Now on that same day two of them were going to a village called Emmaus, about seven miles from Jerusalem, and talking with each other about all these things that had happened. While they were talking and discussing, Jesus himself came near and went with them, but their eyes were kept from recognizing him…. As they came near the village to which they were going, he walked ahead as if he were going on. But they urged him strongly, saying, “Stay with us, because it is almost evening and the day is now nearly over.” So he went in to stay with them. When he was at the table with them, he took bread, blessed and broke it, and gave it to them. Then their eyes were opened, and they recognized him; and he vanished from their sight. They said to each other, “Were not our hearts burning within us while he was talking to us on the road, while he was opening the scriptures to us?”

- Luke 24:13-16 & 28-32

Each Easter we celebrate the most significant event in human history: Jesus conquered death and provided a bridge across the chasm separating us from God. Isn’t that awesome beyond words? Now that Easter is over and we remember once again what Jesus Christ did for us, we must each ask our self, “How will I respond?” The resurrection forever changed the world, but will we allow it to change our lives? Whether we want to or not, we each will respond. Some will ignore it, some will deny it, and others will seek Jesus Christ and experience His glory. How will you respond?

Scripture records two disciples during the afternoon of the first Easter struggling to make sense of everything that had recently taken place: Jesus’s arrest, torture and death, and reports of His resurrection. As they walked from Jerusalem to Emmaus, Jesus joined them, but they did not recognize him. They described Jesus as a prophet sent by God. They mourned their loss. They thought He would redeem Israel, but religious leaders and Roman authorities joined forces to execute Him. They had believed Jesus to be the Messiah, but things had not turned out the way they expected. They were sad, confused and distraught.

The man traveling with them, who we know to have been Jesus, rebuked the disciples saying, “Oh, how foolish you are, and how slow of heart to believe all that the prophets have declared!” (Luke 24:25) Then He used Scripture to explain that Jesus was indeed the Messiah and that He had to suffer and die and enter God’s glory. When the three travelers reached Emmaus, the two disciples urged the man to join them for dinner. At dinner, Jesus took bread, blessed it, broke it and gave it to the disciples and in that moment their eyes were opened and they recognized the man to be Jesus, and He suddenly vanished. The disciples thought back over their time walking with the man. They recalled how He had explained Scripture to them and how it all made so much sense and how their hearts burned as the man spoke. They had just spent the afternoon with the risen Christ. They had just experienced the resurrected Christ. God Himself had just joined them as they walked from Jerusalem to Emmaus, and God Himself had just explained His holy word to them, and as He did, their hearts burned.

They got up immediately, went back to Jerusalem and told others what had happened. They had experienced the risen Christ and they wanted to tell everyone.

God’s plans did not align with their expectations. Events had not happened the way they expected. For days they had mourned the loss of their leader, the one upon whom they had placed their hopes, and on that first Easter day confusion blended with grief. They struggled to understand the events swirling around them. As they walked home, they talked through all the events trying to make sense of it all. They thought Jesus was the Messiah, but they did not expect the Messiah to be arrested, tortured, crucified and resurrected. Then they experienced the risen Christ, their eyes were opened to see Jesus Christ in the breaking of bread, and they were filled with joy. God ordered the events in ways they did not expect and in ways that, until Jesus explained them, they did not understand.

God’s plans frequently surprise us; they are commonly different from our plans. When life veers from your script, trust that God is working out His plan.

They “urged him strongly” to stay with them. What would have happened had they not urged the man to stay and simply allowed Him to continue along the road? They would have enjoyed a nice conversation with a stranger, but they would not have seen the resurrected Christ that day. Their eyes did not open to see Him until they urged Him to stay, extended loving hospitality, shared their blessings and communed through the breaking of bread. Enjoying conversation while walking along the road involves a degree of relationship, but breaking bread in your home involves an entirely different magnitude of intimacy. When did you last open your door and strongly urge the risen Christ to join you in your home?

Jesus says, “Listen! I am standing at the door, knocking; if you hear my voice and open the door, I will come in to you and eat with you, and you with me” (Revelation 3:20). Urge Him strongly to come in and stay with you.

How are you responding to the resurrected Christ? When your heart burned in response to His holy word, when you experienced His holy presence, when He transformed your sadness and pain into joy, what did you do? Did you rush out to your friends to tell them about your experience?

God came to earth as a human. Then He died so that we might all live. This is awesome beyond words. May you have eyes to see, ears to hear and may the power of the Holy Spirit infuse you with the courage and strength to tell everyone about your experience with the risen Christ.