On The Road Of True Hope

                                                            On The Road Of True Hope

                                                                        Luke 24:13-27 

Humans seek Hope like moths seek light. It's intrinsic to who we are. Neuroscientist Tali Sharot argues that Hope is so essential to our survival that it is hardwired into our brains, and that it can be the difference between living a healthier life and one trapped by despair. Studies show hopeful college kids get higher GPA's and are more likely to graduate.

Hopeful athletes perform better on the field, cope better with injuries, and have greater mental adjustment when situations change. In one study of the elderly, those who said they felt hopeless were more than twice as likely to die during the study follow-up period than those who were more hopeful. It's pretty clear: Hope is powerfully catalytic, which is why Dr. Shane Lopez, the psychologist regarded as the world's leading researcher on Hope, claimed that Hope isn't just an emotion but an essential life tool."[1]

Andy Crouch notes in his book, "Human beings can live for forty days without food, four days without water, and four minutes without air. But we cannot live for four seconds without Hope."[2]That very Hope seems to be fading in our world these days, amid raging wars, economic hardships, and uncertainty. More and more people are becoming hopeless, living in despair, and committing suicide. In these tragic and frightening circumstances, where can one find true Hope?

Who can turn our mourning into dancing? On this Easter Sunday morning, we will meet two travelers, metaphorically speaking, traveling on a Road of False Hope. It seemed like all their dreams and hopes had been dashed. The one they looked up to was killed. On their Journey, they were met by a third traveler who encouraged them, opened their eyes to reality, raised their hopes, and gave them tools and helped them travel On The Road of True Hope. Luke 24:13-27

I. On A Road Of False Hope (Luke 24:13-24)

            On the same day as Jesus' resurrection, two of his disciples were traveling back to Emmaus, a village seven miles from Jerusalem. They may have visited Jerusalem to celebrate Passover. They were talking among themselves about everything that had happened there in the last several days. As they journeyed, Jesus himself came up and walked along with them; at that point, the disciples were unable to recognize him. Jesus asked them, what are you talking about?

            You could see disappointment on their faces, and they looked confused. One of them, named Cleopas, asked him, "Are you the only visitor in Jerusalem? Did you not know that the things that happened there these days?" Jesus asked, " What things? As though Jesus didn't know anything. About Jesus of Nazareth, they replied, then they narrated everything about his powerful teachings, miracles, the triumphal entry, and the events leading up to His Crucifixion.

            Listen to their sense of despair in their voice, "But 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." Lk 24:21. In addition to that, our women said, they didn't find the body in the tomb, and He was alive. Our companions also confirmed that the tomb was empty and they didn't see Jesus.

            What caused their disappointment? Was it the Person they looked up to and relied on? Or that they had wrong expectations and false hopes? They misunderstood who Jesus truly was and what He came to accomplish. From a worldly point of view, they saw Him as an earthly king who would fight for them, redeem them from the bondage of the Roman Empire, and establish a kingdom of peace and prosperity. They were traveling one-way on a road of false hope.

How about you? Which road are you traveling on? What dreams are you pursuing? Who are you looking to realize your hopes? These days, there is so much emphasis placed on dreaming BIG. A couple of quotes that inspire us to think, dream, and achieve great things.

"All successful people, men and women, are big dreamers. They imagine what their future could be, ideal in every respect, and then they work every day toward their distant vision, that goal or purpose." —Brian Tracy.

"All our dreams can come true, if we have the courage to pursue them."—Walt Disney.

 

These two quotes sound great to quote, but in reality, they can be misleading. They are missing something; where is God in them? You may work very, very hard and have all the courage, yet they may never be realized, because their premise and focus are wrong. If our self-centered interests are the main driving force behind our dreams, we end up disappointed.

In my opinion, all dreams and hopes, including the American dream, that are void of God leave us disappointed. I like the title of Russell Moore's Easter message: "This Easter Let's Lose Our Hope." The essence of his message is that we let go of our false and illusive hope of worldly success, peace, security, and prosperity, and remind ourselves that our Lord already has shown us the way out of the false hope and the way into the True Hope."[3]

II. On The Road Of True Hope (Luke 24:25-27)

            Returning to the discussion of Jesus with his disciples on the road to Emmaus, upon hearing their confusing narrative, Jesus rebuked them. "How foolish you are, and how slow to believe all that the prophets have spoken! Did not the Messiah have to suffer these things and then enter his glory? Then He explained, "beginning with Moses, and all the prophets to them what was said in all the Scriptures concerning himself."Luke 24:25-27.

As we journey in this world, just like those disciples, we can be influenced by our culture and the circumstances around us. Though we may be sincerely following Jesus and reading His word, we can still be foolish and slow to believe and act accordingly. Some Christians build their lives on false teachings of health and wellness, which can lead them to disappointment. Then who could set us free from false hope and sustain us On The Road Of True Hope?

III. Jesus is our unseen traveler on the road of True Hope. (Luke 24:28-35)

            As the story continued, "they approached the village, and Jesus continued as if he were going farther. But 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." Lk 24:28-29. At that point, they still could not recognize who their fellow traveler was; however, they wanted him to be their guest.

            That very guest became their host. Luke 24: 30-32, "When he was at the table with them, he took bread, gave thanks, broke it, and began to give it to them. Then their eyes were opened, and they recognized him, and he disappeared from their sight." They asked each other, "Were not our hearts burning within us while he talked with us on the road and opened the Scriptures to us?   

             What a powerful reminder comes to us this Easter Sunday morning. On whose foundations are we building our lives? If our hopes and dreams are only about this world, you are bound to be disappointed. The leaders of this world may give us hope for this life, but they can never offer true hope for eternal life. Our true hope in Jesus Christ guarantees us eternal life.

            I Peter 1:3-4, "Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! In his great mercy, he has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, and into an inheritance that can never perish, spoil, or fade. This inheritance is kept in heaven for you." Who will be our traveling companion? It will be our forerunner, Jesus.

Jesus is walking with us by His Holy Spirit. Romans 5:1-5," We have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ. Through whom we have gained access by faith into this grace in which we now stand. And we boast in the hope of the glory of God. Not only so, but we also glory in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope. And hope does not put us to shame, because God's love has been poured out into our hearts through the Holy Spirit, who has been given to us."

 

 

 

           

 

 

 

 

           

 

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[1] Drake Baer, “What Good Is Hope?,” The Cut (12-27-16)

[2] Andy Crouch, "The Gospel of Steve Jobs," Christianity Today (1-21-11)

[3] Russell Moore, This Easter Let’s Lose Our Hope, Page 30, Christianity Today March/April 2026

When Heaven Went Silent!

                                                   WHEN HEAVEN WENT SILENT!

Matthew 27:45-61

Bruce Springsteen's Father cast a long and mostly dark shadow over his life, said Michael Hainey in Esquire. Springsteen admits that his entire career has largely been a reaction to his attempt to free himself from Doug Springsteen, a hard-drinking, blue-collar New Jerseyite who bounced from job to job.

"My mother was kind and compassionate and very considerate of others' feelings," Springsteen says. "My Father looked at all those things as weaknesses. He was very dismissive of who I was." His Father dominated the family home, radiating menace as he sat in the kitchen's darkness, drinking and brooding. Later in life, he was diagnosed as a paranoid schizophrenic.

After Springsteen became famous and wealthy, his Father said to him, "You've been very good to us. And I wasn't very good to you." When his Father died at age 73, Springsteen stayed behind after the graveside funeral, taking a shovel to finish the burial with his own hands. "I wanted that connection," he says. "It meant a lot to me."[1]

No matter who you are, like Bruce Springsteen, we all have a deep yearning for a father's connection. Fathers have tremendous influence in shaping their children's inner person; some positively through love and others negatively through anger, abuse, or abandonment. Some grow up losing their fathers either very early or later in life; whenever it may be, not having a father who loves and supports leaves a deep hole in our hearts. Who can fill that hole?

Are you experiencing the pain of abandonment? Tonight, we will look at Jesus, who knew all about the pain of abandonment. When he needed the support of his Heavenly Father, he found himself in a moment where Heaven Went Silent! Matthew 27:45-61.

All four gospel writers recorded the Crucifixion. This was what John the beloved said, John 19:35-36, "The man who saw it has given testimony, and his testimony is true. He knows that he tells the truth, and he testifies so that you also may believe." These things happened so that the scripture would be fulfilled." Jesus fulfilled, conservatively speaking, over 300 prophecies in his lifetime, including the Crucifixion. We will explore these spectacular events.

I. The Final Moments of the Crucifixion of Christ:

            Before Jesus was put on the Cross, he endured severe torture, which included flogging, placement of a crown of thorns, beating on the head, pulling of his beard, spitting on his face, and ridicule by soldiers. At the time of nailing to the Cross, he was disfigured. We read in Isaiah 53:2-3, "He had no beauty or majesty to attract us to him, nothing in his appearance that we should desire him. He was despised and rejected, like one from whom people hide their faces."

            You can only imagine the physical and emotional pain of rejection by the crowds and the abandonment by his close disciples, except for a few, Christ endured up to this point. As if the Sun couldn't see the agony of the Son of God, it turned its face away by making the whole land dark from 9:00 A.M until 3:00 P.M. About three in the afternoon, Jesus cried out in a loud voice, "Eli, Eli, lema sbachthani? (which means "My God, My God, why have you forsaken me?") Here, Jesus was expressing His feelings of abandonment. As Jesus endured that weight of sin, He cried out in agony. Unlike before, there was no response from God, as though Heaven went silent. What would that feel like when Heaven apparently goes silent?

II. When Heaven Went Silent

Though several scriptures indicate that the place we call Heaven is above the earth, there are no specific scriptures detailing its exact location. So, simply speaking, Heaven is where God is. When we say that Heaven went silent, in a way, we are saying that God went Silent. Several people in the OT experienced God's silence, which can last for a short period or for hundreds of years. Either way, God's silence can be unbearable, and humanity goes through anguish. Several Psalms indicate people's angst at what appears to be God's silence.

Psalm 13:1 "How long, O Lord? Will you forget me forever? How long will you hide your face from me?" Psalm 28:1: "To you, Lord, I call; you are my Rock, do not turn a deaf ear to me. For if you remain silent, I will be like those who go down to the pit." Ps 44:23: "Awake! Why are you sleeping, O Lord? Rouse yourself! Do not reject us forever!" ESV

Psalm 83:1: "O God, do not remain silent; do not turn a deaf ear, do not stand aloof, O God."

            Here is a Psalm that directly ties to Jesus' pain of abandonment by the Father on the Cross. Psalm 22:1, "My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me? Why are you so far from saving me, so far from my cries of anguish?" Have you ever felt as though God is silent, millions of miles away, and uninvolved in your situation? God may be silent at times, but that doesn't mean He is far from you; Infact, He is closer to the brokenhearted.

Jesus understands your pain of abandonment. He knew how it feels when God turns His face from us, so he cried out, "My God, My God, why have you forsaken me?" Strangely, God the Father, after hearing Jesus' cry, didn't step in and rescue Him. It was for our good that he didn't step in otherwise; we wouldn't have received salvation. So, with another Loud cry, Jesus gave up his spirit. What happened afterward were miracles and the fulfillment of scriptures.

III. The Way Into God's Presence Is Open To all

 Certain events that occurred immediately after Jesus' death were pure miracles, and one of them fulfilled an ancient prophecy. Let's explore: 1. Earthquake and Rock Splitting: These signs in the OT often indicated the awesome power of God's presence. 2. The temple Curtain was torn from top to bottom. According to Hebrews 9:1-9, a curtain separates the rest of the temple and the people from the Holy of Holies, where God dwelt. Only the high priest was allowed once a year to enter the Most Holy Place to offer sacrifices for the people's sins.

According to tradition, "the Curtain was about 60 feet high and four inches thick."[2] The tearing of the Curtain indicates that Jesus' death on the Cross was a sufficient atonement for our sins. God removed the dividing wall of hostility between Jews and Gentiles. (Eph 2:14). Through Christ's blood, the way into God's presence is open to all people. The fact that it tore from top to bottom showed that it was not done by any human being but by a powerful act of God.

3. The bodies of the saints were raised. Nothing more is said about these people except that, after Jesus' resurrection, they appeared to many; this shows that they were given glorified bodies and, after appearing to people, may have ascended to glory. This miracle was a foretaste of the resurrection of the dead saints when Christ returns. I Thess 4:16.

4. A convincing proclamation of the Centurion. Throughout Jesus' ministry, his divinity was challenged by the devil himself and doubted by the Pharisees, the High Priest, and those who came to witness the Crucifixion. In Mark 15:39, we read, "The Centurion, who stood there in front of Jesus, saw how he died, he said, 'Surely this man was the Son of God! This proclamation puts an end to the speculations regarding whether Christ really died on the Cross or someone else in His place, as some of our Muslim friends think.

5. In death, Jesus shared a rich man's tomb. Humanly speaking, though Jesus was poor, he had some rich and prominent friends. One of them was Joseph of Arimathea. He was a member of the Sanhedrin who himself became a disciple of Christ. But a secret disciple because he feared the Jewish leaders. This tells us that even today, there might be secret believers of Christ among Jews, Muslims, and Hindus, as they might be afraid of their religious leaders.

Joseph and Nicodemus, another prominent Jewish leader who met Jesus secretly (Jn 19:39), came to Pilate, took the body of Jesus, and buried him in Joseph's new tomb. (Matt 27:60), thus fulfilling  exactly the prophecy of Isaiah 53:9, "He was assigned a grave with the wicked, and with the rich in his death." Joseph rolled a large stone in front of the tomb's entrance and left. Mary Magdalene and the other Mary were sitting there opposite the tomb.

What a spectacular and tragic Friday that was when Christ died on the Cross? Heaven went silent for a moment, and the prophecies were fulfilled, and Jesus was buried in a tomb. The story of Good Friday doesn’t end in a closed tomb but in an Open Grave!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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[1]https://www.christianitytoday.com/pastors/preaching/sermon-illustrations/springsteens-deepest-yearning/

[2] https://www.gotquestions.org/temple-veil-torn.html