Luke 24:13

The Bible says in Luke 24:13-17, “And behold two of them went that same day to a village called Emmaus, which was from Jerusalem about threescore furlongs. And they talked together of all these things which had happened. And it came to pass, that, while they communed together and reasoned, Jesus himself drew near, and went with them. But their eyes were held that they should not know him. And he said unto them, What manner of communications are these that you have one to another, as you walk, and are sad?” We do not know a lot about these two who walked to the village of Emmaus that day, but there are several important lessons to learn. They were believers and they walked along, but they were not aware that Jesus was with them. Jesus is always with the sheep. He’s the Shepherd, and the Shepherd never forsakes the sheep. He’s our faithful companion. He rose from the dead. He’s alive, and wherever we go, He goes with us. He said, “I will never leave you nor forsake you.”

Jesus noticed that these two disciples were sad. They were sad when they did not need to be. We are often like that. We think that things have all gone wrong, when we look at them from a human standpoint. If only we could look at things the way that God looks at them, and if only we could believe the things that we ought to believe about the love of God and the promises of God and the presence of God, we would not be saddened or discouraged or troubled in any circumstance that comes our way.

The Bible says in Luke 24:18-25, “And the one of them, whose name was Cleopas, answering said unto him, Art thou only a stranger in Jerusalem, and hast not known the things which are come to pass there in these days? And he said unto them, What things? And they said unto him, Concerning Jesus of Nazareth, which was a prophet mighty in deed and word before God and all the people: And how the chief priests and our rulers delivered him to be condemned to death, and have crucified him. But we trusted that it had been he which should have redeemed Israel: and beside all this, today is the third day since these things were done. Yea, and certain women also of our company made us astonished, which were early at the sepulcher; And when they found not his body, they came, saying, that they had also seen a vision of angels, which said that he was alive. And certain of them which were with us went to the sepulcher, and found it even so as the women had said: but him they saw not. Then he said unto them, O fools, and slow of heart to believe all that the prophets have spoken.”

These men did not know that they were talking to Jesus, which was especially evident when we notice that one of the men basically derided Jesus for not knowing what had been going on in Jerusalem the last few days. Of course, Jesus knew. He was just letting the men talk. Sometimes we teach ourselves when we talk. By expressing the things that we think we know, if we are honest with ourselves it will give us the occasion to better reflect upon our own ideas and to evaluate them. The feedback that we get from others to our ideas will help us to keep expanding our horizons and to keep from stagnating. No one knows everything. Everyone has more to learn.

The problem with these men was not with what they knew but what they believed. They already had all the information that they needed to believe that Jesus had indeed risen from the dead. But instead of having the joy of believing, they were still sad because their own plans had been dashed. Once someone has been given all the information that is needed to believe, it was not by accident that they came across such information. God sent them the information so that they could believe. Often the information comes by the hand of some human messenger and almost always in conjunction with the written Word of God. Both of those elements were present here. God sent the women to tell the other disciples what they had seen at the tomb. The women went and they told. The Old Testament prophets had already recorded and foretold many of the things that happened to the Christ. These two men on the road to Emmaus knew all the things that they needed to know, but failed to believe what they could have believed and should have believed, and in their case it was concerning the resurrection from the dead by Jesus Christ.

Jesus said to the men, “O fools, and slow of heart to believe all that the prophets have spoken.” God commands all humans everywhere to believe. The just shall live by faith. One of your chief responsibilities is to believe God in every circumstance that comes your way. Has some trial or difficulty come your way? Then believe God about it. Have things failed to work out the way that you would have liked? Then believe God about it. Have you failed in some way? Then ask God to forgive you, and believe God. Don’t become depressed or discouraged, just believe. When each day ends, one of the principal questions to ask to determine if you were successful in meeting the challenges of the day is this: did you believe God during the day.

Of course, God wants everyone to have faith and to believe everything that they ought to believe, and that includes the two men who were on their way to Emmaus. Therefore, Jesus explained the scriptures in more detail to the two men as they walked on the road to Emmaus. Jesus continues to speak and the Bible says in Luke 24:26-31, “Ought not Christ to have suffered these things, and to enter into his glory? And beginning at Moses and all the prophets, he expounded unto them in all the scriptures the things concerning himself. And they drew nigh unto the village, whither they went: and he made as though he would have gone further. But they constrained him, saying, Abide with us: for it is toward evening, and the day is far spent. And he went in to tarry with them. And it came to pass, as he sat at meat with them, he took bread, and blessed it, and brake, and gave to them.”

It is important to notice the method that Jesus used to explain the truth to these men. He used the scriptures. Second Timothy 3:16-17 says, “All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness: That the man of God may be perfect, throughly furnished unto all good works.” There is always the danger of attempting to use something other than the scriptures when teaching spiritual truths. Some people revert to philosophy or the wisdom of man, some use psychology or some other science of man. Others lean primarily to their own personal experiences and illustrations. But Jesus used the Word of God. The written Word of God is the source for the truth that God has revealed to man. There is no other source.

When it says here in Luke that Jesus “expounded unto them in all the scriptures,” the scriptures in this case refers to the Old Testament because the New Testament had not yet been written. Jesus used the Old Testament beginning with Moses and all the prophets and expounded unto them “the things concerning himself.” Many of the teachings in the Old Testament pointed to Jesus Christ. Many of the things in the Old Testament are only correctly understood when looked at in the light of the life and teachings of Jesus. One of the common mistakes in our day and age is for someone to take a passage from the Old Testament and then to teach from it as if Christ had never lived. Perhaps you have heard people give sermons from the Old Testament and never even mention the name of Jesus Christ. Could you imagine one of the apostles standing before a group of people, opening up a passage from the Old Testament, and then never mentioning the name of Jesus? It’s impossible to imagine. It would not have happened. When Jesus taught from Moses and the prophets, He expounded unto them the things concerning himself.

It says here in Luke 24 that Jesus “expounded” unto them. The common meaning of the word to expound is to interpret or to translate. The same word is translated in the Bible as “interpret” in Acts 9:6 where it says, “Now there was at Joppa a certain disciple named Tabitha, which by interpretation is called Dorcas.” In Luke chapter 24 the emphasis is on the fact that Jesus simply explained the meaning of scripture to these men. He did not add to or take away. He opened up the scriptures and explained the meaning of the scriptures. Jesus did not give them new information. He simply presented the information that God Himself had already given to the human race by means of the Bible. What Jesus did is what everyone should do who preaches a sermon or teaches a Bible lesson. If you want to bring God’s message to God’s people, then you must use God’s Word. And you must learn how to open up God’s Word, and reveal God’s Word, and explain God’s Word. “If any man speak, let Him speak as of the oracles of God.”

Too many people depart from God’s Word when they give a sermon or a lesson. Evidently, it’s a big temptation to some people to have a text from the Bible, to read it hurriedly, and then once having departed from it to seldom return to the scripture. They have their own ideas, and their own illustrations and examples, but they do not really open up the Word and expound the Word. In order to teach the Word of God, one must have the gift to teach. Ephesians 4:8 says, “Wherefore he saith, When he ascended up on high, he led captivity captive, and gave gifts unto men.” Ephesians 4:11 says, “And he gave some, apostles; and some, prophets; and some, evangelists; and some, pastors and teachers.” You cannot teach unless you have the gift to teach, and you will not be teaching what you should be teaching unless you use the method that Jesus used. Jesus expounded unto them the scriptures.

Jesus also expounded unto them the scriptures “concerning Himself.” You can use the scriptures all day long, but if you do not use them to point to Jesus, then you are using them in vain. Jesus said, “If I be lifted up, I will draw all men unto myself.” Many of the false cults use the Bible, but they use it in the wrong way, and of course, they are all wrong concerning who is the Christ. It would be a good idea to put a sign behind every pulpit for every preacher, pastor, and teacher to see that would say, “PREACH CHRIST.” It would be a good idea. It appears as though some have forgotten what they are supposed to be preaching about.

If you are called of God and gifted by God to teach His Word, and if you use the scriptures the way that Jesus used them, then you will have similar results to what He had as far as the effect upon believers is concerned. That is to say, you will have a similar effect on believers who are rightly related to God. Luke 24: 28-31, “And they drew nigh unto the village, whither they went: and he made as though he would have gone further. But they constrained him, saying, Abide with us: for it is toward evening, and the day is far spent. And he went in to tarry with them. And it came to pass, as he sat at meat with them, he took bread, and blessed it, and brake, and gave to them. And their eyes were opened, and they knew him; and he vanished out of their sight.”

When it says here that “their eyes were opened, and they knew him,” there is a very important symbolism. No one can come to know Jesus until their eyes are opened spiritually speaking. Most people in the world live in spiritual darkness. Ephesians 2:1-5 says, “And you hath he made alive, who were dead in trespasses and sins; Wherein in time past you walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that now worketh in the children of disobedience: Among whom also we all had our manner of life in times past in the lusts of our flesh, fulfilling the desires of the flesh and of the mind; and were by nature the children of wrath, even as others. But God, who is rich in mercy, for his great love wherewith he loved us, Even when we were dead in sins, hath made us alive together with Christ, (by grace you are saved).” Until God opens the eyes, there is no spiritual eyesight whatsoever. Until God gives spiritual life, there is no spiritual life whatsoever in a human being. That’s why Jesus said, “Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.” This basic concept is true concerning salvation, and it’s also true concerning further understanding after a person becomes saved. Make sure you learn from God, not from humans. “If any man lack wisdom, let him ask of God who gives to all liberally and upbraids not.”

If someone does not have wisdom in a certain matter, it means that they have not learned from God. If they have not learned from God on a certain subject, maybe they have not lived long enough nor gotten to the point that God was ready to reveal more to them. Also, maybe they have not asked God for wisdom because they were too proud thinking that they already had the answer in themselves. These men on the road to Emmaus had their eyes opened because they spent time with Jesus and they spent time listening to what the scriptures had to say.

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