Why Couldn’t We Recognize Jesus?

Luke 24

Now on that same day two of them were going to a village called Emmaus, about seven miles from Jerusalem, and talking with each other about all these things that had happened. While they were talking and discussing, Jesus himself came near and went with them, but their eyes were kept from recognizing him. And he said to them, “What are you discussing with each other while you walk along?” They stood still, looking sad.  Then one of them, whose name was Cleopas, answered him, “Are you the only stranger in Jerusalem who does not know the things that have taken place there in these days?” He asked them, “What things?” They replied, “The things about Jesus of Nazareth, who was a prophet mighty in deed and word before God and all the people, and how our chief priests and leaders handed him over to be condemned to death and crucified him. But we had hoped that he was the one to redeem Israel. Yes, and besides all this, it is now the third day since these things took place. Moreover, some women of our group astounded us. They were at the tomb early this morning, and when they did not find his body there they came back and told us that they had indeed seen a vision of angels who said that he was alive. Some of those who were with us went to the tomb and found it just as the women had said, but they did not see him.” Then he said to them, “Oh, how foolish you are and how slow of heart to believe all that the prophets have declared! Was it not necessary that the Messiah should suffer these things and then enter into his glory?” Then beginning with Moses and all the prophets, he interpreted to them the things about himself in all the scriptures.

As they came near the village to which they were going, he walked ahead as if he were going on. But they urged him strongly, saying, “Stay with us, because it is almost evening and the day is now nearly over.” So he went in to stay with them. When he was at the table with them, he took bread, blessed and broke it, and gave it to them. Then their eyes were opened, and they recognized him, and he vanished from their sight. They said to each other, “Were not our hearts burning within us while he was talking to us on the road, while he was opening the scriptures to us?” That same hour they got up and returned to Jerusalem, and they found the eleven and their companions gathered together.  They were saying, “The Lord has risen indeed, and he has appeared to Simon!” Then they told what had happened on the road and how he had been made known to them in the breaking of the bread.

Why couldn’t we recognize him? Why indeed? We’d seen Jesus, often, and we thought we knew him. Actually, many times, we were in the same room with him. Yet, now, as we walked to Emmaus, only feet apart from Jesus, we didn’t know him. Why?

Supper at Emmaus, Caravaggio, 1601

I think that I have an answer. Yes, I believe that I know why we, as well as his eleven closest followers, did not immediately recognize Jesus, the Risen Christ. And don’t worry, I will share my answer with you in just a moment.

But first, who am I? And if you’re wondering too, just who is Cleopas? Are we people of any importance?

Well, you can be the judge of that. All that I will tell you is that both Cleopas and I are pilgrims. Yes, we are Jews, but not Jews from Jerusalem, or even Israel. We are converted Jews, and as such, we are not considered to be sons of Abraham. That’s why we were traveling to Emmaus, because as foreigners, it’s very hard to find suitable lodging in Jerusalem during Passover.

And why was I not named in the passage that you read? Yes, Cleopas was at least named, but not me. That’s because I am a Roman convert, and as you know, the Romans are hated by the Jews. For good reason, of course, because the Romans occupy Israel and apply brutal force to keep the peace and to keep the tax money flowing back to Rome.

Actually, not being named offers me some protection from our Roman masters who might see me as a traitor. So, I am happy to keep my anonymity!

Now, back to your story. You can read about our travel to Emmaus, and about the miracle of our unexpected walking companion, Jesus. If you read carefully, you’ll note that our “eyes were kept from recognizing him.” That is, we were unable to recognize Jesus until, as you can read, he “took bread, blessed and broke it, and gave it” to us. And then, Jesus vanished. But for a fleeting moment, in our great joy, we recognized him!

Later, we learned that Mary Magdalene had a similar experience (John 20). At the tomb, she saw the Risen Christ, but knew him only after he called her name. And later, when Jesus had left us and appeared to the eleven, they were unsure of him, thinking he was a ghost: “Why are you frightened, and why do doubts arise in your hearts? Look at my hands and my feet; see that it is I myself. Touch me and see, for a ghost does not have flesh and bones as you see that I have.” And when he had said this, he showed them his hands and his feet. Yet for all their joy they were still disbelieving and wondering, … (Luke 24).

So again, let me ask, why? Why was it so hard for us to recognize Jesus? Did God somehow keep our eyes from recognizing him?

You can answer for yourself, but I believe it’s because we aren’t children. Yes, as adults, we learn to be naturally suspicious. We don’t see miracles every day, and we have learned to demand proof. In short, we need to study, to analyze. You surely remember the reaction of Thomas, who would not believe until he personally probed the wounds of Jesus. “Unless I see the mark of the nails in his hands and put my finger in the mark of the nails and my hand in his side, I will not believe.” (John 20)

But children? Yes, children. You know. They find it easier to believe. And if you remember, to Jesus, children were very important. In fact, he often called his followers “children.”

“Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God.” (Matthew 5)

“Instead, love your enemies, do good, and lend, expecting nothing in return. Your reward will be great, and you will be children of the Most High” (Luke 6)

“The one who sows the good seed is the Son of Man; the field is the world, and the good seed are the children of the kingdom;” (Matthew 13)

“Truly I tell you, unless you change and become like children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.” (Matthew 18)

“Let the children come to me, and do not stop them, for it is to such as these that the kingdom of heaven belongs.” (Matthew 19)

Indeed, they cannot die anymore, because they are like angels and are children of God, being children of the resurrection.” (Luke 20)

“While you have the light, believe in the light, so that you may become children of light.” (John 12)

I’ve thought a lot about becoming as a child. If we had, in a spiritual sense, been more childlike, would Cleopas and I have known Jesus right away? I can’t answer that, I really don’t know. But perhaps we would have. Perhaps there is something in the openness and acceptance of a child that slowly dies as we get older. Perhaps we lose that sense of wonder, and perhaps we must strive, as adults, to shed our doubts and fears. Then, we can become, as Jesus said, “children.”

I am reminded of the first conversation between Jesus and Nicodemus (John 3). “Very truly, I tell you, no one can see the kingdom of God without being born from above.” When Jesus told him that, Nicodemus was incredulous. The thought of returning to childhood was something that was beyond his thinking. His sense of wonder had been long buried.

Perhaps the same could be said of Cleopas and me. But thanks be to God, as Jesus broke the bread, we were among the first to witness his resurrection!

It’s now years later, and I have continued to struggle with becoming more childlike in my relationship with God. I hope that I am making progress. It means unlearning some qualities that are deeply embedded in me.

And I’ve read some of the letters of the Apostle Paul. Like Jesus, Paul speaks of us as children of the father:

For all who are led by the Spirit of God are children of God. For you did not receive a spirit of slavery to fall back into fear, but you received a spirit of adoption. When we cry, “Abba! Father!” it is that very Spirit bearing witness with our spirit that we are children of God, and if children, then heirs: heirs of God and joint heirs with Christ, if we in fact suffer with him so that we may also be glorified with him. (Romans 8)

My prayer for you is, like my prayer for myself: to become as a child of wonder in the arms of a loving father, hoping that we will be able to see Jesus, when all the time, he is only feet away, walking right beside us.