Missing Jesus

They had made the journey to Jerusalem for Passover and now they were on their way home. Nothing like a 3-hour walk home after a miserable experience. When the stranger joined them on their journey, he inquired as to the reason for their long faces and melancholy, so they recounted their story to him.

They participated in the wave of excitement surrounding Jesus’ entry into Jerusalem. They cast their hope toward Him that He was the promised Messiah who would deliver Israel from Roman rule. They watched in horror as the tide of events turned and they saw Jesus crucified.

To add insult to injury, some of the women who went to finish the embalming process reported that Jesus body was missing. Obviously delusional, they reported sightings of angels who claimed Jesus was alive. The women even went in and saw the empty tomb. Apparently, the events of the week had taken an emotional toll on the women.

They had followed Jesus’ “career.” He was a prophet, mighty in word and deed. They had even begun to believe that maybe He was indeed the Promised One. However, the events of the last three days served to dash their dreams and destroy their hopes. So now, it was back home, back to the routine, back to hoping, watching, and waiting.

The stranger began to explain from Old Testament Scripture how the events they had just witness actually fulfilled prophecy. His teaching intrigued them. They invited him to stay with them for dinner before continuing on his way. At dinner, he took bread, gave thanks for it, then broke it and shared it with them. They saw something in the way he did this, something familiar. Then all of a sudden the light bulb came on and they realized He was indeed JESUS.

How could they have missed it? How could they have been so blind? By their admission, while He was walking with them on the road and talking about Scripture, their hearts felt that familiar fire.

We miss it, too. Every day Jesus walks with us through the events of our lives. Do we see Him? Hear Him? Acknowledge Him and talk to Him? Do our hearts burn within us as we experience His presence?

Lord Jesus, help me to have a heart sensitive to You. Let my eyes see, my ears hear, and let my heart know You are near. Let me abide in You as You abide in me.

Open our eyes, Lord, we want to see Jesus
To reach out and touch Him, and say that we love Him
Open our ears, Lord, and help us to listen
Open our eyes, Lord, we want to see Jesus.

The above story is paraphrased from Luke 24:13-35


What Does “Judge Not” Really Mean?

I believe that the single Bible verse most taken out of its context in Matthew 7:1:

Judge not that you be not judged.

Often a person will employ this verse to defend sinful behavior, but such is not the meaning at all.  The Bible actually encourages us to look at the behavior of others.

As for a person who stirs up division, after warning him once and then twice, have nothing more to do with him – Titus 3:10

Thus you will recognize them by their fruits. Matthew 7:20 (Speaking of false prophets)

Remember your leaders who have spoken God’s word to you. As you carefully observe the outcome of their lives, imitate their faith. – Hebrews 13:7

If anyone sees his brother committing a sin that does not bring death, he should ask, and God will give life to him… 1 John 5:16a

We are not judging when we measure our life and the lives of others against the plain teaching of Scripture.  Judging occurs rather when we make value judgments and assume that we know the heart and motives behind the actions of others.  We are encouraged to observe the behavior of others but we must NEVER assume to know their heart.

In addition, this verse is part of a larger passage of Scripture (Matthew 7:1-5) that encourages us to examine our own hearts before judging the hearts of others.  We must not overlook the Biblical admonition to remove the foul motives of our own hearts.  When we do, we more accurately see the hearts of others.  In fact, when we remove our own foul motives (the beam) we recognize that the motives of others were nobler than we imagined (only a speck).

So the true applications of these verses would include

1. Don’t be so quit to assume to know the heart of others, and
2. Be careful to examine your own heart.