And it came to pass that, while they communed together and reasoned, Jesus Himself drew near and went with them. Luke 24:15
As Cleophas and Mary trudged the stolid distance from Jerusalem to Emmaus, their hearts were aching with sorrow and disappointment. Their communings and reasonings mentioned in our text were no doubt punctuated with many a sigh and undoubtedly a few sobs. Everything that had meant so much to them in recent years and months had been seemingly torn from them so suddenly and violently. Their confidence that God’s long-promised Messiah had come among His people was thrown into disarray, leaving uncertainty and confusion. The injustice and horrible violence inflicted on the One Who they loved and worshipped overwhelmed them with grief. Although it took them awhile to realize it, into this sphere of hurting came the very One Whose presence would be most precious to them. Jesus always comes to us in the midst of our hurting, too.
Jesus drew near in their confusion. The great cry of their hearts was ‘Why?’ How could this have happened, they cried. On this occasion, the Lord Jesus resolved their confusion by revealing through the Scriptures the reason for Calvary and His suffering. The dense fog of their confusion would lift, and all would become clear to them. We often wonder why things happen, why situations develop, why disappointments come and overwhelm. But in our confusion, the Lord Jesus is always there. He does not always tell us why, or He delays the telling for a time. But even when no explanation is given, He does assure us that everything that happened is for a purpose, for His purpose. And if we trust in Him, we are delivered from the hurt of our confusion.
Jesus also drew near amid their concern. They were crying ‘What now?’ What was to happen with all of the followers that Jesus had accumulated? Was the teaching and the guidance that Jesus had given them to be abandoned? Were their lives to be in peril now that He was gone. As the dread of their uncertainty grew, the presence of the Lord Jesus brought peace to all their concerns. He does the same for us, as we worry about circumstances that seem to have no resolution. In His promise to never leave us nor forsake us, we find the courage to move onward. If we hope in Him, we are delivered from the hurt of our concern.
Jesus also drew near to fill their hearts with comfort. Their loss had been great. One they loved so deeply was gone, they were convinced, and their sorrow bore them down like a huge burden upon their shoulders. At this point, they could not imagine any solace for their grief. But One drew near. And He remained with them until they realized the purpose for the trial and the reality of His resurrection. There are times when our sorrows are also very real and very deep, but they will never come without the Lord Jesus being in our presence. If we will cling to Him, we will be delivered from the sorrow and will find comfort.
The Lord Jesus did not send an angel to be with Cleophas and Mary in their time of hurt. He drew near Himself. Just as He draws near to us Himself when we are hurting and need His presence. – Jim MacIntosh