My Emmaus Experience

Luke 24:13-32
13Now that same day two of them were going to a village called Emmaus, about seven miles from Jerusalem. 14They were talking with each other about everything that had happened. 15As they talked and discussed these things with each other, Jesus himself came up and walked along with them; 16but they were kept from recognizing him.
17He asked them, "What are you discussing together as you walk along?"
They stood still, their faces downcast. 18One of them, named Cleopas, asked him, "Are you only a visitor to Jerusalem and do not know the things that have happened there in these days?"
19"What things?" he asked.
"About Jesus of Nazareth," they replied. "He was a prophet, powerful in word and deed before God and all the people. 20The chief priests and our rulers handed him over to be sentenced to death, and they crucified him; 21but we had hoped that he was the one who was going to redeem Israel. And what is more, it is the third day since all this took place. 22In addition, some of our women amazed us. They went to the tomb early this morning 23but didn't find his body. They came and told us that they had seen a vision of angels, who said he was alive. 24Then some of our companions went to the tomb and found it just as the women had said, but him they did not see."
25He said to them, "How foolish you are, and how slow of heart to believe all that the prophets have spoken! 26Did not the Christ have to suffer these things and then enter his glory?" 27And beginning with Moses and all the Prophets, he explained to them what was said in all the Scriptures concerning himself.
28As they approached the village to which they were going, Jesus acted as if he were going farther. 29But they urged him strongly, "Stay with us, for it is nearly evening; the day is almost over." So he went in to stay with them.
30When he was at the table with them, he took bread, gave thanks, broke it and began to give it to them. 31Then their eyes were opened and they recognized him, and he disappeared from their sight. 32They asked each other, "Were not our hearts burning within us while he talked with us on the road and opened the Scriptures to us?"

Have you ever felt like you were walking blind? I have read this story many times before, but I have never felt more affinity with these guys than I do now. I have related here how I have been studying the Jewish roots of Christianity lately. I have been doing intensive study in the festivals in particular and it is amazing to me how Christ has been opened up in a way I had never known before. One of the men, whose studies I have been listening to, calls the Feasts of the Jewish calendar rehearsals. As I hear and understand what they have done for centuries (millenia, actually) it is as if the blinders are removed for the first time. Verse 27 is amazing to me: And beginning with Moses and all the Prophets, he explained to them what was said in all the Scriptures concerning himself. Jesus took the Hebrew Scriptures and told them everything that it said about Him. We can know what God was trying to say about Christ before we even get into the New Testament. The New Testament is important of course, but so much of the time we make it the end all be all of faith or we insist on filtering the Old Testament through it.
God didn't change. He has never changed. A few months ago in one of my classes online for school I discussed with another student who thought that the God of the Old Testament was vengeful and would kill people at the drop of a hat so to speak and that the God revealed in the New Testament was more loving and patient. I told him then that this was bad thinking, as God has never changed His attitude toward sin. He has always been patient and longsuffering. There are plenty of OT passages that point this out. And there are times in the NT that God acted swiftly to judge. Just look at Acts 5.
Let me ask a much bigger question. I was taught and heard growing up about the age of Law and the age of Grace. It was a very dispensational thing. But I think from looking over Scripture that it was a very unScriptural thing to say. Paul talks about the Law repeatedly but many misunderstand what is being said. The so called Age of Law was a fallacy and still is. God has always operated by grace and only grace. The children of Israel were not saved by their sacrifices or their circumcision. The were saved by trust in the grace of God. Look at Romans 3:21-31:

21But now a righteousness from God, apart from law, has been made known, to which the Law and the Prophets testify. 22This righteousness from God comes through faith in Jesus Christ to all who believe. There is no difference, 23for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, 24and are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus. 25God presented him as a sacrifice of atonement, through faith in his blood. He did this to demonstrate his justice, because in his forbearance he had left the sins committed beforehand unpunished— 26he did it to demonstrate his justice at the present time, so as to be just and the one who justifies those who have faith in Jesus.
27Where, then, is boasting? It is excluded. On what principle? On that of observing the law? No, but on that of faith. 28For we maintain that a man is justified by faith apart from observing the law. 29Is God the God of Jews only? Is he not the God of Gentiles too? Yes, of Gentiles too, 30since there is only one God, who will justify the circumcised by faith and the uncircumcised through that same faith. 31Do we, then, nullify the law by this faith? Not at all! Rather, we uphold the law.

Look at verse 21. A righteousness from God, apart(beside, independent of) from law(God's commands), has been made known(plainly recognised, thoroughly understood) to which the Law and the Prophets testify(see the relation to Emmaus here?). Paul is making it plain(look at chapter 4 if you don't understand yet) in Romans that God has never justified anyone by the basis of the Law in any manner shape or form. The Law had one BIG purpose: to show us God's perfection. This way, when Jesus kept the Law perfectly, we would be able to recognize Who He was and what He had done. Look at Romans 10:4-5

4 Christ is the end of the law so that there may be righteousness for everyone who believes. 5 Moses describes in this way the righteousness that is by the law: "The man who does these things will live by them."

The word end in verse four would be better understood as goal or aim. Verse 5 is talking about Christ. He did all of those things and lived. God raised Him from the dead. It happened so we could know He is who He said He is. I am sitting here trying to understand why it is that we have taken what was laid out so that we could plainly understand and then obscured it all over again.
I have a lot more to say, but I am going to take a break and ponder and pray some more.

Roots

I have been doing a lot of thinking lately. I have been doing a lot of studying and searching in Scripture. For some time now, I have been examining the work of people in the Hebraic/Messianic Christian realm. I have been fascinated with this for any number of years now. Really, the first spark was seeing a Jews for Jesus presentation of the Passover meal and its relationship to Messiah. A while back, God brought someone into my life who was deeply passionate about this same vein of thinking and brought me closer to examining some of the things I had been curious about but not pursued or studied. I am sure that Eric gets a good chuckle these days as he realizes how much God used our time together to help us both in our journey. I kept asking him tough and thoughtful questions that gave him an avenue to flesh out his thoughts and he kept giving me answers that brought me deeper into study and searching. I have noticed more and more the goodness of God. I always told my youth that God never did anything halfway and He told us everything He was going to do before He did it. One of the most powerful things that has strengthened my faith over the years is the amazing amount of prophecy that He gave in Scripture and fulfilled in history already.

Isaiah 48:3-5 -
3 I foretold the former things long ago,
my mouth announced them and I made them known;
then suddenly I acted, and they came to pass.
4 For I knew how stubborn you were;
the sinews of your neck were iron,
your forehead was bronze.
5 Therefore I told you these things long ago;
before they happened I announced them to you
so that you could not say,
'My idols did them;
my wooden image and metal god ordained them.'

The pattern of the Passover is just scratching the surface of what God has done. But unfortunately, it is hidden from many if not most of us. The vast majority of churches don't take the time to teach and may not even be aware of the amazing things that God has done and said in His Word. I say this as a guilty party. I have been guilty in my own ignorance, but as God continues to shed the light of day I am determined to follow Him and learn and teach what I find.
Let me give you an example. Look at this passage from 1 Thessalonians 4:15-16

15According to the Lord's own word, we tell you that we who are still alive, who are left till the coming of the Lord, will certainly not precede those who have fallen asleep. 16For the Lord himself will come down from heaven, with a loud command, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet call of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first.

And also this passage - 1 Corinthians 15:51-52

51Listen, I tell you a mystery: We will not all sleep, but we will all be changed— 52in a flash, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, the dead will be raised imperishable, and we will be changed.

Have you ever heard of the Jewish Feast of Trumpets? This is some information about the Feast of Trumpets that I found:

Because of the Diaspora it was celebrated for 2 days and was known as one long day.
Why is it 2 days long? It fell on the 1st, the new moon, and they wanted everyone to know, especially in the Diaspora. It was regarded as One Long Day. This Feast fell on the first, consequently it was known as the Feast where no one would know the day or the hour it came! It was to be a day symbolically hidden even from Satan so he would not be 100% aware of its arrival.

1Cor 2:8 Which none of the princes of this world knew: for had they known it, they would not have crucified the Lord of glory.

Because it’s the first day of the month, was 2 days long, and was based on the sighting of the New Moon by two witnesses it’s known as the Feast where no one knows “The Day or the Hour“ it would begin!

On the Feast of Trumpets the Shofar is blown 100 times
There are three sounds made with the shofar:
Tekiah - One long straight blast.
Shevarim - Three shorter blasts.
Teruah – 9 quick blasts in short succession
This series is blown 11 times for a total of 99 blasts and the final blast is known as
“The Last Trump” !

Do you think that Paul (a Pharisee) knew about this Jewish festival and its terminology? Have you ever heard a preacher talk about this when speaking or preaching this passage? Have you ever heard your favorite "prophecy" teacher speak about this? Is it possible, maybe even likely that God has told us what He is going to do more specifically than we ever imagined and we have simply missed it because we didn't know what we thought we knew? Have you ever wondered why the Magi showed up at the right time? They knew what to look for and when they saw it; they acted! Jesus said, "When evening comes, you say, 'It will be fair weather, for the sky is red,' and in the morning, 'Today it will be stormy, for the sky is red and overcast.' You know how to interpret the appearance of the sky, but you cannot interpret the signs of the times." (Matthew 16:2-3) We are not asking God for signs. He is already giving them. In Matthew 24, He tells His disciples the signs of His return. The thing that disturbs me is that we seem unaware and undiscerning about what He has told us already in His Word. I am not going to pretend that I have all the answers(I know better than that!), but I am going to try and start asking better questions.