If any one chooses to do God’s will, he will find out whether my teaching comes from God or whether I speak on my own.  John 7:17 

There was something about the stranger who walked with those two men, which fascinated them.  The location was a dusty road that led from Jerusalem to Emmaus.  It happened almost 2000 years ago.  Jesus of Nazareth had taught the multitudes for three years.  He had done some fantastic things. He had healed the lame and the blind.  He had taken a little boy’s lunch and then fed a multitude of more than 5,000 men, to say nothing of the number of women and children.

At first, everyone was skeptical.  After all, the day of miracles had ceased, so when Jesus first began His work, people watched for the trick.  Perhaps the blind man was not really blind, or it was just a big act.  But as the skeptics watched, they became convinced, not only by what they saw, but by what they heard, as well.  Jesus of Nazareth spoke as no other man had ever spoken.  He said things no other would dare to say, and He did it with perfect authority.  He made claims such as, “I came from God and now am here” (John 8:42).  Again, He said, “I and the Father are one” (John 10:30).  All of those things together caused thousands of men and women to claim Him as the Messiah‑‑the long awaited deliverer.

The two men who walked from Jerusalem to Emmaus that day, long ago, were talking about all of the events that caused them to believe Jesus was the Savior.  “Things were going so well,” they said. “Yes, we thought it had been He who would deliver Israel.”  But on that Passover, public sentiment, fickle public opinion, turned, and they crucified this Jesus of Nazareth.  That is when it all ended for those two.  When Christ died, they were through, and with bitter remorse and confusion, they decided to call it quits.

As they walked and discussed these things, a stranger appeared to them and they poured out their hearts.  They told how two women had gone to the grave and it was empty, but this they could not believe.  The interesting twist to this story begins when Luke (who records the event) says, “As they talked and discussed these things with each other, Jesus himself came up and walked along with them; but they were kept from recognizing him” (Luke 24:15,16).  But as they walked and talked, the stranger began to explain what had happened in terms they could understand.  They invited Him to dinner and suddenly the mystery was over.

Luke says, “When he was at the table with them, he took bread, gave thanks, broke it and began to give it to them.  Then their eyes were opened and they recognized him” (Luke 24:30-31).  It was the resurrected Christ who walked with them, and they knew Him not.

That was two thousand years ago, yet it is still true today.  Sometimes it is the impact of 21st century materialism that blinds our eyes and keeps us from recognizing the resurrected Savior.  Sometimes it is the aura of “intellectualism” that keeps us in the dark.  Sometimes we are so preoccupied with ourselves that we never discover the resurrected Christ.  A story so old, yet new every day.

How about your life?  Have you discovered that Christ will reveal Himself to you and that He will walk with you through life?  It may be that your eyes have been blinded by unbelief and that you have never discovered who He is and what He promises to you.  Jesus challenged, “If any one chooses to do God’s will, he will find out whether my teaching comes from God or whether I speak on my own” (John 7:17).  “Prove it to your satisfaction,” invites the Savior.  Start reading with the Gospel of John and, I can assure you, you will see who He really is.

Scripture reading: Luke 24