Amen. You may be seated. Well, Pastor, I'll give you one more opportunity. Would you like to come up and take over here? Yes, not. It's not a least bit intimidating to bring the Word in your church while the pastor sits on the front row. So I'll just ignore him throughout the sermon. Take your Bibles, please, and turn to Luke, chapter 24. Luke, chapter 24. Familiar passage of Scripture about Jesus appearing to the disciples on the road to Emmaus. Luke, chapter 24. Let's read the Scripture, beginning with verse number 13. That very day, two of them were going to a village named Emmaus, about seven miles from Jerusalem, and they were talking with each other about all the things that had happened. And while they were talking and discussing together, Jesus himself drew near and went with them. But their eyes were kept from recognizing him, and he said to them, What is this conversation that you are holding with each other as you walk? And they stood still looking sad, and one of them, named Cleopas, answered him, Are you the only visitor in Jerusalem who does not know the things that have happened there in these days? He said to them, What things? And they said to him concerning Jesus of Nazareth, a man who was a prophet, mighty indeed, and word before God and all the people, and how our chief priests and rulers delivered him up to be condemned to death and crucified him. But we had hoped that he was the one to redeem Israel. Yes, and besides all of this, it is now the third day since these things have happened. Moreover, some of the women of our company amazed us. They were at the tomb early in the morning. And when they did not find his body, they came back saying that they had even seen a vision of angels who said that he was alive. Some of those who were with us went to the tomb and found it just as the women had said, but him they did not see. And he said to them, O foolish ones and slow of heart to believe all that the prophets have spoken. Was it not necessary that the Christ should suffer these things and enter into his glory? And beginning with Moses and all the prophets, he interpreted to them in all the scriptures the things concerning himself. So they drew near to the village to which they were going, and he acted as if he were going further, but they urged him strongly, saying, Stay with us, for it is towards evening, and the day is now far spent. So he went in to stay with them, and when he was at table with them, he took the bread, and blessed it, and broke it, and gave it to them. And their eyes were opened, and they recognized him, and he vanished from their sight. And they said to each other, Did not our hearts burn within us while he talked to us on the road, while he opened to us the Scriptures? And they rose that same hour and returned to Jerusalem. And they found the eleven and those who were with them gathered together, saying, The Lord has risen, and indeed he has appeared to Simon. and they told what that happened to them on the road and how he was made known to them in the breaking of the bread. Let's pray. Father, we come before you now in the name of Jesus, as we examine these scriptures, Lord, to see what you would say to us this morning. Holy Spirit, move now among this congregation and prepare the hearts and the ears and the minds to comprehend the wonderful truths of these scriptures. It's in Jesus' name we pray. Our text today is an important account of one of the events that scripture calls, that happened as scripture calls on the third day, the day of Christ's resurrection. In First Corinthians, the great chapter on the resurrection, the Apostle Paul writes this. In verse number three, he says, For I delivered to you as of first importance what I also received, that Christ died for our sins in accordance with the Scriptures. Verse four, he says that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day in accordance with the Scriptures. And that he appeared to Cephas, and then to the twelve, and then he appeared to more than five hundred brothers at one time, most of whom are still alive, though some have fallen asleep. If you remember, several weeks ago, as Pastor Aaron covered some of these verses, when he got to the point where he says most of them are still alive, in other words, you can go and ask them. This is not a cleverly devised tale. The resurrection of Jesus was not a spiritual event. It was an actual, physical, up-from-the-ground resurrection. It is the cornerstone of our Christian belief. Fail to believe in the resurrection, you will fail to believe in newness of life, in the conversion of a sinner. Notice two things in this passage. Paul calls these events that we just read out of 1 Corinthians 15, Paul calls these events of first importance. In other words, these are the things that I want to talk to you about first. Death and resurrection. Paul was faithful in delivering these to the congregation at Corinth, and both of these events were, in Paul's words, in accordance with the Scripture. Now what does that mean? Does that mean that these are in accordance with the New Testament? These are in accordance with the Gospels? Some of the Gospels hadn't even been circulated. Important to understand that Paul's not only speaking of scriptures as we have it in the New Testament, in the Synoptic Gospels and in the Gospel of John, relating the story of the resurrection, which all of them do. But Paul is also referring to the words of Moses and the prophets in the Old Testament. First, that Christ died for our sins. This is a fundamental truth of Christianity. And indeed it separates us from all other religions. There is no other religion that preaches a God who comes down and takes upon himself sin of the people. This is unique to Christianity. Second, that he was buried and that he was raised on the third day. The concept of the third day is an important concept throughout all of Scripture. Notice here in verse number 21 of our text, it says, Cleopas said, yes, and besides all of this, it's now the third day since these things have happened. There was something special about the third day. There was an anticipation by the disciples, by the apostles, that something special would happen on the third day. I don't believe that he was just citing a chronology here. He was commenting on the importance of the day. The disciples weren't ignorant concerning the fact that Jesus repeatedly said that he would face death and would rise again. They just didn't understand the significance. of the resurrection and the necessity of the death. Remember the words of Jesus to the scribes and Pharisees when they were seeking for a sign. They said, just give us a sign. And in Matthew chapter 12, verse 39, Jesus says, there's an evil and adulterous generation seeks for a sign, but no sign will be given to it except the sign of the prophet Jonah. For just as Jonah was three days and three nights, In the belly of a great fish, so will the Son of Man be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth, indicating there was a special purpose for that third day. In fact, the concept of the third day is everywhere in the Old Testament. As far back as the first chapter of Genesis. Listen to Genesis chapter 1. verse number eleven through thirteen and God said let the earth sprout vegetation plants yielding seed and fruit trees bearing fruit in which is their seed each according to its kind on the earth and it was so and the earth brought forth vegetation plants yielding seed according to their own kinds and trees bearing fruit in which is their seed each according to its kind and God saw that it was good and there was evening and there was morning on the third day. The sign of life springing from the earth is seen quite clearly here in the book of Genesis on the third day. Jesus is speaking of his own death and resurrection when he said to his disciples in John chapter 12, verse 24, truly, truly, I say to you, unless a grain of wheat falls into the earth and dies, it remains alone. But if it dies, it bears much fruit. Consider also the book of Exodus, chapter 3, where Moses is confronted by God in the burning bush, which by the way is also a great sign of the resurrection. of christ jesus himself interprets this for us in luke chapter 20 where he says but that the dead are raised even moses showed in the passage about the bush where he calls the lord the god of abraham the god of isaac the god of jacob now he's not the god of the dead but he's also the god he's the god of the living as well god even tells moses further on in exodus chapter 3 verse 18 he says this go to the king of egypt and say to him, the Lord God of the Hebrews has met with us, and now please let us go three days, journey into the wilderness that we may sacrifice to the Lord our God. It was right after, the second night after they had camped at Phi-Her-Ha-Rath, and the pillar of cloud blocked the armies of Pharaoh that Moses stretched out his staff, and parted the waters of the Red Sea, and let the children of Israel cross over. This was the morning of the third day. And the Egyptian army tried to cross those waters, and it came down on them, causing the death of the Egyptians. And immediately on that third day, we have recorded in Exodus chapter 4, the story of the first worship service, just as God decreed. The waters of the Red Sea being a type and shadow of the passing from death into life. Joshua, just prior to crossing the Jordan, camps and he sends the spies in to Jericho and they have the meeting with Rahab. And he's convinced that the city is ready to be defeated, the vulnerability of that city. And he moves the camp to the edge of the Jordan River. And listen to what it says in Joshua chapter 3. At the end of three days, the officers went through the camp and commanded the people, as soon as you see the Ark of the Covenant of the Lord, your God, being carried by the Levitical priests, you shall then set out from your place and follow it. And immediately on the third day, the Levites stepped into the Jordan River and the river parted. And the people of Israel passed once again into the promised land where they celebrate immediately the Passover in the plains of Jericho. And then the manna stops. Again, a picture of passing from death to life for this new generation of Israelites. Again, when Abraham is instructed by God to sacrifice Isaac, the scripture reads that he rose early, saddled his donkey, took his son and two servants, and then listen to Genesis chapter 22. It says, on the third day, Abraham lifted up his eyes and saw the place from afar. And again, this is a picture of resurrection. Because the Hebrews tells us Abraham didn't hesitate to do what God had asked. Because as Hebrews says, he considered that God was able even to raise him from the dead, from which figuratively speaking, he did receive him back. So this was a significant day. This is why they said to Jesus, and it's the third day, and we're still confused. We consider this passage of scripture for a few minutes today regarding the meaning of the third day of Jesus and these two disciples. I want to explore this question. What was the purpose of this narrative? Why did the Holy Spirit choose to put this story into the Bible? Remember what John said, he said, I suppose if all the things written about Jesus, they'd fill all the books in all the world. And yet, in our Bible, we have this story. Take away this story from the Bible, and it's only mentioned here with specifics and also in the disputed final 12 passages of the 16th chapter of Mark, which do not appear in the earliest manuscripts. If you have your Bible and you look at Mark and you turn to the last chapter, you'll see a parentheses. And maybe some of your Bibles even have a note. that these verses weren't in all of the earliest manuscripts. And so this is really the only place in the Authorized Version, in Scripture, where we have this story of the Emmaus Road incident. Anyway, if you remove this story, it does nothing to put in doubt the Resurrection. Take it away and you still have eyewitness proof the resurrection of Christ. There are other eyewitnesses' accounts of that day, so again, what's the significance of this story? If you compare the other synoptic Gospels and the Gospel of John and even the writings of the Apostle Paul in 1 Corinthians 15, we have five significant appearances of Jesus on the third day. Matthew recalls the first experience, or the first appearance, it was to the women who were running from the tomb with great joy after seeing the angel. Matthew tells us that it was Mary Magdalene, and then he says, and the other Mary, as if we're supposed to know who the other Mary is. Mark clears that up, he says, Mary, the mother of James. So we can assume that she's speaking about Mary, the mother of James, the apostle, not Mary, the mother of James, who would be the mother of Jesus. Luke tells us that, adds a third person to this tribe, a woman by the name of Joanna. John only mentions Mary Magdalene, but these women, early on the first day, take the spices and go to the tomb. And what do they see? They see that they're talking about, well, who's going to move this stone for us? When they get to the place of Christ's burial, the stone has already been rolled out of the way. And they look in, and they see an angel. The angel tells them, why do you seek the living from among the dead? He's not here. He's risen. Just like he told you he would on the third day. Now go and tell his disciples in Peter that he goes ahead of them into Galilee. And so women rush off to do exactly what the angels have instructed them to do. If the testimony of John is accurate, and I believe it is, there's no reason to believe that Mary Magdalene, or there is reason to believe that Mary Magdalene perhaps overtook these women and ran a bit faster than them. Goes on the way to talk to the apostles. These women run into Jesus. It's the first appearance of Jesus. And it's to these women who have just left the tomb. He says to them, greetings. And they fall down and worship him. But John in his gospel talking about Magdalene, we read this in chapter 20 verse 2, it says, and she, speaking of Mary Magdalene, ran and went to Simon Peter and the other disciple, one whom Jesus loved, and said to them, they've taken the Lord out of the tomb and we don't know where they've laid him. Now, if she was part of the other women that saw Jesus, she would not have made that comment. So A, she either outran these other women, Maybe she was a younger lady. Or B, she went to a place apart from where these women were going. They may have been going to the upper room where the disciples were, and she may have been going maybe to Peter's house or John's house to alert them. Mark recalls, no conversations with Jesus if we remove the final 12 verses from his gospel, and even if these verses are considered, it does nothing to change the chronology here. John then records a meeting, the second meeting of Jesus and Mary Magdalene. This happened because Mary goes and tells Peter and John, they run back to the tomb, and they go in. And they see the wrappings laying by themselves and the face cloth that Jesus had laying by itself. And they don't see anything else. No angels, no Jesus, just linen wrappings. And they leave. And Mary's standing outside, probably winded because she ran to them and now she's run back. And all of a sudden, She sees who she thinks is the gardener. And she says to him, sir, tell us where you've laid him. And he just says, Mary. And she recognizes Jesus. And so that's the second appearance of Jesus. Luke then records a third appearance of Jesus with the two disciples on the road to Emmaus. The fourth appearance, and we'll get to that Emmaus thing, the fourth appearance could be the third. Depending on how you put the chronology, the Scriptures don't tell us. But the fourth appearance was to Peter himself. For validation of this, you have to consider what Paul writes in 1 Corinthians chapter 15, where he says, he was raised on the third day in accordance with the Scripture, and that he appeared to Cephas. then to the 12. So Paul separates that, doesn't he? He says he appeared to Peter, and then he appeared to the 12. You then couple that with our text in verse number 33. If you look down at verse number 33, it says, and they found the 11. In other words, they had come from Emmaus, they had seen Christ, they went back to tell the apostles, And what did they find? They found the eleven and those who were with them gathered together saying this, the Lord is indeed risen, he appeared to Simon. And so there's a testimony there of Simon being appeared to the Synoptics and the Gospel of John and even the Apostle Paul gives us no record of the conversation between Jesus and Peter, only that it had happened and we can only assume. that the sorrow for having denied Christ was weighing heavily on his mind, even crushing Peter. And how like our Savior to make a special visit to him. And so scripture is silent on what was said. While the fifth appearance of that third day was to the gathered apostles minus Thomas, and other disciples, plus the two that had come from Emmaus. They were all hiding in fear of the Jews. And so on that third day, five appearances of Christ. Alfred Edersheim, in his work, The Life and Times of Jesus the Messiah, makes this statement. This would complete the cycle of mercy. First to the loving sorrow of the women, next to the loving perplexity of the disciples, Then to the anxious heart of the stricken Peter. And last, in the circle of the apostles, which was again drawing together around the assured fact of his resurrection. But again, let's get back to the question. What is the significance of this narrative? I believe that the answer to this is to create a picture of the ministry of the Holy Spirit. On the night that Jesus was arrested, he made this astonishing statement. In John 16, he said, I didn't say these things to you from the beginning because I was with you, but now I'm going to him who sent me. And none of you asked, where are you going? But because I have said these things to you, sorrow has filled your hearts. Nevertheless, I tell you a truth, it is to your advantage that I go away. For if I do not go away, the Helper will not come to you. But if I go, I will send him to you." Again, two chapters before this, Jesus says in John 14, I will ask the Father and He will give you another Helper or another Comforter. to be with you forever, indicating here that Jesus would not physically be with them much longer. He was going to the Father, back to His glory that He shared with the Father in all of eternity past. He continues, even the Spirit of truth whom the world cannot receive because it neither sees Him nor knows Him, you know Him, for He dwells with you in the person of Christ. He's telling these people, you know the Holy Spirit. because he lives with you remember at the baptism of jesus the holy spirit descended on him jesus goes on to say and and will be in you this wouldn't happen until pentecost john seven thirty seven if anyone first let him come to me and drink whoever believes in me as the scripture said out of his heart shall flow living waters now this was said about this spirit whom those who believed in him were to receive for as yet the spirit had not been given because Jesus was not yet glorified. So while Jesus was still on earth, the Holy Spirit couldn't come and dwell with them. So Jesus said, it's good for me to go away, because when I do go away, the first thing I'm going to say is, Father, send the Spirit, so that the Spirit could live inside. The count in Luke 24 is a picture of how the Holy Spirit operates in the life of the believer, and that's what I want to talk about this morning. Look quickly at the five points, and then we'll have a brief application, and then after this, we'll look at our text. In Luke 24, verse 13, it says this, that very day, two of them were going to a village called Emmaus, about seven miles from Jerusalem. And they were talking with each other about all the things that had happened. And while they were talking and discussing together, Jesus himself drew near and went with them, but their eyes were kept from recognizing him. Now, I don't know if this was, you know, some people, it's funny to read some of the commentary. Some of them you like to throw out. Well, they couldn't really recognize him because it was a very foggy day. I could be a Bible commentator and come up with something better than that. Some people say, well, he really had his hood up. Really, Jesus wore a hoodie? I don't know. They just couldn't recognize him. So the first point here that I want to make is the Holy Spirit brings comfort to the distressed believer. The Holy Spirit brings comfort to distressed believers. Unable to leave Jerusalem on the Sabbath, the day that Christ died, or the day after, or the holy day, this was the first opportunity to get away from Jerusalem. To get away from fear of the Jews. So they head to a town called Emmaus, some seven miles, about a two and a half hour walk. They're good walkers. Scholars are unsure of where this town is. Matthew Henry surmises that they quite possibly were on their way back to Galilee, that they were Galileans, that they were getting out of Jerusalem because Jerusalem was becoming a very dangerous place. The topic of conversation was obvious. It was a topic of many in the city and the country who had gone up to the feast. It was all anybody could talk about. They crucified the young rabbi. And some people are saying that he's risen from the dead. Look at verse number 15. While they were talking and discussing together, Jesus himself drew near and went with them. In John 14, 16, Jesus said, I will ask the Father and he will give you another helper. The Greek word used here for helper is the Greek word parakaleo. And it means to be summoned, to call to one's side, especially called to one's aid. It is used to speak about a defense, a legal assistant, an advocate. Thayer's Greek lexicon says that the Holy Spirit is destined to take the place of Christ with the apostles after his ascension to the Father to lead them to a deeper knowledge of gospel truth and to give them the divine strength needed to enable them to undergo trials and persecutions. So here is Jesus coming alongside of distressed believers. discussing the events of the cross. Remember, Jesus also says in Matthew 18, 20, where two or three are gathered in my name, there I will be in the midst of it. And they certainly were gathered in Jesus' name. In verse 16, it says this, but their eyes were kept from recognizing him. Now this speaks of the character of the Holy Spirit who, according to our Nicene Creed, proceeds from the Father and the Son, who together with the Father and the Son is worshiped and glorified. As Jesus says in John 16, 13, when the spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all truth, for he will not speak of his own authority, but whatever he hears, he will speak, and he will declare to you the things that are to come. He will glorify me, for he will take what is mine and declare it to you. How often in our grief and in our sorrow and in our struggles in life, The face of the Holy Spirit is veiled. We don't even think of him, and yet he comes alongside. It's veiled by the ignorance and unbelief of our hearts that are filled with sadness rather than the joy of knowing the Comforter is always there. Point number two. The Holy Spirit exposes and clarifies the true concern of a believer's heart. The Holy Spirit will always expose and clarify the true concerns of a believer's heart. Verse number 17, and he said to them, what's this conversation that you're holding with each other as you walk? And they stood still looking sad. Now, I think this is an unfortunate translation in the ESV. and I hold to what the authorized version of the King James reads. It says, what kind of conversation is this that you have with one another as you walk and are sad? In other words, Jesus takes note of the sadness and is not the fact that the question of Jesus produces the sadness. When you read the ESV, it's almost like he asked the question and they get sad. I don't think that's the case. Jesus noted the sadness and asks the question. Verse 18, then one of them named Cleophas. Now Cleophas, as a lot of the ancients believed, was the brother of Joseph who was the foster father of Christ. So this is, it could be Jesus' uncle. So who's the other guy who's not mentioned? And again, reading through the commentaries, and I've come to believe that this is probably true. I believe that this is Luke. This is Luke, who wrote the gospel. And some of the reasoning is very astounding. You know, in the gospel of Matthew, they say that the authors of the synoptics, and even the gospel of John, they are hidden within the pages of their books. The book of Matthew. they surmise is the publican in the parable. Remember, the publican and the Pharisee go in and pray, and the publican sits in the back and beats his breast and says, have mercy on me, a sinner. A lot of Bible scholars believe that that is Matthew. In the book of Mark, we find a young man in the garden when Jesus is arrested. He's dressed in his sheet, and remember, they grab hold of the sheet, and he leaves the sheet and runs home. I believe that's Mark. In John, John calls himself the disciple whom Jesus loved. So they don't mention themselves by name, but by inference they were there. And so a lot of Bible scholars believe that this second person on the road to Emmaus was Luke. Verse number 18 says that one of them named Cleopas answered, are you the only visitor in Jerusalem who does not know things that have happened these days? You have to read this with a smile on your face. Because Jesus could have said, as a matter of fact, I am the only one in Jerusalem that knows exactly what's happening. And then Jesus says this, what things? Now, he's not poking the bear here. He's getting them to make confession. He's getting to the very point of what are they thinking about. And they said to him, concerning Jesus of Nazareth, Nazareth, a man who was a prophet, mighty indeed in word before God, and all the people, and how our chief priests and the rulers delivered him up to be condemned to death. crucified him, but we had hoped that he was the one to redeem Israel. Yes, and besides all of this, it's now the third day since these things happened. And now as a footnote, verse 22, moreover, some of the women in our company amazed us. Now ladies, I don't want to make you angry, but that's a very tame rendering of the Greek here. This is a great word. It could be rendered, some of the women are driving us out of our minds. They're crazy. You should hear the things they're saying. They were at the tomb early in the morning, and when they didn't find his body, they came back saying that they had even seen a vision of angels. Who said that? He was alive. Some of those who were with us then went to the tomb, speaking of John and Peter, and found it just as the women said, but they didn't see him. Well, this is the knowledge that they have. They haven't heard about the other appearances. So the veracity of the women is being called into question here big time. Notice in verse number 19, they call Jesus, he was a prophet. Remember what Jesus said, who do people say that I am? Well, some say you're a prophet, some say you're John the Baptist. And Jesus is questioning them on the third day. This is Jesus. And they said, well, He was a, was a, was? In other words, he's still dead in their minds. Even after what they hear from the women. They're crazy. He was a prophet. They also put the blame on the leadership of the people. This was a bold statement to make to a stranger. They were leaving Jerusalem to get away from persecution and there's a stranger saying to them, what things are you talking about? And they kind of, indicate that it was the leaders who put him to death. Verse 21, they express their doubt in Jesus. We had hoped that he was the one to redeem Israel. Then besides all of this, now's the third day, and nothing's happening. Here we are, distressed, perplexed, running, and it's the third day. Though the Holy Spirit brings comfort to the distressed believer, the Holy Spirit exposes and clarifies the true concerns of the believer's hearts, as Jesus certainly did there. Point number three, the Holy Spirit applies God's word to a doubting and wavering believer. Verse number 25, and he said to them, oh foolish ones, and slow of heart to believe all that the prophets have spoken, Was it not necessary that the Christ should suffer these things to enter into his glory? And beginning with Moses and all the prophets, he interpreted to them in all the scriptures the things concerning himself. I've said this on many occasions. I can't wait to get to heaven, and I hope there's a video rental store where you can check in and say, you know, this passage of scripture, I'd like to see that. I want to hear what Jesus said. Because they're walking for two and a half hours and he is non-stop talking about why he is the Christ and why it was necessary for him to die. He says, oh foolish ones and slow of heart to believe all that the prophets have spoken. Matthew Henry writes, when Christ forbade us to say to our brother, thou fool, it was intended to restrain us from giving unreasonable reproaches, not from giving just reproofs. Christ called them fools, not as it signifies wicked men, in which sense he forbade it to us, but as it signifies weak men. He might call them fools, for he knows our foolishness and the foolishness that is bound up in our hearts. Jesus then begins the work of comforting as he opens the scriptures, and no doubt, no doubt, he begins with God's word to Satan. In Genesis chapter 3, where God says, he shall bruise your head and you shall bruise his heel. Perhaps he moved on and expounded Isaiah chapter 53. quoting to them verses 11 to 12 out of the anguish of his soul he shall see and be satisfied by his knowledge shall the righteous one my servant make many to be accounted righteous and he shall bear their iniquities therefore I will divide him a portion with the many and he shall divide the spoil with the strong because he poured out his soul unto death and was numbered with the transgressors yet he bore the sin of many and makes intercession or their transgressions. The Holy Spirit applies God's word to a doubting, wavering believer. Point number four. The Holy Spirit sometimes veils himself that we may seek him all the more with importunity. Look at verse number 28. So they drew near to the village to which they were going. Now they're feeling pretty good by now. Because Jesus has exposed the scriptures. You can't hear the scriptures by Jesus and not be affected. He acted as if he were going a bit further. So they're turning off on the road to Emmaus into a house, and Jesus is kind of moving by them. And they urged him strongly, strongly, saying, stay with us, for it is towards evening, and a day is now far spent. So he went in to stay with them. William Cowper. In his great hymn, God Moves in Mysterious Ways, writes this in the fourth stanza. He says, judge not the Lord with feeble sense, but trust him for his grace. Behind a frowning providence, he hides a smiling face. So often in our trials and troubles, it seems that God is not there or has left us on our own. Jesus teaches in this parable in Luke chapter 11 of the persistence of prayer that will move the hand of God, and that is exactly what these disciples are doing. Feeling the fact that Jesus was intending to move away from them, they pray. Don't leave us. Stay with us. Come in with us. These disciples did the right thing. They prayed for the continued presence of the sweet Holy Spirit that was bringing them comfort. And finally, point number five. The Holy Spirit always points us to Jesus and his finished work. Verse number 30, when he was at table with them, he took the bread and blessed it. And he broke it and he gave it to them and their eyes were opened and they recognized him and he vanished from their sight. They said to each other, didn't our hearts burn within us while he talked to us on the road, while he opened to us the scriptures? These disciples had eaten with Jesus before on many occasions. And it would have been the duty of the host to say the blessing over the food. And so Jesus goes in with them and he takes that honor to himself. It was then as he prayed that their eyes were opened, the familiar words, the reverent, personal words of Jesus. As he talks to the Father and gives thanks for this simple blessing. This was not the sacrament of the Last Supper. This was not a communion service. Matthew 26, 29, Jesus himself says to the apostles, I will not drink of the fruit of the vine from now on until that day when I drink it new with you in my Father's kingdom. That's not what Jesus was doing here. This was a simple meal. And so Jesus takes it upon himself to say the blessing. He takes the bread, and he breaks it, and he begins to pray to the Father. And they're hearing these words, and they're saying, that's my Lord. And they see him, and he disappears. Scripture says their eyes were opened. It's important for us to understand that as we celebrate the Lord's table, that first comes, first comes the delivery of the word, and then the intimate communion with Jesus as we come to the table. After Jesus disappeared, then comes the recognition of the mutual love that these disciples had for one another and for Christ. Didn't our hearts burn within us? They are buoyant at this point. And just kind of slapping each other on the back and maybe doing the dishes and saying, man, when he talked to us on the road, I knew then. You always have somebody in the crowd that says, oh, I knew all along. That was Jesus. They didn't know. But they're just beside themselves. So the Holy Spirit always points us to Jesus and his finished work. Well, just a conclusion here and a point of application. Verse number 33. They rose that same hour, they returned to Jerusalem, and they found the 11 and those who were with them gathered together. They couldn't wait to get back. They didn't even stay the night. They didn't say, hey, tomorrow morning we're back to Jerusalem. They just, they left the dishes and off they went. Verse 34, saying, the Lord has risen indeed. These are the other people that they walk into the room and these other disciples is that the Lord has risen indeed. He's appeared to Simon. They told what had happened on the road and how he was known to them and the breaking of the bread. The absolute unmistakable result of genuine call of the Holy Spirit into the life of Christ righteousness and out of the kingdom of darkness is a stirring to tell others. of what has happened to you. Notice what the scripture says here, and they rose that same hour and returned to Jerusalem. Not a moment was wasted. They could barely contain themselves, not even staying until the next morning. They immediately wanted to fellowship with their fellow disciples and to witness to the good news of the resurrection life of Christ. This wasn't a specter or a spirit or a ghost. This was the living, breathing, resurrected Christ, fully God, fully man. Imagine the absolute buoyancy in the room as Peter was telling of his visit with Jesus and then in come these two disciples and tell them what had happened to them and the excitement in the room. And then in verse 36, as they were talking about these things, Jesus himself stood among them and said to them, peace to you. Then Luke records these words later in verse number 46, and he said to them, Thus it is written that the Christ should suffer and on the third day rise from the dead, and that repentance for the forgiveness of sins should be proclaimed in his name to all the nations, beginning from Jerusalem. You are witnesses of these things, and behold, I am sending the promise of my Father upon you. That's the promise of the Holy Spirit. stay in this city until you are clothed with power from on high. Let's pray.