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The Traveler - The Gospels · Bible in a Year with Jack Graham

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  Speaker 1: Let us pray. And their eyes were opened, and they
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  Speaker 1: knew him. Luke 24, 31 As I am traveling through life,
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  Speaker 1: and when I experience moments of sadness, because it seems
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  Speaker 1: like you're not with me any longer, I will be
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  Speaker 1: reminded of Luke 24, 13-45. I will remember that your
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  Speaker 1: word declares that you will never leave me or forsake me.
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  Speaker 1: when I am sitting in silence and solitude, reveal Yourself
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  Speaker 1: to me. When I am fellowshipping with others, reveal Yourself
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  Speaker 1: to me. When I am walking throughout my day, attune
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  Speaker 1: my heart and spirit so that I can tell when
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  Speaker 1: You are in my midst. Unlike the disciples who remain
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  Speaker 1: fearful from the attack of the religious, I will live
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  Speaker 1: loud and unashamed in front of those who desire to
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  Speaker 1: judge me, because I know who is with me and
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  Speaker 1: in me. Walk with me, Jesus. Speak to the areas
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  Speaker 1: of my life that need your calming presence. I am
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  Speaker 1: open and available. I am ready for your revelation. In Jesus' name, amen.
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  Speaker 1: Thank you for praying with me today. Continue listening for
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  Speaker 1: an incredible Bible story. Brought to you by BibleInAYear.com.
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  Speaker 2: The Traveler In our last story, the tomb that contained
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  Speaker 2: the beaten body of Jesus was rolled open by the
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  Speaker 2: power of God. Jesus, the Savior of the world, rose
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  Speaker 2: from the tomb to prove that death had no power
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  Speaker 2: over Him. Death was defeated as Jesus walked in the resurrection.
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  Speaker 2: Jesus appeared to the two Marys and told them to
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  Speaker 2: give word to the disciples that he had returned. Now
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  Speaker 2: we see Jesus revealing himself to two men on the
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  Speaker 2: road to Emmaus. They would pave the way for Jesus
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  Speaker 2: to come and reveal himself to the disciples, inspired by
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  Speaker 2: the gospel.
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  Speaker 3: Thank you for joining us today for the Bible in
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  Speaker 3: a Year podcast. you are joining millions of people across
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  Speaker 3: the world who are walking with us through the Bible
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  Speaker 3: day by day. God bless you. In our previous episode,
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  Speaker 3: we heard about the glorious resurrection of Jesus and how
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  Speaker 3: he appeared to the women who went to his tomb
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  Speaker 3: on the third day. With his resurrection, Jesus conquered sin, death,
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  Speaker 3: and hell once and for all. It was the completion
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  Speaker 3: of God's plan of redemption that began the moment that
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  Speaker 3: he created the world, the moment Adam and Eve fell
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  Speaker 3: into sin, and God's plan of salvation was promised. Today,
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  Speaker 3: we'll hear how Jesus appears to two travelers on the
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  Speaker 3: road to Emmaus. The men will not recognize Jesus even
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  Speaker 3: as he explains the whole arc of God's redemptive plan
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  Speaker 3: for them and the world. But finally, as they break
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  Speaker 3: bread together, their world would change in a moment, and
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  Speaker 3: their hearts would burn with fire. Let's listen now to
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  Speaker 3: the reading of the gospel.
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  Speaker 2: It was late morning. and two disciples were walking to
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  Speaker 2: a village called Emmaus, about seven miles from Jerusalem. The
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  Speaker 2: two friends spoke in great length about the events of
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  Speaker 2: the past week, Jesus turning over tables in the temple,
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  Speaker 2: the trail in from Pontius Pilate, and the brutal slaughter
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  Speaker 2: of Jesus on the cross. All these things were quite
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  Speaker 2: disturbing and challenged their views on who the Messiah was.
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  Speaker 2: They had thought it was Jesus, but his death had
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  Speaker 2: proven to them otherwise. As they were walking and talking
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  Speaker 2: with one another, a traveler joined them on the road.
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  Speaker 2: What were you discussing just now? the traveler asked. The
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  Speaker 2: two men paused for a moment, astonished that the traveler
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  Speaker 2: had not heard the news. Are you new here, sir?
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  Speaker 3: They scoffed.
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  Speaker 2: All of Jerusalem is in chaos because of what happened
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  Speaker 2: this past week. You must have just arrived here today
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  Speaker 2: if you have not heard about it yet. Tell me
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  Speaker 2: what has happened, the traveler asked with a smile. It's
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  Speaker 2: Jesus of Nazareth! Still astonished that he did not know
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  Speaker 2: these things. He was a man who was mighty. He
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  Speaker 2: performed many miracles and spoke with words so powerful that
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  Speaker 2: they seemed to be from God himself. One of the
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  Speaker 2: men sighed and scratched his head, but I guess he
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  Speaker 2: was too good to be true. He was killed by
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  Speaker 2: the Romans, given up by our very own priests and elders.
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  Speaker 2: They crucified him only three days ago. The three men
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  Speaker 2: walked together enjoying the fresh air and good conversation. One
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  Speaker 2: of the men wore a sorrowful face as he spoke, saying,
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  Speaker 2: We hoped he was the one to redeem Israel, the
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  Speaker 2: son of David, but he is dead now. The other
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  Speaker 2: man interjected and said, But there were a few women
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  Speaker 2: who claimed he was removed from the tomb. No one
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  Speaker 2: knows where his body is. The two men bickered over
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  Speaker 2: whether the rumors of his resurrection were true or just
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  Speaker 2: a made-up sham. The traveler listened to the two men argue.
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  Speaker 2: He shook his head and chuckled.' Wasn' t it prophesied that
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  Speaker 2: the Messiah would suffer these things before rising again in glory?'
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  Speaker 2: he asked. The two men looked at the traveler, confused
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  Speaker 2: and curious. The traveler then began to recount the entire
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  Speaker 2: story of God, from Adam and Eve to Abraham, from
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  Speaker 2: Moses and the captives to Joshua and the judges. from
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  Speaker 2: David and Goliath to Solomon and the Temple, from the
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  Speaker 2: Babylonian captivity to the rebuilding of the walls of Jerusalem.
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  Speaker 2: The traveler retold every story, showing how the Messiah was
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  Speaker 2: interviewed in all of it. The two men listened to
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  Speaker 2: the traveler in complete silence. They listened as he explained
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  Speaker 2: prophecy and allegory. They learned about how the Messiah was
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  Speaker 2: foretold since the beginning of Genesis. Every word spoken from
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  Speaker 2: the traveler's mouth entered into their hearts. As they reached
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  Speaker 2: the end of their journey to Emmaus, they ate together
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  Speaker 2: and spoke more of Jesus, the prophets, and the story
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  Speaker 2: of God. May I bless the food, the traveler said.
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  Speaker 2: The two men nodded, and the traveler prayed to God
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  Speaker 2: and broke the bread in front of the table. As
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  Speaker 2: the bread tore in half, the men's eyes were opened.
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  Speaker 2: They saw the traveler for who he really was. Jesus,
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  Speaker 2: the risen king, the shepherd of Israel, the one whom
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  Speaker 2: the whole story of God centered around. Then, just as
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  Speaker 2: they were about to worship him, he vanished. The two
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  Speaker 2: men ran into town screaming and proclaiming the risen Lord.
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  Speaker 2: They shouted into the city streets that Jesus was alive.
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  Speaker 2: He was alive and walking among them. Death could not
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  Speaker 2: hold the Son of God captive. He had overcome death
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  Speaker 2: just as it was foretold since the beginning of time.
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  Speaker 2: The disciples were entrenched in their homes with the doors locked,
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  Speaker 2: afraid that the high priest would come for them next.
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  Speaker 2: So much sorrow. So much grief, so much loss welled
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  Speaker 2: up within them. Their king, their teacher, and their friend
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  Speaker 2: had died. All hope seemed lost as they rotted in
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  Speaker 2: their home waiting to be taken. Then a still and
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  Speaker 2: quiet voice spoke from the corner of the room.
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  Speaker 1: Peace be with you.
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  Speaker 2: The disciples turned their heads to see Jesus standing among them.
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  Speaker 2: His smile was radiant and his presence was refreshing like
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  Speaker 2: a cool spring in a desolate desert. The disciples were
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  Speaker 2: frightened at first, thinking that they were witnessing a ghost.
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  Speaker 2: Do not be scared, Jesus said. Why do your hearts
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  Speaker 2: rise with trouble as if in the storm? The disciples
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  Speaker 2: grew closer to see Jesus in his glory. Look upon
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  Speaker 2: my hands and feet. See the scars for yourselves. They
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  Speaker 2: fell at his feet and worshipped him. Jesus ate with
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  Speaker 2: them and spoke of the fulfillment of prophecy, that the
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  Speaker 2: Messiah must suffer and rise again for humanity to be redeemed.
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  Speaker 2: Then Jesus embraced them and breathed on them, saying, Receive
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  Speaker 2: the Holy Spirit. The same breath that breathed life into
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  Speaker 2: mankind in the Garden of Eden breathed new life into
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  Speaker 2: the disciples that day.
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  Speaker 3: In our Bible reading today, we find two disciples on
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  Speaker 3: a road outside of Jerusalem. They are headed to a
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  Speaker 3: small town called Emmaus. This wasn't an all-day trek, but
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  Speaker 3: it wasn't a short walk either. So there was plenty
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  Speaker 3: of time for a long conversation, and there was so
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  Speaker 3: much to talk about. This was the same day that
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  Speaker 3: Jesus rose from the grave, and though these two disciples
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  Speaker 3: had heard rumors of what the women at the tomb
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  Speaker 3: had said, they still thought Jesus was dead. As they walked,
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  Speaker 3: they were joined by another traveler, someone they did not
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  Speaker 3: recognize or know. And this one did not seem to
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  Speaker 3: know what had been going on the last several days
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  Speaker 3: with Jesus and the disciples. This man, of course, was
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  Speaker 3: Jesus himself, but they were kept from recognizing him. Why
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  Speaker 3: were they prevented from seeing Jesus for who he was? Well,
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  Speaker 3: we really don't know the answer to this question, but
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  Speaker 3: as the reading continues, we will see that their failure
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  Speaker 3: to recognize Jesus allowed the Lord to guide them through
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  Speaker 3: Scripture and to help them have a life of faith
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  Speaker 3: based not just on sight, but exactly what the Word
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  Speaker 3: of God said from the very beginning. What a privilege
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  Speaker 3: these men had to walk with the Word of God
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  Speaker 3: step by step and to understand who Jesus is and
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  Speaker 3: why he came. When Jesus asked them what things had
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  Speaker 3: been happening in order to draw them out, they began
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  Speaker 3: to tell him everything about Jesus of Nazareth, how he
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  Speaker 3: had healed many people, taught with great authority, and built
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  Speaker 3: a large following of people who believed that he was
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  Speaker 3: the promised Messiah. They told him how the chief priests
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  Speaker 3: and rulers had handed Jesus over to be crucified. And
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  Speaker 3: now their hope seemed gone, gone forever, as it had
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  Speaker 3: already been three days that Jesus was in the tomb.
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  Speaker 3: They continued saying that they had heard about the empty
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  Speaker 3: tomb and what others had seen, but despite what they
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  Speaker 3: had heard from trusted friends, these men were still skeptical.
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  Speaker 3: Jesus then spoke up, saying in Luke 24, verses 25
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  Speaker 3: to 27, O foolish ones, and slow of heart to
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  Speaker 3: believe all that the prophets have spoken. Was it not
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  Speaker 3: necessary that the Christ should suffer these things and enter
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  Speaker 3: into his glory? And beginning with Moses and all the prophets,
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  Speaker 3: He interpreted to them in all the scriptures the things
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  Speaker 3: concerning himself. So on that road, Jesus gave these men
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  Speaker 3: a master class in biblical interpretation. He was revealing to
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  Speaker 3: them that everything in God's word had pointed to Jesus,
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  Speaker 3: that Jesus is the focus of the Bible, that our
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  Speaker 3: faith and trust in him helps us know what the
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  Speaker 3: Bible is all about. Despite what they had experienced and
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  Speaker 3: seen Jesus do before his death, They were still blind
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  Speaker 3: to the truth of God and really blind to who
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  Speaker 3: Jesus was until he walked with them in the Word. Now,
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  Speaker 3: this is an important lesson for us today as well.
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  Speaker 3: Too often, we lose hope because we don't see things
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  Speaker 3: the way we want to see them. When in reality,
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  Speaker 3: what we should be doing is increasing our faith by
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  Speaker 3: getting into God's Word and hearing what God has said.
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  Speaker 3: That's why I hope that you have connected with the
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  Speaker 3: Bible in a year to find out more about what
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  Speaker 3: the Bible is about. and who Jesus is. The scripture
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  Speaker 3: says in the book of Romans, faith comes by hearing
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  Speaker 3: and hearing by the word of God. We believe and
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  Speaker 3: trust in God's word and experience the presence of God
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  Speaker 3: because the life of God is in his word. His
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  Speaker 3: breath has inspired it. If these men had seen Jesus
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  Speaker 3: and recognized him immediately, perhaps they would have missed their
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  Speaker 3: opportunity to learn the word of God and how to
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  Speaker 3: put their faith and trust in Christ. and find the
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  Speaker 3: answers that they were seeking, and most of all, the
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  Speaker 3: hope they so desperately needed. These men must have hung
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  Speaker 3: on to every word their traveling companions spoke. And when
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  Speaker 3: they arrived at Emmaus, they urged the Lord to come
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  Speaker 3: and eat with them. And as they dined, Jesus blessed
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  Speaker 3: the meal and he broke the bread, just as he
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  Speaker 3: had done just days before the Passover meal. And that's
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  Speaker 3: when these men's eyes were opened and they saw their Savior.
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  Speaker 3: Before they could say or do anything, Jesus disappeared. Without hesitation,
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  Speaker 3: they immediately made the eight-mile trip back to Jerusalem to
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  Speaker 3: tell the other disciples that they indeed had seen Jesus,
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  Speaker 3: that Jesus is alive. We then heard how Jesus appeared
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  Speaker 3: to his disciples who had just heard the news from Emmaus.
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  Speaker 3: This time, he was immediately recognizable, but they thought he
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  Speaker 3: was there in spirit. So Jesus let them touch him
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  Speaker 3: and see the scars on his hands and his feet
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  Speaker 3: because they were now in the presence of Christ himself.
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  Speaker 3: Not a phantom, not a ghost, not a spirit, but
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  Speaker 3: the body of Jesus. Jesus rose from the grave victoriously
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  Speaker 3: and bodily. He would not be with them long, but
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  Speaker 3: Jesus had a lot of work to do with these
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  Speaker 3: disciples to prepare them for the mission that he would
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  Speaker 3: give them to take this good news to the world.
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  Speaker 3: We'll hear more about that in our next episode. Let's
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  Speaker 3: pray together. Dear God, we thank you for the resurrection,
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  Speaker 3: for the living Lord. And we, along with those disciples
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  Speaker 3: who walked with him that day on the road to Emmaus,
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  Speaker 3: ask that you would revive our hearts, that you would
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  Speaker 3: set us on fire with your word, and that we
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  Speaker 3: could say with these travelers with Jesus, did not our
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  Speaker 3: hearts burn within us when we walked with him in
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  Speaker 3: the way? Oh God, let our hearts burn with fire
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  Speaker 3: for you. In Jesus' name, amen. Thank you for listening
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  Speaker 3: to today's Bible in a Year podcast. This is Jack
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  Speaker 3: Graham from Dallas, Texas. I want to encourage you to
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  Speaker 3: download the Pray.com app and make prayer and Bible study
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  Speaker 3: discipleship a priority in your life. Put Jesus first in
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  Speaker 3: your life and watch what he can do when you
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  Speaker 3: give your life to him. If you enjoyed this podcast,
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  Speaker 3: Share it with someone you love because by inviting others
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  Speaker 3: to join us on this journey through the Bible, many
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  Speaker 3: will meet the Lord and experience his power in their lives.
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  Speaker 3: God bless you.