LUKE 24:13-16 INCOGNITO

INCOGNITO

LUKE 24:13-16

(See also Mark 16:12-13)

Susie: Luke is the only one of the gospel writers who includes the full story of this post-resurrection appearance of Jesus, but Mark does mention it in passing.

Luke 24:13-14 And, behold, two of them went that same day to a village called Emmaus, which was from Jerusalem about threescore furlongs. And they talked together of all these things which had happened.

Susie: Emmaus was approximately seven miles from Jerusalem. These two were not members of the eleven apostles but were disciples of Jesus.

Susan: They must have left shortly after Peter and John returned from the tomb with the report that it was empty, but they had not seen the Lord. They had to have left early enough to walk the seven miles in time to arrive home in Emmaus by the evening meal.

Susie: As they walked, they were discussing the events they had witnessed or heard about in Jerusalem during the Passover. This included Jesus’s arrest, trial, and crucifixion. They had also been there to hear the report given by Mary Magdalene and the other women as well as the report from Peter and John that Jesus’s body was no longer in the tomb.

Luke 24:15 And it came to pass, that, while they communed together and reasoned, Jesus himself drew near, and went with them.

Susan: The two disciples on the Emmaus road were in deep, soulful conversation about all that had transpired concerning Jesus. They were trying to piece together all the events and what they meant concerning whether Jesus could be the Messiah or not.

Susie: Then Jesus walks up beside them to join the conversation. Why He chose to enlighten these two followers we really do not know. We can be certain He chose to walk that road with the express purpose of talking with them because He is omniscient (all-knowing). He chose to appear to specific people after His resurrection for God’s purposes to be fulfilled.

Luke 24:16 But their eyes were holden that they should not know him.

Susan: Jesus chose to remain incognito, not allowing His two followers to recognize Him immediately. Mary Magdalene had not recognized Jesus when she first saw Him either. It was only when He spoke that her heart knew His voice:

John 20:15-16 Jesus saith unto her, Woman, why weepest thou? whom seekest thou? She, supposing him to be the gardener, saith unto him, Sir, if thou have borne him hence, tell me where thou hast laid him, and I will take him away. Jesus saith unto her, Mary. She turned herself, and saith unto him, Rabboni; which is to say, Master.

Susie: We can only speculate on why the Lord did not want them to recognize Him. It was NOT that He needed to know their hearts as He already knows our hearts. More likely, He wanted them to understand the events based on the Old Testament prophecy He taught them before revealing Himself.

Ponder this and Apply it: How could two of His devoted followers not even recognize Jesus? The Lord somehow prevented them from doing so. And it could be their own sorrow prevented them from realizing it was the Lord. They could have been consumed with anguish over His death, fear they could be next, and wonderment at the meaning of the body’s disappearance. Do we sometimes get so caught up in our problems that we cannot see how Jesus is working in our lives?