Dave spoke this morning from Luke 24:13-35, the story of two disciples disillusioned, depressed and downcast. They had entered Jerusalem on Palm Sunday with high hopes of Jesus being crowned king, but life had not worked out how they had expected: Jesus had been arrested, tried and executed in the space of a few days. Their hopes had been dashed and they were not at all sure what to make of the women’s bizarre stories that they had seen the risen Lord. Having our dreams dashed and facing disappointment is one of the many things we have in common with these two disciples, who were joined on their long walk to Emmaus by Jesus HImself. He explained what Jesus had taught about being raised from the dead and answered their disasppointment by reminding them of what God had said.
We need, as Paul reminded Timothy, to continue in what we have learned and to remember that we serve a risen Saviour, no matter what our personal circumstances look like. As these two reflected on what Jesus said, God’s word burned in their hearts and they realilsed who their companion was, that they had a friend in need, a friend in God. They discovered new hope and realised the bigger picture as they listened and learned from Jesus. The same will happen to us if we walk with Him through our darkest days.
