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Content type: Sermon Poem / Prayer Service / Tribute Incomplete Biography
Body: Clark Harden I recently read a story about a heart surgeon and how a young patient’s faith in Jesus changed the surgeon’s heart forever. "Tomorrow morning I'll open up your heart” the surgeon said to the 8-year-old-boy. "You'll find Jesus there," the boy said. The surgeon continued, "I'll open your heart and check the damage." "You'll find Jesus there," the boy said. "When I see the damage, I will suture you back up and then think about the next step," said the surgeon. "You will find Jesus in my heart because my Sunday school teacher told me so. She said it says so in the Bible. Besides that, our Sunday school songs say He lives there," said the boy. The surgery took place the next day. After the surgery the surgeon began to make notes of what he found. In his mind there was no hope and no cure. The little boy would die within a matter of months. The thought began to get to the doctor and suddenly the doctor shouted to God, "Why did you do this to the boy? Why can't he live a normal life?" God spoke to the surgeon's heart and said, "The boy is a part of my flock and will always be a part of my flock. When he is with me there will be no more suffering and pain. He will have comfort and peace. One day his parents as well as you will join him, and my flock will continue to grow." The next day the surgeon went to the boy's room and sat down with the parents beside the bed. In a moment or two, the boy opened his eyes and asked very quietly, "What did you find in my heart?" With tears flowing down his cheeks, the surgeon said, "I found Jesus there." Hope is an emotion that flows from our hearts. It has been said that Hope is one of the most powerful emotions that God has embodied in our human makeup. Proverbs 13:12 says, “Hope deferred makes the heart sick, but a longing fulfilled is a tree of life.” Deferred is to put off to a later time; to postpone. People around us and maybe even some of us here today are struggling to be hopeful. Our heart is sick. I want to continue with the scripture related to the Road to Emmaus. We will soon see how the two disciples on their way to Emmaus began walking on a hopeless road but returned to Jerusalem on Hope Road. They met Jesus, the heart surgeon. TEXT Luke 24; 28-35 28 Then they drew near to the village where they were going, and He indicated that He would have gone farther. 29 But they constrained Him, saying, “Abide with us, for it is toward evening, and the day is far spent.” And He went in to stay with them. 30 Now it came to pass, as He sat at the table with them, that He took bread, blessed and broke it, and gave it to them. 31 Then their eyes were opened, and they knew Him; and He vanished from their sight. 32 And they said to one another, “Did not our heart burn within us while He talked with us on the road, and while He opened the Scriptures to us?” 33 So they rose up that very hour and returned to Jerusalem, and found the eleven and those who were with them gathered together, 34 saying, “The Lord is risen indeed, and has appeared to Simon!” 35 And they told about the things that had happened on the road, and how He was known to them in the breaking of bread. I want to talk to you about the HOPE that these two disciples found on the road to Emmaus. This HOPE was not meant for only them, but for you and me. I will use an acrostic to relay four points. He (JESUS) Opportunity Purpose Eternal HE (JESUS) These two disciples were downcast or saddened in just a few verses prior to our text. Earlier their focus had been on the pre-resurrected Christ and the fact that he had been crucified and was dead. Remember Cleopas said, “We had hoped He was the one that was going to redeem Israel.” Jesus then allows the two disciples to give their account of the recent events. Then we see Jesus offer the detour for the heart of the two disciples. He reminds them of all the prophets and what they had spoken. He reiterates His purpose and why He had to suffer the cross. He explains the Scriptures concerning Himself. Now we see that the road to Emmaus from Jerusalem was about seven miles. Although seven miles is a long way to walk, it does not take a tremendous amount of time. This story did not occur over a period of days. The point I am trying to make is it is not the amount of time that mattered, but who they were with. Now I believe we need to be in constant communion with the Lord, but we need to realize that a few moments with the Lord will do more for our hearts than anything else. The HOPE we all are searching for can always be found in Him. The HOPE that we see born in these two disciples did not come from each other. We do not read of them visiting with their pastor or another elder and receiving HOPE from them. No, the focus of this passage of scripture is all about Jesus. Their HOPE came from Jesus and their interaction with Him. Verse 32 says, “And they said to one another, “Did not our heart burn within us while He talked with us on the road, and while He opened the Scriptures to us?” We see here what one walk with the Lord can do for us. We see despair disappear and HOPE appear! We friends need to walk with Jesus as these two disciples did that day. Next let’s look at the O. OPPORTUNITY 28 Then they drew near to the village where they were going, and He indicated that He would have gone farther. 29 But they constrained Him, saying, “Abide with us, for it is toward evening, and the day is far spent.” And He went in to stay with them. When the journey on the road to Emmaus began, we know according to the scriptures that Jesus came up and walked along with them. There was no choice on the disciple’s part; He just joined them. He questioned them and offered the ministry of HOPE. However, we see in verses 28-29 a pivotal moment. Jesus suggests that He will continue on. The message of HOPE has been extended to the disciples and now Jesus is waiting for an invitation to stay. To continue His ministry if you will. Have these two disciples taken the opportunity provided, to receive the HOPE from Jesus Christ? We need to realize that even now the disciples have not noticed Jesus with their natural eyes. 30 Now it came to pass, as He sat at the table with them, that He took bread, blessed and broke it, and gave it to them. 31 Then their eyes were opened, and they knew Him; and He vanished from their sight. Now, let us notice here that Jesus revealed Himself and then vanished. Why? His ministry was no longer about the physical, but instead the spiritual. However, the eyes of the two disciples’ hearts had been fixed on Jesus. Their HOPE had been transferred from the physical to the spiritual. I think one could say, “They got it!” Amen. This friends is a beautiful example of the opportunity afforded to each of us daily, every time the Lord deals with our heart. An opportunity is extended for us to receive this same HOPE that we see the disciples receive. Jesus joins us on our road with that still small voice. We can choose then to share our account with Him. He will then offer us correction if needed. We always have an opportunity to receive HOPE in whatever our situation is. We then have the opportunity to invite Jesus to stay with us as the disciples did. So, what did they do with this HOPE? That is the P. They now had a purpose. PURPOSE 33 So they rose up that very hour and returned to Jerusalem and found the eleven and those who were with them gathered together, 34 saying, “The Lord is risen indeed, and has appeared to Simon!” 35 And they told about the things that had happened on the road, and how He was known to them in the breaking of bread. Notice they got up that very hour. Now we saw earlier that it was nearly evening when the disciples invited Jesus to stay with them. We can assume then that all or most of their journey back to Jerusalem was going to be in the dark. It was not going to be an easy journey. Also, remember they have just walked to Emmaus. They are probably tired. Do you see what I’m trying to say? They have some excuses they could use to stay and rest. Friends, I don’t believe anything would have kept them from returning to Jerusalem. They had received a HOPE that day that would ignite the spreading of the gospel. They had a purpose! We see here their excitement and we have an account of their testimony of what the Lord has done in their life this day. We too know that the Lord has risen, and we have a testimony of what the Lord has done on our roads of life. Are we spreading it? What makes this HOPE so special is the E. This HOPE is eternal because its foundation is Jesus Christ! ETERNAL That’s all great but you may say we can’t see Jesus. The disciples had the opportunity to see Him, audibly hear Him, and commune with Him. We don’t. I tell you we don’t need to. That’s what Jesus was teaching these two disciples…our HOPE rest in our hearts, in our souls. Our HOPE is an eternal HOPE that is cradled in faith. We serve a living God that one day we will see. Until then we depend on what He has given us: the Holy Spirit, the Word, and prayer. Let’s look at some passages from the Bible. I have seven for you so that maybe you can study one each day next week on your road of life. the Holy Spirit 2 Corinthians 3:16-18 says, “16 Nevertheless when one turns to the Lord, the veil is taken away. 17 Now the Lord is the Spirit; and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty. 18 But we all, with unveiled face, beholding as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory, just as by the Spirit of the Lord.” John 14:25-26 says, “25 “These things I have spoken to you while being present with you. 26 But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in My name, He will teach you all things, and bring to your remembrance all things that I said to you. the Word Matthew 24:35 says, “Heaven and earth will pass away, but My words will by no means pass away.” Psalm 119:105 says, “Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path.” Hebrews 4:12 says, “For the word of God is living and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the division of soul and spirit, and of joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.” Prayer 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18 says, “16 Rejoice always, 17 pray without ceasing, 18 in everything give thanks; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.” Philippians 4:6-7 says, “6 Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God; 7 and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.” In an earlier century, there lay a large boulder in the middle of the roadway. Traveler after traveler walked past the boulder, veering off the side of the road to get around it. All the while, they were shaking their head and muttering, "Can you believe that? Someone should get that big thing out of the way. What an inconvenience!" Finally, a man came along and, seeing the boulder, took a branch from a tree and pried the boulder enough to get it rolling and rolled it off to the side of the road. Lying underneath the rock, he found a small bag with a note. The man picked up the note and read it. It read as follows: "Thank you for being a true servant of the kingdom. Many have passed this way and complained because of the state of the problem and spoken of what ought to be done. But you have taken the responsibility upon yourself to serve the kingdom instead. You are the type of citizen we need more of in this kingdom. Please accept this bag of gold that traveler after traveler have walked by simply because they didn’t care enough about the kingdom to serve." I wonder what "bags of gold" we’re missing each day, simply because we don’t bother to get involved in serving our heavenly kingdom. Are we the type of heavenly citizens our Father needs more of? I wonder how many days we walk by the opportunities God has placed along our road to receive His HOPE. He provides the OPPORTUNITIES to give us PURPOSE as we travel our roads to our ETERNAL homes. Do you have that HOPE today? Are you living in hope today? Is your hope strong, sure, vital, accompanied by faith and love? Is it causing you to be joyful, confident, patient, and pure? “Now hope does not disappoint, because the love of God has been poured out in our hearts by the Holy Spirit who was given to us” (Romans 5:5). All of us have been through hardships of some nature and we have survived. Why? We have survived because of our faith and hope is our Heavenly Father and because of His unconditional love for us. Our hope is made stronger and our relationship with God becomes closer when we realize that His promises are real and truthful. The Holy Spirit within our heart insures us that God loves us. “Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ!” Amen. Story: Hope Road The school system in a large city had a program to help children keep up with their schoolwork during stays in the city’s hospitals. One day a teacher who was assigned to the program received a routine call asking her to visit a particular child. She took the child’s name and room number and talked briefly with the child’s regular class teacher. "We’re studying nouns and adverbs in his class now," the regular teacher said, "and I’d be grateful if you could help him understand them, so he doesn’t fall too far behind." The hospital program teacher went to see the boy that afternoon. No one had mentioned to her that the boy had been badly burned and was in great pain. Upset at the sight of the boy, she stammered as she told him, "I’ve been sent by your school to help you with nouns and adverbs." When she left, she felt she hadn’t accomplished much. But the next day, a nurse asked her, "What did you do to that boy?" The teacher felt she must have done something wrong and began to apologize. "No, no," said the nurse. "You don’t know what I mean. We’ve been worried about that little boy, but ever since yesterday, his whole attitude has changed. He’s fighting back, responding to treatment. It’s as though he’s decided to live." Two weeks later the boy explained that he had completely given up hope until the teacher arrived. Everything changed when he came to a simple realization. He expressed it this way: "They wouldn’t send a teacher to work on nouns and adverbs with a dying boy, would they?" Bits & Pieces, July 1991 He had HOPE. Story: Hope Road From Parade magazine comes the story of self-made millionaire Eugene Land, who greatly changed the lives of a sixth-grade class in East Harlem. Mr. Lang had been asked to speak to a class of 59 sixth graders. What could he say to inspire these students, most of whom would drop out of school? He wondered how he could get these predominantly black and Puerto Rican children even to look at him. Scrapping his notes, he decided to speak to them from his heart. "Stay in school," he admonished, "and I’ll help pay the college tuition for every one of you." At that moment the lives of these students changed. For the first time they had hope. One student said, "I had something to look forward to, something waiting for me. It was a golden feeling." Nearly 90 percent of that class went on to graduate from high school. They had HOPE.
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