Luke 24

Christ is risen.

He is risen.

Any event in history, no matter what event you choose, there's always different perspectives, aren't there?

! Everyone is different. We all see things differently from our own point of view.

! So let's take church this morning.

As an example, somebody asks you tomorrow, what was church like yesterday?

What impression it made on you?

And there's no doubt, is it, that your answer would be different from the person sitting next to you, probably.

And your answer would certainly be different from mine.

Both your answers would be different.

We all have attended the same church.

We've attended the same church service.

At the same time, in the same place.

And all our answers may well be reliable and true, but they wouldn't be the same.

They wouldn't be the same, would they?

We all have different perspectives.

And that's true with any historical event and any eyewitness testimony.

And so it's no less true that when we come to the resurrection of Jesus,

many people at that time, they were aware that there was something strange that had happened,

something surprising.

Some people were beginning to develop really firm convictions about what had happened.

Some other people were just confused by it all.

But over time, people's understanding grew in clarity.

And a consensus emerged about what had happened.

And that is when people like Luke began to write it down.

But when he did, he still had a lot of choices to make.

Luke would have had to ask himself,

how should I tell the story of the resurrection of Jesus?

What perspective shall I share?

What shall I include?

What shall I leave out?

You can't write everything, can you?

But guided by the spirit of the risen Jesus,

Luke made his decisions and he wrote his great chapter, Luke 24.

And as we reflect on that,

I want us to try and think about the decisions that he made

when he wrote this chapter.

I want us to think about, for a few moments,

how he chose to tell this story.

And the first thing I want you to notice is what he leaves out.

It's fascinating, isn't it?

We're not actually told how Jesus' resurrection actually happened.

We're not told how the stone was rolled away from the tomb.

We're not told what happened to the soldiers

who were guarding right in front of the tomb.

We're not told what Jesus did or said

when his body surged with life again.

We're not told whether he walked out of the tomb

or whether he simply disappeared.

We're not told any of that.

And in one sense, as you think about what is not in the story,

it all makes sense.

And it's all easy to understand

because nobody saw those things today.

This is an eyewitness account.

It would have no place in an eyewitness account.

So instead, as we read Luke 24,

I don't know whether you picked it up,

we experience the resurrection through eyewitnesses.

How the eyewitnesses themselves experienced the resurrection.

How they encountered the empty tomb.

And the risen Jesus himself.

And the effect of that, of course,

is to authenticate the resurrection.

And the way we know that the resurrection happened

is not by some scientific explanation

of a dead body being raised to life.

But we look at the testimonies of the people who were there.

Who saw the person who two days earlier

had been undeniably dead.

And the other effect of reading the story this way

is we're given an insight into the impact of the event

on people.

You see, as we come on Easter Sunday

and celebrate the resurrection,

we're not just dealing here with facts.

We're dealing with people's reactions and emotions.

We come to face-to-face with the impression

that the risen Jesus made on people.

And because of that, I think we'll find that Luke's story

raises questions about how you should react to it.

And how I should respond to it.

And how you should feel about it.

Secondly, I want to point out to you

that Luke's chosen method is to tell

three separate stories,

but all set on one remarkable day.

He doesn't choose to tell us anything

about the first Easter Monday.

Or the Tuesday.

Or the rest of the week.

In fact, apart from a short description

of Jesus' later ascension in the final two verses,

the whole chapter is devoted to telling us

the experiences of people

on the very first Easter day.

The Sunday after the Friday

Jesus was crucified and killed.

So in the first of the three stories,

in verses 1 to 12,

he tells us about the women

who came to the tomb

to assist in the embalming process

for Jesus' body.

And they find the tomb

surprisingly empty

and the body is gone

and they are deeply confused by all of it.

But when the two angels appear to them

and tell them that they are looking

for the living amongst the dead,

then it occurred to them

that this was just as Jesus had predicted earlier.

Like the angel said so.

And so the women,

they race back to tell the men.

And most of the men,

when they hear these women speak,

they think the women are

a few sandwiches short of a picnic.

They can't believe it.

But Peter, at least,

he hopped for the second of the tomb

and he saw what the women had seen.

He saw an empty cave

with the strips of linen

which a few hours earlier

had wrapped the body of Jesus.

In the second of Luke's stories,

in verses 13 to 25,

a couple of Jesus' disciples

meet Jesus on the road

while they're travelling.

I'm going to come back to that

in a few moments.

In the third story,

in verses 36 to 59,

many of Jesus' friends

are gathered together

when all of a sudden

Jesus appears

right in the middle of them.

And he proves to them

that he's not a ghost,

that he's a living human being

come back to life.

The sort of human being

that eats fish

and explains things to people.

And he explains to them

how everything

that has taken place

is in fulfilment

to what the Old Testament

foreshadowed,

looked forward to.

So there's Luke's three stories.

But they are united

by one 24-hour period,

one day.

Verse 13.

That very day,

two of them

were going to a village

named Emmaus,

about seven miles from Jerusalem.

And they were talking

to each other

about these things

that had happened.

verse 36.

As they were talking

about these things,

Jesus himself

stood among them

and said,

Peace be to you.

And then,

it's some 24 hours,

isn't it?

Their heads

must have been spinning.

But nevertheless,

as the chapter goes on,

it becomes clearer and clearer

as what has happened.

So verse 6.

He is not here,

but he has risen.

Verse 34.

The Lord has risen.

Verse 46.

Thus it is written

that the Christ should suffer

and on the third day

rise from the dead.

And given

that at that moment

it was the Christ

who spoke to them

at that moment

and it was the third day

since he's been killed,

I think we'd have to say

he's pretty right.

Now let me give you

the major theme

of Luke 24.

What is the big theme

as you read the chapter?

That Luke draws

our attention to

in the way that he tells you

as to observe it.

What is it that Luke

wants you to know?

In each of these

three incidents

we see

the confusion

of the disciples

but also the clarity

of God's word.

That's what ties them together.

The confusion

of the disciples

and the clarity

of God's word.

So let's go through them.

In the first of the three

stories,

the women are standing

at the entrance

of the tomb

and they're trying

to make sense of it.

It's emptiness.

They're confused,

very confused.

But then the angel

comes and the angel

brings a very clear

word from God.

There is nothing

more or less

than what Jesus

had told them

previously.

He was no longer

dead.

He died according

to God's purpose

but he's been raised

again according

to God's power.

And then they remembered

what Jesus said

and it all starts

to make sense to them.

The confused disciples

but the clear

word of God.

In the second story

we see the same

dynamic at work.

The two companions

they walked down

the road

they didn't understand

what happened

to Jesus and why.

They didn't even

recognise the person

talking to them.

But when their

eyes were opened

the words of Jesus

began to make sense

to them.

Confused disciples

God's clear word.

And then in the

third story

we see the same

thing.

The gathered

disciples.

First Jesus

is amongst them

in that room

and they are

amazed and they

are troubled

and they're joyful

and they're confused

all at the same

time.

But as he speaks

to them

all the bits

of the jigsaw

puzzle begin to

fit into place

and they come to

understand that

not just his

resurrection

but they come to

understand everything

that's gone on

before.

Confused

disciples

God's clear

word.

And Luke's

point to you

and I this

morning couldn't

be more plain.

In the midst

of confusion

or doubt

or uncertainty

it is the

word that

God sends.

The word that

Jesus himself

speaks that

brings clarity

that disciples

need.

and I hope

as we go

through this

middle story

that this

theme will

become clearer

to us over

the next 10

minutes or so.

And I hope

its importance

will be very

clear.

And so what I

want to do

is I want to

focus on this

middle story of

Jesus walking

along the road

with two

companions.

Because I think

all the major

notes of the

chapter are

struck in this

story and I

hope it will

strike you like

it struck me.

So let me

take you through

the story.

And I've got

points like I

usually do but

what you'll see

in Luke 24 is

you'll find

different parts

of the body.

And so let's

look at the

body in Luke

24.

Verse 13

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.

And while they

were talking and

discussing,

Jesus himself

to Nia and

went with

them.

Here are two

disciples.

And they could

have been friends.

And they could

have been husband

and wife.

We're not sure.

And they set

out for a

seven mile walk

from Jerusalem

to Emmaus.

And as they

walked, they

talked.

As their legs

carried them,

their mouths

churned over the

events of the

previous days.

How Jesus

had been

arrested and

killed.

How the

women had

come back

from the

tomb that

morning saying

it was empty

that he wasn't

there anymore.

And then there's

Jesus, isn't

there?

And walking

with his legs

and talking

with his mouth.

them.

But the

question that

he asks

leads them

to downcast

faces.

Can you see

that in

verse 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.

they looked

sad.

Then one of

them, named

Cleopas,

answered him,

are you the

only visitor

to Jerusalem

who does not

know the

things that

have happened

in these

days?

It's almost

amusing to

Cleopas and

his companion

that Jesus

doesn't know

what went

down in

Jerusalem last

week.

Everyone's

been talking

about it.

Everyone knows

about it.

It would be

like somebody

coming into

the office and

hearing people

talk about the

cheating Australian

cricketers and

asking, what?

What are you

talking about?

You'd think,

couldn't you,

they'd been

living under a

rock or

something.

Because

everybody's

heard about

it this

last week.

Jesus

continues.

Jesus

continues to

play along as

if he is

the ignorant

one.

And in

response, the

two downcast

travellers, they

give an

explanation.

They give an

explanation for

the sad

faces.

They say, we

knew Jesus

was a prophet

and that he

was powerful

and we had

really high

hopes for

Jesus and

we hoped

that he was

going to be

the one to

redeem

Israel.

They hoped

that he

would be

the Messiah.

They hoped

that he

would be

God's

promised

king.

And then

all of a

sudden, he's

gone.

He's been

arrested and

killed.

And even

his body's

vanished now.

It's

impossible to

miss the

irony of

Jesus himself

hearing this

story from

his disciples

all the

while telling

it to him

as if he's

the most

ignorant

man in

the world.

And that

is because

not only

did these

people have

downcast

faces, but

they have

slow hearts,

the next bit

of the body.

And Jesus

tells them that

in verse 25.

And he

said to

them,

O foolish

ones,

and slow

of heart

to believe

all the

prophets

have spoken.

Was it

not necessary

that Christ

should suffer

these things

and enter

into his

glory?

And beginning

with Moses

and all the

prophets,

that's the

Old Testament,

he interpreted

to them

in all the

scriptures

the things

concerning

himself.

So they've

concluded,

haven't they,

Jesus is the

slow one.

But Jesus

now here

turns the

tables,

and he

says,

no,

you are

the

slow

ones.

You should

have known

what was

going to

happen.

From your

reading of

the Old

Testament,

you should

have known

that the

Messiah,

when he

came,

would have

to suffer

and die

before he's

glorified.

It shouldn't

have taken

you by

surprise,

Jesus said.

You shouldn't

have been

confused or

downcast.

You should

have simply

believed God's

word through

the prophets

in the Old

Testament.

But their

hearts were

slow.

But as

Jesus

diagnosed the

slowness of

their hearts,

their hearts

also began to

burn.

Verse 32.

After it's

dawned on

Cleopas,

and his

companion who

they're talking

to, we hear

them discussing

with Jesus the

discussion that

they've had on

the road.

And they're

told, that they

said to each

other, were

not our hearts

burning within

us?

when he

talked to

us on the

road and

he opened

up to

us the

Bible.

They may

have been

slow up to

that point,

but as

the Christ

explained the

Christ to

them, it

was as if

somebody lit

a match

under the

kindling of

their partial

knowledge, and

they began to

grasp.

They began to

understand more

fully what the

Bible had been

saying all

along.

And they

began to

understand that

what they were

hearing was

true, and

they began to

love this

truth with a

glow.

But they

still didn't

see it all

clearly.

That comes

next.

That comes

when Jesus

moves them

from their

slow hearts

to burning

hearts, to

people of

being open

eyes.

That's the

next part of

the body.

To open

eyes.

Because it

was nearly

evening.

The two

travellers,

they invite

Jesus, would

you stay

with us in

Emmaus for

the night.

And as they

sat down to

eat, Jesus

did a most

unexpected thing.

He plays

the host

rather than

the guest.

So he

takes the

bread.

And he

gives thanks

to God, and

he broke

it, and he

passed it to

his two

travelling

companions.

And it

is at that

moment, as

he does

that, the

light dispels.

And the

last trace

of darkness

of their

understanding

goes.

Back in

verse 16

we're told

that they

had been

kept from

recognising

Jesus.

God had

closed their

eyes.

But now

he opens

them.

And at

that very

moment, Jesus

vanished.

But it

didn't matter

to them that

he vanished,

because the

lights were

switched on,

and they

understood who

he was.

And now

they realise

that it is to

him that the

whole of the

Old Testament

pointed to.

And now

they realise

what Jesus

himself was

bearing witness

to.

And because

they did

that, they

were instantly

transformed into

witnesses as

well.

They didn't

waste another

second.

They knew

that their

newfound

understanding of

who Jesus

is needed

to be shared,

so they

couldn't send

an email or

a text.

There was no

phone to

call, there

was no

Facebook to

broadcast on,

there was no

Twitter to

tweet out.

And so

having walked

seven miles

to get to

Jerusalem,

they promptly

turn around

and they

walk seven

miles back.

And they

get their

legs going

again.

And when

they arrive,

they get

their talking

mouths going

again.

And they

found their

friends,

Jesus'

disciples,

huddled

together in

some room,

perhaps it's

the same

room where

they were

on the

Thursday

night,

where they

shared the

Lord's

Supper

together.

But wherever

they were,

Cleopas and

his companion

barge in

only to

discover that

the other

disciples of

Jesus have

come to

the same

realisation.

The lights

have been

switched on

there too.

God had

opened their

eyes.

And so

they spent

the next

little while

just swapping

their stories.

Now it's

interesting that

Cleopas and

his companion

are present

for all three

of these

incidents in

Luke 24.

They were

there when

the women

turned up

talking about

the empty

tomb in

the morning.

They were

the ones

who walked

the long

journey from

Jerusalem to

Emmaus and

later that

night from

Jerusalem back

to Emmaus.

And they

were in

the room

with all

the disciples

when Jesus

turned up

and spoke

to them.

Cleopas and

this companion,

they are right

in the centre

of Luke 24

in this chapter.

And that is

because Luke

wants you

to see

and wants

me to

see that

what happened

to them

is not

because they

were unique,

it's because

they are not

unique.

What happened

to them

was indicative

of what was

about to happen

to a bunch

of people.

Like them

at the same

time.

And what

happened to

at the end

of the day

is something

that Luke

happens,

Luke hopes

will happen

to everyone

who reads

his gospel.

He hopes

it will

happen to

you this

morning.

He hopes

that you

and I

as we

look at

the evidence,

as we

look at

the difference

that Jesus

makes,

that we

will be

transformed

by what

we discover.

That we

will be

amazed to

learn that

Jesus is

the Christ

and that

he is

alive and

he hopes

that we

will get

our

walking

legs

and our

talking

mouths

going.

And bear

witness

to what

we have

come to

see.

Certainly

the

transformation

that these

two

underwent

isn't it?

They began

the journey

to Emmaus

simply as

sad friends,

companions

in their

sadness,

but by

the end

of the

section

they are

joyful

witnesses

on the

journey.

They

were

downcast,

but on

the way

back

they're

elated.

They had

news that

must be

told,

they had

a song

in their

hearts,

and the

difference

was simple.

They've

met the

risen

Jesus.

That's

what Luke

hopes will

happen to

you and

to me.

That's

why this

chapter exists

in the

Bible.

It's

really important

that you

grasp that.

Why did

Luke write

his

gospel?

People

treat the

gospel of

Luke and

the other

gospels in

different ways.

Some people

like to see it

as a work of

fiction.

Some people

like to see it

as a kind of

historical

artefact.

Perhaps

some see it

as a

mystical

form of

spiritual

inspiration.

none of

those

descriptions

hit the

mark.

Because

this book

and this

chapter was

written with

a very

specific

purpose.

It was

written to

transform your

life and

mine.

It's

written to

change people

like you

and people

like me.

And Luke

wrote this

because he

had come to

know that

the risen

Lord Jesus

wants to

take your

life and

move you

from being

sad and

downcast

and

distracted.

Perhaps

even

driven

or lonely

or successful

or content

or obsessed

or happy

or disappointed

or whatever

you are this

morning.

He wants

to take

your life

and move

you from

where you

were to

being a

joyful

witness

of the

risen

Jesus.

And

down through

the last

2,000 years

that's exactly

what's

happened.

to

thousands

and thousands

of people

who've engaged

with this

chapter.

And some

of those

people are

in this

room right

now.

And we

found that

as we

began to

read the

account of

Jesus'

resurrection

and engage

with him

our hearts

have begun

to burn

and our

eyes have

come to

be opened.

And as the

lights have

come on

we've

begun to

realise

that we've

met Jesus

Christ

who was

dead

but is

now alive.

And since

he is

alive and

since we've

actually met

him we've

come to

realise that

we actually

want nothing

more than

others to

know that

as well.

To know

what we

know.

And to see

what we've

seen.

And that

is how

this story

meets your

story.

And

intersects

with it

and transforms

it.

And my

hope is

if that

hasn't

happened

to you

yet

that it

will this

Easter.

And even

if it has

happened to

you I

hope that

this

transformation

that this

chapter

describes

would take

place more

and more.

That's what

I hope for

myself.

Until I

finish I

just want to

point out

to you the

two things

that I

think this

passage leave

us with.

I want to

say they

are the

two ingredients

of how

your life

and how

my life

gets

transformed.

Of course

if you're

not interested

in being

transformed you

should just

tune out

right now.

But if

you want

God to

change your

life and

if you want

God to

enrich your

life and

empower your

life and

if you want

to know

Jesus better

and I'm

assuming that's

why you're

here this

morning I

want to urge

you to pay

attention to

these two

things that

Luke 24

leaves you

with.

And the

two things

are this

what we

can do

and secondly

what only

God can

do.

So what

is it that

you can do?

What is it

that Luke 24

teaches you

that you

can do?

And what

we can do

is open

the scriptures

the Bible

open the

scriptures

because that

is the way

that we can

pay attention

to God's

word.

What have we

seen this

morning?

We've seen

this morning

haven't we?

That it is

the word of

God that

brings clarity

to confusion.

And so

we ought to

expect that

even now

the word

of God

will be the

best remedy

for our

confusion.

And when

we open

the scriptures

when we

read the

Bible we

will find

what the

disciples in

Luke 24

found that

the whole

of the

Old Testament

the left

hand side

of your

Bible

bears witness

to Jesus

and that

Jesus

himself

shines light

onto

everything

and that

the New

Testament

has come

down to

us

because of

the very

experiences

that this

chapter

describes.

The New

Testament

is basically

written by

people who

were eyewitnesses

of Jesus'

resurrection.

People who

were transformed

by their

encounter

with the

risen Jesus.

And so

if you want

to know

the risen

Jesus

read the

scriptures.

And if you

want to be

transformed

by the

risen Jesus

read the

scriptures.

And if you

want the

resurrection

power of

Jesus at

work in

your life

develop an

appetite for

the scriptures.

Treasure

God's

word.

Bathe in

it.

Don't

take it

for granted.

Love it.

Learn from

it.

Live by

it.

Because if

you do

that we

will be

joyful

witnesses of

Christ for

no other

reason than

that we've

come to

know him

personally.

Jesus who

died lives.

And he

speaks to

us as he

spoke to

them.

And when

we listen

attentively we

will be

transformed.

That's what

we can do.

Open the

scriptures.

But the

other key

ingredient to

transformation

is something

that we

can't do.

That only

God can

do.

And that

is open

our eyes.

And that

was the

experience

wasn't it

of the

two

travelers on

the road

to Emmaus.

And it's

also the

experience of

verse 45

where it

describes all

the disciples.

Verse 45

Then he

said to them

these are my

words that I

spoke to you

while I was

still with

you that

everything

written about

me in the

law of

Moses and

the prophets

and the

Psalms must

be fulfilled.

Verse 45

Then he

opened their

minds to

understand

the scriptures.

At the

end of the

day you

will not

believe that

Jesus rose

from the

dead

unless God

opens your

eyes.

And you

won't know

him unless

he opens

your mind.

And we

won't see

him for

who he

is and be

transformed by

the risen

Jesus unless

God flicks

the light

on us.

And what

that means

of course is

that if you

don't believe

in the

risen Jesus

yet and

if you

don't follow

him and

if you

don't live

for him and

if you don't

love him but

you want to

you can't

manufacture this.

Instead

right now

right now

you call out

to God in

prayer and

you ask him

to bring

light to

your eyes

and to

open your

mind.

And what

it also

means is

that if you

long for

greater

transformation

in the

Christian life

and if you

long for a

clearer vision

of the

resurrected

Jesus,

if you

long to be

a more

joyful witness

for him,

then the

answer to

your longings

is you

need to

pray and

I need

to pray

that God

would bring

lights to

my eyes.

And the

message of

the Bible

is that when

you pray

like that

earnestly

and humbly,

when he

answers and

it is a

prayer that

he loves to

answer,

you will

see and

you will

know and

we will

live like

Jesus who

died and

really did

rise again

and really

is alive

today.

And we

really do

have a

relationship

with him.

And that

of course

is an

astonishing

thing to

say,

isn't it?

A

relationship

with Jesus

Christ.

It's

almost too

impossible to

believe,

isn't it?

And yet

that is

what is on

offer to

you this

Easter Sunday

morning.

And this

chapter is

written so

that you

might take

up the

offer of

that

relationship.

that we

might find

like those

disciples,

our

confusion

evaporating

in the

light of

his

clear

word.

And that

we,

like those

disciples,

might find

our eyes

open to

see the

risen Jesus

and so

be irreversibly

changed by

him.

And I

don't know

about you,

but as I

study this

chapter,

I find

myself

freshly

stunned

that the

Jesus who

lived

and died

2,000 years

ago,

lives in

2018 and

I know

him.

Not just

as someone

who is the

central character

in an

ancient story,

but as

someone I'm

actually in a

relationship

with.

And once

again,

as we think

about this,

we pinch

ourselves,

don't we,

as we

contemplate it.

it really

is an

incredible

thing,

and I

can't speak

for you,

but for

myself,

I really

do want

to know

him better.

And I

crave

depth in

my relationship

with him,

and I

do want

to be

transformed

by him,

and changed

by him.

And this

wonderful

chapter in

the Bible

assures us

that that

really is

possible

this morning.

And that

the risen

Lord Jesus

is up

for it.

And Luke

says,

then their

eyes were

opened,

and they

recognised

him.

And I'm

going to

pray the

same will

be true

for us.

Let's

pray.