The lesson this morning will
be taken from Luke chapter 24. We're drawing to a close on our
studies in Luke. And this morning I want to continue
in Luke 24. And we'll be looking at verses
25 through 32. And the lesson is about the revelation
of Christ. So let's read these verses together. Luke chapter 24, beginning of
verse 25. Then he said unto them, O fools,
and slow of heart to believe all that the prophets have spoken. They believed part of it. They
understood part of it, but they didn't believe all of it. in
that way religion is. They know part of it, but not
all of it. And here's what he said to them.
Ought not Christ to have suffered these things and to enter into
his glory? Isn't that what the prophets
talked about? And beginning at Moses, the first five books of
the Bible, and all the prophets He expounded unto them in all
the Scriptures the things concerning himself. And they drew nigh unto the village
whither they went, and he made it as though he would have gone
further. But they constrained him, saying,
Abide with us, for it is toward evening, and the day is far spent. And he went in to tarry with
them. And it came to pass, as he sat
at meat with them, he took bread, and blessed it, and break, and
gave to them. And their eyes was opened, and
they knew him, and he vanished out of their sight. And they
said one to another, did not our hearts burn within us while
he talked with us by the way and while he opened to us the
scriptures? Now the account the Holy Ghost
has preserved for us here began with two disciples on a journey
to Emmaus. And this was the village, I suppose,
where they lived. And as they walked along, they
were expressing their sadness and disappointment of how they perceived the death
of their savior and the events that followed his death. It was
confusing to them. They were blindsided by his death. Things were not going the way
they thought they ought to. as they were taught. And that's,
I fear, that that's most of our problems. We think as we were
taught. And if we were taught wrong,
then our thoughts are wrong. And this was the problem. They thought as they were taught
that the Christ would come as a man like Moses. a man that God would write physical
man. And he'd be born of the tribe
of Judah. And the Lord was going to bless him like no other man.
He was going to raise this man up. He was going to accompany
this man in power. And he was going to deliver them
from the oppression of the Romans. And he was going to exalt Israel
again just like it was in the days of Solomon. They were looking
for Israel ascend again to their former days of glory. That's
what they expected, and they just knew that Jesus was the
man who was going to do this. Because never a man spoke like
this man. No man was attended with the
kind of power this man was attended with. They looked for a temporal salvation
by temporal means, And they hope to see those things that I just
described. I fear the same ignorance concerning
our country. Think about it. Beloved, America is not the kingdom
of God. It's not. There's a lot of things
written down in our Constitution that are just not so. It's not
so. We're not one nation under God. This nation is as ungodly as
any other nation. It's not the kingdom of God any
more than Jerusalem was, or what men foolishly call the Holy Land. There's nothing holy about it. I see its deterioration. I see
the deterioration of this country. And I know firsthand about its
earlier days. The 50s was good days, weren't
they? Oh, it's after the war, no war going on, economy's booming,
everything's... I know what that is. And having
experienced that and seeing what I see today, I see the deterioration
of this country. And I long to see better days. fixing this country is not to
be confused with the kingdom of God or the glory of God. Their hearts
were troubled because they misunderstood the coming of Christ and the
reason he came and the life he lived and the death he died.
They were ignorant of those things. It's just this kind of ignorance
that leaves men and women confused and sad. Nothing's going the
way they thought it should. Why did we say such things? Because
we're ignorant. That's why. We're ignorant of
the Word of God. We're ignorant of the purpose
of God. And we're ignorant of the providence of God. We'd rejoice
if we weren't. These men learned to rejoice
in trouble. They rejoiced that they were
counted worthy to suffer for his name. Nothing turns out the way men
think it will. They walk, the scripture says,
in the vanity of their minds. In their minds they have a vision
of the way things ought to be, of what they think the blessing
of God is. And that's the way they walk,
and it's a soap bubble. Their understanding, he said,
being darkened, being alienated from the life of God. When he
talks about the life of God, he's not talking about how long
it lasts. When he says eternal life, he's talking about the
quality of it, not the quantity of it. Eternal life is to know
God. He tells us that at least twice
in those very words. In John 17 and his prayer. And in 1 John chapter 5 and verse
20. He tells us that. Eternal life is to know God,
to know the Redeemer. And this is where we are and
what we're doing and why we are so confused and troubled. We
think this or that ought to happen because we're ignorant of the
purpose, the life, the death, the resurrection of Jesus Christ.
And nothing's going to change. Nothing's ever going to get any
better until Christ reveals himself to us. That's right. no other reconciliation to God. There is no other faith toward
God than to know the Lord Jesus Christ. He that seeth the Son. Isn't
that what it says? From Moses to Malachi, the Bible
sets forth the coming Redeemer, identified with men, but not
of Adam's seed. Virgin born, that's what it says.
One with our flesh and bones, but not of this world. He said
if I was of this world, then the angels would come and fight,
and my servants would come and fight, but I'm not of this world. He's virgin born. God blessed
forever. Eternal God, yet subject to weakness
and death. From Genesis to Malachi, God
sent him forth as the propitiation for our sins. Read Romans chapter
3, verses 24, 25, and 26. That's talking about Old Testament
times. That's talking about how he was
set forth as the Lamb. How he was set forth as the one
offering, as the atonement. The Lamb of God. When John the
Baptist saw him coming down the path, he said, Behold, the Lamb. You want to know what the Lamb,
the significance of the Lamb, there it is. He's the Lamb. He sets him forth as the way
God saves sinners and the means by which God can be just in his
justification of ungodly men, righteous in his remission of
sins. And his people are not a physical
nation, They're a spiritual nation, a holy nation, a peculiar people,
a royal priesthood. That's what Peter calls them
in 1 Peter 2. Paul said, you're all the children
of God by faith in Christ Jesus. And in him, there's neither Jew
nor Greek. There's neither bond nor free.
And boy, this really threw me for a leap the first time I read
it. They're neither male nor female. Not in Christ. You're all one in Christ. In Romans 9.8, he tells us that
they which are the children of the flesh, that is, the descendants
of Abraham, these are not the children of God. But God has
a people and he calls them the Israel of God. That's what he
calls them, Manalik, the true circumcision. And his kingdom is a spiritual
kingdom called the kingdom of his dear son. He has translated
us out of darkness into the kingdom of his dear son. And when it
comes, it cometh not, he said, with observation. Kingdom of
God. You're not going to see a man
raised in the power and that man going to rally an army and
they're going to go out here, just a little group of them,
and they're going to defeat 10,000. That's not going to happen. When the kingdom of God is established,
you won't even see it, unless it's being established in you. No one around you can see it.
It's not documented by man, nor is it incorporated into their
science, their history, or their genealogy. You can't find it.
in the science of men and the history of men. And everything
concerning this kingdom comes by way of revelation. The revelation of Jesus Christ.
It can only be truly seen with spiritual eyes. Blessed are your
eyes, for they see. That's what our Lord said. You
have blessed eyes. These guys over here, they're
as far trained as men can train one to be religious. And I know a lot of people that
way. But they never had the revelation of Christ. They wouldn't act
like they act, they wouldn't talk like they talk, if they
truly seen Him. And Paul said, we preach the
mystery of God. Huh? The mystery of God. He said, I have not seen nor
heard, neither have entered into the heart of man, natural man,
the things which God hath prepared for them that love him. But he
hath revealed them unto us. How? By the Holy Ghost. Paul continues to say, which
things we also speak. The revelation of Christ comes
by way of the spoken word. Not just so. Not words of man's
wisdom, but spiritual words and teaching which the Holy Ghost
attends and works in conjunction with and bears witness in the
hearts of true believers. His Spirit bears witness with
our spirit that we are the children of God. How does He do that?
He gives you an understanding. That's how He does it. Now listen to me. Seeing the
Lord is a relevant term. God reveals Christ to us in the
way He's pleased to do so. He revealed His Son in many ways
in the Old Testament. He revealed His Son in the burning
bush. Did He not? God spoke to Him
out of that bush. He revealed Himself to them in
a fiery cloud that followed them everywhere they went. He revealed
himself to them in a shekinah glory that filled the tabernacle.
He revealed himself to them as the angel of the covenant. He
revealed himself to them in a priest called Melchizedek. Had neither
father nor mother. Paul said, that he spoke to our
fathers in diverse manners, sundry times, different ways,
various ways. He spoke to our fathers by the
prophets. But in these last days, he's
spoken unto us by son. And what that means, literally,
is in son. That has to be. Here's the revelation.
Here's the message. It's all balled up in that man. He speaks to us by His Son, whom
He hath appointed heir of all things. Not sweet little Jesus,
boy. We're talking about one who is
the heir of God. He's heir of everything. Everything
there is. He's the heir. He's the rightful
heir. He's the only begotten Son of God. He appointed Him heir of all
things, by whom, now listen, He made the world. Oh, I thought he was born 2,000
years ago. He was. When did he exist? Forever. He died. And by him, he made
the world. Not just this one, but all the
world. And by this one, who by himself purged our sins. Boy, I wish religion could get
a hold of that. By himself. I was listening to a song coming
over here. By him alone. Him alone. He did it. He did
it. Alone. Well, how do chosen sinners
see the Lord today? The same way the Emmaus disciples
saw him through the preaching of the gospel. How'd they see him? Oh, they
were looking at him. No, he withheld their eyes from
that. They didn't know who he was. They saw the Christ of God. That one you must see. They saw
him through the preaching of the gospel. And the revelation of the Spirit
of Christ. And our Lord has purposed to
be seen by all his disciples, and he's purposed to be seen
the same way. This is the will of him that
sent me, Christ said, that everyone that seeth the Son, and believeth
on him, may have everlasting life, and I'll raise him up again
at the last day. And men and women chosen of God,
and for whom Christ lived and died and rose from the dead,
shall every one see the Lord. All of us. through the preaching of the
gospel, and that from the word of God. Peter said that spiritual
semen by which we're born is the word of God, and this is
the word which by the gospel is preached unto us. 1 Peter 1, read 23 through 25. See if that's not what he said. Alright, now listen to this.
As he was preaching to these men, he grew near to where they
lived, and the Lord made as though he would go on. Did he intend
to go on? No. But he made like he would. They still as yet did not see
him, or at least did not realize that they had. When the Lord
makes Himself known by His servants, bear for that servant to leave.
Isn't that what he's telling us here? Nobody had spoken to
them since Christ died the way this man was. And they couldn't bear. That
word constrain, it says they constrained him, Luke 24, verse
29. The word constrained here is
a fascinating word. It's the strongest use of that
word anywhere in Scripture. What it means is to compel by
force. They weren't going to take no
for an answer. Oh, this woman, this blessed
woman. I cannot tell you the bond formed in my heart as the
Lord revealed Himself to me through His servant. That bond still
exists. That man's dead and gone. He's
with the Lord. But that bond's still here. It's
still here. It was as though the Lord Himself
was speaking to me. Our Lord chose 70 disciples. Thousands followed Him. Out of
those thousands, He chose 70. And He said, you're going to
go into all the cities where I'm going to go, and you're going
to preach my gospel to them. Now listen to what he said. He
that heareth you, heareth me. Oh, we could listen that way.
Because that's the way it is. It was though the Lord himself
was speaking to me. How did you know that? I can't
explain it. I just can't explain it. It was just so. I'd heard
preachers all my life. Some of them famous, some of
them not. Some of them good, some of them poor. I've heard
preachers all my life, but I never thought one of them was the Lord
speaking to me. But I knew the Lord was speaking
to me when I heard that man. And I feared him. I did. I knew
he was the servant of God. And the joy and the peace and
assurance and refreshing was such that I could hardly bear
for it to end. I didn't want it to end. But alas, it did. And then my
heart began to reminisce what I'd heard, and to long to hear it again."
Huh? Isn't that the way it is with
believers? They constrained him to abide
with them. Is there other examples of this
in Scripture? Oh, my soul. Oh, the Lord come
down as a man, as a man. This is an Old Testament vision
of Christ. He come down as a man and wrestled
with Jacob, and Jacob wouldn't let him go. He hurt him, but
he still wouldn't let him go. I ain't gonna let you go till
you bless me. Oh, is that being constrained? That's constrained.
That dark night on the stormy sea as their ship was about to
sink, and they saw through a lightning flash. It was dark out there,
and a storm, and the waves, and these were experienced fishermen,
and they had just about to give up all hope. And they looked
out there, and the lightning flashed, and there's a man walking
on the water. And he made as though he didn't
even see him, like he was going to walk right. Man, they began
to call out to him. What about the Syrophoenician
woman crying out for a demon-possessed daughter over Matthew 15? She cried out to him, and he
answered her not a word. And it went on and on, but she
wouldn't take no for an answer. Finally, she had to take her
place as a dog, but she said the dog, the master's dog. They're
different between a dog and a master's dog. This was a master's dog.
He gets the scraps from the table. How would you be satisfied with
the scraps from the master? Oh, my son. You bet I will. He wouldn't take no for an answer.
Here's another one. Our Lord sat like a plant. He's
going to the cross. He's going to Jerusalem. And
he just, nothing, nothing can stop him. He's going to Jerusalem,
and he starts out at Jericho, and there's a blind beggar over
there on the block. Old, smelly, blind beggar. Uneducated. Jesus, thou son of David, have
mercy on me. The Master's teaching. The Master's...
Be quiet. Jesus, thou son of David, have
mercy on me. And you know what? Nothing could
stop him, but that blind baker did. Huh? As the gospel of Christ is preached
and God's testimony concerning his Son is revealed, there's
an urgency that floods the soul. It overwhelms the sinner. And
God's servant is constrained to abide with him. Now watch this. When the servants
invited in, what'd he do? Well, you'd think he'd just sit
there and be served. That's not what he did. When the servants invited in,
he took the bread. He took it. He just laid it on
the table. He took it. And he blessed it,
and he broke it, and he gave it to them. And as soon as he
did, their eyes were open. Their eyes were open and they
knew him. They knew the resurrected Christ. They weren't looking at the man
they reckoned to be a prophet anymore, but they saw the God-man. They saw the Word made flesh.
As John said, we saw His glory. The glory is of the only begotten,
full of grace and truth. They met a man on the road to
Emmaus, a nice man, a seemingly wise man, a helpful man, a man
who told them the truth, pointed out their troubles, showed them
the Christ of God as God set him forth in His Word. And they
constrained this man to abide in their house. And he did. They
couldn't bear to have him leave. And giving in to their constraint,
he gave them the revelation of Christ, and as soon as he did,
now watch this, he vanished away. I don't know how many years I've
looked at that and did not understand it. Did the revelation vanish? What did? The servant. Huh? The servant. Here's what happens when God
gives you the revelation of his son. Somewhere during the preaching
of the gospel, you cease to see the servant, and all you see
is the son. Is that so? That's exactly right. O. Andrew Bonar was in Glasgow
to speak at a university. It was a beautiful spring day
and he decided to walk to the meeting house. And so as he walked
he noticed a crowd gathered and a lot of noise and people clear
outside the building. And his curiosity got the best
of him and he crossed the road and he went down and he peered
in the front door and up front he sees there's an auctioneer
up there and he's talking. And there's a portrait there.
They're auctioning off portraits. This was an art gallery that
had closed and they're auctioning off all these portraits. And
all he could see was a pair of hands sticking out from behind
the portrait. He couldn't see the man's face.
But as that auctioneer described that portrait, these fingers
were pointing. Pointing to all these parts for you to see. And he said, as I saw that, he
said, I got to think about my preaching that morning. And he
said, I pray that when I get there and preach, that all they
see is the hand pointing. They're going to see Christ.
All they're going to see of me is a pointing hand. That's what
preachers do. They just point me into Christ.
They point me into Christ. When Christ is revealed, the
servant disappears, but the revelation continues. After he left, they
said, boy, did not our heart burn within us as he talked with us? Did not
our heart burn within us while he talked with us by the way
and while he opened to us the Scriptures? May the Lord be pleased
to grant to you the true experience of grace in the revelation of
his Son. Somewhere in my preacher.