Hope Restored

Well, good morning, church. You can turn with me in your Bibles to Luke chapter 24, starting at verse 13.

Luke 24 · chapter mention

We'll be looking at Luke chapter 24, verses 13 to 35 this morning, as we draw near to the conclusion of Luke's gospel, which we'll be finishing next week.

Luke 24:13–35

So let me read for us Luke chapter 24, starting at verse 13.

Luke 24 · chapter mention

That very day, two of them were going to a village named Emmaus, about seven miles from Jerusalem.

And they were talking with each other about all these things that had happened.

While they were talking and discussing together, Jesus himself drew near and went with them, but their eyes were kept from recognizing him.

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.

Then one of them named Cleopas answered him, are you the only visitor to Jerusalem who doesn't know the things that have happened there in these days?

And he said to them, what things?

And they said to him, concerning Jesus of Nazareth, the man who is a prophet, mighty in deed and word before God and all the people,

and how our chief priests and rulers delivered him up to be condemned to death and crucified him.

But we had hoped that he was the one to redeem Israel.

Yes, and besides all this, it's now the third day since these things happened.

Moreover, some women of our company amazed us.

They were at the tomb early in the morning.

And when they didn't find his body, they came back, saying that they had even seen a vision of angels who said that he was alive.

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.

And he said to them, O foolish ones, and slow of heart to believe all that the prophets have spoken.

Was it not necessary that the Christ should suffer these things and enter into his glory?

Beginning with Moses and all the prophets, he interpreted to them and all the scriptures the things concerning himself.

So they drew near to the village to which they were going.

He acted as if he were going farther.

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.

While he was at table with them, he took the bread and blessed and broke it and gave it to them.

And their eyes were opened and they recognized him.

And he vanished from their sight.

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?

And they rose that same hour and returned to Jerusalem.

And they found the eleven and those who were with them gathered together, saying,

The Lord has risen indeed and has appeared to Simon.

Then they told what had happened on the road and how he was known to them in the breaking of the bread.

Our story this morning begins with disappointment, confusion, and grief.

Two disciples walking towards a village named Emmaus.

But these are not two friends taking a pleasant stroll on a Sunday afternoon, casually shooting the breeze.

No, verse 15 says they were talking and discussing together.

And that word discussing can also be translated arguing or disputing or going back and forth.

They were engaged in a vigorous conversation about all these things that had just happened.

How Jesus, the one who they had hoped would liberate their people.

How he had been condemned to death and shamefully crucified.

How had everything gone so wrong?

The story they had been living in, the hopes that had sustained them, were now shattered into a hundred little pieces.

And they couldn't see any way to put them back together again.

They were distraught.

They were despondent.

They were downcast.

And so they were walking away from Jerusalem.

And that's a significant detail because for most of the Gospel of Luke, chapters 9 to chapter 19,

Luke 9 · chapter mention

Jesus was leading his disciples toward Jerusalem.

And he repeatedly told them that his mission would be accomplished and fulfilled in Jerusalem.

Chapter 18, verse 31, Jesus had said,

See, we are going up to Jerusalem.

And everything that is written about the Son of Man by the prophets will be accomplished.

For he will be delivered over to the Gentiles and will be mocked and shamefully treated and spit upon.

And after flogging him, they will kill him.

And on the third day he will rise.

But then it says,

And here these two disciples, having witnessed Jesus' crucifixion, were walking away from Jerusalem.

Still lacking understandings of who Jesus was and what he had come to do.

Even when Jesus joined them in person, it says,

Their eyes were kept from recognizing him.

Now perhaps we can relate to these disciples in their feelings of disappointment, confusion, grief.

Maybe you're feeling disappointed and despondent these days.

Perhaps some of your hopes have been dashed.

Plans have been canceled, put on hold indefinitely.

You're not quite sure what to hope for right now.

The world seems topsy-turvy.

Perhaps you feel like the disciples in verse 17.

Standing still, looking sad.

Or maybe you find yourself confused, distraught, on edge.

You find yourself getting into heated arguments with the people who are closest to you.

Or being rude to strangers if they seem naive and uninformed.

Or maybe you're grieving.

Downcast.

Maybe you just want to walk away from it all.

I felt that way.

I've gone up and down over the last three or four weeks.

I felt that way very strongly for a few days when everything was in the process of shutting down.

I felt stir-crazy even when I hadn't been in my house all day.

I wanted to get out, to go somewhere, to go anywhere.

I was angry.

I couldn't really pinpoint what I was angry about.

I was quite unpleasant for the members of my household to be around, though they were very gracious and patient with me.

Now, for some of you, feelings of disappointment and confusion and grief may not be primarily connected to the coronavirus.

You might think, just being told to stay home for a few weeks?

That's the least of the traumas I've been through.

I'm used to life being unpredictable and confusing and disappointing and overwhelming.

This isn't new for me at all.

But regardless how particularly we might experience disappointment, confusion, and grief,

what we see in this story is how Jesus meets us in the midst of all those things.

And this morning we'll see in this passage that Jesus meets us in three ways.

First, he listens to us patiently.

We'll see this in verses 13 to 24.

Second, we'll see that he challenges us boldly through the scriptures in verses 25 to 27.

And third, we'll see that he breaks bread with us intimately in verses 28 to 35.

So first, we see that Jesus listens to us patiently.

You know, that's the first thing Jesus does for Cleopas and his companion.

Jesus comes alongside them.

He walks and talks with them, but mostly he listens.

Now, maybe you're wondering, who was this guy Cleopas and who was his unnamed traveling companion?

Well, presumably Luke refers to Cleopas by name to indicate that he was the source of the information in this story.

Ancient books didn't have footnotes, but authors commonly referred to witnesses or sources by name.

Now, Cleopas was likely part of one of the early church communities in Jerusalem or somewhere else.

So at least some people back then would have known who he was.

But over the last 2,000 years, that information has been lost.

This is the only reference to Cleopas in the New Testament.

There's one more possible clue in John chapter 19, verse 25,

John 19:25

which mentions a woman named Mary, the wife of Cleopas.

C-L-O-P-A-S.

Not quite spelled the same, but perhaps could be the same person,

just had a variant spelling of their name.

Anyway, Mary, the wife of Cleopas, is one of the witnesses who sees Jesus being crucified.

Now, if Cleopas and Cleopas are the same person,

perhaps Cleopas and his wife Mary were walking back home to Emmaus from Jerusalem together.

Now, that's possible, but it's really only a guess.

The only thing that is really clear to us is that Cleopas and his unnamed companion were not among the apostles.

Right? When they go back to Jerusalem, they find the 11 apostles and the others with them.

Like, Cleopas and his companion were like Mary and Martha,

Joanna and Susanna, Zacchaeus and Bartimaeus,

Simon of Cyrene and Joseph of Arimathea.

They were among Jesus' devoted followers, but not in the inner circle of the 12.

But that fact alone, I think, should encourage us.

After Jesus' resurrection, Jesus did not only appear to the 12 apostles, to his inner circle.

Jesus did not only appear to the future leaders of the church,

whose names we all recognize 2,000 years later.

Jesus sees and Jesus cares for every one of his disciples,

no matter how well known or how little known we are.

No matter whether future generations on earth will remember our name or not.

We may not know much about Cleopas and his companion, but Jesus knew them.

And Jesus came alongside them, and Jesus took the time to walk with them

and listen to them as they were heading down the road.

Notice how patiently and kindly Jesus engaged with them.

He began by asking simple, open-ended questions.

What's on your mind?

What are you all talking about as you walk down the road?

Now, Cleopas' initial response in verse 18 was borderline insulting.

Are you the only visitor to Jerusalem who doesn't know what happened?

In other words, are you completely clueless?

Clueless?

But Jesus wasn't put off by Cleopas' rudeness.

He graciously overlooked an ignorant insult,

and he just asked another open-ended question.

What things?

What are these things?

How would you put it in your own words?

What are you talking about?

What are you thinking about all this?

You see, what's Jesus doing here?

He's drawing them out.

Proverbs 20, verse 5 says,

Proverbs 20:5

The purpose in a person's heart is like deep water,

but a person of understanding draws it out.

And Jesus came alongside his disciples like a wise counselor,

like an understanding friend,

asking simple questions and taking the time to listen,

to draw them out.

In verse 19 through 24,

we see the two friends launching into their confused thoughts.

It's almost like a stream of consciousness concerning Jesus,

a prophet mighty in deed and word.

Do you notice how many times they say,

and, or besides, or moreover?

And, how the chief priests and rulers delivered him up.

But we had hoped,

and besides all this is the third day,

moreover some women amazed us,

and they didn't see his body,

and they came back,

and then some of those with us went,

but they didn't see him.

Right?

They're sort of telling all these facts that are on their mind,

but they can't quite put it all together.

They can't quite make sense of everything that's happened.

They had a lot on their minds,

but they were puzzled.

And even though Jesus knew far better

what had happened and why it all happened,

he didn't immediately interrupt them.

He kept on listening.

And that's part of what a good friend does.

You know, a good friend doesn't call you up on the phone

when you're disappointed,

or distraught,

or downcast,

and just start preaching at you.

No, a good friend takes the time to listen,

and ask questions,

and hear you out.

And Jesus is still that faithful friend

who listens patiently to his disciples.

Jesus has ascended into heaven,

so we shouldn't expect him to show up physically as he did here,

but he is still just as real,

and just as present,

and just as patient

as he was back then.

Jesus is not put off when we are prickly

or on edge.

He graciously pursues us

when we are downcast or discouraged

or ready to walk away from it all.

He patiently listens to us

even when we ramble on

somewhat incoherently.

I mean, imagine listening to all the prayers

that people pray to God every day.

Right?

Most of us,

if we had to listen to all those prayers,

we would get,

we would become impatient.

Right?

All the people accusing God

for things that God didn't do,

or, you know,

that are due to the sin in the world,

all the, you know,

all of us who see only,

all of us who want something

that isn't ultimately the best for us.

But Jesus is very patient.

He listens to all of our prayers.

He wants to draw us out.

It's helpful for us

to put our thoughts and feelings into words

even when we don't quite know

what we're thinking

or what we're feeling.

Jesus is patient.

He listens to them

even when they foolishly think

that they know more than he does.

Jesus listens to us patiently.

That's the first thing that we see.

But that's not all that Jesus does.

The next thing we see

in verses 25 to 27

is that Jesus challenges us boldly.

And he does so through the scriptures.

You see, a good friend

does not only listen

and ask non-directive questions

and express support and affirmation.

And a good friend also confronts

and challenges

our misguided assumptions.

And in verse 25,

Jesus spoke a word of challenge.

Oh, foolish ones,

and slow of heart to believe

all that the prophets have spoken.

Wasn't it necessary

that the Messiah, the Christ,

should suffer these things

and enter into his glory?

You see, Jesus recognized

and exposed

one of their deeply held

but deeply misguided assumptions.

Now, what was that assumption?

It was this.

Their assumption was

redemption means

deliverance from suffering.

Look at verse 21.

We had hoped

that Jesus was the one

to redeem Israel.

Now, that word redeem

means liberate,

to liberate from captivity

or bondage.

See, like many other

faithful Jews of their day,

Cleopas and his companion

were hoping that one day

God would send the Messiah,

the anointed one,

the king,

who would deliver them

from oppression and bondage.

And their assumption

was that the Messiah

would be a holy conqueror

who would defeat

all their enemies,

who would rule

over foreign nations,

and who would judge

the earth in righteousness.

But instead,

Jesus,

and they were hoping

that Jesus was that.

But instead,

Jesus had been rejected

by the Jewish leaders

and crucified

by the Roman authorities.

His life ended

in utter disgrace.

And so they came

to a conclusion

that seemed completely natural

given their assumption.

therefore,

Jesus must not be

the Messiah.

He must not be

the Redeemer

and Liberator

that we were hoping for.

But in verse 26,

Jesus directly challenged

that assumption.

Wasn't it necessary?

Now that word

is a word that Luke

uses about ten times

throughout his gospel

to refer to

God's

defined

plan

and purpose.

So wasn't it necessary?

In other words,

wasn't it God's plan

and purpose

all along

that the Christ,

the Messiah,

should suffer

precisely these things

and only after

his suffering

enter into

his glory?

So

he says to them,

you should know

that already

because the scriptures

have been saying

that all along.

You see,

according to Jesus,

redemption

is not just

deliverance

from suffering,

it's also

deliverance

through suffering.

The pathway

to glory

runs

through

suffering

and not

around it.

That's what

Jesus says.

And Jesus says

that that message

runs through

the whole Old Testament.

Now you might ask,

where in the Old Testament

does Jesus

get that idea?

That the pathway

to glory

runs

through

suffering

and not

around it.

And that even

the Messiah

would have to

suffer

before

entering

his glory.

Now the idea

that the Messiah

would suffer

was certainly

not the prevailing

interpretation

of the Old Testament

in Jesus' day.

Modern scholars

have found

many ancient

Jewish writings

from the period

between the Old

and New Testaments.

And different rabbis

and different Jewish sects

had different ideas

and expectations

about the Messiah,

who he would be,

and what he would do.

But on one thing

they all agreed.

The Messiah

would be

a victorious

conqueror.

He would not

suffer rejection

and betrayal

from his own people.

He would not

be condemned

to die

by a foreign ruler.

he would not

be shamefully

mocked

and hanged

on a tree.

No Jewish

teacher

before Jesus

from all that we know

had ever considered

that the Messiah

might suffer

in those ways.

But Jesus said

this is what

the scriptures

have been saying

all along.

Now just think

about

what we see

in the Old Testament.

Think about

the stories

of the most famous

leaders in the Old Testament.

Moses and David.

Most people expected

the Messiah

to be a prophet

like Moses

and a ruler

like David.

But think about

their stories.

Take Moses.

Moses' life

began with suffering.

He was born

into a people group

whose very existence

was threatened,

who were enslaved.

And even though

he was spared

from mortal danger

as a child

and raised

in Pharaoh's household,

he didn't

immediately rise up

to power and glory.

No,

when Moses grew up,

he identified

with his own people

and saw their suffering

and it moved him.

But his own people

rejected him

and then Pharaoh

wanted to kill him

and so he fled

to Midian

and had to live there

as a foreigner

for 40 years

in the middle

of nowhere.

And then

when he finally

returned to Egypt

to rescue

the children of Israel

to liberate them

from slavery,

he faced

fierce opposition

from Pharaoh

and stubborn disbelief

from his own people.

and then

when he finally

leads them out,

he leads them

into the desert

and he has to lead

them in the desert

for years and years.

And a few times,

the people he's leading

want to kill him.

For Moses,

the pathway to glory

ran straight through

intense suffering,

rejection,

and shame.

The same pattern

holds if you look

at the life of David

in the books

of 1 and 2 Samuel.

David's anointed king

by the prophet Samuel

and then

what happens next?

Does he ascend

to the throne

and win battles

over all his enemies?

No.

Immediately,

King Saul

wants to kill him

and David

has to flee

for his life

and for years,

David lives on the run,

hungry,

thirsty,

in caves,

in the mountains,

in the desert,

in the forest,

among Israel's enemies.

Only after years

and years

of suffering

does David

rise to glory

as king.

Or take one

other example.

Take Joseph

in the book

of Genesis.

Now,

Joseph's life

seems to start out well.

He was the favored

son of his father,

Jacob,

in line

to receive

the lion's share

of the inheritance

but then

his brothers

get jealous

and they turn on him

and they sell him

into slavery.

They sell him

for the price

of a slave.

He's taken to Egypt,

falsely accused,

thrown into a dungeon

and forgotten.

He descended

to the depths.

And only later on

was Joseph remembered

and raised up

to the right hand

of Pharaoh

and through Joseph

the world

was rescued

from famine

and his family

was reconciled

to each other

but once again

in the life of Joseph

suffering came

before glory.

You see this pattern

throughout the Old Testament.

The pathway to glory

runs straight

through suffering.

And Jesus says

if that was the case

for Moses

and David

and Joseph

don't you see

that it was God's plan

all along

for the Messiah

as well

to suffer

before entering

into his glorious reign.

And you know

it's not just

the stories

of the Old Testament

that show us

this pattern.

You can hear

the same haunting melody

in the songs.

Songs like Psalm 22

which begins

My God,

my God,

why have you forsaken me?

The first part

of the psalm

is about the suffering

of a righteous person

but the end

of the psalm

is a cry of victory.

It ends by saying

he has done it.

Or look at Isaiah 53

the song

of the suffering servant.

He's cut off

from the land

of the living

stricken for the transgression

of his people

yet the next verse

says he will see

his offspring

and prolong his days.

The haunting melody

underneath so many

of the songs

of the Old Testament

the prophecies

and the psalms

is that suffering

comes before glory.

And you can also

see it in the symbols

in the Passover lamb

that was slain

every year

to commemorate

the deliverance

of the people

of Israel

from Egypt.

Their redemption

came at a price.

And in all

the sacrifices

in the temple

that over and over

declared

the forgiveness

of sins

and restoration

of fellowship

with God

would only be possible

through the shedding

of blood.

You see the stories

and the songs

and the symbols

of the Old Testament

all speak of God's redemption

not as just deliverance

from suffering

but as deliverance

through suffering.

Cleopas and his companion

couldn't see

that Jesus was the Messiah

because they couldn't imagine

that the Messiah

could possibly suffer

in such a shameful way

as Jesus had.

And Jesus exposed

and challenged

their misguided

assumptions

so they could

see him

for who he really was

the Messiah

who had suffered

and who was now

ascending

into glory.

But you know

many of us

share the same

assumption

of Cleopas

and his friend.

Don't we

also want

a direct route

to glory

that bypasses

suffering?

or at least

that bypasses

certain kinds

of suffering

that we think

are especially

burdensome?

Oh, we say

that we trust

and love God

as long as he gives us

what we think

is fair,

reasonable,

or at least bearable

from our point of view.

But when God

in his sovereignty

completely disregards

our standards

and our expectations

there's at least

a part of us

that just wants

to walk away.

At times

don't we become

spiritually

despondent,

downcast,

and distraught

because we feel

like God

hasn't given us

the glory,

the power,

the comfort,

the life we've

always wanted

and instead

he's put us

in a situation

where we must

endure suffering

and loss

and shame

and pain

that we didn't

ask for

and didn't agree to.

And like

Cleopas

and his companion

we can conclude

that maybe

Jesus hasn't

come to redeem

and liberate us

after all.

But how foolish

we are.

How slow

of heart

to trust

what God

has been doing

all along.

In this fallen

world

the pathway

to glory

runs through

suffering

and not

around it.

now

that's a

hard truth.

It was a

hard truth

for them

to accept

back then.

It's a

hard truth

for us

to accept

now.

But here

is our

hope

and our

strength.

This very

pathway

our Savior

has trod

before us.

Jesus Christ

has blazed

the trail

through

suffering

into glory

with his

own blood.

blood.

It's as if

the trail

markers

remind us

of his

blood-stained

hands

and yet

that he

has gone

before us

and risen

again.

You see

the road

that we're

traveling

hard though

it may be

is not

a dead

end.

When we

walk with

Jesus

through

suffering

whether it's

suffering

that we

simply can't

avoid

as human

beings

or whether

it's

suffering

that we

willingly

take on

in order

to

sacrificially

serve

others

or

suffering

for the

sake

of

obedience

to the

gospel

itself

Jesus

promises

that he

will build

in us

endurance

character

and hope

and an

eternal

weight of

glory

beyond all

comparison.

So

brothers and

sisters

let's

consider the

suffering

that Jesus

endured.

Consider the

glory that

he now

enjoys

and consider

that in

it all

in the

suffering

and in

the glory

we are

united

with him.

He has

gone before

us

and he

is with

us.

So Jesus

listens

patiently

to us

he corrects

us

boldly

through the

scriptures

and finally

Jesus breaks

bread with

us

intimately.

verse 28

so they

drew near

to the

village

to which

they were

going

Jesus

acted

as if

he were

going

farther

but they

urged him

strongly

saying stay

with us

so he

went in

to stay

with them

when he

was at

table with

them he

took the

bread

and blessed

and broke

it and gave

it to them

and their

eyes were

opened and

they recognized

him.

You know

the climax

of this

story does

not come

in Jesus

masterful

exposition

and interpretation

of the

Old Testament

important as

that was

but in his

table fellowship

with his

disciples.

Their hearts

were burning

within them

on the road

when he opened

up the

scriptures

and that's

what motivated

them

to urge him

so strongly

stay with

us

don't leave

us

we want

more

we want

you to be

our guest

our honored

guest.

You know

sometimes people

don't yet

have a clear

understanding

of who

Jesus is

they can't

quite put

that into

words

but they

have a deep

sense

I need

him

I need

that

and maybe

you've

sent

maybe that's

you

maybe you've

sensed the

presence of

God in

Jesus

you feel

drawn to

Jesus

for some

reason

even though

you can't

quite put

it into

words

even though

you might

have lots

of questions

and remaining

doubts

but if that's

you reach

out to

Jesus in

prayer

say Jesus

I want

you

I need

you

help me

stay with

me

don't

leave

me

Jesus

responds

to prayers

like

that

you know

if

Cleopas

and his

companion

hadn't

urged

Jesus

to stay

most likely

Jesus

would have

simply

passed

on

continued

on his

way

and they

would have

missed

out

but don't

miss out

on Jesus

someone said

only those

who desire

his company

will come

to a deeper

realization

of his

identity

and you

know that

prayer is

not just

for people

who don't

yet know

Jesus

personally

or who

are just

beginning to

see him

for the

first time

that prayer

is for

all of us

who have

tasted

and seen

that he

is good

who have

trusted him

and claim

him as

our Lord

let us

cry out

to know

him more

deeply

more purely

more fully

Lord

stay

with

us

don't

leave

us

now

you know

we shouldn't

just think

well

you know

if Jesus

is God

I guess

he'll do

what he

wants to

do

and if

he wants

to draw

close to

me

and help

me

he will

and if

he doesn't

he won't

so there's

nothing I

can really

say or do

about it

no

Jesus

wants to

whet our

appetite

so that we

earnestly

desire

and seek

out

closeness

with him

so that we

say stay

with us

Lord

and he

says yes

I will

you know

the beautiful

thing is

when we

pray

Jesus

often gives

us far

more than

we ask

for

because Jesus

doesn't come

just to be

their guest

when they

sit down at

the table

Jesus

becomes the

host

he takes

the bread

and breaks

it and

gives it

to them

just like

he had

done when

he fed

the 5,000

on the

hillside

and just

like he

had done

when he

ate the

last supper

with his

disciples

what was

Jesus

saying

by

becoming

the host

of this

meal

he was

saying

I am

your

good

shepherd

I

will

lead

you

and

feed

you

I

will

take

care

of

you

and

I

will

do

so

even

to the

point

of

laying

down

my

life

for

you

on

the

road

their

hearts

were

burning

but

at

the

table

their

eyes

were

opened

and

then

Jesus

vanished

now

that

might

raise

questions

for

us

but

Jesus

was

about

to

ascend

to

his

father

in

heaven

so

he

wasn't

going to

hang

around

in

one

place

very

long

in

his

resurrected

body

but

here's

the point

in our

disappointment

in our

confusion

in our

grief

Jesus

comes

alongside

us

and

patiently

listens

to

us

and

he

confronts

and

challenges

our

misguided

assumptions

through

the

scriptures

but

Jesus

hasn't

come

just

to

lend

a

listening

ear

or

only

to

teach

us

important

truths

but

to

share

life

with

us

to

break

bread

with

us

to

look

us

straight

in

the

eye

and

say

you

are

mine

and

I

am

yours

now

and

forever

and

in the

book of

revelation

Revelation 3:20

chapter 3

verse 20

Jesus

holds

out

that

promise

of

intimate

fellowship

to

everyone

who

believes

in

him

behold

Jesus

says

I

stand

at

the

door

and

knock

if

anyone

hears

my

voice

and

opens

the

door

I

will

come

into

him

and

eat

with

him

and

he

with

me

that's

what

Jesus

promises

to

be

with

us

yes

to

listen

to

us

yes

to

teach

us

but

ultimately

to

dwell

with

us

the

story

began

with

disappointment

confusion

and

grief

but

it

ends

with

courage

clarity

and

hope

verse

33

they

rose

with

renewed

courage

instead

of walking

away

in

disappointment

they

returned

to

Jerusalem

without

delay

that

same

hour

they

went

right

back

to

the

place

they

had

previously

wanted

to

run

away

from

to

a

place

where

as

Jesus

disciples

they

might

be

persecuted

only

three

days

ago

Jesus

had

been

killed

there

but

they

went

right

back

with

renewed

courage

and

when

Jesus

meets

us

he

gives

us

courage

to

go

back

even

to

hard

places

that

previously

we

wanted

to

run

away

from

and

then

verse

33

says

they

found

they

rose

with

courage

and

they

found

the

eleven

and

those

with

them

gathered

and

proclaiming

the

Lord

has

risen

indeed

their

confusion

was

replaced

with

clarity

now

there

are only

two

places

in

Luke

where

that

word

translated

indeed

appears

the

first

place

is

when

Jesus

dies

and

the

centurion

says

indeed

he

was a

righteous

man

and

now

at

the

end

of

the

story

the

disciples

proclaim

indeed

he

has

risen

you

see

at

the

end

of

the

story

at

the

end

of

his

gospel

Luke

wants

us

to

know

two

things

with

great

clarity

about

Jesus

he

was

righteous

all

the

way

to

the

end

and

he

is

risen

and

he

is

now

alive

and

if

those

two

things

are

clear

in

our

minds

then

everything

else

out

over

time

so

disappointment

is

replaced

with

courage

confusion

is

replaced

with

clarity

and

finally

grief

turns

to

hope

verse

35

they

told

and

what

did

they

tell

this

time

not

they

did

not

only

speak

out

of

their

grief

and

distress

they

told

how

Jesus

had

met

them

on

the

road

and

at

the

table

brothers

and

sisters

Hebrews

13

6

says

Jesus

Christ

is

the

same

yesterday

today

and

forever

he

still

meets

us

in

our

disappointment

in

our

confusion

in

our

grief

he

still

listens

to

us

patiently

he

still

challenges

us

boldly

through

the

scriptures

and

he

still

breaks

bread

with

us

intimately

that

we

might

take

from

him

and

receive

from

him

courage

and

clarity

and

hope

to

sustain

us

let

us

pray

Lord

Jesus

stay

with

us

be

our

companion

in the

way

kindle

our

hearts

and

awaken

our

hope

that we

may know

you

as

you

are

revealed

in

scripture

and

in

the

breaking

of

bread

indeed

you

are

righteous

and

indeed

you

are

risen

hallelujah

amen

no

oh

please

you

I

I

I

I

I

I