Charles Swindoll is Senior Pastor of Stonebriar Community Church in Frisco, TX, and Chancellor of Dallas Theological Seminary.
And by His scourging we are healed.
All of us like sheep have gone astray,
Each of us has turned to his own way;
But the Lord has caused the iniquity of us all
To fall on Him (
Isa. 53:5-6).
As they approached the town of Emmaus, the two disciples find themselves so intrigued, they urged the stranger to stay the night in keeping with ancient Near Eastern rules of hospitality. Jesus accepted the offer, while maintaining His anonymity. The disciples were not yet ready. One final truth‑obscuring layer remained on their eyes: they failed to acknowledge the resurrection.
They had heard the reports; they had all the facts. They simply refused to believe with their whole hearts. And their lack of belief affected everything. If these two disciples had believed that Jesus was alive, they would have behaved differently in at least two respects. First, they would have been walking toward Jerusalem, where Jesus was last seen, not away. Second, they would have accepted the trials, crucifixion, and burial of Jesus as the fulfillment of all He had promised, not as the end of their hopes.
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As the afternoon sun drifted closer to the horizon, Jesus and the two followers prepared the evening meal and, no doubt, continued their discussion about the need for the Messiah to die. Of course, the death of Jesus begged an obvious question. “How, then, will the Messiah establish His kingdom and reign over it if He’s dead?”
When he had taken his place at the table with them, he took the bread, blessed and broke it, and gave it to them. At this point their eyes were opened and they recognized him. Then he vanished out of their sight (Luke 24:30-31 NET).
The Greek phrase translated “their eyes were opened and they recognized Him” literally means “their eyes were completely opened and they came to fully comprehend Him.” This was more than a passive, casual recognition of His features. They came to recognize Jesus in all His significance as the Messiah, the Suffering Servant, the Son of God, and their risen Lord!
Luke doesn’t tell us why or how the breaking of bread opened their eyes. Maybe they saw the nail prints on His hands when He held up the bread to offer thanks. Perhaps they were present at the feeding of the 5,000 men and their families in the wilderness and recognized the manner in which He broke the matzo. We can’t be certain the final meal in the Upper Room on Passover didn’t include more disciples than the inner Twelve. All we know for certain is that the scales fell from the eyes of the two disciples, and they saw everything clearly for the first time.
The Road HomeThat’s how it happens today. You’re working your way through life, walking whatever path – school, work, home, ministry – and then something happens to upset the routine or, worse, something reduces your life to rubble. If God’s presence seems far removed from you, be assured that He remains close by. However, you may have one or more faulty perspectives blocking the light from your eyes. Let me suggest three practical decisions that will help you cope with daily struggles as well as recover from life‑altering circumstances.