Seeking for the help of the Lord,
I direct your prayer for attention to Luke 24, the passage that
we read, and for our text, verse 34. Verse 34, saying, The Lord is
risen indeed, and hath appeared to Simon. The two had returned
from Emmaus, and they came to the upper room, And they heard
the eleven that were gathered there saying this, The Lord is
risen indeed, and hath appeared to Simon. And then it was their
turn to tell what had been done in the way, and how he was known
of them in breaking of bread. It is hard for us to think of
any other time in the history of the Church that were so important
as this time. What I mean is, if after all
the Old Testament times, after the birth, and very much evidence
of that, of our Lord, after all these things had happened, the
miracles, the preaching, the crucifixion of our Lord, All
of those things, if the Lord had not risen from the dead,
then none of those would have been fulfilled, nothing would
have been accomplished, the whole of salvation hung upon the Lord
rising from the dead. Death is the sentence against
sin, and we must die We must, death must have that power over
us to bring us to the grave. But our Lord said, no man taketh
my life from me, I lay it down of myself. He did not have to
die because he was a sinner. But the very evidence of that,
the proof of it, is the empty tomb of risen Saviour. And so
Paul, he tells those on Mars Hill, that God hath given assurance
unto all men, and that he hath raised him from the dead. And
so what was happening on this first day of the week, this day
when our Lord rose, it was a vital thing that the evidence of the
Lord's resurrection was there. Now those, of course, the Jews
were saying, they were spreading rumours, and saying that his
disciples came and stole him away. And the soldiers were given
money to actually say that. So there were those that were
trying to counter what the truth really was at this time. But our Lord had 40 days that
were from the time of his resurrection to the time of his ascension
up into heaven. and it was vital that during
that time there be those proofs of it. Now really, in the end,
the proofs come down to witnesses. It comes down to those that had
actually seen the Lord and to bear testimony of Him. When Paul
wrote to the Corinthians, in chapter 15 of his first epistle,
he tells of those witnesses and he says that he was seen of Cephas,
that is Peter, then of the twelve, after that he was seen of above
five hundred brethren at once, of whom the greater part remain
unto this present, but some have fallen asleep, After that, he
was seen of James, then of all the apostles, and last of all,
he was seen of me also as of one born out of due time. The
Lord appeared to him on the way to Damascus and spoke to him
from heaven. Who art thou, Lord? He said,
I am Jesus, whom thou persecutest. We also have the witness of Stephen
when he was dying, when he was being stoned, He looked up and
testified that he saw the Lord standing at the right hand of
God ready to receive him. But in this time, especially
in this first day, when all of the evangelists, they all speak
and testify in different ways as they saw it in different timings,
what had happened on that first day of the week. And so I do
want to really emphasize what an important doctrine, what an
important truth that this is. The Lord is risen indeed. He really is. And there is no
doubt at all about it. When, again, Paul wrote to the
Corinthians, he was combating errors there where there were
those that said there was no resurrection of the dead. And
he links the resurrection of the dead with the resurrection
of Christ. If the dead did not rise, then
was Christ not risen? And all the implications of Christ
not being risen, that then our faith was in vain, our preaching
was vain, and we are false witnesses because we declared that. Christ
has risen from the dead, but he has not. And then those that
have died, those that are asleep, they've perished. And we are
reminded again, not only was this Resurrection Day so important
to assure that the sacrifice of our Lord was accepted and
that sin was put away and the wrath of God was appeased and
the debts were paid And the condemnation taken away from the people of
God, not only was that so, but that the Lord himself was the
first fruits of those that rose from the dead, assuring that
all of the people of God, not only their souls shall be in
heaven, but their resurrected bodies as well. And the apostle
in that first epistle to the Corinthians had to deal with
that as well. because he said there will be
those that say, well, if that's the case, how will we appear
in heaven? Our bodies are reduced to dust. Our bodies die. How shall the
dead arise? And he points them to simple
illustrations, like a grain of corn that's put in the ground,
only one grain. And when it rises up, and then
it grows up, and it might have four, five, fifty grains on that
corn. And it needs to die first and
be buried to be able to grow up. So the Lord Jesus, as the
first fruits, is like that grain of corn, is buried, and then
it ensures that his people will also rise again. But he gives
the illustration that if corn is buried, you don't expect that
barley will spring up. or if barley's buried, you don't
expect that corn is gonna come up. Each grain, each seed that
we put in the ground has its own body. And he says that's
how we shall be in the resurrection. And Job, he says that though
after his skin, worms destroy this body, yet in my flesh shall
I see God. He was very clear of the resurrection. So as Martha, she said of Lazarus,
I know that he shall rise at the last day. Our Lord Jesus
Christ is the first begotten from the dead. Lazarus was raised
by a miracle of our Lord, but one day he died again, and he
also awaits that resurrection at the last day. So this day,
this first day, And then the days that followed, the times
that the Lord appeared to them were very, very important. Forty
is always put in scripture as a testing time. Forty days the
rain was on the earth in the days of the flood. Forty years
in the wilderness, the children of Israel tested there. And forty
years, Lord Jesus, 40 days rather, the Lord Jesus tempted of the
devil in the wilderness after he was baptized. And so then
the 40 days here, we go back 40 days that Jonah said Nineveh
had before they would be destroyed. It was a time of testing. The hymn says, regarding Christ's
temptations, our captain stood the fiery test and we shall stand
through him. And so we have the reality, Jesus,
the Lord, is risen indeed and hath appeared. And it does good
for us, especially at these seasons, to really reinforce this truth
because there have been those, even amongst the professed churches
that have denied the resurrection. No doubt, being ignorant men,
men that are not called, and yet in places in the church have
no idea of what they do in denying those truths that are so central,
so essential to the Christian faith. If Christ says, Paul is
not risen, then ye are dead in your sins. There is no hope for
us if Christ has not risen. He is a living Saviour. He has
ascended up into heaven. He appears in the presence of
God for us. He is our Advocate with the Father
Jesus Christ, the Righteous. And in this account the Lord
showed them His hands and His feet. He says that flesh and
blood A spirit hath not flesh and blood as you see me have.
And in our articles of faith we state that the same bones,
the same flesh that hung upon the tree are now glorified in
heaven. So that's what he said here for
a spirit hath not flesh and bones as you see me have. And that
is what we reaffirming our articles. Our text then says, what was
being said when these two came amongst the disciples, the Lord
is risen indeed and hath appeared to Simon. Well, I want to think of this
time here that the disciples had There's three things. There's a time when doubt and
unbelief were taken away. And then secondly, a time of
personal testimony. And then thirdly, a time for
the Lord to visit them together, when they were all together. And I would notice before coming
to these points, what a difference or a change was happening throughout
this account that we read. You know, at first, and the Lord
upbraided them for their unbelief, when the women had come and told
what they had seen, the disciples received their testimony as just
idle tales. They believed them not. That's
how, as it were, the day began. But when the day ended, we read,
them were the disciples glad when they saw the Lord. At first,
though, they were terrified and affrighted, thought they had
seen a spirit. But by the end of this account,
when they clearly understood what had happened, what had been
accomplished, even though the Lord had been taken from them
and ascended up into heaven, we read that they returned. They worshipped him and returned
to Jerusalem with great joy. This was when he was parted from
them and carried up into heaven. And we're continually in the
temple praising and blessing God. Amen. And you see this very
great change that had taken place. And what had changed their mourning,
their doubts, their unbelief into great joy, even though the
Lord had been taken from them, was the knowledge of the truth,
the knowledge of what had been done. and all their doubts, their
unbelief had been taken away, they clearly saw the plan of
salvation, and no doubt clearly felt their own interest in it. So firstly I want to notice a
time when doubt and unbelief were taken away. It may be as
we gather together this evening, those of you gathering, and you
have got doubts. and you have got unbelief. And
there's those things you wrestle with in the word of God. You
cannot understand them, cannot fathom them. You are like the
disciples here. You cannot believe. Maybe it
is you say, well, I believe the account. I believe what the Lord
has done, but I can't believe that he has done it for me. Can't
believe that he's put away my sin. Can't believe that he's
risen again to justify me or bring me out from condemnation. And there's those doubts, those
fears, that unbelief. And you may have one thing after
another happen, and what was happening here made them think,
made them wonder. and some of the reports were
heard, then there were those that went to the tomb and had
a look themselves and to see what these things were, returning
and rightly wondering. And all these things were happening.
While they still had no assurance, they had not yet come, to the
time that they're able to say the Lord is risen indeed, there's
many things that they're thinking, has he risen? Where is he? And it might have the same, not
so much as to believing what the Lord has laid on record here,
but regarding your own soul. Has the Lord begun? Has he opened mine eyes? Has He opened mine ears? Am I
still dead in trespasses and sins? Has the Lord begun a good
work in me? The Scriptures say, He that hath
begun a good work in you will perform it unto the day of Jesus
Christ. There might be those things you
look at, those evidences, those times that you've felt. I often
think of this with Samson. the spirit of the Lord began
to move him at times in the camp of Dan. And I found that with
my experience as well. Those times you feel a real drawing
and a longing and hope in the Lord. And then all seems to go away.
And the world seems to take over and the heart returns as hard
and cold. And then it returns again. Something
happens, something is used. Maybe a word stands out in a
sermon or that which is read. And prayer is revitalized and
concern is felt. Maybe it is a A real piercing
thought, as the hymn writer says. Can I bear the piercing thought?
What if my name should be left out when thou for them shalt
call? And each of these times is a
little hope raised up, a little who can tell. But it's not settled,
it's not sure, it's not certain. It's like this first day of the
week, much coming and going, many things that are causing
them to think and to hope, and no doubt they did really hope
that it was true, the Lord had risen. You might hope as well
that the Lord truly is at work, truly He will bless you, He will
favour you, He will carry on that good work. But then fresh
sins arise, the plague of the heart is felt, Hardness is felt. The world pulls. Things are said. Things are done. And you think,
how ever can God dwell here? How can this be God's work when
all of these things are happening? And it seems to be so contrary. And there's those things then
you feel, well, what doubts I have. What unbelief I have. How I wrestle
with that. I would believe, then all would
easy be, but instead there's all this coming and going, and
all this, these doubts. Well, you know, they had that
on this first day of the week. So much uncertainty and so much
doubt, but then they come to this time, and there's the disciples
saying, The Lord is risen indeed and hath appeared to Simon. The matter was settled. He really
has risen. He really is alive. And that
has a parallel in the experience and lives of the people of God
as well. When they are brought to that
assurance, it is the Lord. It is the Lord. It is His work,
it is His hand. And without us having to do it,
those doubts, that unbelief, the darkness, it goes away. And there's that sweet relief
and assurance that it really is the Lord. You know, we said,
as following on from this, what great joy there was. And especially
when they viewed completely the Lord rising, ascending up to
heaven. What joy, what worship. And there
are degrees of that joy, and degrees of that worshipping. when all the uncertainty is taken
away. We are saved by hope, but hope
that is seen is not hope. But what a man seeth, what doth
he hope for? But we have that beautiful word,
that we are saved, saved by grace, A good hope through grace. And that is what the people of
God have. A good hope through grace. The
Lord freely, sovereignly, graciously giving to those for whom he has
suffered, bled and died and risen again, to know that he has done
that for them. Do we not think that the Lord
would let those know for whom He did those things? In a natural
way, if we'd done something for someone, if we'd paid their debt,
if we'd done something for them, would we just leave them to be
worrying about it? Leave them to actually try and
pay the debt themselves, instead of saying to them, don't worry,
Don't try and pay the debt yourself. I've paid it and so you don't
need to worry. It wouldn't be much good doing
something for someone and they never knew that benefit and that
blessing and never had the comfort of it. Surely what we'd want
to do for them was that they did have the comfort and they
did have the rest of it. They weren't still trying to
pay off a debt that we'd already paid off for them. And so with
our Lord, those for whom He has suffered, bled and died for,
He sends forth His Spirit to make known that salvation. Not only just that it is accomplished
at Calvary, and accomplished for the people of God, but that
it is accomplished for us, for us personally. And so may this be an encouragement,
this passage, that brings from unbelief, and may we never make
excuses for unbelief. Our Lord did. He upbraided them
for their unbelief. He reproved them for it and for
their hardness of heart. But He still took away that unbelief
gave them joy, and, you know, if our salvation depended upon
us, we would never be saved. Hymn writer says, "'Tis Christ
makes a believer and gives him his crown." And there won't be
one that says to another, well, I had joy and peace because I
believed. And all you've got to do is to
do the same. With the people of God, they
know that it is the Lord only that can comfort heavy hearts,
lift that veil of unbelief and doubt, and reveal himself to
them. And so I want to look in the
second place, a time of personal testimony. These two came back from the
way to Emmaus, saying the Lord, and heard them, the eleven that
were gathered together, saying, The Lord is risen indeed, and
hath appeared to Simon. Now a text mentions just appearance
to Peter. Paul mentions the same appearance
when he rehearses those who had the Lord show himself to them.
When he writes to the Corinthians, we know that he appeared personally
to Mary, to the women, and to those two on the way to Emmaus. They were those that he sovereignly
drew near and appeared to. In his time away, we might say
the two on the way to Emmaus, why did they not know him straight
away? Why did they not recognise him? Why did not Mary recognise him? Why did not Samuel recognise
the voice of the Lord when the Lord called to him and he thought
it was Eli? We read that their eyes were
holden, so they should not know him. Hidden from them, yet in full
sight. And yet there was a time that
he showed himself to them. So they personally had the Lord
shown the things that went before. He drew out from them what their
sorrow was. He preached to them Christ in
all the scriptures and their heart burned within them. And
then he was made known to them in breaking of bread If they
were amongst those that saw the Lord break the bread to the thousands,
or if they were those at the Lord's Supper, whichever way,
whether it was that or not, the Lord chose in that way to reveal
Himself to them. And as later on He shows His
hands and His feet, no doubt in breaking that bread they would
have seen His hands. The important thing is that the
Lord ends that time that he was with them in showing himself
to them. There's that lead up to it, a
lead up to really knowing and seeing the Lord Jesus Christ. And that is so in experience
as well. And it is vital for every one
of the people of God to see the Lord by faith, to see Him through
the Word of God, to see Him through the ministry. And that effect,
them were the disciples glad when they saw the Lord, is an
effect felt by all the people of God. It is a blessed thing
to see the Lord. Remember one of the first times
that I felt that was in reading the account of Jacob. There wrestled a man with him
to the breaking of the day. And at that time I was not searching
for the Lord as it were, but the Lord so shone on that a man
with him. There, there was the Lord Jesus
before he came to this world. There was the eternal Son of
God. And the blessing on Jacob was they wrestled not a man,
just a man with him, but his name was changed because they
wrestled with God and with man and has prevailed. And it was
in a passage of scripture that I've no doubt read many times,
and yet saw the Lord. And that made my heart leap and
love that portion. And there is such a difference,
reading a portion that we might have read many, many times before. But when the Holy Spirit shines
upon him, he shall receive of mine and shall show it unto you. You might say, well, how is it?
How can we not see him? What a secret with these two
on the way to Emmaus. Their eyes were holden. How we
need the Lord. to open His Word and to show
it to us. And sometimes it is because of
the things that we have gone through, the Lord has led us
through them, and He has prepared the ground of the heart, and
that seed then falls into that good ground and it brings forth
fruit. One thing is so evident and bound
up with their joy at this time, is understanding. In verse 45
we read, Then opened he their understanding, that they might
understand the Scriptures. We need that blessing too. We
can have the Scriptures before us, we can think we understand
them, but we don't. But when the Lord opens our understanding,
then it comes with a sweetness and with power. What is in our
text appeared to Simon. It was a personal appearing. And then it was a personal testimony
as well. No doubt Simon had been telling
the disciples about how the Lord appeared to him. And the women,
we know that they told how the Lord appeared to them. And then
in verse 35 after our text, these are the two on the way to Emmaus,
they told what things were done in the way and how he was known
of them in breaking of bread. I often think that that is a
wonderful summary of a testimony given by a candidate for church
membership. Two things, one, what things
were done in the way, That is what things have been done in
their lives. And the other thing is how the
Lord Jesus was made known to them. Just those two things.
Because it is the Lord that works in the lives of His people in
the way of experience, bringing them to a knowledge of Himself. And the whole crowning thing
of it is that when the Lord works, The Father will always draw that
soul to Christ. And that, in this portion, is
the end result that made their hearts glad, that rejoiced them,
that took away their doubts, their fears. It was Christ. And one of our hymns speaks of
Christ being revealed and no joy until the Lord is revealed
to us. Well, when he is, then there
is to be a personal testimony. And it's a lovely thing, isn't
it, when God's children get together and they share their testimony. They speak of what they have
seen one of another. And you know, everyone will think,
my poor words, I can't really describe what I've felt, I can't
describe what I've experienced, and yet really, those who've
known the same, they don't need that person to tell it exactly
or really to explain it because they interpret it from their
own experience. Now if you'd had two people that
have said had an operation in a hospital and then there's another
person that never ever had had an operation at all If someone
that had an operation was trying to tell a person that had never
had one before, they'd have to explain it in every detail. But however detailed they explained
it, that person that they were telling it to could never get
an idea of the anxiety, or the pain, or relief, or what it was
to be put out and then come to again, They wouldn't know. They could understand it by words,
but the two that had both done it, when one just started to
explain it, the other one would interpret it by their own experience. They wouldn't need, they'd only
need just a few, few words, and they'd know that person experienced
what I've experienced. They really have gone through
what I've been through. And it's a very, very different
thing. And that is what draws the people of God together. When
even just a few broken sentences, then the people of God, their
hearts are drawn together. They know it's the same spirit,
the same teacher, the same effect. And then they that feared the
Lord spake often one to another. Why do they? that common ground,
that common experience. And here they came together. The common experience was, I've
seen the Lord, I've seen the Lord. Different ways, each one
of them. Different tale to tell, different
accounts to give. But the end was the same, and
the same with the testimonies of God's children. Very few will
have The same experience, the same teaching even, that will
all culminate in this. Unto you which believe he that
is Christ is precious. And then were the disciples glad
when they saw the Lord. And those that gladly received
his word were baptized. A testimony is so important in
Romans 10. Paul says that with the heart
man believeth, and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation. Our Lord, when he came into Jerusalem,
he said, when they cried Hosanna, when he was riding on the ass,
if these should hold their peace, the very stones would cry out. May the four lepers that in the
time that Syria had Samaria under siege. And God caused them to
hear a sound of horsemen and the Syrians all fled. And the
four lepers, they came out to the camp and found no man there. And at first they started to
hide things that they'd found in the tents for themselves. And then they said, we do not
well. This day is a day of good tidings. Let us go and tell the king's
household. And we see this in this account.
There's one after another and they're going and telling the
king's household. They're telling God's people,
they're telling their brethren of that which they have heard
and seen of the Lord risen again, alive, appearing to them. and the joy that this then brings
the disciples. So it is a personal experience,
a personal testimony, a testimony that is to be told. May we also, if we have such
a testimony, to tell it to the Church of God. Then there is, thirdly, a time
for the Lord to visit them together. As they were telling what had
happened in the way, they were gathering together. And then
the Lord came to them. And as they thus spake, Jesus
himself stood in the midst of them and saith unto them, Peace
be unto you. What incentives there are to
gather together. There are personal blessings,
there are blessings in our closets, in our homes, and there are blessings
in the house of God. I was very tried years ago, and
it was when I was taking services at Melbourne, I was reading services,
but I was very tried because nearly all of my blessings, in
fact all of them, I'd had at home, not in the house of God. And I remember saying to my Dutch
friend that I thought the Lord could bless just as much in the
home as in the house of God. And I said it as I said goodbye
and parted from his flat, and I went home. And what remained
with me was the look on his face. And I thought, what have I said? What have I done? I thought, surely I've got this
wrong. He was obviously horrified that
I should even say that. And I thought I hadn't been really,
because I had been blessed at home. I wasn't looking for the
blessing of the Lord in the house of God. I didn't expect it. I expected it to be where it
had a blessing in the closet and on my own. And it brought
such a concern and many prayers and cries to the Lord, were they
blessings I had real? Should I have had them in the
house of God if they were real? And it was a real trouble to
me for some time. And then I had a time I was reading
a sermon, I can't remember what sermon it was, actually in the
house of God. The Lord suddenly came and softened
and blessed my soul, and brought to remembrance in quick succession,
quicker than what you could think, one blessing after another I'd
had in the home, not just remembrance, but inner sweetness and power
as well, as if he'd said, right, here are all these blessings
you've had in the home, here they are in the house of God,
here they are here. And it so softened me. It was
a sweet, a sacred time. But we are to expect that the
Lord will bless our gathering together in his name. Those times
when we may say it is good for us to be here. We're exhorted
to not forsake the assembling of ourselves together as the
manner of some is. And certainly, Thomas, he was
not here. He had to wait another eight
days before he saw the Lord. And yet those that were there,
they saw the Lord. They said to Thomas, we have
seen the Lord. And he said, except I see the
print of the nails and thrust my, put my finger in the print
of the nails and thrust my hand into his side, I will not believe. But when it came to it, and the
Lord said to Thomas, Invited him to do just what he'd said.
He didn't need to. He said, my Lord and my God. Seeing was enough. But may it
be that we are blessed and favoured in the closet and in our homes. We know a personal testimony,
but we also know what it is to delight in the house of God and
delight with the people of God. I know those times when the Lord's
promise is really felt, where two or three are gathered together
in my name, there am I in the midst. Those times when we really
have a sense of the Lord's presence and blessing in His house, when
the power of God is there and the joy of the Lord is there.
Those are special and sacred times. We would believe that
the Lord is always with his people, where they gather together in
his name. Unto him shall the gathering
of the people be, for there are some times when it is more sacredly
known than others. I remember one time here, it
was the last sermon I preached at my probation period nearly
25 years ago, probably it would be 25 years ago, and in the pulpit
here, just before I stood up to preach,
when I was singing the hymn, just such a sense of the Lord's
presence and power that fell on me at that time. And then
after the sermon, the young lady that was playing the organ, she
got up off that organ, she went back to her parents at the back
of the chapel and said, I must go. And that was what the Lord
used. He blessed her to bring her to baptism, but I'd already
felt the power of God and the blessing of God there. And there
have been several times like that in the Church of God. It makes us love the house of
God, and we know the Lord's presence there. It'll haste our steps
there. And when we feel the love and
union to the people of God, they're my best friends, my kindred dwell. They're God, my Saviour reigns. and it gives just a little foretaste
of what it shall be in heaven, that great multitude, and the
Lord in the midst, and the praise, and the joy, and the worship
there. At the end of this chapter, they worshipped Him, returned
to Jerusalem with great joy. May we be of those whose eye
ensharpeneth iron, so the countenance of a man is rend. And we speak
often one to another, and gather for the praise of God and the
worship of our God. And the Lord Jesus be in the
midst and reveal himself to us, banishing all of our doubts and
all of our fears and all of the darkness of our minds and shedding
abroad that light in our souls. May the Lord then bless us thus
and be with us. Amen.