Becoming an Emmaus Road Disciple

"And they said to one another, 'Were not our hearts burning within us while He was speaking to us on the road, while He was explaining the Scriptures to us?'" (Luke 24:32)

Let's face it, beloved. Time spent walking and talking with Jesus must surely have been one of the most exciting experiences ever! At least, that's what the two disciples on the road to Emmaus thought. A few hours in the presence of the risen Lord and their hearts "burned" with holy fire and a passion to be all that they could be for Him and His glory.

What amazes me today, however, is that in contrast to the Emmaus road disciples, we actually spend as Christians twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week, fifty-two weeks a year (well, you get the picture!) in the presence of that same risen Lord, yet many of us have trouble getting excited enough about Him to even make it to worship services regularly! Not only do our hearts not "burn within" us, we seldom even experience a bump in our pulse rate.

What makes the difference? It's all right there in the account of Luke the beloved physician. While walking on the road before Jesus joined them, they were talking about Jesus. Do you get that, beloved? They were talking about Jesus! Now admittedly, what they were saying about Him lacked a lot of knowledge and understanding, but at least they were talking about Him. How much time today do you and I spend talking about Jesus with anybody? How much time do we even spend with each other outside of church, much less spending time talking about our Lord?

Then, after the Master joined them on the Emmaus road, they spent time listening to Jesus teach them about Himself. They drank in every single word as He explained first each prophecy, then its fulfillment in Himself. They listened and they learned. They were true "disciples" or learners as they took in all that He shared with them about Himself. How much time do we today actually spend studying the Scriptures? And I'm not talking about following along with the pastor as he preaches his message, nor with the Sunday School teacher in your copy of the quarterly lesson book. I am talking about plain old "dig it out/write it down/learn it/apply it" Bible study! It's the only way we will ever grow to full maturity in Jesus Christ and become the instruments of His grace that He wants us all to be.

And when He was revealed to them and vanished from their sight, they rushed back to Jerusalem to tell everyone they could that they had seen the risen Lord. Did you notice that this journey took them in the opposite direction from the one in which they had originally been traveling? Nothing was more important to them than spreading the good news! They would have paid any price to get the word out that Jesus had conquered death and that He was and is Lord of all. When's the last time you and I "rushed" anywhere to share that same good news? You see, beloved, it is sadly true. Our hearts by and large today just do not "burn within" us.

Let me challenge you today to become an Emmaus road disciple! Talk about Him, learn about Him and from Him, and tell everyone you can about Him. And by all means let Him "light the fire" within you that will burn until eternity and then forever!

Ron