Jesus Reveals Himself

Transcript

Rob McFarlane: 0:59

Please turn with me in your Bible to Luke chapter 24, and we're going to read how Jesus revealed Himself to two disciples on the road to Emmaus. Today, as we study this passage of Scripture together, we will see some of the ways that Jesus makes himself known to people. Let's read Luke chapter 24, verse 13 to 35 together. And I'm reading it from the English Standard Version of the Bible. 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're holding with each other as you walk? They stood still, looking sad. Then one of them named Cleopus answered him, Are you the only visitor to Jerusalem who does not 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, a man who was a prophet, mighty indeed 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 did not 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 woman 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? And beginning with Moses and all the prophets, he interpreted to them in all the scriptures the things concerning himself. So they drew near to the village to which they were going. He acted as if he was going farther, but they urged him strongly, saying, Stay with us, for it's toward evening, and the day is now far spent. So he went in to stay with them. When he was at table with them, he took the bread and blessed it, 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. In this encounter between our risen Lord and Savior and these two disciples, we see three ways that Jesus makes himself known or reveals himself to people. They welcomed a stranger into their little group walking from Jerusalem to Emmaus, whom they later discovered was none other than Jesus Christ Himself. Verse 16 tells us their eyes were kept from recognizing him. But after a conversation and a series of events, their eyes were opened and they recognized him, and then he vanished from their sight. They had a glimpse of Jesus as he really was, their risen Savior. But this one glimpse changed the direction of their journey and the entire course of their lives. You see, Jesus is so glorious and wonderful. All it takes is a glimpse. Jesus determined how and when he revealed his true identity to them. And we're going to see three ways in this passage of how Jesus revealed himself to them. May you and I have a fresh glimpse today of his glory and his wonder. Number one, the first way is that Jesus reveals himself through the testimony of people who have encountered him. In this passage, first we see Jesus appeared to the woman who visited the tomb early that morning. In verse 22 to 23, it tells us, Moreover, some woman of our company amazed us. They were at the tomb early in the morning, and when they did not find his body, they came back, saying, They had even seen a vision of angels, who said that he was alive. Secondly, we see that after Cleopas and his friend encountered Jesus, they returned to Jerusalem to share their testimony. And we read this in verse 32 to verse 35. 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 arose that same hour and returned to Jerusalem, and they found the eleven and those who were with them gathered together. They were saying to each other, The Lord is 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. Testimonies are so important. We need to hear about encounters with Jesus and we need to share our personal encounters with Jesus with others. So first we see that Jesus reveals himself to people through the testimony of others. And I would pray that Jesus would use our testimonies to draw others into a personal relationship with him. Number two, the second way we see Jesus reveal himself is through the scriptures. Let's read verse 25 to verse 27 again. 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? And beginning with Moses and all the prophets, he interpreted to them in all the scriptures the things concerning himself. And then as they reflected upon all that they had heard, they said to each other in verse 32, Did not our hearts burn within us while he talked to us on the road? While he opened to us the scriptures. I really love that phrase. While he opened to us the scriptures. May He enlighten our minds with the truth and set our hearts on fire with a passion for more of Him. Coming back to verse 27, we read, and beginning with Moses and all the prophets, he interpreted to them all the scriptures had to say concerning himself. Jesus is the subject of the Bible. Jesus is the hero of the Bible and the focus of the Bible. It really is all about Him. Let's see what Jesus said concerning the Scriptures and Himself in John chapter 5, verse 39 to 40. He said, You search the scriptures because you think that in them you have eternal life. It is they that bear witness about me, yet you refuse to come to me that you may have life. When we read, study, memorize, meditate on the Bible, our primary aim is so that we get to know Jesus and experience the life that He intended through faith in Him. And our prayer for you today is that you would have a greater hunger for the Word of God and that Jesus would reveal Himself to you, His plan, His purpose to you through the Scriptures. So we've seen in my second thought today that it's through the Scriptures that Jesus reveals himself to us, and the scriptures reveal who Jesus really is. Number three, the third way that we see Jesus reveal himself is through fellowship with others. We've seen in Luke 24, verse 15 that as they walked with one another, that Jesus drew near. Listen to these verses. While they were walking, talking, and discussing together, Jesus Himself drew near and went with them. I love going for walks with friends and praying and talking together. There are many times during prayer walks that Jesus has drawn near and we have experienced his presence together. I know many can relate to this experience, but if you have not done it, then I encourage you to give it a try. We also see in verse 30 and 31 that they encountered Jesus at a dining room table. It says in verse 30 and 31, when he was at table with them, he took the bread, blessed it, and broke it and gave it to them. And their eyes were opened and they recognized him. And then he vanished from their sight. If you read through the Gospels with this in mind, you'll be amazed at how often Jesus enjoyed meals with his disciples. Enjoy a meal or coffee with others and welcome Jesus into your conversation. The meal doesn't have to be elaborate or full or fancy. It's more about the company than what's on the menu. Discipleship is not simply attending a course or a seminar, even though these are helpful to help us grow in our understanding and knowledge of God and His Word. Discipleship is first and foremost shared walks over meals, over coffees, over walks, with Jesus welcomed into the conversation. Many people say that religion is personal and private, and that may be true. Remember, we're not talking about religion, we're talking about a living relationship with God through faith in Jesus, and true Christianity can only rarely be experienced in community with others. I believe that Cleopas and the other disciple would have also been at the Last Supper when Jesus instituted communion or the Lord's Supper. And when he broke bread and he blessed it and he gave it to them, he said, This is my body broken for you. And when he took the cup, he said, This is my blood shed for you. This is an important practice that Jesus said we should follow to break bread or have communion. As we in the presence of God and with one another break bread, we do it in remembrance of Him. We remember what He did for us on the cross, we appreciate it and we appropriate what He accomplished on the cross in our lives. He paid the price for our sin once and for all time, so that we can have a living relationship with God. And I pray that as we do this, we will get fresh glimpses of his glory and wonder together. So my third thought is that Jesus wants to reveal himself through fellowship, and the heart of this is us breaking bread, enjoying one another's company, and celebrating communion together. Before we close in prayer, let me summarize. Jesus wants to reveal himself to people, and he wants to do this in three ways through testimonies, through the scriptures, and through fellowship. Let's bow our heads and let's pray. Father God, thank you that you sent your Son to make it possible for us to be free from sin and to have a living relationship with you through faith in Jesus Christ. Jesus, thank you that you came and you reveal yourself to us in so many wonderful ways. And as we've seen today, that you reveal yourself through to us through testimonies, we ask that our testimony would reveal something of your love and your life and the liberty that you bring to those around us. Thank you that you reveal yourself to us through the scriptures. And as we hear scripture taught and we read scripture in our personal devotion, we pray that you would enlighten our minds and set our hearts ablaze. We thank you, Lord Jesus, that fellowship is a time where we gather together in your name and we can experience your power and your presence. And as we break bread together, as we enjoy one another's company, we ask that we would get fresh glimpses of your glory and your grace and your wonder. And we ask these things in Jesus' name. Amen.