I’ve got such exciting news to tell you. I feel like I’m about to explode I’m so excited. We were so confused but now things finally make sense.
Let me start at the beginning. You must have all heard about what happened to Jesus in Jerusalem. He was arrested, put on trial and they crucified him. We’d been following him, we and the apostles, and Mary and the other women.
We all thought he was the Messiah, the promised prophet. But now he was dead. We all felt lost, heartbroken. Our hopes and dreams for what Jesus was going to do we’re shattered. We we’re worried what the authorities would do next. Would they come after us?
So Cleopas and I we’re heading back to Emmaus. It’s a long walk and we were talking about what had happened. A man we didn’t recognise came along beside us and we began talking to him. What we couldn’t understand is that he didn’t know what had happened to Jesus in Jerusalem.
So we began to tell him what had happened to Jesus. How he’d been arrested, beaten, humiliated and crucified, and how our friends had gone to the tomb this morning and his body was gone. They said they’d seen a vision of angels who told them Jesus was alive. We didn’t know what to think.
But this man we were talking to started to talk about the scriptures and what the prophets had said about the Messiah. He was talking about the scriptures in a way I’d never heard before. He went right back to Moses and the other prophets and we talk and talk about them.
The rest of the journey went so quick, it was no time at all until we got to Emmaus, so we urged the man to stay with us, it was almost night time anyway.
By talking to him things had started to make sense, though we we’re still struggling to get our heads around it all. So we sat having a meal together, we continued talking and then the stranger took the bread and broke it.
from the Methodist Modern Art Collection, © Trustees for Methodist Church Purposes
At that moment I don’t know what happened, but suddenly we realised something… this stranger was Jesus. How we didn’t see it before I don’t know! It was as if we had been kept from seeing him until that moment. But now it all makes sense, Jesus is alive! And all that’s happened is what the prophets wrote about. We we’re there with the risen Lord, but before we had chance to say anything to him he disappeared.
We could think of nothing else but telling the others so we raced back to tell our friends in Jerusalem. What a day! We forgot that the authorities could be after us, that fear had gone.
We told them how he’d appeared to us, how he talked to us about the prophets and the scriptures, how he’d broken the bread. That Jesus is alive. The Lord had also appeared to Simon.
And now I can tell you too! Jesus is alive! We’ve met the risen Lord and now we’ve been transformed. What a journey.
We’d lost hope, but now he’s alive and he’s given us hope again!
We were lost, we didn’t know where to turn, but Jesus found us.
We were feeling broken, but now Jesus has made us whole.
We were blind, but Jesus showed us the scriptures and what the prophets said, and now we can see the truth. When he broke the bread, we could see him.
We’d been fearful of what the authorities would do next, but after meeting the risen Lord those fears were gone.
We’ve had such an experience, we’d had a first-hand experience of Jesus. He really is alive, and he’s filled us with hope.
Reflect
- As you hear and read this passage what interests you? Surprises you? Why?
- The men on the Emmaus road felt lost, confused. Their hopes and dreams had been shattered. Have you ever been in a similar situation? What helped you?
- The men welcomed Jesus, who to them was still a stranger, into their home to eat with them. Fellowship and community was always an important part of Jesus ministry. How important do you think it is for us today? Why?
- How might what we learn from this passage help us for living as Christians in the 21st Century? What challenges are there?
Join the conversation
if you’ve got thoughts or something to share after reading and reflecting on my thoughts, you can comment below and share them with us all – I’d love to hear from you.
Rev Dan Balsdon's Blog 
Years ago, when I was teaching in a large secondary school in South Manchester, we persuaded the Head to let us invite World Wide Message Tribe to do a lunch time meeting. She only agreed if we could find 12 members of staff to supervise. The 3 of us involved in the school Christian Union made an appeal in the staff room without much hope. O Ye of little faith! We had more than 12 Christians come out of the woodwork and the school hall was packed for a very successful meeting. We had been walking alongside our colleagues for years without recognising them as Christians! A similar experience is happening in this crisis. Neighbours who have shown no sign of interest in church or Jesus are now hesitantly asking for prayers and helping each other with great kindness. I wonder how many will remain in the open after this ends? I pray they will all realise that Jesus is walking alongside them and that we will realise we mustn’t judge too hastily!
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