Meet the Stranger on the Road

Do you sometimes fail to recognize Jesus?  Are you discouraged? Disappointed with God and life? Do you wonder if you are a fool for believing in Jesus? Are you disappointed by “prophets” who claim special knowledge in the name of Jesus—only to be exposed as frauds? Are you secretly panicked about all the earthquakes and disasters? Fearful of the future?

Let’s go back almost 2000 years ago and look at how followers of Jesus felt after his crucifixion.  The event we are looking at today is described in Luke 24.

The two men on the road to Emmaus would understand about all the emotions described above. Their whole world was threatened. They had been followers of Jesus.

They thought Jesus was to be the king who would overthrow Roman domination and restore Israel as a sovereign country. 

They thought Jesus would rule the world. 

Instead, Jesus was executed in the most humiliating way possible: crucifixion. 

Then the two disciples encountered a stranger who redefined their understanding of the purpose of God and their very lives. Come along and Meet the Stranger on the Road.

In the Middle of the Road

¹³ That same day two of Jesus’ followers were walking to the village of Emmaus, seven miles from Jerusalem. ¹⁴ As they walked along they were talking about everything that had happened. ¹⁵ As they talked and discussed these things, Jesus himself suddenly came and began walking with them. ¹⁶ But God kept them from recognizing him. (Luke 24:13-16) I guess one could say Jesus was in disguise.

Let’s “listen in” to what they “might” have been saying.

“I feel like a fool,” Cleopas said to his fellow follower of Jesus trudging down the road with him. 

“I believed him. I truly believed in him. I sacrificed everything. Even now, even after seeing him dead, I still have a hard time believing He was not the redeemer of Israel.”

His companion sighed and nodded. “Me, too. He was so mighty with the power of God. I can’t help but wonder why God abandoned him.”

Therein lay the root of their many unspoken questions “If Jesus was not the Messiah, if God abandoned Jesus, what hope have we? Or future? Are we as good as dead?” 

A sudden prickle of paranoia ran up their spines. Fearfully, they glanced over their shoulders. A stranger only two paces behind them! From where did he appear so suddenly? What did he want?

The stranger seemed harmless as he matched his stride to theirs. “What are you discussing so intently? And why so sad?”

“You must be the only who doesn’t know what happened in Jerusalem this weekend,” Cleopas replied.

“Then tell me,” the stranger invited.

Cleopas took a deep breath. Where to begin? The earthquakes? The torn temple curtain? So much to tell but the epicenter of it all was Jesus. 

“Have you not heard of Jesus of Nazareth?” asked Cleopas. “He was a prophet, mighty in word and deed. We were certain he was the Messiah,” the men exchanged disappointed glances, “but the chief priests and our rulers plotted against him. In the end, crucified him. That was three days ago.” 

“This very morning, some women went to his tomb. His body was missing! What’s more, the women said angels told them he was alive. Alive! We do not know what to believe.”

The stranger almost laughed. “Don’t be silly. Can you honestly say you believe the prophets when they said the Messiah will come but not believe them when they also said the Messiah will suffer exactly those things you have described before he is revealed?”

The truth of the stranger’s words burned in their hearts. This was just the sort of thing Jesus would say. They wanted to hear more.

And the stranger had a lot to say. In the growing shadows, a flicker of hope sprang up in them as the stranger recalled prophecy after prophecy, beginning with Moses and branching through later prophets, concerning the life, death, resurrection, and revelation of the Messiah. It all began to make sense. Perhaps Jesus was—is—the Messiah after all, they thought.

“Shalom,” the stranger bade them as they came to their destination.  

“Wait!” said Cleopas. “Please stay with us. It’s nearly sunset.”   The stranger agreed. 

At the supper table, the bread was passed to the stranger as the honored guest. When he held up the bread to recite the traditional blessing—“Blessed are You, O LORD our God, King of the Universe, Who has brought forth bread from the earth”— all of a sudden there came a lightning bolt of instant recognition. His hands! His torn, nail-ravaged hands! This could only be Jesus!  Without another word, he vanished.

Stunned, they stared at the empty seat and the broken bread. Had Jesus really been here? Or had they only imagined they saw him? Was he a ghost? Would he restore the kingdom to Israel? Was this the end of the age?

Although it was after dark, they hurried back to Jerusalem. ³³ …… There they found the eleven disciples and the others who had gathered with them, ³⁴ who said, “The Lord has really risen! He appeared to Peter.” (Luke 24:33-34)

³⁵ Then the two from Emmaus told their story of how Jesus had appeared to them as they were walking along the road, and how they had recognized him as he was breaking the bread. ³⁶ And just as they were telling about it, Jesus himself was suddenly standing there among them. “Peace be with you,” he said.³⁷ But the whole group was startled and frightened, thinking they were seeing a ghost! (Luke 24:35-37)

There Jesus answered some of their questions: 

• Yes, he was alive. “….he asked them, “Do you have anything here to eat?” ⁴² They gave him a piece of broiled fish, ⁴³ and he ate it as they watched. (Luke 24:41b-43) 
• No, he was not a ghost.. “Look at my hands. Look at my feet. You can see that it’s really me. Touch me and make sure that I am not a ghost.” (Luke 24:39b) 
• Yes, he had risen from the dead. “⁴⁰ As he spoke, he showed them his hands and his feet.” (Luke 24:40) These marks were authentication of his identity, love, and power. 

Jesus informed them (as well as us) that the answers to some of their questions are none of their business just now: “⁷ He replied, “The Father alone has the authority to set those dates and times, and they are not for you to know.” (Acts 1:7)

Jesus told them if they were going to be his followers, this is what they should be doing:

• Pray for the Holy Spirit to empower you: “…stay here in the city until the Holy Spirit comes and fills you with power from heaven.” (Luke 24:49b) 
• Become a witness of the truth about the death, resurrection, and purpose of Jesus’ appearing: “…you will be my witnesses, telling people about me everywhere—in Jerusalem, throughout Judea, in Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.” (Acts 1:8)  ⁴⁶ And he (Jesus) said, “Yes, it was written long ago that the Messiah would suffer and die and rise from the dead on the third day. ⁴⁷ It was also written that this message would be proclaimed in the authority of his name to all the nations, beginning in Jerusalem: ‘There is forgiveness of sins for all who repent.’ ⁴⁸ You are witnesses of all these things. …” (Luke 24:46-48) 

Narrow is the Path

Before their encounter on the road to Emmaus, the disciples picked and chose what they wanted to believe from the Bible but it was leading them the wrong way. They liked the idea of a Messiah who would give them and their nation power. They just didn’t like the rest of what God had in mind: for the Messiah to suffer, die, and be resurrected to bring the Gentile nations into his kingdom as well as Israel.

It’s true: We are often embarrassed by the antics and failures of people claiming to be followers of Christ. We have many questions about the future. But like the disciples, if we are going to be counted among Jesus’ followers, we cannot pick and choose which of his teachings we will follow. We must follow all his teachings!   

Jesus has given us a road map to follow as to what we are to be doing NOW: 

• Pray for the Holy Spirit to empower us. 
• Become witnesses of the truth about the death, resurrection, and purpose of Jesus’ appearing. 

Pursuing any other way will lead us toward the wrong destination.

There are two paths we can take in life. And we are free to make the choice. God gives us that freedom. But as we decide, there are a few things we should know about these two options. One of them works and the other one doesn’t. One of them feels right and the other one doesn’t. One of them is popular and the other one isn’t.

These two paths lead to two very different destinations. Our selection is a matter of life and death. One of these paths is most likely to succeed. We all have the choice between these two paths.

Although the choice is ours to make, Jesus gives us some wise advice:. 

¹³ “You can enter God’s Kingdom only through the narrow gate. The highway to hell is broad, and its gate is wide for the many who choose that way. ¹⁴ But the gateway to life is very narrow and the road is difficult, and only a few ever find it.” (Matthew 7:13-14)