In today's episode, the guys discuss what happened on the road to Emmaus in Luke 24:13-25, where two men are walking. Jesus had died and risen again, and He started walking with these two men who told him the story of all that had happened in since the Crucifixion. However, they didn’t know Jesus was resurrected or recognize Him as the Messiah. Jesus took the time to interact with them and touched on their humanity by asking them why they were sad. Jesus had just defeated and put to shame all of the schemes of the enemy, and He chooses to encourage and talk with these men. This is a statement of Jesus’ love for His people in that the Creator of the universe cares for each one of us.
Even though they were followers of Jesus, these men did not recognize Him while they spoke together. Luke 24:16 tells us that God used His divine power to prevent them from recognizing the Messiah, and only opened their eyes much later. Jesus was teaching through the Old Testament, taking them through the law and the prophets. He took the time to open them up to Scripture and show them God’s love. Jesus wanted their faith in Him to rest on the testimony of the Scriptures, not on their own personal experiences or emotions. It wasn’t until after Jesus reveals Himself through the Old Testament that their eyes are opened. Oscar points out how Luke tells this story through a chiastic structure, where the main point is centralized and framed symmetrically by the narrative.
Jesus is known for asking questions and answering questions with a question. His way of questioning invokes critical thinking which makes a person consider what they believe and why they’re saying what they’re saying. All the Old Testament points back to what is true. The Scriptures create a heart that burns within you and the truth will set you free. These disciples were doing a Bible study, talking to Jesus about the Messiah, and they didn't even know they were talking to the Messiah Himself!
Walking to Emmaus, these disciples had just heard the news that Jesus was crucified, and perhaps even watched it happen. They’re discombobulated, walking home thinking that it was over, believing that God hadn’t followed through on His promises. They expected that Christ would overcome Rome and put them back in economic prosperity–they were not expecting a spiritual renewal. The King had to die so the rest of us could live. Their understanding of what God was doing was misaligned. They missed it, so it begs the question: how often do we miss it? Our own human biases cause us to stray, and we then begin to question God. We must be careful, stay in the Word and allow the Scripture to be
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Learn more about the hosts of this podcast.
Ray Comfort
Emeal (“E.Z.”) Zwayne
Mark Spence
Oscar Navarro