Now behold, two of them were traveling that same day to a village called Emmaus, which was seven miles from Jerusalem. 14 And they talked together of all these things which had happened. 15 So it was, while they conversed and reasoned, that Jesus Himself drew near and went with them. 16 But their eyes were restrained, so that they did not know Him.
17 And He said to them, “What kind of conversation is this that you have with one another as you walk and are sad?”
18 Then the one whose name was Cleopas answered and said to Him, “Are You the only stranger in Jerusalem, and have You not known the things which happened there in these days?”
19 And He said to them, “What things?”
So they said to Him, “The things concerning Jesus of Nazareth, who was a Prophet mighty in deed and word before God and all the people, 20 and how the chief priests and our rulers delivered Him to be condemned to death, and crucified Him. 21 But we were hoping that it was He who was going to redeem Israel. Indeed, besides all this, today is the third day since these things happened. 22 Yes, and certain women of our company, who arrived at the tomb early, astonished us. 23 When they did not find His body, they came saying that they had also seen a vision of angels who said He was alive. 24 And certain 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.”
25 Then He said to them, “O foolish ones, and slow of heart to believe in all that the prophets have spoken! 26 Ought not the Christ to have suffered these things and to enter into His glory?” 27 And beginning at Moses and all the Prophets, He expounded to them in all the Scriptures the things concerning Himself.
28 Then they drew near to the village where they were going, and He indicated that He would have gone farther. 29 But they constrained Him, saying, “Abide with us, for it is toward evening, and the day is far spent.” And He went in to stay with them.
30 Now it came to pass, as He sat at the table with them, that He took bread, blessed and broke it, and gave it to them. 31 Then their eyes were opened and they knew Him; and He vanished from their sight.
32 And they said to one another, “Did not our heart burn within us while He talked with us on the road, and while He opened the Scriptures to us?” 33 So they rose up that very hour and returned to Jerusalem, and found the eleven and those who were with them gathered together, 34 saying, “The Lord is risen indeed, and has appeared to Simon!” 35 And they told about the things that had happened on the road, and how He was known to them in the breaking of bread.
Dear Jesus,
Thank You for Your friendship. Yours is not a "warm fuzzy" sort of friendship that always makes me feel good. Yours is not a friendship that tells me what I want to hear, placates my weakness, flatters my vanity, and props up my sinfulness. Your friendship is one that speaks truth. You challenge my assumptions. You expose my sin and convict me of how wrong I have been. You point me to hope in Your Word--in You. You draw me to confession and repentance. You transform me by Your grace. I'm new in You!
Thank You for being the kind of friend I need. I know myself well enough to know that I deceive myself. I can con myself. I can fake it. You never allow me the egocentric luxuries of self-deception. You live truth. You speak truth. You are truth. William Barclay wrote that You are "not simply a model for life," rather You are "a living presence to help us to live" (In The Gospel of Luke, 1953, p. 307).
Thank You for being the kind of friend I need.
I love the way You showed up on the Road to Emmaus. You taught Your friends from the Law and the Prophets. You explained Your resurrection from the dead. You accepted a simple invitation to dinner, and there You revealed Yourself. Your hands. Breaking bread. A prayer. God, made flesh, revealed in the ordinary.
Thank You for being the kind of friend I need.
And now I share You with people like me. People who need the truth, the honesty, the intimacy, the instruction of a simple walk on a country road... a meal... a prayer... "It is the glory of the Christian that he lives in a fellowship of people who have had the same experience as he has had" (ibid., p. 310). You bring us together. You create among us bonds that are closer than kin. You are the kind of friend we need.
In the Name of Jesus, the kind of friend I need,
Amen.
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