Empty! Fanning the Flame of Faith

“They said to each other, ‘Did not our hearts burn within us while He talked to us on the road, while He opened to us the Scriptures?’”—Luke 24:32

Faith can be a fickle thing. And it appears, at times, to rise and fall with the tides. When life is going well, our faith is strong. But when life throws a curve ball at us, our faith wanes. That’s what happened to two of Jesus’ disciples on the road to Emmaus. It had been three days since Jesus had died on the cross. But there was a report early that morning from some of Jesus’ female followers. After going to the tomb, they reported that Jesus’ body wasn’t there and that He had risen from the dead and had appeared to them! Suddenly, the disciples’ whole demeanor changed and confusion reigned. They had thought He was dead, buried in the tomb, and hope buried along with Him. But with this report that He had risen from the dead…well, that was beyond belief. When hope was dead, their faith waned, but with the reports of His resurrection, there was a pulse of hope again.

As the two disciples walked along the road discussing everything that had transpired, Jesus approached. He asked what they were discussing as they walked along. Unable to process everything, they stopped looking sad. Hope was still wavering, and Jesus’ question caused the gravity of His death to wash over them all over again. They didn’t know it was He who spoke to them. Then one of them, a disciple named Cleopas, replied, “Are you the only visitor to Jerusalem who does not know the things that have happened there in these days?” (v. 18). One wonders what Jesus’ face looked like when He said, “What things?” Hope was alive, and they were unable to see it.

They responded by telling Him about everything that had just occurred. They’d thought Jesus was a prophet who was to redeem Israel, but He had been killed, and what was unfathomable was the report that He had now risen from the dead. It was then that Jesus explained everything—it was necessary that He had to suffer—it had been prophesied. As they arrived in Emmaus, Cleopas and his friend stopped, while Jesus looked as if He were going to keep walking. They urged Him to stay with them because the day was almost over. Jesus agreed and as they were getting ready to eat, Jesus took the bread, blessed it, and broke it. It was at that moment that they recognized Him (v. 31). Jesus then immediately vanished from their sight and they said, “Did not our hearts burn within us while He talked to us on the road, while He opened to us the Scriptures?” And in their joy, they got up and went back to Jerusalem and told the eleven disciples, “The Lord has risen indeed, and has appeared to Simon!” (v. 34).

The two disciples on the road to Emmaus had a small flicker of faith. The winds of life caused it to almost die—as the fact of Jesus’ death rushed over it. But it was the breath of God through Christ’s words that caused their faith to fan into flame. It was the Author of the Word, the one who breathed out every word of God, showing the living nature of the very words He uttered that breathed on that flickering flame. And through Jesus, their small spark grew into a roaring fire that spilled onto others.

Where is your faith? Is it flickering? Take it to Christ and have Him breathe out His Word to your faith! He will cause it to roar brightly! Don’t continue in your unbelief, but trust in the risen Christ and anchor yourself in His living Word! He will cause your faith to burn brightly so that others will be drawn to its light! And then that same fire will spill onto them, causing them to burn brightly as well! Amen.