Revealed Identity

Revealed Identity

November 11, 2019

Luke 24:31  "Then their eyes were opened and they recognized Him. . . ."

After Jesus was crucified and out of the tomb, the Bible does not disclose where he went when He left the tomb. But He went somewhere, by Himself on the very day of His resurrection. Not wanting to stay hidden, Jesus decided to appear back on the earth that very same day. The Bible says that some of His disciples were walking along the road and discussing the deep tragedy of all that just transpired, not realizing Jesus was already walking among them. These disciples were talking about the events that unfolded, about Jesus the Messiah, and about His death. Suddenly, along the road Jesus appeared to them but they did not recognize Jesus. Jesus walked along side of them and joined in the discussion. It was a long walk, a decent journey that encompassed a long theological debate between Jesus and the disciples. The disciples decided to invite this man, Jesus, into their home to have a meal with them and possibly stay with them. The disciples were unaware that it was Jesus. The Bible says that suddenly their eyes were opened and they realized it was Jesus. Then Jesus disappeared. Their minds were blown wide open realizing their hearts were burning within them the entire walk.

They were walking with Jesus, even discussing Jesus, yet did not realize at the time He was among them. This is a huge parallel to our own Christian walk. The first and foremost thing to realize is that Jesus is present during your Christian walk, even before you start walking with Him. Jesus was walking alongside of you, before you came to the knowledge of Him. When someone discussed with you the person of Jesus for the first time, Jesus was there; you came to understand the concept of who Jesus was before you met Him personally. The disciple's hearts were burning within them the whole time they were walking with Him, yet did not realize it was Him. This is the same in your own life, too, that brought you to fully realize His presence. And then suddenly your eyes were open to Him,  you came to truly realize all of Him. In hindsight you can see it now, not realizing it at the time, though, all the times He walked with you.

You may have never led someone to the Lord, but it is not actually your job to reveal Him to everyone you meet. Your only opportunity lies in discussing Him, talking about who He is and what He represents. It is actually up to Jesus to reveal Himself to everyone on a personal level. He will, though maybe not physically. If you are frustrated that someone has not come to the knowledge of the Lord, then make sure you simply keep talking about Him. Rest assured that person's heart is burning within them; Jesus desires to reveal His identity to everyone.  If someone has not yet decided to acknowledge Jesus in their own life, then pray they would not stifle the burning in their hearts. Pray that Jesus would be revealed to them. No one has ever come to accept Jesus as their Savior if He remains hidden from them. His desire is not to remain hidden, but wishes to reveal His identity. Pray that nothing would quench the burning in their hearts, that they would respond to Him when He reveals His identity to them. Your job, your only job, is to keep talking about Him, to keep revisiting who He is and was and what He did on the cross.

 

Don't take my word for it; look it up:  Luke 24