Now it came to pass, as He sat at the table with them, that He took bread, blessed and broke it, and gave it to them. Then their eyes were opened and they knew Him; and He vanished from their sight. And they said to one another, “Did not our heart burn within us while He talked with us on the road, and while He opened the Scriptures to us?”
Luke 24:30-32
As these two disciples travelled to Emmaus on some errand or another they were very sad because Jesus had died. They weren’t sure what to do because of the reports of Mary Magdalene and others. They were perplexed with their circumstances. Like the other disciples they were giving up their hope that Jesus had been the Messiah because He hadn’t overthrown the Roman government and established a Jewish kingdom. As they walked along, the risen Jesus drew near to them and asked what they were talking about. When they told Him of their experience He began using the scriptures to explain what had happened to them. They had been using their own cultural referenced along with their previous life experience to interpret what had happened to them instead of using God’s word to determine its meaning. When He had done these things and had sat down for a meal, He blessed the bread which caused them to recognize Him. He vanished immediately after their eyes were opened by His prayer. They began to discuss how their hearts had burned while He had opened Scripture to them. They went back to Jerusalem as soon as dinner was over to tell the eleven what had happened.
Our hearts and minds are often closed because we interpret the events of our lives through the lens of preconceived views of how things will work out. Like the two disciples on their way to Emmaus we have our own cultural prejudices and life experiences we use to evaluate our current status. It is a mistake to try to discern our position in Christ without the Scriptures being the reference point we use to define life. We use our experience to define Scripture instead. Our perceptions are distorted when we do this. It is part of the reason we see through a glass darkly instead of understanding what is going on. We need Jesus to open the Scripture to us. We need Jesus to explain the events of our life to us. We need Him to minister to us. Then our hearts will burn with understanding. Our eyes will be opened and we will recognize Him. We will see what He has been doing instead of blindly pursuing an agenda that has been planted by life’s experience with the world, the flesh, and the enemy.
Meet with me today I pray Lord Jesus. Teach me to see things through the lens of Scripture. Open my heart, burn the false views I have away. Open my eyes so that I see You ministering to me and send me on my way to tell others what You have taught me.
Looking For Him On The Road,
Pastor Jason
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