Text: Luke 24:13-35 April 13, 2008
Acts 2:36-41 Hope Presbyterian Church
I Peter 1:17-23
Guest pastor: Dr. Mel Strain
“THEN THEIR EYES WERE OPENED”
“Then their eyes were opened and they recognized him…” That is a key verse in this passage in Luke’s gospel about the two disciples from Emmaus. But what does that mean? What did it mean for those two men to have their eyes opened? And what might it mean for us? That is the question I want you to think about this morning, and to think about in terms of yourself.
For most of you, church has been apart of your life for many years. You have heard who knows how many sermons on the person of Jesus Christ. In what ways have your eyes been opened, and you see things differently? How have your ideas changed on who He is, and how is your life different because of Him? In other words, what is there that is different about you because of Christ?
These two men who were walking back home from Jerusalem did not have the foggiest idea who this person was who came up to them and started walking with them. How anyone could have been in the city the last few days and not heard what had happened was beyond them; but they reviewed for this stranger the events of the previous two days.
Now we could spend some time on the question of why these two disciples did not recognize Jesus, but it would all be purely speculative. At the same time it might be of value to speculate on how it can be that people can come to church Sunday after Sunday and hear sermon after sermon on Jesus Christ, but yet they don’t recognize him in the sense of knowing Him in a personal relationship. The reasons behind each of those situations may be similar. They may not be. But that’s another question for another time. According to Luke, it was while Jesus was having a meal with these two disciples that the shades of darkness, so to speak, were lifted from their eyes, and it dawned on them who He was. Now it sounds like they were having a private communion service, but that might be reading too much into the story. We need to realize that these two disciples were not two of the twelve, but probably two of the seventy, because at one point Jesus had 70 disciples, though several of those had left him.
Maybe these two men had heard about what happened in that upper room on the night Jesus was betrayed when He broke bread with his disciples and then passed the cup of wine, or maybe it was just a meal they were having with this invited guest. But it was while they were sitting at table that Jesus broke bread, and something happened to these two disciples. Whatever it was, it caused their eyes to be opened and they recognized that this person in their midst was their risen Lord. The Jesus who had been crucified, somehow triumphed over death, and had been present with these two disciples much of that afternoon and evening. And then very mysteriously, Jesus disappeared. But these two men were so excited that they had to hurry back to Jerusalem to tell the others. They could not wait until morning. They had to travel back to the city, a distance of about seven miles.
So this person who had joined them was no longer seen as a stranger, which they first thought was the case, but was recognized as their risen Lord. That’s what happened to them. What has your own experience been? I hope you are still asking yourself that question. In what ways have your eyes been opened to where you see Jesus differently, and consequently your life is also different?
As you reflect on that question, let me turn to the other two passages and share how Peter might respond to that question if it were asked of him. And maybe this may trigger some ideas for you.
In the second chapter of Acts, we read that Peter is giving a sermon to a large crowd of people, numbering in the thousands. My guess is most of them are familiar with the person Jesus of Nazareth, or at the very least had heard about him. And some of them may even have seen him and heard him preach, and perhaps even saw some miracles he performed.
Peter shares how this Jesus is the Christ, meaning the anointed One sent by God to deliver His people. This Jesus was crucified, but God raised him from the dead. And then in verse 36, which gives the whole thrust of his message, Peter tells the people: “Therefore let the entire house of Israel know with certainty that God has made him both Lord and Messiah.” The name for messiah that we are more familiar with is the name Christ. So Peter is saying that this Jesus who was crucified, God make both Lord and Christ.
That’s how Peter’s eyes had been opened. Like many others, he was impressed with Jesus’ power to heal and perform miracles. He was captivated by his message and the parables he shared. There was something about Jesus that made Peter willing to leave his fishing occupation. Peter never tells us in so many words why he chose to follow this itinerant preacher, but he does say that he came to recognize Jesus as both Lord and Christ.
The Jewish people had long expected a Messiah – a deliverer. Their expectation was that when he came he would deliver them from their oppressors, and at that time, their oppressors were the hated Romans. It hadn’t occurred to them that his main task was to deliver them from sin. But that is what Peter came to understand, and it required a change in his own thinking.
To Peter, Jesus was the Christ, the One whom God promised. To Peter, Jesus was also Lord. And that implies a personal relationship. To say that Jesus is Lord is to put oneself in the position of servant. And Peter certainly saw himself as a servant of Jesus Christ. There was a relationship there that meant so much to Peter that he was willing to submit himself to the will of Christ -- to be obedient Jesus Christ. Why? Why would Peter want to do that? Because to him, Jesus is Lord. And Peter saw himself in that role of servant, not because he had to. He wanted to. It gave him great joy to surrender his life to Jesus Christ as Lord of his life.
This had very practical application for Peter, and over in his first epistle, he shares that with his readers. In that passage, he shares different things, but I want to just pull out a couple of ideas.
One is where he says: “live in reverent fear during the time of your exile.” Now that sounds a little strange and we can read right over it because we don’t know what Peter means by the word “exile.”
The Greek word is paroikia which means dwelling in a foreign land, or sojourning. A sojourner is one who is living in another country, but their true home is elsewhere. Some translations read: “Live your lives as strangers here in reverent fear.”
This captures what Peter is wanting to get across. His true home was not in this world, but he was only sojourning here. He saw himself as a stranger here because he was a citizen of heaven.
How many of us see ourselves as strangers in this world? And I’m not talking about being a visitor in another town or another country, and therefore you are a stranger to those people; but where we see ourselves as a stranger, as a sojourner in this world, even though we live here in Huntsville, AL, because our true home is with God.
Most of us, I’m sure, do not think of ourselves as strangers in that way.
But Peter did because he recognized Jesus for who He is. He is Lord.
And Peter knew that God had chosen him in Christ, and therefore he belonged to
Christ. As a result, he saw himself as a stranger in this world.
He knew he was different because his allegiance was to Christ? Do you
see that difference in your life? Have your eyes been opened to that
truth?
In verse 22, Peter urges us to “love one another deeply from the heart.” The heart is the figurative seat of our emotions and our compassion. Peter is saying that it is with deep feeling that we are to love one another…caring for one another from the depths of our being.
We cannot read the Scriptures, especially the New Testament, and not hear this message. Little children are told from the first days of Sunday School that God loves them, and we are to love one another.
Gordon McDonald, who was pastor in a New York City congregation, tells the story that when was Senior Pastor there, he had a theologian on their staff to help in educating adults. His name was Bob.
One day Bob was asked to come and talk to a class of 3-4 year olds about God. Gordon McDonald said he was real curious how Bob with his intellectual mind and deep thinking was going to relate to children this young. So he thought he would stop by that class to hear what Bob would say to these three and four year olds.
Gordon said that after Bob was introduced to the kids, he got down on their level, and he said basically three things to them. One was: God made you. The second was: God loves you. And the third was: God doesn’t want you to hit anyone.
That’s basically the same message that is heard from this pulpit and every pulpit in the land, time and time again. God made us. He loves us. And He doesn’t want us to hurt anyone, or to hurt ourselves. He wants us to love one another, and to love ourselves.
But hearing that message does not always lead to doing. In fact it takes more than just hearing the message of love before love becomes a part of our daily lives. It takes a personal relationship with Jesus Christ. Do you have that kind of personal relationship with Jesus Christ?
It is only when we let Christ’s love fill our lives that we can truly begin to love others, and do so genuinely and with compassion and understanding. O yes, we can when the other person is sick, in the hospital, or they are going through a difficult time in their lives and our heart goes out to them. That’s when it is easy to love and be merciful and show compassion. It’s another story when we don’t like them, or we have a personality conflict with them, or they said something or did something that angered us, or turned us off. We are to love one another deeply from the heart. Do you see yourself growing in that kind of love – a love that comes from the heart?
Peter mentions something in verse 23 also. He says: “You have been born anew.” To be born anew implies a rebirth…a change in our lives that can be so dramatic that it is as if we have become a new person. Now we are not all going to have a night and day change where there is a stark contrast in the before and after; but even so, do you see changes that have taken place -- changes in some of your thinking…changes in the way you view others…even changes in your behavior? Has Christ opened your eyes, and you know there is a difference in your life? A difference from the way you once were…a difference in values and beliefs and behaviors that set you apart from others? Do you see that in your life?
If Christ has made a difference in your life, and that is continuing to happen, then in different ways your eyes have been opened, and opened by the power of the Holy Spirit working in you. But we never fully arrive. It’s an ongoing process as the Holy Spirit continues to work in us and through us, but it certainly makes His work easier when we are willing and open to the working of the Holy Spirit in our lives, and pray for that to happen.
It would be interesting to have different people come up here and share how their eyes have been opened to Christ. That would be much more meaningful for all of us. But I have not asked anyone to do that, and our time constraints would make it difficult. So instead, let me share how I would respond to that question if it were asked of me. How have my eyes been opened?
The thought that first comes to mind is that God has chosen me (and I might add parenthetically, you also). He has chosen me and He has chosen you in Christ to be His people…to be a special people unto Him. That is a privilege we have, that we can call ourselves people of God. And it is indeed a privilege and an honor. But with it comes a responsibility.
If God has chosen you and me in Christ to be His people, then we are His representatives here on earth. As Paul says, we are ambassadors for Christ. That means I have an obligation to share God’s love and tell others the good news of Jesus Christ…to do that verbally, as well as by example.
Also, because God has chosen us, as Peter would say, and Paul, and all the other apostles, we are servants of Christ. We belong to Him. I belong to Him. You belong to Him. Our allegiance, our loyalty, is to be to Christ. We are to seek to follow His will and His ways, not because we have to, but because we want to…because we recognize that that is the road that leads to life. Christ is the Lord of life. It is through Him and Him alone that we can receive that life. That’s just some of the ways my eyes have been opened, and when I look back to the way I was 30, 40 years ago, I know there is a difference.
I would encourage you to share with someone today, this week, how your eyes have been opened, and how as a result you see Jesus differently, and what that has meant in your life. That would bring this sermon home for you, and your life would be an illustration.
If your eyes have been opened, share that with someone. If your eyes have not been opened, and you don’t see any difference that Christ has made in your life, then ask Him to open your eyes, and ask Him to work in you through His Holy Spirit; and trust that He will.
“Then their eyes were opened and they recognized him.” How have your eyes been opened and you see Jesus differently, and how is your life different because of Him?
Let’s pray:
Lord Jesus, open our eyes so that we can recognize you for who you are. You are our risen Lord. You are the Christ – the Promised One sent from God to deliver us from sin. You are our Redeemer. Lead us to know you in a personal relationship, and not just know about you. We surrender ourselves to you and we want your Holy Spirit to work in us and through us. We are your servants. Help us to grow in our desire to serve you and love you more. Amen.