News that is Worthy of an Eight-Mile Run
Most of us have been to funerals and we don’t like them. They are just wrong. I do not mean the concept or the things we do such as eulogize the departed. I mean that it is just plain wrong that someone has died. We were not meant to die. Even the youngest of children can understand this. They too feel the loss and they know in their gut that death is a bad thing. They too have that inner witness that death is an interruption to the hopes and aspirations of life. Death stinks. Think about the most recent funeral you attended. Recall the hurt and the loss that attended those closest to the deceased. Maybe that person is you. Maybe you were not the far off acquaintance, but the closest to the deceased. I remember the death of my uncle a few years ago. It was a sad occasion and I found comfort only in the fact that not too long before his death he had embraced the gospel of Jesus Christ and submitted to Him as Lord and Savior. Apart from that truth there was no other comfort. The hardest day was the day of the burial. It just seemed so final. A chapter in our family life was closed. No matter how much we wept and cried out in anguish my uncle was not going to come back because of the many tears and heartache. There would never again be a time in this life where we would see him. We buried his remains and everyone went back to living their lives without him. Think about the last person you lost and imagine this. Imagine that a few days later you are thinking about that person when all of a sudden they appear to you. You think you may be dreaming, but that loved one assures you that you are not and proceeds to prove it. You are not crazy and you know it because you are not the only one who is interacting with this person who was previously dead. You suddenly realize that others need to know. Imagine being the bearer of that kind of news. Imagine you had the privilege of delivering the news that someone’s son, someone’s brother, someone’s friend was not dead anymore. What a joy! But imagine you had no car, no telephone and no Internet. The only option was for you to take an eight-mile hike. Would that kind of news make the trip worth it?
This was the case for two people. Luke 24:13-35 tells us that on the Sunday following the crucifixion of Jesus two discouraged disciples began to make a journey to the village of Emmaus. Emmaus was about eight miles from the city of Jerusalem. These disciples were not aware that Jesus had risen, but their minds were occupied with Jesus and all that had occurred just days prior. Jesus was dead, but they “had hoped that he was the one to redeem Israel” (vs. 21). Jesus joined them in their walk until they reached the village, “but their eyes were kept from recognizing him” (vs. 13). The Bible says that when they reached the village they urged this man (Jesus) to stay with them. He did and they ate. The Bible says, “When he [Jesus] was at table with them, he took the bread and blessed and broke it and gave it to them. 31And their eyes were opened, and they recognized him. And he vanished from their sight” (Luke 24:30-31). Now they were convinced that Jesus was back from the dead. What did they do in response? The Bible says they immediately got up to make the eight-mile trip back to Jerusalem to tell others. “And they rose that same hour and returned to Jerusalem” (Luke 24:33). They were the bearers of good news. The news they carried would heal the hurts and restore shattered dreams and hopes. The news of the resurrection meant more than the disciples could have ever conceived of at that moment. They were just happy that he was alive again and I highly doubt they complained one bit about the eight-mile journey because the news was simply too great. What about you? Is the gospel to you so great that the work and trouble that usually comes with communicating it not bothersome at all? Do you, in your joy, exclaim as the apostle Paul, “For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worth comparing with the glory that is to be revealed to us” (Romans 8:18). The trip shouldn’t be too bad for us. We drive in air-conditioned vehicles. This surely beats walking. Is the gas too expensive? Delivering the news that Jesus is alive is greater than delivering the news that someone’s loved one is alive because Jesus’ death becomes the basis of their resurrection. Jesus said, “Because I live, you also will live” (John 14:19b). Is the good news worthy of an eight-mile run?
This was the case for two people. Luke 24:13-35 tells us that on the Sunday following the crucifixion of Jesus two discouraged disciples began to make a journey to the village of Emmaus. Emmaus was about eight miles from the city of Jerusalem. These disciples were not aware that Jesus had risen, but their minds were occupied with Jesus and all that had occurred just days prior. Jesus was dead, but they “had hoped that he was the one to redeem Israel” (vs. 21). Jesus joined them in their walk until they reached the village, “but their eyes were kept from recognizing him” (vs. 13). The Bible says that when they reached the village they urged this man (Jesus) to stay with them. He did and they ate. The Bible says, “When he [Jesus] was at table with them, he took the bread and blessed and broke it and gave it to them. 31And their eyes were opened, and they recognized him. And he vanished from their sight” (Luke 24:30-31). Now they were convinced that Jesus was back from the dead. What did they do in response? The Bible says they immediately got up to make the eight-mile trip back to Jerusalem to tell others. “And they rose that same hour and returned to Jerusalem” (Luke 24:33). They were the bearers of good news. The news they carried would heal the hurts and restore shattered dreams and hopes. The news of the resurrection meant more than the disciples could have ever conceived of at that moment. They were just happy that he was alive again and I highly doubt they complained one bit about the eight-mile journey because the news was simply too great. What about you? Is the gospel to you so great that the work and trouble that usually comes with communicating it not bothersome at all? Do you, in your joy, exclaim as the apostle Paul, “For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worth comparing with the glory that is to be revealed to us” (Romans 8:18). The trip shouldn’t be too bad for us. We drive in air-conditioned vehicles. This surely beats walking. Is the gas too expensive? Delivering the news that Jesus is alive is greater than delivering the news that someone’s loved one is alive because Jesus’ death becomes the basis of their resurrection. Jesus said, “Because I live, you also will live” (John 14:19b). Is the good news worthy of an eight-mile run?
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