(Day 19) Seeking God Through His Word, Prayer, and Fasting

St. Luke 24:1-35

The inner prompting to seek God is the result of His Spirit at work in us. It is a work of God where He causes a desire to be produced in us to go after Him. The reason we are reaching for God through our devotions and spiritual disciplines is because He has already influenced our hearts to long after Him. He shows us beauty and grace, love and compassion; and when we reflect on His goodness toward us and how undeserving we are, it motivates us to investigate the Eternal One.

The busyness of a day can dampen the fires of our heart to pursue the presence of God as we become distracted by the cares of life. Many things need our attention and we are pulled into different directions; but prioritizing the pursuit of God is what matters most. It's through an up close and personal relationship with our Lord that we will be able to properly deal with all of our problems, issues and concerns. When we spend time in the face of the Father, He gives us what we need to face life in His power and wisdom.

Our text today deals with the ebbs and flows of life, the ups and downs that toss us about, often blinding us from the nearness of Jesus. After the resurrection of the Lord, there was much excitement and confusion as to what was happening. When Christ was crucified, His disciples and those that believed in Him were devastated. The disciples were fearful and perplexed. The day of His resurrection, they were gathered together; Then the same day at evening, being the first day of the week, when the doors were shut where the disciples were assembled for fear of the Jews, came Jesus and stood in the midst, and saith unto them, Peace be unto you (St. John 20:19) .

The disciples were afraid and crushed. They had left all to follow Him and now He has been crucified like a common criminal. They had pinned their hopes upon Him that He was their Messiah and deliverer. During this same time, there was a great buzz of excitement about the report from the women that had prepared spices and ointments for the lifeless body of the Lord that the tomb was empty and angels had announced to them, He is not here, but is risen: remember how He spake unto you when He was yet in Galilee, Saying, The Son of man must be delivered into the hands of sinful men, and be crucified, and the third day rise again. And they remembered His words (St. Luke 24:6-8).

It's very important that as we go through our tests and trials, we remember His words. Therefore we ought to give the more earnest heed to the things which we have heard, lest at any time we should let them slip (Hebrews 2:1). We must hide the word in our heart (Psalm 119:11), because our adversary the devil cometh and taketh away the word out of their hearts, lest they should believe and be saved (St. Luke 8:12). Jesus gave a Word for His disciples multiple times to prepare them for this current crisis. Then He took unto Him the twelve, and said unto them, Behold, we go to Jerusalem, and all things that are written by the prophets concerning the Son of man shall be accomplished. For He shall be delivered unto the Gentiles, and shall be mocked, and spitefully entreated, and spitted on: and they shall scourge Him, and put Him to death; and the third day He shall rise again (St. Luke 19:31-33). Unfortunately, as is often the case, we miss what the Lord is saying because we are not where we need to be in maturity or our hearts are not yet yielded enough to receive His truth that differs from our pre-conceived expectations.

And they understood none of these things: and this saying was hid from them, neither knew they the things which were spoken (St. Luke 19:34). As we commit to a continuous seeking for God in His Word, with prayer and fasting, He is faithful to give us understanding and insight. With the Word of God stored in our hearts, He can speak to us in whispers that fortify our faith and anchor our soul for the day of adversity.

It was Mary Magdalene, and Joanna, and Mary the mother of James, and other women that were with them, which told these things unto the apostles. And their words seemed to them as idle tales, and they believed them not (St. Luke 24:10-11). Isn't it interesting that the apostles that were with Jesus for His earthly ministry and witnessed His wonders were so overwhelmed with fear and unbelief that they couldn't bring themselves to believe the words of the women? Our crisis can prevent us from seeing Christ! All we may see is the difficulty of our problems and the pain we feel from them.

There were two followers of Christ that were on their way to a village called Emmaus; and as they were going, they talked about all that was happening with the crucifixion of Christ and the empty tomb, just trying as we always do, to figure things out. And they talked together of all these things which happened. And it came to pass, that, while they communed together and reasoned, Jesus Himself drew near, and went with them. But their eyes were holden that they should not know Him. (St. Luke 24:14-16). These two disciples as they journeyed:

1. talked together

2. communed together

3. reasoned

We often do a lot of talking, involving ourselves in useless chatter instead of taking our hurts and pain to God in prayer. We could fill up the time talking to people, trying to make sense of things; but it's powerfully productive to seek God for help, answers, and strength. As they're walking and talking, the Lord Himself comes up and walks along side them. But because they were so into their conversation and how they were feeling about all that was happening, they didn't recognize that it was Jesus. Tears of sadness impairs our natural vision and the spirit of sadness distorts our faith. And He said unto them, What manner of communications are these that ye have one to another, as ye walk, and are sad? (verse 17).

Jesus of course knows why they're sad but will engage His distraught followers to give them an important revelation. One of them whose name was Cleopas, answering said unto Him, Art thou only a stranger in Jerusalem, and hast not known the things which are come to pass there in these days? (verse 18). What things? (verse 19) our Lord replies, to get them to open up. And as he begins to share with who he thinks to be a mere stranger passing through, the life of Christ and His powerful impact, he then goes into his great disappointment that we trusted that it had been He which should have redeemed Israel: and beside all this, today is the third day since these things were done (verses 19-21).

With a rebuke, the Lord calls them fools, and slow of heart to believe all that the prophets have spoken: Ought not Christ to have suffered these things, and to enter into His glory? (verses 25-26). And so our Lord takes that which is always our source of strength and instruction, and begins to minister the Word of God. And beginning at Moses and all the prophets, He expounded unto them in all the scriptures the things concerning Himself (verse 27). These disciples have now spent a considerable amount of time with the resurrected Lord and don't recognize Him. They now insist that the stranger allow them to show Him hospitality and stay with them. As He stays with them, it came to pass, as He sat at meat with them, He took bread, and blessed it, and brake, and gave to them. And their eyes were opened, and they knew Him; and He vanished out of their sight (St. Luke 24:30-31). They recognized Him after He ministered the Word and in the fellowship of breaking bread. Our eyes are opened by the Word of God and our hearts see Him when we are in communion with Him. The blinders that obscure our faith are removed when we fellowship with Him. This is why we must seek Him daily. Even when we can't see our way clear; even when He's not always easy to locate in the storm, we have to know that He's there.

Their testimony was Did not our heart burn within us, while He talked with us by the way, and while He opened to us the scriptures? (St. Luke 24:32). The Lord wants to walk and talk with you, patiently opening His word to your hurting heart. As you are journeying through life, facing hardships and intense battles, the Lord is walking with you to minister to you and give you a word that will cause you to see His faithfulness and love for you. And they told what things were done in the way, and how He was known of them in breaking of bread (St. Luke 24:35).

From the heart and hand of Pastor Reginald Reaves