Getting the Big Picture (Part 2 of 2)

After his resurrection, Jesus met two of his disciples on the road walking to Emmaus and neither of them recognized. So how could that be today untruthful life Alastair Vega explains that without God opening our blind eyes were incapable of recognizing Jesus on our own chapter 24 now I want you to notice that here as we confront this basic problem it is a conversation between two individuals whose hopes were dead and buried in verse 15 tells us that as they talked and discussed these things in their animated interaction. They are joined by a stranger not notice that it doesn't say that they didn't recognize him, they didn't recognize but that's not what it says it says that they were From recognizing I find it very helpful because of it and simply said they didn't recognize him I'm intended to say is weird to me.

How can you not recognize even though you didn't expect to see them there.

Even though his resurrection body had different characteristics to the one that he took into the tomb. Even given that you would anticipate that they would be an about this person that you would recognize and so Luke with his eye for detail points out, they were kept from recognizing what Luke is doing. That is something very important, namely pointing out to us and pointing out to his readers that we cannot see the risen Christ, although he is walking with us unless he wills to disclose himself. Some of you come routinely to Parkside church, but you do not you may even wonder why it may be that God has Free recognize in order that when you do, it may be so clear to you that this is the Lord's doing, and it is marvelous in his eyes, as opposed to know.

I know there is a Jesus arrive. I know that my children sing the songs about MRI.

I know they bring the pictures over the Sunday school when I going to come up the stairs, but I need to just get in the car and get on with my life I don't I don't recognize Jesus From recognizing any speech to them. He just ask the question, what are you discussing together as you walk along the topic of the day, essentially saying what's happening was everyone talking about when we talk about today. There opening line isn't happens all the time people say on elevators and in airport terminals and on buses and bus stops. So once the word on the street you know once what's happening. They say excuse me, are you just a visitor to Jerusalem, you don't know the things that have been happening there in these days we are talking about what everybody's talking about it really mean this past week and visit taken place on Monday. Their response would have been what you didn't see the halftime show.

Jesus comes back is and so was everybody talking about. So are you don't over talking about Jesus of Nazareth. I love the irony in this, don't you.

It has a touch of John's Gospel about it happens all the time and John these little ironies. Luke doesn't do very often but is perfect here so we have Jesus talking to then asking them what they're talking about. They're talking about him, but they don't know he's E is in him who that whatever it is all right. It's fabulous.

A child reading this is a bedtime story get this very quickly faster than some of his intellectual adults reserve the child was daddy is that mean that he is right. Wow, this is a great story and it is a great story. So are you talking about talk about Jesus of Nazareth uses a very interesting so was it was the word well. His sermons were fantastic, terrific sermons, we were sick and tired of the scribes and Pharisees. Their stock was boring. It was horrible the same old stuff week after week, but when he spoke, people listened. People began to follow him and believe in him we have done the same thing in his miracles we see lame people get up and take their beds and walk blind people see we saw the transformation of a little Jeep called Zacchaeus came scattering down the tree and finally come out of his house and his whole life was turned upside down all yes Jesus of Nazareth. Fantastic sermons, wonderful miracles. There is no question that he was a prophet. He was a prophet but the chief priests and our rulers, the Jewish authorities handed him over to be sentenced to death in the crucified, and our hopes for liberation.

Verse 21 all came to a grinding halt where nobody was going to be the one to redeem Israel is now the third day since all this to place that doesn't really seem to be any indication of the fact that he is who he claimed to be the women have gone and the story is out about the Angels and so on. Some of our companions actually went to the tomb. They found it just the way the women said by the him they did not see that when you read this is not difficult to catch the perplexity in their voices.

The disappointment, the sense of hopelessness that permeates the account. That's the basic problem now return to the big picture. Verse 25 Jesus said to them how foolish you are, and how slow of heart to believe all that the prophets have spoken when an opening line. When you say to this point, he simply asked questions. So what are you talking about were talking about the things that have happened or things that have happened. The things about Jesus that have happened. Holly says fine as he listens to them talk. He then says are you failing to understand and argue slow to believe all that the prophets spoke little three letter word is crucial. One of these folks were unbelievers. It wasn't really didn't know certain things the prophets and said, but in their reading of the Old Testament and in their thinking about Messiah ship. They had failed to grasp the big picture they had not been paying attention to all that the prophets have spoken the night if you like, and perhaps understandably focused on only one side of the story. The story of the Messiah who would be a triumphant king. The story of the Messiah as a conqueror and a ruler of this people the story of a Messiah who would usher in justice upon the air. I day when the lion would lie down with the land and all of that the anticipated following the revelation of the Messiah and they had every reason to believe that Jesus of Nazareth had met the bill was sufficient for the job if you like but it all goes horribly wrong. They had warmed to the idea of victory by the airfield to see that glory and victory lay along the path of suffering and death of Jesus hadn't concealed this we know that from our studies.

I'm only going to give you one other cross reference. It's Luke chapter 18 and is verse 31 Jesus had not concealed this.

There's no sense in which Jesus had tried to make it easy for people to be as follows. The way that some of us are tempted to do. Jesus had not said you know, and follow me, and it's just going to be victorious is going to be triumphant is going to be fantastic know he actually said, if you follow me is going to mean a radical change in your life and if you follow me you're going to follow me today and if you follow me, you have to take up your cross every day and follow me.

And so prove that you're my disciple know Jesus as did not like some contemporary explications of the gospel hold out these wonderfully juicy carrots for the silly donkeys along the role he actually held out a story for the thinking man and woman despite the fight of your difficulty getting their heads around verse 31 of Luke 18. Jesus took the 12 aside and told him going up to Jerusalem and everything that is written by the prophets about the Son of Man will be fulfilled and then to help them.

He goes on to work this out. He will be turned over to the Gentiles.

They will mock him, insult him, spit on him, flog him and kill him.

On the third day he will rise again and then Luke tells the disciples did not understand any of this is meaning was hidden from them, and they did not know what he was talking about here we are on this first Easter Sunday afternoon needs peripheral followers of Christ are having their discussion as they make their journey back to this little town, 7 miles away from Jerusalem and in verse 27 we are told that Jesus gave them a systematic Bible study beginning with Moses and notice again. All the prophets, he explained to them what was said in all the Scriptures concerning himself.

I don't write in my Bible.

This particular Bible I write in some Bibles the pages are tooth and it gets very messed up in the Bible that I write in and I'm going to circle all all all how slow of heart to believe all the prophets of spoken not the Christ have to suffer these things and enters glory and beginning with Moses and all the prophets explained and what was said in all the Scriptures concerning himself and this is of vital importance, and it is really here that were going and as I was preparing this and thinking along these lines, and anticipating this morning I flew home yesterday afternoon, and in the course of a very short flight 55 minutes or so myself and the stewardess were engaged in conversation. The details of which are not significant. At least his introduction, but it finally turned on the five and she asked me what translation of the Bible. Do you like to use what I said I used presently. The NIV also said I don't like the NIV and then she walked away with a Diet Coke or ginger ale or something.

I said to myself how interesting and all the conversations I've ever had a never really had a conversation with somebody who's opening line was what translation the Bible do you like to use the back of my mind I said, here we go. While of course I was right because when she came back with the trolley. She said I said so why don't you like the NIV well, she said, because the NIV removes God's name.

I said immediately I knew I was dealing with in dealing with a Jehovah's Witness. I what she was telling me was that since the name Jehovah is appears in the NIV as Lord capitalized LRD.

This was actually the removal of the name of God and intervened on 7000 time will vary. Fortunately, I have recently heard a sermon on this, in which the pastor explained that when the Hebrew was translated into the Greek. Some 7000 times in the Septuagint version of the Bible. They translated Yahweh. The unpronounceable name of God the translated Yahweh as Julio's member curiosity is and they did so in order that it might be absolutely apparent who Jesus is to let Paul's great declaration at the name of Jesus every knee will bow and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord his God is Yahweh understood what he was saying he was a monotheistic Jew and he was declaring the reality of the divinity of Christ and of course fortunately because I hear that sermon actually preached it, but fortunately because I heard that sermon got but because I also hear what I preach.

Fortunately I was able to say a kindly guy understand your stuff about the dendrogram it's in all these other things we don't don't don't do that to me and don't try and baffle me with Hebrew and with Greek.

I didn't say that, but it essentially has said that and as the conversation unfolded.

I said to her, you know are you so concerned that Jesus would not be the person he claimed to be. She didn't even answer for them to talk about what she had was a series of proof texts. So she went to the standard stuff of the Jehovah's Witnesses history are trained to go to the Lord said to my Lord. And then she tried to tell me about what that what that meant, because in good in fairness to her, that is exactly the instruction that she has received, and coming out as she told me of a moribund, deathly Roman Catholicism which have done nothing for her toilet set make her feel guilty.

She had found great release in this discovery of the Jehovah's challenge and the baby energizing opportunity of trying to convert erstwhile little Scotsman is there sitting drinking there Diet Coke on the plane back to Cleveland. I said while I'm so glad that you feel it necessary to convert me because I am equally committed to converting you and she said, but wouldn't it be wonderful if we could agree. I said no, it would be terrible if we could agree because our disagreement is fundamental. It is absolutely vital because if you are right and Jesus is a created being that he is not God. He is not Savior. He is not alive in salvation history is ended in a cul-de-sac of a Palestinian tomb. But if the New Testament is right than an actual five you may know him know why, don't mention because the way to be able to deal with the Jehovah's Witness with the Mormon is not the way it is usually suggested in the books in the bookstore. If they say this, you say that they say this, you say that what it ends up being is a big proof texting while I think just like checks you see in you move the thing eventually one of the two of you get frustrated like the chessboard right on the floor and all thing is not out of the loop. Get out of my house.

I gotta cut my grass gone get out of here right on. There is only me but here's the deal before we criticized some of us are hanging by our fingernails with approved test Christianity, we had about three or four verses that we understand and have memorized and the rest of why we have a clue what we're doing with and we need the explanation that Jesus provided in the systematic biblical exposition we need the information that comes by the studying of the Bible. That's why we studied in books. That's why were going all the way through Luke's gospel. That's why when we turn from this and go back into other things we can work our way systematically through the eye to prevent ties from doing the very thing that others are tempted to do to us the necessity of the big picture. Genesis all the way to Revelation is the story of God's amazing grace is the story of the fight that God's purpose from all of eternity to redeem a people that are his own and that it is the utterly undeserved privilege of all who believe to be in be included in that great that in Genesis, when many discover their nakedness and the hiding from God comes and pursues and discovering them in their nakedness.

He provides them with a covering for their nakedness pointing out in the very infancy of things that will eventually come a day when he will provide a robe of righteousness very robe of his son so that we may and royal robes. We don't deserve live to serve his Majesty that all of those big amazing dramatic stories in Leviticus and on about this.

The sacrificial system on large and small open curtains and now all of these things there all pointed to the fact that God is holy, other than us that he cannot tolerate to look upon sin because he's so incredibly holy. Sin must be punished because he is so amazingly loving. He provides for sinners sacrifice of atonement so that from the very beginning all the way to the end. The focus is ultimately found in Jesus who you're talking about were talking about Jesus of Nazareth. While it doesn't seem to be doing you much good does it. You're too slow to believe all that the prophets have written it on the big picture, the awfulness of sin and the deep, deep love of God combining to make Calvary inevitable in their hearts began to burn within them. At least that's what he said later.

Three years started to burn. First, I'm sure the cheeks flushed dear all, and then their hearts stirred learning, listening, saying all that makes perfect sense. Now I understand some 22. Now I understand some 22 we just read in this morning. I hope you understand my God, my God, why have you forsaken me. I can now I can number all my bones there attacking me like wild dogs. They pierced my hands and my feet. Christ on the cross quotes the Bible Christ on the Emmaus Road teaches the Bible there will come a day when in all of his kingly power line will lie down with the lamb, but for now they need to get this and so do we let sit facing up to the basic problem facing up to the basic problem we had hoped that Jesus was this, but he has apparently not needed to have that notion corrected, and some of us this morning need that corrected to and then finding the big picture. Jesus says guys.

The problem here is not that you don't believe the problem is that you don't believe properly. That's the problem for some of you snugly or unbelievers come out of a background of orthodoxy giving to the creeds you believe that Jesus was the Christ. You believe that he was the Messiah. You spent in you spend time in the company of Christ. But if you recognized in the way that Saul of Tarsus recognized the who are you, Lord, is the name of God.

He is CUNY's Yahweh being a Christian is about more than just being in the presence of Christ about having a relationship with him as our Lord and Savior to the challenge from today's message on Truth for Life with Alastair big. Please keep listening. Alastair will be back in a minute to close with prayer will having just celebrated Easter.

I hope you are comforted to know that your salvation is assured because of the resurrection of Jesus. Our culture often dismisses the resurrection as a myth claiming that miracles can't be true. If they can't be scientifically verified. While our current book recommendation is a book titled alive how the resurrection of Christ changes everything.

And it refutes this notion with both historical and biblical evidence. The book provides a thorough defense of the reality of the resurrection. So whether you're looking to relieve your own doubts about the resurrection or convince others of the truth of God's word. Be sure to request your copy of the book alive. When you donate today your giving directly supports the distribution of this daily teaching program you can give easily to our mobile app or by visiting Truth for Life.org/donate can also call 888-588-7884.

Now here's Alastair to close in prayer. Father, thank you for the Bible. Thank you for its clarity and its power. Thank you for the fact that it confronts our basic problem as it did those individuals thank you to that when we get a grasp of the big picture, we find that it forms ultimately in this wonderful portrait of Jesus, thank you for reminding us that life does have meaning and that meaning is found in Christ. Grant to us eyes to see, ears to hear minds to think hearts to welcome and will still be the Lord Jesus Christ and make grace and mercy and peace from the Father and the son and the Holy Spirit is the abiding portion of all who believe. Today and forevermore. Amen Bob Lapine thanks for listing. Join us again tomorrow as we learn how to draw closer Bible teaching of Alastair Beck is furnished by Truth for Life. Learning is for Living