32) THOSE WHO LIVE AS IF JESUS WERE DEAD

Luke 24:13-34

 To live as if Jesus had not been raised from the dead:

o Jesus does not have power to speak, to heal, to listen, to respond, to give the
victory.
o Their knowledge is theoretical, concerns past things (they know the whole
history).
o They think they know more than any other (vs. 18)

 The result is sadness in their lives (vs. 17) because they are not complete, are far from
the Holy Spirit.

 As a consequence, they gradually move away from the fellowship (from Jerusalem to
Emmaus), going down the hill.

 Typical of religion, where Jesus operated with power in the past, but where men usurped
the leadership of the Spirit, extinguished the Spirit, and consequently Jesus no longer
works there (vs. 20: “our rulers delivered Him to be condemned to death, and crucified
Him”).

 Many of us were in this situation until we heard the testimony of the women that sought
the Lord in the early dawn (vs. 22), the testimony of the faithful church. The church that
seeks Him in the early dawn is telling the world that Jesus is alive. She has the
experiences of visions (of the angels), she receives revelation ( the angel’s instructions),
has insurmountable problems resolved by His power (the tombstone removed). This
church is opening up the scriptures and declaring the reality of the living Jesus.

 Jesus comes to the two men as He came to us(as the good shepherd going after the
stray sheep), to open their eyes, to reveal the scriptures, to call them back to the Body
(the breaking of bread in vs. 30), to call them back to Jerusalem, to taste the
experiences of the early church, her doctrine and her power.

 Jesus has been making many people’s hearts burn within (the operation of the Holy
Spirit). The revealed word touches, attracts (vs.32: “open the Scriptures” = “reveal” the
Scriptures).

 The necessary response: “Abide with us”, otherwise Jesus will go farther, in order to
reach others. “Behold, now is the accepted time; behold, now is the day of salvation” (II
Co. 6:2).

 “So they rose up that very hour”: The new hope and the end of all complacency. Their
desire is to join the Body of believers, the faithful Church.

 “It is toward evening, and the day is far spent”: The window of opportunity for the
salvation of the gentiles is coming to an end. The total darkness of the eternal night of
judgment is near.