This past week I was at a theology discussion
I had a very very important role that night.
I was the one pouring the beverages and They
were very important beverages. They were fermented
and you know at one point a guy walks up to me
and He starts talking to me like he knows me
and I'm thinking to myself I should know this
guy But I have absolutely no idea who he is at
all. I meet people in a lot of different places
and a lot of different situations. So, I've developed
a strategy for this. I just go with it. I look
them right in the eye and say, hey, it's so great
to see you. How have you been? Or, what's new?
Or, what's been happening? Now the good part
about this is that you can do this with anybody,
but if it's someone that I should know, they're
going to hear this and they're going to respond
with something that gives me context. Maybe they're
answering a question that's relevant to a past
conversation or maybe something that helps me
to figure out how I know them. And so of course,
that's what I did. Hey, it's good to see you.
What's new? And he just says, Oh, you know, things
are okay. That is not helpful at all. And at
that point, I just kind of gave up, and I just
said, it's good to see you. What would you like
to drink? And I just hoped that he would not
realize that I had absolutely no idea who he
was. Now, it's a strange feeling, isn't it? You're
standing in front of someone. and you're talking
with them, and you know you should recognize
them, but you just can't place it. You can see
them, you can hear them, you can interact with
them, but you just cannot figure the context
to understand who you're actually talking to.
And that's exactly what was happening in Luke
24. Two disciples are walking down the road,
talking about everything that's happened in Jerusalem.
Jesus had been arrested, put on the cross. But
it seems that there's more happening here. Jesus,
though, Jesus himself comes up and walks with
them. They see him and they talk with him, they
walk with him, but they don't recognize him.
Not because he's not tangibly there. He has a
body. They can see him. They know he's there.
But because they don't yet have the context to
understand who he is. We might think, well of
course they don't recognize him. Think about
everything that's just happened, all right? They
had hoped that Jesus was the one who would redeem
Israel. They had followed him, they had listened
to him, they had watched what he did, but then
he was arrested. He was tried and then crucified
and buried. Whatever they thought the Messiah
was supposed to be, this did not include that.
They were not expecting a suffering Messiah.
They certainly were not expecting a crucified
one. And even more than that, they were not expecting
a Jesus standing before them now with a resurrected
body, whole, restored, perfected. A life not
just returned, but transformed, meant to endure
forever. Of course. they would not be able to
recognize Him. But they're not even looking for
a Messiah anymore. As far as they're concerned,
that hope is gone. So, yes, of course it would
make sense to say that they wouldn't recognize
Him. Their expectations were wrong, their understanding
was incomplete, and after the last few days,
they're emotionally exhausted. They're not just
confused. They're undone. But Luke lets us know
that it's more than that. He says their eyes
were kept from recognizing Him. See, in the Greek,
the ekratuntō, it says they were being kept.
They were being restrained. In other words, this
is not just confusion. Something is preventing
them from seeing Him clearly. The way it's written
tells us this is not something that they're doing.
It's passive Something or someone is acting on
them Yeah, their expectations were off their
hearts were overwhelmed But it's even more than
that Jesus is not allowing himself to be recognized
yet But that wrecking that raises the question
though Why? Why would Jesus walk with them? talk
with them, but hold back from being known. And
the answer is this, because if those two people
recognize him too soon, getting excited that
the story hasn't actually ended yet, they're
going to misunderstand him all over again. Because
they would fall right back into the way that
they saw him before. The expectations that they
had of Him. What they thought Jesus represented.
What they thought Jesus came to do. A Messiah
who would overthrow the Romans. A Messiah who
would reestablish an earthly kingdom. The way
they understood it. If those two disciples see
Jesus and they get it before they understand
Him, they're just going to fit Him back into
the same broken expectations. So before he opens
their eyes and lets them see who he truly is
Jesus has to open the scriptures He has to show
them what the prophets were really pointing to
what God had intended all along the promises
of a suffering servant in Isaiah the righteous
one in the Psalms who is afflicted and also vindicated
the pattern of sacrifice and deliverance woven
through the law itself. Not what they had assumed
or filled in on their own. Because before they
can truly recognize who He is, they have to understand
what He came to do. So Jesus begins to speak.
Now, Jesus doesn't do anything obvious and reveal
himself right away. He's not saying, hey guys,
it's me, Jesus. A little more subtle and not
a video game. Instead, he starts with the scriptures.
He begins with Moses and all the prophets. He
interprets to them in all the scriptures the
things concerning himself. He takes everything
they thought they understood and he starts to
reframe it. Not by giving them new information,
but by giving them the right understanding of
it. Because the problem was never that they lacked
facts. The problem was that they understood what
those facts meant. They knew what had happened.
They just didn't know what it meant. But honestly?
Isn't that true about us too? How often do we
have facts right in front of us and still miss
what God is doing? Because we're still seeing
through our own expectations and assumptions.
Jesus walks them back through it all, through
the law, through the prophets, through the promises
they'd heard their whole lives, and He shows
them this was always the plan. the suffering,
the rejection, the cross. It was not a failure.
It was not some detour from what was intended.
This is exactly what God had been pointing to
all along. Not the plan they wanted, but the
plan they needed. And as He speaks, something
begins to happen. Not obviously. Not yet. They
still don't recognize Him. But on the inside?
something's changing. Before their eyes are opened,
Christ is already at work in them. And this is
where they begin to see it, not yet with their
eyes, but in their hearts. Because later they
say, did not our hearts burn within us while
He talked to us on the road, when He opened to
us the Scriptures? before they realized that
something was happening in them, something that
they didn't create, something they didn't initiate,
something they couldn't even fully explain at
the time. See, this is where we need to be careful,
though. Because this is one of those moments
in Scripture that can be easily misunderstood.
Because when we talk about God working on us,
working in us, awakening faith, stirring the
heart, People often hear that and they think
one of two things. Either they think, so I must
be the one who decides my fate. I'm the one who
chooses. I'm the one who creates that faith in
myself. That's me. Or, I guess I'm just a puppet
in God's hands with no real response of my own
at all in any of this. But to be clear, it's
neither. That theology discussion that night,
this very topic was coming up, and I heard all
the people that were up there trying to wrestle
with it, and I was really worried because of
what they were saying, because unfortunately,
they didn't have any Lutherans up there to help
them out. I mean, come on. I was right there.
Because often we see is that in our world people
struggle with the two. Because on the one hand,
there were those emphasizing that grace really
is God's work. And that's absolutely correct.
But then it drifted into an idea that many people
take from that, that God must also be the one
choosing who He wants to be lost. as if he wants
some people to be condemned. And I've heard those
very same people say that that somehow gives
them a sense of peace, which makes me wonder
what's wrong with them. That's not the picture
scripture gives us of God. The other hand, though,
a pastor friend of mine, Meredith, who was on
the panel, was emphasizing free will. I didn't
agree with every point that she made, but she
was absolutely right when she said, we don't
want people spending their whole lives wondering,
did I accept Jesus the right way? Did I do it
correctly enough? She also made the point, against
predestination, that if someone were forced into
God's kingdom against their will, it wouldn't
really be salvation. Being forced into heaven
would almost feel like a different kind of hell.
That's exactly why we have to be clear here.
That we're not promoting what many people call
double predestination. The idea that God decides
ahead of time not only who will be saved, but
also who will be lost based on his own desires.
But at the same time, it's not the opposite view.
That faith is ultimately something we somehow
generate by our own free will or decision before
God has had any say in it at all. Scripture doesn't
actually say either. What it says is something
different. Christ is the one who acts first.
And after Christ has acted first, we can then
choose if we wish to reject Him. Look at the
text. before they recognize Him, before they
say anything about belief, Christ is already
at work in them through His Word. This is why
we are so comfortable with baptizing those who
are still too young to answer for themselves,
because God always works before we come to the
point of embracing it ourselves. For these two
people, their hearts were burning not because
they had it figured out, but because God is revealing
it to them, awakening something, stirring something,
drawing them in. And it means that faith is not
something that you manufacture because you thought
it was a great idea. It's not something you produce
by finally getting your act together or making
the right decision or making sure that you...
really accepted Jesus this time, after 25 believers'
prayers, the right way, the best way, the full
way this time. In fact, every time somebody says,
all you have to do is believe, heard that one
before? We're already making it sound as if belief
is still one thing we have to somehow accomplish,
something we have to achieve, even if it's just
the one thing. But then we end up wondering for
the rest of our lives if we even did that correctly.
That's not what Scripture shows us. Scripture
shows us a Christ who comes to people first,
speaks to them, opens the Word to them, and begins
His work in them before they can even name what's
happening. Which means that when you say, yes,
I want to be saved, you're already responding
to the conviction that you need salvation. that
you're a sinner, and that Christ is your only
hope. That desire to cling to Him, to trust Him,
to look to Him is already at work in you. That's
why I don't berate people with questions when
they say, yes, I want to be saved. And I'm like,
you are in Christ Jesus. It's as you look to
Him. This is not because you've already figured
it all out, or because you're following Him perfectly,
but because as He continues to work in you, your
desire begins to change. Does that mean that
there's no response from us to God's salvation?
That there's no part where a person is actually
saying whether they want any part of this? Are
we just puppets with no say in our own lives?
No. The response is real. The response is ours.
But the response flows from what God has already
done. God is the one who calls. God is the one
who awakens. God is the one who draws. And yes,
people can still turn away when God has spoken.
It may be hard to imagine for us, We want to
be part of God's grace. We're sitting here saying
we love Him. We're grateful for what He has done.
Whether we can understand it or not, people can
still reject what He is doing in their lives.
Because God wants to reach all people. But many
of them do still reject Him. Even those who have
been baptized, even those who have heard the
Word, can still turn away. not because God failed,
not because God is ineffective, but because what
He has given, it can be refused. But on this
road to Emmaus, that's not what's happening.
And in fact, it's not what's happening in your
hearts right now. Because right now, Christ is
speaking. Christ is opening the Scriptures. Christ
is stirring hearts. Something new is beginning.
Not because we've managed to reach up to Him,
but because He's already come to us. And that's
what we hear Peter saying today. Blessed be the
God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. According
to His great mercy, He has caused us to be born
again to a living hope through the resurrection
of Jesus Christ from the dead. Did you catch
that? He has caused us. Just like on the road
to Emmaus, Christ is the one who acts first,
the one who gives you life, the one who brings
us into this living hope. When He's breaking
the bread and they recognize Him, it's not because
they were sitting around the table when they
were doing communion before His crucifixion.
It's because it's the same Jesus who was feeding
them throughout His ministry. Peter also speaks
about faith. Trials. Testing. perseverance though.
We do need to hold those together carefully.
Because our faith, our faith is being refined.
Our faith, we do walk through trials. We are
called to cling to what has been given. None
of that means that faith starts with us. The
faith that endures is still the faith that God
has created. The faith that sustains you in the
trials is the same grace that first called you.
And also at the same time, it's not just something
that you sit and watch and drift along without
care. We are meant to hold fast, to remain, to
be active with this because we can reject what
was given. There are times where people allow
the pressures of this world, fears, doubts, distractions,
to pull us away and convince us that what we
have in Christ either isn't enough, or maybe
it's not even worth it. Maybe it's not even true.
Peter says don't lose sight of what you've been
given. Even though you have not seen Him, you've
loved Him. Even though... You do not now see
Him. You believe in Him and rejoice with joy
that is inexpressible and filled with glory.
It's the same reality we saw with Thomas. Blessed
are those who have not seen and yet have believed.
This is the life of faith. Not seeing with our
eyes, but knowing Him through His Word. Trusting
Him, loving Him, clinging to Him. Not because
we've convinced ourselves hard enough to love
Him. But because he has already revealed himself
and his love to us and that is what changes us
and That's a testimony not just to others but
to ourselves It's not hollow It's not something
that we just move on from But that is the real
life that he is calling us to You begin to follow
not perfectly but genuinely because you know
Him and He first loved us. Because for those
who hear His Word, who find their hearts stirred,
who say, yes, I believe, this is not a question
of whether you've believed enough or whether
you accepted Him in just the right way. It's
already yours. What Christ has accomplished is
not waiting for you to complete it. It is given
to you and receiving it and living in it. It's
affirming what is already accomplished in Christ.
And that is what we can rest in. Because as we
cling to Him, it's His strength, not ours. And
that's where the final turn comes in. Because
once they recognize Him, once their eyes are
opened, He vanishes from their sight. Doesn't
that seem strange? Oh hey, that was Jesus! Oh
hey, we should talk! Where'd He go? Why disappear
now? At that point, He doesn't need to stay in
front of them. Because they already know Him
not just with their eyes, but with their hearts.
Not just recognizing His face, but knowing who
He is and what He has done. And now everything
has changed. so they don't sit there and reflect
quietly. Well, that was cool. They get up immediately
and they go to Jerusalem and they tell everyone.
Because once you see Christ for who He truly
is, you don't just stay where you were. The same
movement we've been tracing all along. Christ
comes to us. Christ speaks to us. Christ reveals
Himself to us. And Christ awakens our hearts.
as He gives us new life. And that life is now
what others see in us. Not because we're proving
something or trying to convince anyone, but because
Christ is alive in us. And that is what is changing
how we live. It's changing how we speak, how
we respond to the people who frustrate us the
most. How we are holding onto when everything
else feels uncertain, in the quiet ways that
we refuse to let go of God. Because people may
not always recognize God right away, but just
like those two people, those two disciples, the
world may not recognize immediately, but over
time, in your actions, in your steadiness, in
your hope, in your words, and please remember
to use your words. Something begins to show.
Not just do you recognize Jesus, but do people
recognize Jesus in you. Because the same Christ
who walked with them on that road has come to
you, spoken to you, and revealed himself to you,
and is still at work in you even today. So go.
with eyes opened, with hearts burning, and with
a faith that is not your own work, but a gift
for you. And as you go, may we continue to live
in the life that He has given in a way that shows
who He is in us. Thanks be to God.