly night. John, like the other Gospel writers didn’t really include details for no reason, so it stands out to us his readers that he specifically points out that this was a coal fire. If nothing else, coal fires have a very distinctive smell. So, it is an incredible detail, in my mind, when John tells us that when Jesus came to Peter on the beach in chapter 21, that he first had Peter build a coal fire to cook some fish on. Then, with the smell of that same type of coal fire wafting in the air, Jesus resolutely asked Peter three times if Peter really loved him, the same number of times that Peter had denied him. This was all no coincidence. Jesus wanted Peter to have a chance to reverse, in a sense, what he had done. He wanted him to have a memory of redemption that came back to mind every time he smelled a coal fire burning rather than thinking of the night of the betrayal. Jesus wanted to, in a real sense, undo what was done. He gave Peter a do-over and a chance at a new start.
As we have joined Luke on this long journey we should not forget that he promised all the way back in 9:31 that this was going to be a new exodus journey. We have followed along with Jesus as he resolutely made his way to Jerusalem to face down death and evil and have been right there as Jesus was seemingly swallowed up by death. But now something amazing has evidently happened. Luke is in the midst of telling us of the most amazing event in human history. This was how the new exodus was happening. But just as Peter needed to return, in a sense, and receive a do-over, that is exactly what Jesus has done for the whole human race. Humanity rebelled against God, which was the very cause of Jesus’ incarnation and crucifixion, but watch carefully as Luke masterfully describes the chance at a new start for fallen humanity. What humans really needed was a do-over, a new creation, and that is exactly what Luke describes in this passage.
As this scene continue to develop in the hands of the master writer Luke, he gives us the detail that as the three people approached the village of Emmaus, Jesus began to continue on as though his intent was to go further. Luke is continuing to build the tension of this scene. Will this be it for this encounter? Will these disciples ever learn the truth of who was walking with them, teaching them, and rebuking them on their slowness and lack of knowledge? It seems as if they are going to learn the truth and be reconciled with Jesus it will be because they deeply desire to know the truth. And that is exactly what happened. They strongly urged and tried to convince Jesus to stay with them. It was nearing nightfall and it was not a generally safe or good idea to travel once night fell. They invited Jesus to come in with them and stay the night so that they could continue to fellowship with and learn from this man whom they only knew as a stranger. But perhaps something inside of them was telling them that he was much more than a stranger if they would only spend some more time with him.
As they went into the place where these disciples were heading, the roles suddenly switch in what would have been a strange happening. They had invited Jesus in as a guest to spend the night with them but as soon as they sat down to eat, Jesus grabbed the bread and took the role of host. They were now his guests. As he took the bread, Luke tells us that he gave thanks, broke the bread, and gave it to them. Perhaps it was that the scales of un-recognition were finally and miraculously removed from their eyes, or maybe it was that they had seen and heard Jesus give thanks and break bread just like this before (Luke 9:16; 22:19), or maybe even it was the scars on his wrists as he reached the bread out to them. Whatever it was, it was at the moment that he reached out to hand them the bread that they recognized that it was Jesus. But they didn’t just recognize him. Something far more significant happened than just a mere recognition that it was Jesus that was with them after all.
There is a common theme that runs through many of the Gospel writer’s works as the focus on the period after Jesus’ resurrection. Let’s look at a few example and see if the theme becomes clear. In Matthew 28:18-20, as Jesus is giving his final instructions to his disciples, he tells them that they should go and create disciples of all nations to add to God’s one family. He told them, in other words, to be fruitful and multiply as the people restored in the image of God. What does that sound like? If you said Genesis 1:28, you are correct. In that passage, God tells his new creation, humanity, to be fruitful and increase in number so that they may fill the earth and subdue it. In Matthew 28 Jesus gives an echo of the same command to his new humanity. They are to be fruitful and increase in number so that they may fill the earth and subdue it.
Another example (although there are too many to discuss all of them here) comes in John 20:22 where Jesus appeared in a locked room to his anxious disciples. They had been, in a sense, created as God’s people through the death and resurrection of Christ but they were still waiting for the breath of life in them that would enable them to go out as God’s new humanity and transform the world. So as Jesus was talking to them, he “breathed on them” and sent the Holy Spirit into their midst. So what does that bring to mind? If you were thinking of Genesis 2:7 where God breathes the “breath” or “spirit” of life into his new human creation then you are right on track.
Now look at this passage again. As the disciples sit down to eat with Jesus, their eyes are suddenly opened. What other time in Scripture can you think of where two people (quite possibly a husband and wife in this scene) who ate and then their eyes were opened? Did Genesis 3:7 come to mind? That was, of course, the worst day in the history of humanity. Human beings, for the first time, reached out against God’s will to do their own, and sin was released like a virus into the world of human beings. Their eyes were opened to the world of exalting their own will over God’s. And here was a major problem as well. Peter had denied Jesus but he could also, with the help of Jesus, repent and retrace his steps, affirming his loyalty for Jesus. But humanity could not re-trace their steps. We could not fix the problem of sin and truly repent. But something new was breaking into the world at that very moment. They were taking part in a meal that had obvious echoes of the Lord’s Supper but it also retraced the steps of Adam and Eve. The disciples took the bread from Jesus and their eyes were opened suddenly to the new creation that had just broken into the present age. In Jesus’ death and resurrection something entirely new was available that had never been possible before. Jesus had served as humanity’s representative and had reversed the long, dark curse of humanity. Their eyes were opened to the new creation. It is the monumental theme of the resurrection opening up the new creation of God that is the common theme of all of the examples above.
As soon as their eyes were opened to the new world that had broken into the present age, Jesus was gone and they were left to ponder the depth of the mysteries that had been revealed to them. They immediately recognized that something was burning within them all along as Jesus was speaking to them on their walk down the road to Emmaus. They should have known all along. When the head knowledge of Scriptures that Jesus had shared with them mingled with the breaking of bread, they realized that their hearts were burning within them the whole time. So it still is today with God’s people that enter into the new creation and his new family by dying to self in baptism and raising to a new life (Rom. 6:1-10). When we combine a deeper understanding of the Scriptures as an entire unit that point as an entirety to the life of Jesus Christ with the sacrament of fellowship and breaking bread, we will truly be able to open our eyes to the new creation that is available in Christ. Proper theology comes from our heads and our hearts. Without our heads, our theology becomes emotional and often uncontrollable. Without our hearts, our theology becomes rigid and lifeless. We need both.
As the fullness of what had just happened began to dawn on these two disciples, they just couldn’t keep it to themselves. Despite the fact that it was getting late and they had convinced Jesus earlier that it was unwise and unsafe to continue any farther down the road, they couldn’t help themselves. They had to return to Jerusalem to tell the others in the family of believers what had happened. When they arrived in Jerusalem, presumably well after dark, they found the eleven (the twelve minus Judas) with the other disciples still gathering together. It was getting late but it was still Sunday, the first day of the week. Before they could speak and share their incredible story, the other disciples burst forth with their own exciting tales. The women weren’t crazy. The tomb was empty and it wasn’t because someone stole the body or some other logical explanation. The very thing that they were not expecting and had a hard time wrapping their minds around had happened. Jesus had resurrected and he had appeared to Simon Peter, an appearance that Luke doesn’t tell us about. It seems that Jesus was appearing all over the place on that first day. Only then could Cleopas and his companion share their incredible story. Imagine the excitement and awe of the disciples as one story after another burst into that room that day.
When we open our hearts to this story we will find that we can, at times, be very much like Cleopas and his friend that day. We can have times when we are confused, disappointed, and looking for Jesus. It is as those times that we need to return to God’s word and let the Spirit guide us as we look for a fresh word of insight from the Lord, and to breaking of bread with other believers as we connect with the risen Christ and the new creation that he has made available through his resurrection. When we do that, we will find the same thing that they discovered; that Jesus was right there with them all along.
Devotional Thought
Take a look around you as you go about your day today. Do you see any Cleopas’? Do you see any people that had great hopes and dreams for what their lives might look like or what kind of relationship they might have with God only to find disappointment and confusion. Pray that you have the spiritual eyes to see such situations but also that you are prepared to share the Scriptures with them in a way that is appropriate to the situation just like Jesus did. Perhaps as you do and as you spend some time with them, they will find their hearts burning within them as well and it won’t be from the lunch you’re sharing.
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