Amy C Walters

On the Road to Emmaus | Luke 24:13-35

The two travelers on the road to Emmaus had a long day–the early morning message from the women who went to the tomb, a seven mile walk to Emmaus, and an interrupted dinner. And yet, when they realize they had been talking to Jesus the whole time, they hurry back to Jerusalem to tell the others.

This has been a long day for these two travelers. I imagine that they haven’t slept well in midst of Jesus’ arrest, trial and crucifixion. They might have been up early that morning when the women went to the tomb and then came back with their report. They’ve been on an emotional roller coaster with the shock of Jesus’ arrest and crucifixion and then the reports of the empty tomb. And now they are finishing the day with a seven-mile walk from Jerusalem to Emmaus. By the time they finally arrive at their destination, we’re told that it’s near evening and the day is almost over.

Jesus, who has been walking with them, appears to be continuing on. But to travel at nighttime is dangerous. So the two travelers urge Jesus to stay with them and he does. 

When dinner is ready, Jesus, who is the guest of the two travelers, actually takes on the role of the host. He’s the one who gives thanks. He’s the one who breaks the bread and begins to give it to them. And it’s through this process that they finally recognize him. They finally believe what he and the Bible have been saying all along.

And then they all celebrate together, right? No, it tells us that Jesus disappears. He vanishes from their sight.

The two travelers finally get it. They understand from the Scriptures that the Messiah is everywhere in the Bible and that he must suffer and then go to glory. They understand that Jesus is alive, and they have actually seen him with their own eyes. What do they do now? They immediately return to Jerusalem, the place that they had just spent all day traveling from. 

They go even though it’s late in the day, almost nighttime. They take the risk of traveling in the dark.

They go even though they have to drop their plans for whatever they were going to do in Emmaus. They had gone there for a reason, but now they return to Jerusalem, leaving whatever that reason was undone. 

They go back even though they probably haven’t eaten. The story says that Jesus began to give them the bread, and then they recognize him and he vanishes. So they go hungry, or at the very least, they go after gulping down a few hurried bites. 

And they go even though they’re probably quite tired from all of these things.

But clearly, to these two travelers, none of that mattered. They had to get back to tell the others that it’s true, the Lord has risen.

They ignore all of the obstacles and excuses that might keep them in Emmaus and instead return to Jerusalem, because this is a message worth sharing. And that actually is our key truth for today. This is a message worth sharing.

These travelers knew that this news was worth the risk and the discomfort and tiredness and change of plans, because this is news that changes everything. 

I think it can be so easy for us to lose sight of that. We start to take the gospel for granted. We get so comfortable with it that we forget how earth-shattering it is. Or we start to believe the lies of our culture, that we’re selling something that the world doesn’t want or doesn’t need, and then we become apologetic about the best news that has ever been. Instead, we need to be like Cleopas and the other traveler in this story, who are willing to drop everything, endure anything, to share that message.

I used to work for a missions organization, and one of my coworkers, Bob, had served in Japan for many years. One day, just before he retired and returned to the US, he met a Japanese woman who happened to be looking for a Bible. Bob didn’t have a Japanese Bible with him, so he promised to return and bring her one.

When he did, he felt a strong urge to share the gospel with her. At first he resisted. He really didn’t know this woman at all. They had only met a few times. They hadn’t yet built a relationship of trust. Why would she believe what he said? And he was afraid of scaring her away by sharing too soon. 

But that urge just wouldn’t go away. So Bob finally told her the good news of the gospel.

And the woman believed. She trusted Jesus as her Savior. 

Later, Bob confessed to her that he thought it was too soon to tell her about Jesus. She responded, “Too soon? I’ve been waiting my whole life to hear this!” 

There are people out there who have been waiting their whole lives to hear that Jesus loves them and took the punishment for their sins and conquered death. They are desperate for the Good News. Don’t keep it from them. Go out and share it.

Today as you go, share this story. It’s worth whatever discomfort or awkwardness or risk you may take in doing it, because you never know what God has been doing in someone’s heart, maybe preparing them just for this story. So tell them, because this is a message worth sharing.