09 Apr Hearts on fire

Luke 24:13-32

¹³ That very day two of them were going to a village named Emmaus, about seven miles from Jerusalem, ¹⁴ and they were talking with each other about all these things that had happened. ¹⁵ While they were talking and discussing together, Jesus himself drew near and went with them. ¹⁶ But their eyes were kept from recognizing him. ¹⁷ And he said to them, “What is this conversation that you are holding with each other as you walk?” And they stood still, looking sad. ¹⁸ Then one of them, named Cleopas, answered him, “Are you the only visitor to Jerusalem who does not know the things that have happened there in these days?” ¹⁹ And he said to them, “What things?” And they said to him, “Concerning Jesus of Nazareth, a man who was a prophet mighty in deed and word before God and all the people, ²⁰ and how our chief priests and rulers delivered him up to be condemned to death, and crucified him. ²¹ 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 happened. ²² Moreover, some women of our company amazed us. They were at the tomb early in the morning, ²³ and when they did not find his body, they came back saying that they had even seen a vision of angels, who said that he was alive. ²⁴ Some of those who were with us went to the tomb and found it just as the women had said, but him they did not see.” ²⁵ And he said to them, “O foolish ones, and slow of heart to believe all that the prophets have spoken! ²⁶ Was it not necessary that the Christ should suffer these things and enter into his glory?” ²⁷ And beginning with Moses and all the Prophets, he interpreted to them in all the Scriptures the things concerning himself. ²⁸ So they drew near to the village to which they were going. He acted as if he were going farther, ²⁹ but they urged him strongly, saying, “Stay with us, for it is toward evening and the day is now far spent.” So he went in to stay with them. ³⁰ When he was at table with them, he took the bread and blessed and broke it and gave it to them. ³¹ And their eyes were opened, and they recognized him. And he vanished from their sight. ³² 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?”

What is the greatest pain you have ever experienced? I consider myself someone who is good at dealing with pain. For example, when I took out one of my wisdom teeth last year. They say that modern dentistry, especially in a country like Australia, is almost always a pain-free experience. Note the words almost always. Because it does not mean always. There is an exception to it. And I was at the end of that exception. My dentist told me the process would be painless. But he lied. It was extremely painful. I shed a few tears during the surgery. But I didn’t say anything to him. I just endured the pain. I am good at dealing with physical pain. But there is one pain that I can’t handle. It is the pain that makes me sleepless, lifeless, and energy-less. Do you know what pain I am talking about? I know some of you are thinking, “The pain of a broken heart,” yes but no. I do realize that some of you have yet to experience this pain. Don’t worry, your turn is coming. But for those of us who had our heart been broken, do you know why we find it very hard to deal with the pain? Because of a broken hope. Listen to how the book of Proverbs puts it. Proverbs 13:12 – Hope deferred makes the heart sick, but a desire fulfilled is a tree of life. If we experience a broken heart but we still have hope in the relationship, we are okay. But what destroys us is when we no longer have hope in the relationship. Hope deferred makes the heart sick. So, what often happens is we hoped that things would turn out a certain way and we expected God to do something about it, but nothing happened. Things did not turn out the way we expected, and we are disappointed with God. Especially, when what we hope for is a good thing.

As Christians, we believe that God is good, loving, all-wise and all-powerful. He can do whatever He wants whenever He wants wherever He wants. Nothing is impossible for Him. Yet the question is, why didn’t He come through for us? If what we hoped for was a new Ferrari, while we drive a Honda Jazz, we can probably understand why God did not give it to us. But a lot of time, what we hoped for is not for selfish gain but a good thing. We hoped for our family to be restored; for our child to come to know Christ; for our parent to be healed; for our PR to be granted; for promotion at work; for our relationship to work out, etc. But what happened is the opposite. Our parents are divorced; our boyfriend/girlfriend cheated on us; our family member is still sick; our PR application got rejected; our child refuses to know Christ; and we get laid off from our job. And we find ourselves wondering what went wrong. Does anyone know what I am talking about? It is not that we stop believing in God, but our experiences seem to contradict what we believe about God. We question, “Does God care about me? If He does, then why… I thought… It’s not supposed to be this way…” We are discouraged. Life seems to have no meaning or purpose. We lose hope and it seems like there is no light at the end of the tunnel. If that’s you, I have good news for you. Life does have meaning and that meaning is found in Jesus. When we have Jesus, we always have hope in all circumstances.

Tonight’s passage is about two people who lose hope because of the death of Jesus. Now, we do not know exactly who they are. We know one of them is called Cleopas, but we have no idea who the other person is. Many assume that they are husband and wife and that they are Jesus’ uncle and aunt. But we don’t know for sure. But we do know that they are followers of Jesus. And Jesus’ death does not make any sense to them. They had big hope and expectation of Jesus, but his death killed those hope and expectation. So, they are now extremely sad and discouraged. They are brokenhearted. In this passage, they are making a 11kms walk from Jerusalem to Emmaus. And along the way, a stranger comes up to them and converses with them. And this conversation changes everything. At the end of this conversation, their hearts are no longer burdened but their hearts are burning. What happened? Let’s look at the story together.

I have three points for my sermon. The disappointment; The gospel; The fire.

The disappointment

Luke 24:13-20 – ¹³ That very day two of them were going to a village named Emmaus, about seven miles from Jerusalem, ¹⁴ and they were talking with each other about all these things that had happened. ¹⁵ While they were talking and discussing together, Jesus himself drew near and went with them. ¹⁶ But their eyes were kept from recognizing him. ¹⁷ And he said to them, “What is this conversation that you are holding with each other as you walk?” And they stood still, looking sad. ¹⁸ Then one of them, named Cleopas, answered him, “Are you the only visitor to Jerusalem who does not know the things that have happened there in these days?” ¹⁹ And he said to them, “What things?” And they said to him, “Concerning Jesus of Nazareth, a man who was a prophet mighty in deed and word before God and all the people, ²⁰ and how our chief priests and rulers delivered him up to be condemned to death, and crucified him.

This story happens on the very same day of Jesus’ resurrection. Earlier that day, some women went to Jesus’s tomb and discovered the tomb was empty. There they saw angels who told them that Jesus rose from the dead. The women then told the other disciples about it, but they did not believe them. So, if you find Jesus’ resurrection hard to believe, you are not alone. Even the disciples who spent three years with Jesus and saw many signs and wonders that Jesus did find it hard to believe in the resurrection. And on their way to Emmaus, Cleopas and the other person are talking about everything that happened in the last few days. They are talking about how Jesus was crucified, how Jesus was buried, and how Jesus’ tomb is now empty. They don’t know what to make of all these things that have happened to Jesus. They are confused. So, it is a conversation between two people whose hopes are dead and buried. And in the middle of their deep conversation, someone just comes up and joins in the conversation. In our cultural context, people who do that are usually either crazy or rude. Or, in our church context, he is your pastor. I realized I do that a lot after the service. I just jump in the middle of your conversation with someone else, say what I need to say, and awkwardly walk away. But at a time and place where people have to walk a lot to places, it is not unusual for someone to join in the conversation as they walk the same road. And Luke tells us this person is none other than Jesus.

So, Jesus comes up to them and says, “Hey, you guys seem to be in a very serious conversation. What are you talking about?” And Cleopas replies, “Are you the only visitor in Jerusalem who does not know what happened in the last few days? Everyone’s been talking about it. It is in Jerusalem’s Morning Herald. BBC and Nine News cover the story. People’s been raving about it on Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook. Where have you been?” And Jesus says, “What things? Tell me about it.” And they reply, “It’s about Jesus of Nazareth. I am sure you have heard of him, right? We are his followers. We have been following him for the past three years. We listened to all his sermons, and they were great. Unlike the scribes whose sermons made us fall asleep, Jesus’ sermons made us feel alive. He spoke with power and authority like we have never seen before. And his miracles were uh-mazing. There was one time he touched a leper, and we were like, “Omo, omo, omo. He wouldn’t dare. Wait. Did he just…?” And instead of him becoming unclean, the leper was cleansed. That never happened before. And then there was one time when he fell asleep on the boat and the storm threatened to destroy the boat. And do you know what he did? He woke up, and told the storm, “Be quiet,” and the wind and waves immediately obeyed him. And we were like, “OMG, who is this man?” And he also fed 15,000 people with 5 loaves of bread and 2 fish. It was unbelievable. We have never seen anything like it before. He was a prophet mighty in deed and word before God and all the people. But the Sanhedrin hated him. So, they condemned him to death. They crucified him.” Do you see the irony in this? They are telling Jesus about Jesus. And they accuse Jesus of not knowing what’s been happening while Jesus is the only one who truly knows what’s been happening. So, they are talking about Jesus, but they don’t know they are talking to Jesus. But here is where I want to draw your attention. Why could they not recognize Jesus? What prevents them from seeing Jesus? Is it because of their unbelief in the resurrection? Is it because they do not expect to see Jesus again? Is it because they are overwhelmed with grief?

Look at verse 16. Luke 24:16 – ¹⁶ But their eyes were kept from recognizing him. Luke does not say that they do not recognize Jesus. Luke says that they are kept from recognizing Jesus. And I think Luke is making an important point here. Listen. No one can see the risen Jesus unless he wills to reveal himself. It means that we can grow up listening to all stories of Jesus in Sunday School. We can be in church all our life. We can have our parents read us the Bible every night before we go to bed. We can serve in every area of ministry. And yet we still do not recognize Jesus. Because recognizing Jesus is not a matter of self-will. Only God can open our eyes to recognize Jesus for who he truly is. Look at what they say about Jesus. They call Jesus a prophet who is mighty in deed and word before God and all the people. So, they have a very high view of Jesus. But not high enough. They are not wrong, but they are not right either. Because Jesus is more than a prophet; He is God in flesh. They have the right information but only half the revelation. Look at what they say next.

Luke 24:21-24 – ²¹ 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 happened. ²² Moreover, some women of our company amazed us. They were at the tomb early in the morning, ²³ and when they did not find his body, they came back saying that they had even seen a vision of angels, who said that he was alive. ²⁴ Some of those who were with us went to the tomb and found it just as the women had said, but him they did not see.” Underline that phrase in verse 21, “We had hoped that he was the one to redeem Israel.” This is the problem. They have spent the last three years following Jesus and supporting Jesus. They had hoped that Jesus was the one to redeem Israel. But when Jesus died, all hope went down the drain. How can Jesus redeem Israel when he died? Can you see what happened? The reason why they are sad and discouraged is that they thought Jesus would do A, but instead, B happened. And they cannot make sense of it. They are at the point where all their expectations are dashed, and all their hopes are disappointed. And because of it, they cannot receive good news. When the women told them about the resurrection of Jesus, they cannot hear it. It’s like they have this filter in their mind that interprets everything as bad news.

Let me put it this way. They are like Eeyore who is extremely pessimistic. When Piglet cheerfully says, “Good morning,” he replies, “Well, I suppose it is…. For some.” Have you ever met someone like Eeyore? If you haven’t, maybe you are Eeyore. Life hits you in the face and it seems like all hope is lost. It seems like your situation is beyond any earthly hope. You are like these two disciples who think Jesus is as dead as he could be. You are in the church today. But you feel hopeless. But I am here to tell you that you are not without hope. Because the resurrection of Jesus did happen. And his resurrection changes everything. So, if you are a Christian, and you feel hopeless, let me tell you your problem. Your problem is your gospel is not complete. You have removed the resurrection from your gospel. I love the way Michael Ramsey puts it. “The Gospel without the resurrection is not merely a Gospel without its final chapter; it is not a gospel at all.” This is the reason why Cleopas and his friend are discouraged. They do not know that Jesus is alive. And there is no good news unless Jesus rose from the dead.

And let me speak to the non-Christians for a bit. Whenever the church talks about the resurrection of Jesus, you immediately think, “How can you believe in a resurrection in this day and age? The ancient people might be tricked into it. But we are too smart for it. Science tells us resurrection can’t happen.” But is it? Even if you do not believe in the resurrection of Jesus, you still must explain the empty tomb. It is undeniable that the tomb is empty. So, if you say to me, “I don’t believe in a resurrection”, here is my question. What are you going to do with the empty tomb? I am not saying the empty tomb proves once and for all that the resurrection is true. But the empty tomb is irrefutable evidence. The empty tomb shows that the most likely explanation is that the resurrection of Jesus happened. You can’t just say, “Resurrection can’t happen. Therefore, it did not happen.” That’s intellectual laziness. You must examine the evidence. And if you reject the resurrection of Jesus, you must come up with an alternate explanation that explains the empty tomb and the transformation in the lives of the disciples. Because they too did not believe in the resurrection at first. But they ended up being persecuted and killed for their belief in Jesus’ resurrection. Do you have one? I dare you to examine the evidence clearly. You will conclude that there are good reasons for believing that Christianity is true, and that the resurrection of Jesus really did happen.

The gospel

Luke 24:25-26 – ²⁵ And he said to them, “O foolish ones, and slow of heart to believe all that the prophets have spoken! ²⁶ Was it not necessary that the Christ should suffer these things and enter into his glory?”

In response to what they say, Jesus rebukes them. But note the reason why Jesus rebukes them. Jesus does not rebuke them for not believing the evidence of the resurrection. And Jesus does not rebuke them for not recognizing him. If I was Jesus, that’s what I would rebuke them for. “After all these years, you don’t recognize me? How could you?” But do you know why Jesus rebukes them? Jesus rebukes them for not believing and understanding the Scriptures. What happens is they are not able to see how the suffering of Jesus and the glory of Jesus comes in one package. For them, suffering and glory do not hold hands. They cannot conceive that suffering and death are necessary means of divine redemption and eternal hope. They see the death of Jesus as the end of their hope. They do not realize that the death of Jesus is the answer to their hope. In their mind, suffering Messiah is a contradiction. It’s like salty chocolate. They embrace the glorious Messiah but not the suffering Messiah. And before we blame them for being shallow, we must recognize that all of us have the same propensity to focus on one side of the coin. We love to talk about the glorious Jesus, don’t we? We love to sing, “Way maker, Miracle worker, Promise keeper, Light in the darkness, My God, that is who you are.” But we do not sing, “Follow me, carry the cross, deny yourself, obey His word, My God, that is your demand.” Why? First, because that song does not exist. And second, because we do not understand our main problem.

Think about it. Cleopas wants redemption. He had hoped that Jesus was the one to redeem Israel. But he thinks the redemption he needs is the redemption from the slavery of Romans. He thinks, “What we need is salvation from the Romans. If we could just have economic freedom, if we could just have political freedom, then everything would be all right.” In other words, Cleopas thinks the main problem in his life is bad circumstances. And what he needs is for Jesus to make his circumstances better. If only Jesus changes his circumstances, then everything would be fine. And isn’t that the way we often think? We think what we need is better circumstances. We think what we need is for God to give us a better life. But Jesus came to release us from a far deeper problem than that. The Bible teaches us that our main problem is we are slaves of sin. And Jesus came to redeem us from the slavery of sin.

The question is, do we know that we are enslaved by sin? Let me backtrack one step. How do we become a slave of something? Think of addiction. How do we become addicted to something? Let’s say you are addicted to porn. How did it happen? It starts when you have emptiness in your life, and you need a high, so you look at porn. For a while, it helps. But the next thing you know, there is what’s called a tolerance factor. It means that after a while, the same amount that you once took to give you that high to deal with that emptiness, is no longer sufficient. Now you need more to get the same high you had before. So, what ends up happening is you start consuming more and more porn. And before you know it, the very thing that’s relieving stress begins to cause stress. At first, you look at porn to relieve stress, but now porn itself is a stress. And when the thing you use to relieve stress is the cause of your stress, you are stuck in a vicious cycle. You are spiralling down, and you are going to crash. You are enslaved by porn, and you are trapped in the cycle. And all sin is a form of addiction. Because sin is whatever we run to besides God to feel that inner emptiness. It is anything besides God that we must have to be happy in life. It is our way of getting high. It could be our children. It could be our spouse. It could be a job, marriage, relationship, etc. Whatever it is, at first, we run to it to deal with the emptiness of life. And as time goes by, we need more and more of it. And if we don’t have it, or if anything threatens it, we feel suffocated. At that point, we have become a slave to that very thing. Can you see it? And this is what Jesus came to do. He came to redeem us from the slavery of sin.

Most of us start out just like Cleopas. We think what we need is a change of circumstances. The original reason we may start coming to church is that we do not want to flunk out of business school. What we are saying is, “Jesus, help me. I really need your help so I can get through business school so that I can have a good career.” We come to God as a sufferer needing help, but not as a sinner needing salvation. What we want is not a change of heart but a change of circumstances. But what we really need is a change of heart. Because we are enslaved deep down. Instead of coming to God saying, “God, help me to get through business school,” we must realize, “Until God becomes more important to me than a business school, it will kill me. It will enslave me. I’m addicted to success, and I am enslaved by it.” If we only focus on our circumstances, we are making the same mistake as Cleopas. We won’t understand why Jesus has to die on the cross. Listen. Unless we see our main problem, unless we see what Jesus came to do, we are going to be disappointed in God. Because we don’t realise that the only way for us to be freed from sins is for Jesus to die for our sins. Jesus must suffer and die for our sins. And the problem with many of our disappointments is not that we do not believe; The problem is we do not believe rightly. We only see one side of the coin. This is Jesus’ rebuke to Cleopas and us.

And then comes one of the most important verses in the Bible. Luke 24:27 – ²⁷ And beginning with Moses and all the Prophets, he interpreted to them in all the Scriptures the things concerning himself. If there is a time machine and I can go back to witness what happened in the Bible for myself, this is one of the first places that I would go to. This is the most epic Bible study of all time. The Word of God incarnate explains the Word of God written. And in this one verse, Jesus gives us the key to unlocking everything we read in the Bible. Jesus presents himself as the key to interpreting the Bible and the fulfilment of the Bible. Phillip Ryken puts it beautifully. “On every page, his coming is prophesied, his life is prefigured, his sufferings are personified, or his resurrection life is promised. The Old Testament has one central theme, and that theme is Christ.” Everything in the Bible, from Genesis to Revelation, is about Jesus. Jesus is explaining Jesus from the Bible. So, listen. If we read the Bible and we miss Jesus, then we have misread the Bible. The problem is not the Bible. The Bible has not failed us. The problem is we are not reading the Bible rightly.

What does it mean for us? There are two ways to read the Bible. There is a moralistic way and there is a gospel-centred way. We can either read the Bible and make it all about us, or we can read the Bible and make it all about Jesus. For example, the story of David and Goliath. Little David trusts in God and defeats the big Goliath. The moral of the story is that if we put our faith in God, we can overcome our goliaths. What are our goliaths? It might be exams, business struggles, sickness, singleness, or it might be in-laws. I heard in-laws can be scarier than goliaths. So, the Bible is like an inspirational story that motivates us to do better. And yes, it will inspire us for a while. But what happens when we trust God and our goliaths are not going anywhere? What happens when we trust God and the in-laws are still as annoying as ever? We will be crushed. Hope deferred makes the heart sick. And what happened is we misread the Bible because we make it all about us. But Jesus says, “Everything in the Bible is about me. David is a good example. But David is about me. I am the true and better David.” Can you see it? David fights Goliath to represent the people of Israel. If David loses, Israel loses. But if David wins, Israel wins. If David receives glory, Israel receives glory. David’s victory is Israel’s victory. And David represents Jesus and Goliath represents the enemy that we cannot defeat on our own, sin. Jesus comes and defeats sins on our behalf. And Jesus’ victory is our victory. David points to Jesus.

Let me give you another example. Right now, in our daily Bible reading plan, we are in the book of Leviticus. And let’s be honest, this is where most of us give up on our daily Bible reading plan. Reading Leviticus is not easy. So far, I have only known one person who enjoys reading Leviticus. And she asked me last week, “Are you going to do a sermon series on the book of Leviticus?” And in my mind, I was like, “Who does that? I don’t know any church that does a series on Leviticus. Unless that church is trying to cut the attendance by half.” Reading Leviticus makes us wonder, “What is the point of all these sacrifices? Why all these strange laws?” Let me share with you two of the many strange laws in Leviticus. First, we were not allowed to wear clothes made of both linen and wool. I am out already. Second, we were not allowed to sit in the same spot a woman sat when she was on her period, because a woman on her period was thought to be unclean. Looking at the stain on the chairs you are sitting on right now, all of you are out as well. If we make Leviticus all about us, then we would struggle to read it. But if we understand that Leviticus is all about Jesus, it is different. We start to see that all those sacrificial systems, all those regulations, all those cleansing laws, are pointing to the fact that God is holy. And because God is holy, He wants His people to be holy. But He knows that His people are not holy. But God loves His people so much that He provides a way for Him to be amid His unholy people. And all those sacrifices and laws are pointing to the one perfect sacrifice who will make the final atonement for God’s people. And that final perfect sacrifice is Jesus Christ. The effect of reading Leviticus on us shouldn’t be, “Look at how much I have to do for God” but rather, “Look at how much God has done for me.”

So now when we read the Bible, everything is about Jesus. The law is about Jesus, and how he fulfilled it. The temple is about Jesus and how he is the temple that dwells among his people. Jesus is the hero behind all heroes. He is the prophet behind all prophets. He is the priest behind all priests. He is the king behind all kings. Or in the words of The Jesus Storybook Bible, every story whispers his name. And maybe the reason we are disappointed in God is that we have made the Bible all about us. We are disappointed in God for not keeping promises that He never made in the first place. We had hoped that God would do A, but he never promised to do A. And Jesus has to correct Cleopas and his friend’s misunderstanding of the Bible. And perhaps, some of us need to be corrected as well today. As long we still make the Bible all about us, we will continue to be disappointed. Because the Bible is written for us, but it is not about us. The Bible from beginning to end is about Jesus. And look at what happens next.

The fire

Luke 24:28-31 – ²⁸ So they drew near to the village to which they were going. He acted as if he were going farther, ²⁹ but they urged him strongly, saying, “Stay with us, for it is toward evening and the day is now far spent.” So he went in to stay with them. ³⁰ When he was at table with them, he took the bread and blessed and broke it and gave it to them. ³¹ And their eyes were opened, and they recognized him. And he vanished from their sight.

Cleopas and his friend cannot put it into words. But they know something is different about this man. They still don’t know who Jesus is, but they know they do not want to be without Jesus. So, they urge him to remain with them, and Jesus complies. He comes in and stays with them. And during dinner, Jesus is given the honour to break and bless the bread. And when he does, something supernatural happens. Suddenly, Cleopas and his friend recognize Jesus. They are like, “Wait, hold on a second. I know this person. This is Jesus. This is my teacher. Jesus is sitting next to me blessing the food and breaking the bread. He is alive. He is not dead.” And just like that, poof, Jesus vanishes from their sight. And note carefully. If before, they were kept from recognizing Jesus, this time their eyes were opened to recognize Jesus. It is God who did both the keeping and the opening of eyes.

And look at the result of it. Luke 24:32 – ³² 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?” If before their hearts were burdened, now their hearts are on fire. They say to one another, “Did you feel what I felt? When he explained the Bible to us, my heart was on fire.” “Me too. My heart is like “Woooo woooo.” I don’t know how to explain it, but I know a fire was burning in my heart. I could not figure out what was going on, but I did not want him to stop talking. I wanted him to tell me more about the Bible. And now I feel alive. I feel hopeful. Everything begins to make sense. Everything in the Bible is about Jesus. And Jesus must die for our sins. But he did not remain dead. He is alive. And we just had the best Bible study ever with him.” Do you see what happened? A burdened heart is now a burning heart.

How did it happen? How did a burdened heart become a burning heart? Two things and I am done. First, it happens through the opening of the Scriptures. Their hearts are on fire because Jesus opened the Scriptures to them. And the way Jesus opened the Scriptures is very specific. He showed them how everything in the Bible is pointing to him. He shows them that the gospel is the focus of the Bible. It is only when we see what Jesus has done for us that we finally see Jesus. Listen. It is seeing and experiencing what Jesus has done for us through the pages of the Bible that turns icy cold hearts into hearts on fire. Do you want your hearts to burn for God? Expose yourself to the proclamation of the gospel. The gospel is the key to burning hearts. As the gospel is proclaimed, hearts are burning with the fire of God. And I have experienced it again and again in my sermon prep. I might come to a sermon prep feeling weary and exhausted. I might have put my hope in something that cannot sustain. But when I open the pages of the Bible and see the beauty of Jesus in it, a flame is kindled in my cold heart. How many of you know what I am talking about? You come to church with a heavy heart. You come to church with disappointment. But then you hear the proclamation of the gospel, and the Holy Spirit sets your heart ablaze. What we need in our discouragement is to see the beauty of Jesus revealed through the Bible. That’s the first one.

Second, it happens through the fellowship of the saints. The breaking of bread in this text is not referring to the Holy Communion. It is referring to fellowship with our brothers and sisters in Christ. When we feel weary and disappointed in God, what feels natural is for us to withdraw and hide from our community. But what we need is the exact opposite. What we need is for our brothers and sisters in Christ to strengthen us and remind us of the gospel. In times of disappointment, it can be very hard for us to open the pages of the Bible and preach the gospel to ourselves. That’s why we need a gospel-drenched community around us to preach the gospel to us. And I use the words gospel-drenched community intentionally. What we need is not just a community that can sympathise with us and encourage us. What we need is a community that can preach the gospel to us. So, if you are struggling, if your heart is burdened, don’t binge on Netflix hoping that it would go away on its own. It won’t. But open the Bible and expose yourself to the gospel. Join a gospel-drenched community and let them speak the gospel into your life. Listen. I don’t care what you are facing right now. Bringing the gospel into your life and exposing yourself to it day in and day out over a long period of time can change anything. It does not matter what it is. The gospel can change anything. The gospel is the power of God that turns a burdened heart into a heart on fire. Let’s pray.

Discussion questions:

1. What struck you the most from this sermon?
2. Why do you think people often get disappointed with God? Have you ever get disappointed with God? What happened?
3. What is the difference between coming to God as a sufferer needing help and a sinner needing salvation?
4. Give examples of the difference between reading the Bible in a moralistic way and in a gospel-centred way.
5. How does the gospel turn a burdened heart into a heart on fire?