WEBVTT 00:00:01.960 --> 00:00:05.400 This is your daily reminder. God has not run 00:00:05.400 --> 00:00:09.220 out of mercy, not for you, not today. Welcome 00:00:09.220 --> 00:00:12.599 to the New Mercies Podcast. Welcome back. Today 00:00:12.599 --> 00:00:16.300 is Tuesday, March 31st. If you are new here to 00:00:16.300 --> 00:00:17.899 the podcast, I want to encourage you to subscribe 00:00:17.899 --> 00:00:21.480 and like and follow and all the things so that 00:00:21.480 --> 00:00:23.579 you don't miss an episode. It's every single 00:00:23.579 --> 00:00:26.620 day, Monday through Saturday. What's funny about 00:00:26.620 --> 00:00:29.699 this episode today is I have already recorded 00:00:29.699 --> 00:00:33.149 it. And I don't mean that you're seeing it and 00:00:33.149 --> 00:00:34.649 I've already recorded it once. I'm saying I've 00:00:34.649 --> 00:00:38.549 recorded it once before and my microphone was 00:00:38.549 --> 00:00:41.390 off. That's right. It did not record a single 00:00:41.390 --> 00:00:44.869 word. And I went for 17 minutes. I could tell 00:00:44.869 --> 00:00:48.229 because of my video. So here we go. I'm going 00:00:48.229 --> 00:00:50.909 to. Try to do this again. I was so fired up, 00:00:50.929 --> 00:00:53.530 too. Y 'all don't even know. You missed it. Here's 00:00:53.530 --> 00:00:54.929 what our reading plan is today. We're in Luke 00:00:54.929 --> 00:00:58.590 24. First 35 verses of Luke 24. I'm going to 00:00:58.590 --> 00:01:00.770 set the scene up, and then I want to talk about 00:01:00.770 --> 00:01:03.909 a specific instance within that scene. So here's 00:01:03.909 --> 00:01:06.829 the scene in Luke 24. We go from Luke 23, doom, 00:01:07.010 --> 00:01:10.189 gloom, brokenness, sadness, crying at a funeral, 00:01:10.310 --> 00:01:13.150 to Luke 24. We turn the page, and it says, on 00:01:13.150 --> 00:01:16.250 the first day of the week. Sometimes you may 00:01:16.250 --> 00:01:18.349 see me wearing a shirt that says the first day 00:01:18.349 --> 00:01:20.640 of the week. the week. Our church a couple years 00:01:20.640 --> 00:01:22.900 ago was selling these shirts the first day of 00:01:22.900 --> 00:01:25.599 the week because on Easter Sunday, I was reading 00:01:25.599 --> 00:01:29.099 a lot of text and every gospel account says on 00:01:29.099 --> 00:01:33.299 the first day of the week. Jesus arose on the 00:01:33.299 --> 00:01:35.299 first day of the week. Every one of those. So 00:01:35.299 --> 00:01:37.319 when I wear my first day of the week shirt, it 00:01:37.319 --> 00:01:39.900 is because I am proclaiming that my life changed 00:01:39.900 --> 00:01:42.519 on the first day of the week. When we turn over 00:01:42.519 --> 00:01:44.900 to Luke 24, we see the first day of the week 00:01:44.900 --> 00:01:47.500 appear. Our life has been changed on the first 00:01:47.500 --> 00:01:49.180 day of the week. The reason we celebrate on Sundays, 00:01:49.299 --> 00:01:51.540 the reason we gather every Sunday as believers 00:01:51.540 --> 00:01:54.099 is because we celebrate a risen Savior. It's 00:01:54.099 --> 00:01:56.879 not just an Easter Sunday thing. It's an every 00:01:56.879 --> 00:01:59.980 Sunday thing. Every single Sunday, we proclaim 00:01:59.980 --> 00:02:02.469 on the... first day of the week that we serve 00:02:02.469 --> 00:02:04.810 a God who didn't lose. We serve a God who wins 00:02:04.810 --> 00:02:07.469 all the time because there's victory on the first 00:02:07.469 --> 00:02:10.349 day of the week. All up to the first day was 00:02:10.349 --> 00:02:12.389 all this doom and gloom and brokenness. And then 00:02:12.389 --> 00:02:14.750 we see the first day of the week and it changes 00:02:14.750 --> 00:02:16.949 everything. I love it. I could go on about that 00:02:16.949 --> 00:02:19.090 forever, but let's look at Luke 24. So I'm going 00:02:19.090 --> 00:02:20.689 to give you a little summary. Hopefully you've 00:02:20.689 --> 00:02:22.590 already read it or you're about to read it, but 00:02:22.590 --> 00:02:24.949 here's what happens in the first 35 verses of 00:02:24.949 --> 00:02:28.300 Luke 24. The women go to the tomb. They've prepared 00:02:28.300 --> 00:02:30.500 spices and ointments to take care of the body 00:02:30.500 --> 00:02:32.879 of the Lord. They get there, and when they get 00:02:32.879 --> 00:02:35.199 there, the tomb's empty. The stone's rolled away. 00:02:35.300 --> 00:02:37.460 There's two angels standing there. They're saying, 00:02:37.539 --> 00:02:39.379 why are you searching for the living among the 00:02:39.379 --> 00:02:42.699 dead? You're here in a graveyard searching for 00:02:42.699 --> 00:02:45.199 someone who's dead, but they are alive. And then 00:02:45.199 --> 00:02:46.860 they begin to explain, do you not remember what 00:02:46.860 --> 00:02:48.639 he said? Do you not remember what he said? He 00:02:48.639 --> 00:02:50.759 would have to be suffered. He'd have to be suffered 00:02:50.759 --> 00:02:53.379 and crucified, and he would have to do these 00:02:53.379 --> 00:02:55.319 things and then rise again. Do you not remember 00:02:55.319 --> 00:02:57.210 those things? And then they're starting to recall 00:02:57.210 --> 00:02:59.210 the things, right? When you're in a grief mode, 00:02:59.330 --> 00:03:02.009 when you're in, especially a couple of days after 00:03:02.009 --> 00:03:04.770 the loss of someone you love deeply, you can't 00:03:04.770 --> 00:03:06.629 think straight. You're not remembering things. 00:03:06.710 --> 00:03:08.849 You're trying to remember things they said, but 00:03:08.849 --> 00:03:10.270 you're trying to remember things you do, how 00:03:10.270 --> 00:03:12.509 you've experienced life with them, right? You're 00:03:12.509 --> 00:03:14.610 going back and thinking about the life experiences 00:03:14.610 --> 00:03:17.030 and the joys that you had and the times you shared 00:03:17.030 --> 00:03:19.650 and all of those things. But the angels are saying, 00:03:19.669 --> 00:03:21.819 remember what he said? Do you remember his words? 00:03:22.020 --> 00:03:23.960 He said this would happen. He said he would suffer. 00:03:24.099 --> 00:03:25.900 Then he said he would die. And he said he would 00:03:25.900 --> 00:03:28.500 rise again. You're here the day he rose again. 00:03:28.719 --> 00:03:32.719 He's not here. He's already risen. Powerful stuff, 00:03:32.879 --> 00:03:35.759 right? The women go crazy. I mean, they're carrying 00:03:35.759 --> 00:03:37.340 all this stuff. Can you imagine them walking 00:03:37.340 --> 00:03:39.939 up to the tomb with all this stuff and then hearing 00:03:39.939 --> 00:03:42.539 that he's not there? I don't know if they drop 00:03:42.539 --> 00:03:44.439 the stuff and take off running back to the upper 00:03:44.439 --> 00:03:46.659 room. I don't know if they carry the stuff back 00:03:46.659 --> 00:03:48.159 to the upper room. Hey, we don't need this stuff 00:03:48.159 --> 00:03:50.500 anymore, guys. He's not there. They get back 00:03:50.500 --> 00:03:53.099 in there and they tell the disciples. They were 00:03:53.099 --> 00:03:54.960 like, he's not there anymore. He's risen. There 00:03:54.960 --> 00:03:56.860 were these two angels. They told us this dazzling 00:03:56.860 --> 00:03:58.800 clothing. It was awesome. It was amazing. The 00:03:58.800 --> 00:04:00.780 guys don't believe them. They're like, these 00:04:00.780 --> 00:04:03.780 are fairy tales. You're telling us these fables, 00:04:03.800 --> 00:04:06.080 these stories. You are not telling us what's 00:04:06.080 --> 00:04:08.639 real. Well, Peter and John get up and take off. 00:04:08.939 --> 00:04:11.240 We see, we read that Peter does here in Luke 00:04:11.240 --> 00:04:13.599 24. We also know John does, if you go back to 00:04:13.599 --> 00:04:15.840 read the Gospel account of John. But we know 00:04:15.840 --> 00:04:17.620 these guys, they take off running, get to the 00:04:17.620 --> 00:04:20.579 tomb, look in there, nobody is in there. Peter 00:04:20.579 --> 00:04:23.420 then comes back, and then the scene changes. 00:04:23.740 --> 00:04:27.139 As the scene changes, we go to this place that's 00:04:27.139 --> 00:04:30.220 called the road. to Emmaus. And this Emmaus is 00:04:30.220 --> 00:04:32.939 a town a few miles away. I say a few miles, probably 00:04:32.939 --> 00:04:36.220 seven or eight miles, realistically, from the 00:04:36.220 --> 00:04:38.540 city of Jerusalem. So you've got these two disciples. 00:04:38.720 --> 00:04:41.660 These are not a part of the 11. The 11, because 00:04:41.660 --> 00:04:44.439 Judas is now gone. He's deceased. So you've got 00:04:44.439 --> 00:04:46.740 these 11 disciples remaining. They're still together. 00:04:46.939 --> 00:04:49.180 But you've got these two other guys, probably 00:04:49.180 --> 00:04:52.259 within the 72 that followed Jesus, or maybe the 00:04:52.259 --> 00:04:56.120 120. that were followers of Jesus. And these 00:04:56.120 --> 00:04:58.939 guys, they went on this road on the way back 00:04:58.939 --> 00:05:01.100 home, and they're broken, and they're sad. They 00:05:01.100 --> 00:05:03.920 just had the worst weekend of their life. And 00:05:03.920 --> 00:05:07.439 this road is a long, long road. If you're ever 00:05:07.439 --> 00:05:10.100 over in Jerusalem or where the Holy Land is, 00:05:10.180 --> 00:05:12.600 you can see where this road leads through this 00:05:12.600 --> 00:05:14.779 little mountain range around it and just kind 00:05:14.779 --> 00:05:17.500 of heads off and disappears. And these guys are 00:05:17.500 --> 00:05:19.759 just on this long road on the way back home. 00:05:19.899 --> 00:05:24.310 On the way home, they are mourning and broken. 00:05:24.889 --> 00:05:28.290 And this guy shows up. We know because we have 00:05:28.290 --> 00:05:30.990 the scriptures, we know it's Jesus. He shows 00:05:30.990 --> 00:05:32.329 up. He says, why are you guys so sad? What's 00:05:32.329 --> 00:05:34.529 going on? And they start, they're like, well. 00:05:34.939 --> 00:05:36.459 Have you not been in the city? Do you not know 00:05:36.459 --> 00:05:38.680 what's happened? Passover, everybody was here. 00:05:38.759 --> 00:05:40.860 Now it's travel day. Everybody's going back home. 00:05:40.959 --> 00:05:44.199 The feast is not worth celebrating. It's the 00:05:44.199 --> 00:05:46.199 worst weekend of our life. This is the worst 00:05:46.199 --> 00:05:48.980 Passover I've ever experienced. Everybody's saying 00:05:48.980 --> 00:05:51.180 the same thing in town. This guy, do you not 00:05:51.180 --> 00:05:53.480 know about the guy that was crucified? We loved 00:05:53.480 --> 00:05:56.560 him. He was awesome. He was incredible. And our 00:05:56.560 --> 00:05:59.000 rulers and the people that we looked up to at 00:05:59.000 --> 00:06:01.420 one point sentenced this guy to death and crucified 00:06:01.420 --> 00:06:04.410 him at Passover. The holiest day of the year. 00:06:04.610 --> 00:06:07.290 This is what happens. Do you not know this? And 00:06:07.290 --> 00:06:11.769 Jesus starts asking them questions. Then Jesus 00:06:11.769 --> 00:06:14.589 does one of the most amazing things. He does 00:06:14.589 --> 00:06:17.519 a Bible survey. That's right. He does a Bible 00:06:17.519 --> 00:06:21.040 survey. He goes from Moses all the way through 00:06:21.040 --> 00:06:23.240 the prophets, all the way through the Old Testament, 00:06:23.259 --> 00:06:25.839 and helps them see everything that revealed who 00:06:25.839 --> 00:06:29.139 Jesus is. Powerful, powerful. I will say this 00:06:29.139 --> 00:06:31.120 out of personal experience. A few years ago, 00:06:31.199 --> 00:06:33.279 whenever I first became the pastor of this church 00:06:33.279 --> 00:06:35.560 that I'm at, New Providence, loved this church 00:06:35.560 --> 00:06:37.360 family so much. When I first became a pastor 00:06:37.360 --> 00:06:39.079 here, I had this Bible study group that would 00:06:39.079 --> 00:06:40.819 meet. And I said, here's what I want to do. I 00:06:40.819 --> 00:06:42.839 want to do what Jesus did. I want to do what 00:06:42.839 --> 00:06:45.399 Jesus did on the Emmaus Road. I want to do a 00:06:45.399 --> 00:06:48.420 Bible survey. So every single week, this was 00:06:48.420 --> 00:06:51.720 awesome, every week we met together and we went 00:06:51.720 --> 00:06:53.759 through an entire book of the Bible. And it was 00:06:53.759 --> 00:06:56.759 a one hour to maybe an hour and ten minute Bible 00:06:56.759 --> 00:06:59.639 study where I just shared about the entire book 00:06:59.639 --> 00:07:01.879 of the Bible for that week. So I would go through 00:07:01.879 --> 00:07:04.480 Genesis. an hour long. Then I would talk about 00:07:04.480 --> 00:07:06.639 Exodus and I'd go from beginning to end of Exodus 00:07:06.639 --> 00:07:09.360 in one hour. Then I would do Leviticus. If you 00:07:09.360 --> 00:07:11.620 ever are interested in those Bible surveys, you 00:07:11.620 --> 00:07:13.300 can go listen to another podcast that we have 00:07:13.300 --> 00:07:16.379 in the New Providence podcast that has the Bible 00:07:16.379 --> 00:07:18.839 study surveys. But here's what I would do. I'd 00:07:18.839 --> 00:07:19.980 say, I want to go through all the way, always 00:07:19.980 --> 00:07:21.939 through the book of Haggai in one setting. And 00:07:21.939 --> 00:07:24.139 I want to go through the book of Jonah or through 00:07:24.139 --> 00:07:26.439 Malachi or whatever. We even did it with the 00:07:26.439 --> 00:07:28.759 New Testament because it's so awesome to see 00:07:28.759 --> 00:07:31.560 the Bible, the whole picture, right? And we saw 00:07:31.560 --> 00:07:34.860 little moments where Christ would be exemplified 00:07:34.860 --> 00:07:37.740 and magnified to point to where he was coming 00:07:37.740 --> 00:07:39.120 in the New Testament. And then in the New Testament, 00:07:39.139 --> 00:07:41.120 they pointed to the Old Testament that was where 00:07:41.120 --> 00:07:43.560 he was shown the first time and beautiful things 00:07:43.560 --> 00:07:45.819 all the way through it. Jesus does that here 00:07:45.819 --> 00:07:48.480 with these disciples at the Emmaus Road. Then 00:07:48.480 --> 00:07:51.360 they get to their destination. Looks like Jesus 00:07:51.360 --> 00:07:53.689 is going to go a little bit further. And those 00:07:53.689 --> 00:07:55.730 disciples say, hey, why don't you stay with us? 00:07:55.870 --> 00:07:58.889 It's getting dark. It's evening time. Come on 00:07:58.889 --> 00:08:01.930 in and have dinner with us. So Jesus goes in 00:08:01.930 --> 00:08:03.329 and has dinner with them. He's like, okay, let's 00:08:03.329 --> 00:08:05.269 have dinner together. And as they sit down there, 00:08:05.350 --> 00:08:07.569 it says Jesus was breaking bread, and he handed 00:08:07.569 --> 00:08:09.610 it to them. As soon as he broke the bread and 00:08:09.610 --> 00:08:12.709 handed it to him, they saw who he was. Now, I've 00:08:12.709 --> 00:08:16.329 heard several sermons on this Emmaus Road experience. 00:08:17.189 --> 00:08:20.069 There's even weekends about the Emmaus Road experience 00:08:20.069 --> 00:08:22.610 and these things you can go do. I'm not sure 00:08:22.610 --> 00:08:26.350 if Jesus veiled his face or his glory whenever 00:08:26.350 --> 00:08:28.829 he was on the road. I don't know. I don't know 00:08:28.829 --> 00:08:30.730 if they just never lifted their head and looked 00:08:30.730 --> 00:08:33.350 at him. I don't know. I don't know if he was 00:08:33.350 --> 00:08:35.909 disguising himself some way. I don't know if 00:08:35.909 --> 00:08:38.009 he looked different. I don't know. I just know 00:08:38.009 --> 00:08:41.009 that these disciples didn't recognize Jesus until 00:08:41.009 --> 00:08:43.950 he broke bread with them. In that moment that 00:08:43.950 --> 00:08:46.350 he broke bread with them, they saw him, eyes 00:08:46.350 --> 00:08:49.429 open, hearts, everything's revealed, everything's 00:08:49.429 --> 00:08:52.629 understood, and now Jesus vanishes. So these 00:08:52.629 --> 00:08:54.090 disciples look around and say, what in the world? 00:08:54.190 --> 00:08:56.629 They're like, you know, I knew it had to be him. 00:08:56.669 --> 00:08:59.009 My heart was burning when he was talking through 00:08:59.009 --> 00:09:01.470 the scriptures with us. I want you to say, one 00:09:01.470 --> 00:09:04.450 of my hearts, one of my desires in my heart as 00:09:04.450 --> 00:09:07.169 a pastor is when I preach, I want people to walk 00:09:07.169 --> 00:09:10.669 out and say, I wanted more. I felt like I was 00:09:10.669 --> 00:09:13.470 on fire with what was being shared with the truth 00:09:13.470 --> 00:09:17.049 of the word of God, like the power of this word. 00:09:17.129 --> 00:09:19.110 It was changing my heart. It was transforming 00:09:19.110 --> 00:09:22.549 my life. It was being revealed, and I was understanding 00:09:22.549 --> 00:09:24.629 it for the first time. These disciples on the 00:09:24.629 --> 00:09:26.950 Emmaus Road were saying, I was understanding 00:09:26.950 --> 00:09:29.909 the scriptures. I could get it because he taught 00:09:29.909 --> 00:09:31.750 it, and he showed it to me and explained it to 00:09:31.750 --> 00:09:33.730 me. My heart was on fire whenever he was talking. 00:09:33.870 --> 00:09:35.649 So then the disciples say, we got to go back 00:09:35.649 --> 00:09:38.769 to Jerusalem and tell the other. 11, what's happened? 00:09:38.950 --> 00:09:41.350 So they get up and they leave, and they go back 00:09:41.350 --> 00:09:44.470 to Jerusalem, another seven miles, eight miles 00:09:44.470 --> 00:09:47.970 back, and they are hustling this time. I promise 00:09:47.970 --> 00:09:49.929 you this, it did not take them as long to get 00:09:49.929 --> 00:09:52.370 back as it did to get there. They were moving. 00:09:52.629 --> 00:09:55.129 There's not this slow cadence with their shoulders 00:09:55.129 --> 00:09:59.149 down and broken. This was a shoulders back, running, 00:09:59.210 --> 00:10:01.129 sprinting to get back to where these disciples 00:10:01.129 --> 00:10:04.669 are. We have seen Jesus. He died a couple of 00:10:04.669 --> 00:10:07.370 days ago, and now we saw him today. on the first 00:10:07.370 --> 00:10:09.129 day of the week, and it's changed our life. When 00:10:09.129 --> 00:10:11.049 they get there, I want to read a couple of scriptures 00:10:11.049 --> 00:10:12.809 to you to show you that I'm not making this up. 00:10:12.909 --> 00:10:14.730 Because when they get there, something happens. 00:10:15.389 --> 00:10:17.590 And honestly, this stood out to me today. And 00:10:17.590 --> 00:10:20.269 I did a little extra reading, so I apologize 00:10:20.269 --> 00:10:22.610 for going around a couple of places in scripture. 00:10:23.289 --> 00:10:25.789 I didn't stick just to our reading plan. My apologies. 00:10:25.990 --> 00:10:28.129 But something was shown to me that I think the 00:10:28.129 --> 00:10:30.110 Lord showed me that I've never really paid attention 00:10:30.110 --> 00:10:32.440 to before. if I'm honest. So I want to read a 00:10:32.440 --> 00:10:34.960 couple scriptures out of Luke 24. Here's what 00:10:34.960 --> 00:10:37.840 I want to say. In verse number 33, the Bible 00:10:37.840 --> 00:10:40.639 says this, And they rose that same hour and returned 00:10:40.639 --> 00:10:43.220 to Jerusalem. And they found the eleven and those 00:10:43.220 --> 00:10:45.399 who were with them gathered together, saying, 00:10:45.639 --> 00:10:48.519 The Lord has risen indeed, and he has appeared 00:10:48.519 --> 00:10:52.440 to Simon. Then they told what happened on the 00:10:52.440 --> 00:10:55.000 road and how he was known to them in the breaking 00:10:55.000 --> 00:10:57.379 of the bread. So here's the scene that's taken 00:10:57.379 --> 00:10:59.500 place. I want you to see it. I want you to know 00:10:59.500 --> 00:11:01.419 it. I want you to put your minds there. These 00:11:01.419 --> 00:11:04.840 guys on the MAS road experience Jesus. They find 00:11:04.840 --> 00:11:07.220 out who he is. They see him and they experience 00:11:07.220 --> 00:11:09.960 him. Then they get up that same hour. take off 00:11:09.960 --> 00:11:12.379 back to Jerusalem. When they get to the upper 00:11:12.379 --> 00:11:14.500 room, they go through the gate in Jerusalem, 00:11:14.639 --> 00:11:17.519 probably that needle's eye gate right there in 00:11:17.519 --> 00:11:19.059 Jerusalem, because that's coming from where the 00:11:19.059 --> 00:11:20.879 road to Emmaus would have led in. They get in 00:11:20.879 --> 00:11:22.279 there, they race through the city, they find 00:11:22.279 --> 00:11:23.779 the upper room, they find the house that has 00:11:23.779 --> 00:11:25.299 the upper room, they go on the outside, they 00:11:25.299 --> 00:11:26.860 run up the stairs, and it says they found the 00:11:26.860 --> 00:11:30.080 eleven and the others gathered. That sense means 00:11:30.080 --> 00:11:32.600 it's probably a packed room. Of course it's a 00:11:32.600 --> 00:11:35.039 packed room. That morning, a couple of ladies 00:11:35.039 --> 00:11:37.120 went and found the tomb empty. It's going to 00:11:37.120 --> 00:11:38.460 be a packed room. They're going to bring everybody 00:11:38.460 --> 00:11:40.279 together. Who's seen it? Where's he at? What's 00:11:40.279 --> 00:11:42.559 going on? What's happened? When they get in there, 00:11:42.600 --> 00:11:44.500 when these two disciples get back in there, they 00:11:44.500 --> 00:11:46.600 run in and they hear them talking and say, he's 00:11:46.600 --> 00:11:49.360 risen indeed. In fact, he has shown himself. 00:11:49.419 --> 00:11:54.200 He's appeared to Simon. That threw me off. I'm 00:11:54.200 --> 00:11:55.720 not going to lie. It threw me off. I thought, 00:11:55.740 --> 00:11:59.019 when did he appear to Simon? I didn't read that 00:11:59.019 --> 00:12:01.580 part. That's not in Luke 24. It's also not in 00:12:01.580 --> 00:12:05.019 Matthew or Mark or John. Like, wait just a second. 00:12:05.059 --> 00:12:08.750 Where's it at? It's also in 1 Corinthians 15. 00:12:09.409 --> 00:12:12.190 Yeah, Paul wrote about it to the church of Corinth 00:12:12.190 --> 00:12:14.289 in 1 Corinthians 15, I think down in verse 5. 00:12:14.529 --> 00:12:17.789 He says that he appeared to Cephas. And so that's 00:12:17.789 --> 00:12:20.850 also Peter. So I'm like, okay, Simon, he appeared 00:12:20.850 --> 00:12:22.429 to Simon. What happened? He appeared to Simon 00:12:22.429 --> 00:12:27.110 Peter at some point before the Emmaus Road experience. 00:12:27.710 --> 00:12:30.429 And so Peter's talking about it with these guys. 00:12:31.149 --> 00:12:33.090 So as this is happening, these disciples, then 00:12:33.090 --> 00:12:36.070 the Emmaus Road disciples say, Well, we saw him. 00:12:36.090 --> 00:12:38.769 He's appeared to us. Listen, we were seven miles 00:12:38.769 --> 00:12:40.590 from here and he appeared to us. He showed up 00:12:40.590 --> 00:12:42.850 and he was talking with us on the road. We didn't 00:12:42.850 --> 00:12:44.789 know who he was. It was this crazy thing. And 00:12:44.789 --> 00:12:46.309 then we get in there and we break bread and he 00:12:46.309 --> 00:12:47.690 opened it. And as soon as he broke the bread, 00:12:47.769 --> 00:12:49.570 we thought, that's him. That's who he is. It's 00:12:49.570 --> 00:12:51.590 Jesus. And then he vanished. We can't find him. 00:12:51.710 --> 00:12:53.970 We're looking for him again. Now, the good news 00:12:53.970 --> 00:12:55.470 is, don't read any further because you're going 00:12:55.470 --> 00:12:58.129 to spoil it. But the good news is, at this point, 00:12:58.149 --> 00:13:01.409 I started thinking, how in the world did I ever 00:13:01.409 --> 00:13:03.870 miss that he had already appeared to Simon? When 00:13:03.870 --> 00:13:05.879 and where and how? That's what I want to know. 00:13:06.179 --> 00:13:10.159 Well, the Bible doesn't give us much on it. I 00:13:10.159 --> 00:13:13.980 assumed that Peter, his first real communication 00:13:13.980 --> 00:13:17.120 with Jesus was whenever he was restored publicly. 00:13:17.480 --> 00:13:20.620 In John 21, I believe, you find the story of 00:13:20.620 --> 00:13:23.620 him and Jesus asking him, Do you love me? Yes. 00:13:23.759 --> 00:13:25.820 Then feed my sheep. Do you love me? Yes. Do you 00:13:25.820 --> 00:13:28.759 love me? He's asking this three times. I thought 00:13:28.759 --> 00:13:31.500 that was the restoration of Peter. Here's what 00:13:31.500 --> 00:13:34.100 I think I've come to learn. I think I've come 00:13:34.100 --> 00:13:38.720 to learn that Jesus will restore privately, but 00:13:38.720 --> 00:13:42.730 he will commission publicly. So I believe he 00:13:42.730 --> 00:13:45.649 restored Peter at some point. And listen to this. 00:13:45.710 --> 00:13:48.509 Peter was a guy who would say anything all the 00:13:48.509 --> 00:13:51.309 time, right? But there is no record of that meeting 00:13:51.309 --> 00:13:54.870 of what happened. We know that it happened. We 00:13:54.870 --> 00:13:57.830 don't know how it happened. We know that it was 00:13:57.830 --> 00:14:00.809 a case that Luke wrote about it, Paul wrote about 00:14:00.809 --> 00:14:02.990 it, so it obviously was shared. But he never 00:14:02.990 --> 00:14:05.669 said what was actually talked about. Because 00:14:05.669 --> 00:14:08.950 here's the thing. The last time Peter had seen 00:14:08.950 --> 00:14:11.429 Jesus, If you remember, he locked eyes with him 00:14:11.429 --> 00:14:14.169 after he had denied him three times and the rooster 00:14:14.169 --> 00:14:19.240 crows and Peter's broken. Jesus meets with Peter 00:14:19.240 --> 00:14:22.259 on the first day of the week. One of the first 00:14:22.259 --> 00:14:25.200 people he reveals himself to. We don't know when 00:14:25.200 --> 00:14:26.460 it happened. We know it wasn't whenever him and 00:14:26.460 --> 00:14:28.419 John were together at the tomb because John would 00:14:28.419 --> 00:14:30.120 have written about it or John would have said 00:14:30.120 --> 00:14:32.299 something about it. It could have been there, 00:14:32.340 --> 00:14:34.580 but there was a moment probably after that that 00:14:34.580 --> 00:14:38.240 Jesus met with Simon and saw him personally and 00:14:38.240 --> 00:14:41.179 had a conversation and restores him to a relationship. 00:14:41.840 --> 00:14:45.200 He may have said to him, I forgive you. I love 00:14:45.200 --> 00:14:47.809 you. I want to think that those moments where 00:14:47.809 --> 00:14:51.370 you feel really, really broken, they're not public 00:14:51.370 --> 00:14:54.370 spectacle moments, right? Because this isn't 00:14:54.370 --> 00:14:57.610 a public spectacle walk. This is a personal walk. 00:14:57.889 --> 00:15:00.370 This is what's going on in your heart on a daily 00:15:00.370 --> 00:15:03.730 basis. How are you handling this, Jesus? How 00:15:03.730 --> 00:15:06.210 are you responding to this, Jesus? I want to 00:15:06.210 --> 00:15:08.470 encourage you today. I want you to read this 00:15:08.470 --> 00:15:11.690 text, Luke 24, 1 through 35. Read it a couple 00:15:11.690 --> 00:15:13.570 times if you need to. See something you've never 00:15:13.570 --> 00:15:16.700 seen. I've never seen that. Not kidding. I've 00:15:16.700 --> 00:15:19.340 read it. I didn't think about it. It stuck out 00:15:19.340 --> 00:15:21.519 to me today. And as it stuck out to me, I thought, 00:15:21.559 --> 00:15:24.980 how beautiful is it that our Savior will restore 00:15:24.980 --> 00:15:28.039 us privately? And it's not something that Peter 00:15:28.039 --> 00:15:29.720 goes around and shouting to everybody and telling 00:15:29.720 --> 00:15:31.740 everybody. I would love to know what happened. 00:15:31.899 --> 00:15:34.659 I hope when I'm in heaven and the throne is... 00:15:35.340 --> 00:15:38.080 blaring with holiness and brightness and beauty. 00:15:38.340 --> 00:15:40.799 I hope that I have a chance to talk to some others 00:15:40.799 --> 00:15:42.759 in heaven without just being in awe of Jesus 00:15:42.759 --> 00:15:45.340 all the time. I have a feeling that sometimes 00:15:45.340 --> 00:15:47.100 when we talk about heaven, we talk about, oh, 00:15:47.100 --> 00:15:50.279 I can't wait to see my dad or my uncle or my 00:15:50.279 --> 00:15:53.019 friend or my whoever, this great hero of the 00:15:53.019 --> 00:15:55.559 faith, or go talk to Peter, go talk to Paul, 00:15:55.679 --> 00:15:59.259 go talk to these guys. I think that on this earth, 00:15:59.379 --> 00:16:01.220 but then I read about what the throne room of 00:16:01.220 --> 00:16:02.700 heaven is like, and I think we're just going 00:16:02.700 --> 00:16:05.149 to look at him all the time. I don't even know 00:16:05.149 --> 00:16:07.070 if we're going to notice anybody else around. 00:16:07.730 --> 00:16:09.490 But if we do get a chance to talk to somebody, 00:16:09.509 --> 00:16:11.230 I'd like to talk to Peter and say, tell me about 00:16:11.230 --> 00:16:14.850 that time in the garden right there outside the 00:16:14.850 --> 00:16:18.669 tomb. When was it that Jesus appeared to you? 00:16:18.730 --> 00:16:21.409 What did he say? How did he say it? I got a feeling 00:16:21.409 --> 00:16:23.350 Peter would say something along the lines of, 00:16:23.389 --> 00:16:27.389 he told me he forgave me in that moment and that 00:16:27.389 --> 00:16:29.870 my sin wasn't going to hold me back and that 00:16:29.870 --> 00:16:31.830 he has a new life for me and a new plan for me 00:16:31.830 --> 00:16:34.860 and I need to be faithful today. Because here's 00:16:34.860 --> 00:16:36.679 the deal. A couple of days later, he appears 00:16:36.679 --> 00:16:40.139 to Peter and he says to him, hey, I want to call 00:16:40.139 --> 00:16:44.080 you to go and lead this church. I want to call 00:16:44.080 --> 00:16:47.659 you to go and be a leader in this place. And 00:16:47.659 --> 00:16:50.539 so I believe sometimes we may think that, you 00:16:50.539 --> 00:16:52.259 know, I talk to pastors a lot and say, listen, 00:16:52.320 --> 00:16:57.279 don't get too... saddened over the fact that 00:16:57.279 --> 00:17:00.259 people don't come and get this big restoration 00:17:00.259 --> 00:17:03.279 moment in your church services. Sometimes that 00:17:03.279 --> 00:17:06.299 happens privately, and that's okay. If it happened 00:17:06.299 --> 00:17:08.799 privately for Peter, and he goes up and preaches 00:17:08.799 --> 00:17:11.960 a few days later, we're talking within 50 days 00:17:11.960 --> 00:17:16.000 later, Peter preaches a sermon, and 3 ,000 people 00:17:16.000 --> 00:17:19.640 come to know Jesus. That is a powerful thing, 00:17:19.720 --> 00:17:21.900 and that restoration happened, and we won't know 00:17:21.900 --> 00:17:24.059 on this side of heaven what he said. That drives 00:17:24.059 --> 00:17:27.279 me crazy. I want to know. I have thoughts. I 00:17:27.279 --> 00:17:29.599 have ideas. I have some Old Testament connections 00:17:29.599 --> 00:17:31.519 that Jesus may have said that possibly pointed 00:17:31.519 --> 00:17:34.140 to something else. But here's the truth. Jesus 00:17:34.140 --> 00:17:38.259 met with Peter, revealed to him who he was, and 00:17:38.259 --> 00:17:41.160 at this point, Peter didn't run away. He said, 00:17:41.200 --> 00:17:43.839 I'm going to be faithful to the walk. These disciples 00:17:43.839 --> 00:17:47.900 on the road to Emmaus said, we have seen something 00:17:47.900 --> 00:17:50.460 amazing. You know the beautiful thing about Christianity? 00:17:51.000 --> 00:17:53.019 You don't have to do anything. You just have 00:17:53.019 --> 00:17:56.819 to share what has been done. That's it. I said 00:17:56.819 --> 00:18:00.559 last Sunday that our salvation is fully by works, 00:18:00.700 --> 00:18:03.940 just not our works. It's by the works of Jesus. 00:18:04.339 --> 00:18:07.259 Our job is to be a witness to those works. You 00:18:07.259 --> 00:18:09.000 just have to share what you've seen. That's it. 00:18:09.079 --> 00:18:11.059 That's all you have to do. The Emmaus Road disciples 00:18:11.059 --> 00:18:14.319 did that. Peter does that. The rest of the disciples 00:18:14.319 --> 00:18:17.579 do that. So my challenge to you today, read the 00:18:17.579 --> 00:18:19.200 scripture, let it change your heart, and go and 00:18:19.200 --> 00:18:20.839 share what you have witnessed.