Deo Gloria
Sermon for April 23, 2023
Pastor Martin Bentz
Text: Luke 24:13-35
Them: We Will Live Happily Ever After!
- Because Jesus gives us hope
- Because Jesus gives us understanding
- Because Jesus gives us joy
Children love fairy tales. I know our children did when they were little. Stories about handsome princes and beautiful princesses who live in castles in far away lands. Stories about brave knights doing battle with fire-breathing dragons. Stories about wicked witches and good, fairy godmothers. And no matter how bleak things look for the hero or heroine, the story always turns out the same: “And they all lived happily ever after.” Who wouldn’t like a story like that?
In this world of ours it may seem as though happy endings come true only in fairy tales or old, nostalgic movies; but such is not the case. As Christians, you and I can look forward to a happy ending. Yes, in the words of the fairy tale, you and I will live “happily ever after.” “On what basis can I say that?” you ask. First, because Jesus gives us hope. Second, because Jesus gives us understanding. And third, because Jesus gives us joy.
One of the reasons fairy tales developed over the years was to give people hope, especially young children. In previous centuries people in general were not as well off as they are today. In fact, quite often they lived in rather depressing circumstances. They were plagued with poverty and had very little to live on. For many families it was a struggle just to survive from one day to the next. And their prospects for the future weren’t very much better. People’s chances of getting ahead and being able to live a comfortable lifestyle were slim to none. As an escape from their rather dismal surroundings and in order to give children at least the hope of a better tomorrow, parents would often tell their children fairy tales.
You and I don’t have to rely on fairy tales, however, to give us hope for a better tomorrow. We have something better to rely on. We have Jesus Christ, our Savior. Jesus gives us hope.
Our story this morning from the Gospel of Luke takes us back to Easter Sunday. Two of Jesus’ disciples are on their way from Jerusalem to a nearby village called Emmaus. As they’re walking, they’re talking, rehearsing everything that had happened in the past few days. In fact, they are so engrossed in their conversation that at first they don’t even notice that someone else has joined their party.
“What are you talking about?” this stranger interrupts.
At first they don’t answer. They just stare at the ground, so heavy were their hearts. Have you ever felt that way, so heart-sick you could hardly even pick your eyes up off the ground?
Finally, the one named Cleopas breaks the silence. “Are you the only one in Jerusalem who doesn’t know about the things that have happened there?” he asks.
“What things?” replies the stranger.
“About Jesus. He was prophet, a great prophet, powerful in word and deed. The chief priests and our rulers handed him over to be sentenced to death, and they crucified him; but we had hoped that he was the one who was going to redeem Israel”(vv. 19-21). As these two disciples had listened to Jesus on previous occasions preach and teach about the kingdom of God, as they had watched Jesus perform one astonishing miracle after another, their hearts had been filled with hope. “This has to be the one,” they thought. “This must be the Savior God promised to send. This must be the Messiah, the one who will redeem Israel. He’s the one who will save God’s people from all their sins.” Watching and listening to Jesus had given them hope.
Watching and listening to Jesus has the same effect today. It gives us hope too. You see, they were right. Jesus is the Savior God promised to send. He is the Messiah. And he has redeemed us from our sins. That’s what he did on the cross. He paid the price, the ransom price, to set us free from the slavery of sin.
Though we may not realize it, we are by nature slaves to sin. Jesus points that out in John, ch. 8. “Everyone who sins is a slave to sin,” he says.(v. 34) And that includes each and every one of us, because we all sin. We all do things we know we shouldn’t do. Sometimes we lie in order to cover our tails. We lie to our boss or our friends or our parents. We know it’s wrong, and yet we do it anyway. Sometimes we hurt our spouse or our children by the careless or critical things we say. Perhaps in anger we have even hurt them physically. Or maybe we have just plain neglected them, choosing to spend more time at work or on our hobby or out on the lake than spending the time with them. Yes, we know it’s wrong, but we do it anyway. And all of us have neglected God–some more than others, but we all have done it. We haven’t given God the kind of glory and honor and time and priority he deserves in our lives. In fact, at times it seems like we have time for just about everything else, except God. Once again, we know it’s wrong, and yet we do it. As much as we might like to, we cannot deny it. We are slaves to sin.
And because of our sins, we have messed up our lives. We have messed up our relationship with our spouse and our children. We have messed up our relationship with our parents and our brothers and sisters. We have messed up our relationship with some of our friends and co-workers and neighbors. We’ve made such a mess of our lives.
And our prospects for the future don’t look much better. In fact, they could hardly look any worse. Again, because of our sin, one day we will die. And then what? Then we get to stand before God, our holy and righteous God, and explain why we made such a mess of our lives. And after we’re through giving God all of our flimsy excuses, he will simply say, “Depart from me, you evil doers, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels.” Talk about a depressing future!
But that’s where Jesus comes in. Jesus gives us hope. As our Savior, Jesus has redeemed us. He has paid the price to set us free, to set us free from sin, to set us free from death, to set us free from hell. Yes, we know we have sinned. But because of Jesus’ death and resurrection, we know we are forgiven. Our sin and guilt and shame have all been taken away. Yes, we know we will die one day, but now we know what’s waiting for us on the other side. And we know it’s something good, a glorious home in heaven, where will live forever with God in unending peace and joy, where there will be no more sin or sorrow or pain or death. Yes, as followers of Christ, you and I will live happily ever after. Jesus gives us hope.
He also gives us understanding. Any student can tell you how frustrating and discouraging it is when you can’t understand the lesson the teacher is trying to teach. The other kids all seem to get it, but you don’t. And the harder the teacher tries, the more discouraged you become. You just don’t get it.
One of the reasons these two disciples were so discouraged is that they didn’t get it. They just didn’t understand. They didn’t understand why Jesus, their Lord, had to suffer and die. They didn’t understand that that was all part of the plan. So Jesus went back and explained it to them. He went all the way back to the beginning of the Bible. He started with Moses and then went on to what the other Old Testament prophets had said. He explained to them what Moses and the Prophets had said about the Christ, the promised Savior. He showed them that according to Moses and the Prophets the Savior was supposed to suffer and die. It was part of the plan, God’s plan to redeem his people. As Jesus explained these things to them, the disciples began to understand. And instead of being heavy, their hearts began to burn inside.
Jesus does the same for you and me. He also gives us understanding. As we read and study his Word, as we are today, Jesus helps us understand what it says. Whether it’s Moses or the Prophets or the Gospel of Luke or the epistles of Paul, Jesus helps us understand the Scriptures. By his Spirit he helps us understand who he is: that he is God’s Son and the Savior of the world, that he is our Savior. Likewise he helps us understand his tremendous love for us. He helps us understand what he did for us at the cross: that his death was really our death, a payment for all our sins. He helps us understand the significance of his resurrection: because he lives, we also will live. He helps us understand where we came from: that God made us and the world in which we live. He helps us understand where we are going: to a glorious home in heaven. He helps us understand that he has a plan for our lives and that he is working in all things for our good, to bring us safely to our eternal home. And the more we understand these things, the more our spirits are lifted and the more our hearts burn within us. They burn with conviction. They burn with excitement. From what the Bible tells us, we know we will live happily ever after. Jesus helps us understand that.
And he also gives us joy, just as he did to these two disciples. By the time they finally arrived in Emmaus, the day was almost over. So they asked their new companion to spend the night with them. He obliged, and before long they were sitting down together for supper. Surprisingly, this new colleague of theirs took the bread. He gave thanks, and then he broke it. And that’s when it hit them. This stranger, this guy they had been talking to all afternoon, this guy who had been explaining the Scriptures to them–was none other than Jesus! And then, in another display of his divine power, Jesus suddenly disappeared.
“Well, then it’s true. What the women said this morning is true. He is alive. Jesus is alive!” Gone were their heavy hearts. Gone were their long, solemn faces. Instead their hearts were filled with joy and excitement, so much so that they completely forgot about supper. And even though evening was approaching, they set out at once to return to Jerusalem. You see, they could hardly wait. They could hardly wait to tell the others the news: “He’s alive! He’s alive! He really is alive!”
Our hearts too are filled with joy, knowing that Jesus is alive. Our Savior isn’t dead. The one we claim to follow is not buried in a tomb somewhere. He’s alive.
He lives, my kind, wise, heav’nly Friend;
He lives and loves me to the end.
He lives, and while he lives I’ll sing;
He lives, my Prophet, Priest and King.
He lives, all glory to his name!
He lives, my Jesus, still the same.
Oh, the sweet joy this sentence gives;
“I know that my Redeemer lives!” (CW #441, vv. 6+8)
Yes, Jesus gives us joy.
Fairy tales are nice. But a fairy tale is still only a fairy tale, a fanciful story that never actually happened. The story about Jesus is no fairy tale. It really did happen. And because it did, you and I can be sure our lives will have a happy ending. As our living Savior, Jesus gives us hope. As our living Savior, Jesus gives us understanding. As our living Savior, Jesus gives us joy. With Jesus we will live happily ever after. Amen.