What Kind of Talk is That?

Luke 24:15 And it came to pass, that, while they communed together and reasoned, Jesus himself drew near, and went with them. 16 But their eyes were holden that they should not know him. 17 And he said unto them, What manner of communications are these that ye have one to another, as ye walk, and are sad?

So, here are two disciples, one whose name is unknown to us and the other, Cleopas (vs 18). Interestingly, his name is a contraction of Cleopatras, meaning "known father." Therefore, we have one unknown and the other known.

They are heading toward Emmaus and having a deep conversation about the events of the past few days: Passover; the crowded city of Jerusalem; their Master's passion and the purported resurrection. Can you imagine how bone-weary they must have been by this point, and yet how adrenaline-driven they were? They had to have been sleep-deprived and famished, and yet unable to eat or sleep.

Now we catch up with them walking and talking, hoping against hope that Christ was raised as others of their number had claimed. It was a 7 1/2 mile walk to their destination which would take about 2 1/2 hours. A lot of conjecture could occur in that time period.

Just then, a stranger pulls up beside them to ask what they are discussing. "What kind of a talk are you guys having and why are you so sad?"

Cleopas answers, "What rock have you been living under? Haven't you been watching the news?"

Jesus, incognito, rejoins, "Que Paso?"

And they begin to spill the whole spiel, "Jesus, the great prophet, condemned by the powers that be and crucified. We had hoped that He would be the deliverer, but alas, He is dead. However, some of our womenfolk seem to think He has resurrected. But we consider their imagination has gotten the best of them."

The Lord rebukes them for their unbelief and lack of understanding His promise to die and rise again. He gives them a full-fledged Bible study concerning the Messiah.

Finally, they stop in for a bite to eat, and something He says or does as He prays for the food causes them to come to grips with the true identity of this stranger. Immediately, He pulls a Houdini and is gone, vanished!

Their flummoxed reaction was to look at each other in astonishment and wonder how they could have been so gullible as to not recognize Him as their Master.

"Did not our hearts burn within us, while he talked with us by the way, and while he opened to us the scriptures?"

Directly, they double timed it all the way back to Jerusalem to report to the rest of the guys that they too had seen the resurrected Lord.

Let's bring this down to where the rubber meets the road (to Emmaus). We have ample proof that our Lord is alive and sovereignly seated upon His throne where He rules the universe (including our lives). And yet, we wring our hands and talk about our woes as if the Lord is dead and gone. He walks along side of us, asking, "What kind of talk is that? And why are you so sad?" And we barely recognize that it is He Who has joined with us in our walk and is encouraging us to believe. Even though our hearts burn with the knowledge of His whispered truth, we lean upon our doubt and remain perplexed over our difficulties.

Open your eyes, brethren! Christ is alive. All has proceeded commensurate with His perfect plan. You are on His radar and your best is on His agenda. Quit being sad and talking foolishly.