The Heart that Sees Jesus

So they drew near to the village to which they were going. He acted as if he were going farther, 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. When he was at table with them, he took the bread and blessed and broke it and gave it to them. And their eyes were opened, and they recognized him. And he vanished from their sight. 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?” And they rose that same hour and returned to Jerusalem. And they found the eleven and those who were with them gathered together, saying, “The Lord has risen indeed, and has appeared to Simon!” Then they told what had happened on the road, and how he was known to them in the breaking of the bread” (Luke 24:28-35).

Have you seen Him? Have you seen Him lately? I’ve seen Him often since I’ve been born again, but I must confess that I often miss Him in the moment. I look back and notice that He was there. I want to become more aware of Christ’s presence in the present. I believe today’s Scripture reveals that discerning and enjoying the presence of Christ is a matter of the heart. When Jesus met the two traveling disciples on the road to Emmaus, He prepared their hearts for a precious revelation of Himself. Today the Spirit leads us to important truth about the heart that sees Jesus.

Desire for His presence helps us see Jesus. They did not recognize Him but their hearts burned with desire to linger with Him a bit longer. I know how easy it is to fall into the routine of reading the Bible every day without really seeing Jesus. That’s why I need God’s grace to make my time in His Word a sacred place, a time and place set apart to meet with Jesus. Beyond reading His Word, I want to hear His voice, feel His touch, and know a bit more of His heart. I know it’s the born-again spirit in me that longs desperately for this intimate encounter with Christ because… “It is written, ‘Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God.’” (Matthew 4:4). As we satisfy our spirit’s craving for fellowship with Him daily, we will begin to see more of Jesus’ presence everywhere.

Dependence on His providence helps us see Jesus. In staying with the disciples, in sharing conversation, and in breaking bread with them, Jesus was demonstrating the divine providence of His Father. Just as the continuing provision of the Creator sustains every part of His creation, so too, the continuing grace and care of the Son sustains the abundant life of every new creature that has been born-again by grace through faith in Him… “Therefore do not be anxious, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ For the Gentiles seek after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them all. But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you” (Matthew 6:31-33). As we increasingly trust in Him to meet our needs, we will begin to see more of Jesus’ providence every day.

Devotion to His precepts helps us see Jesus. The disciples’ eyes were blind to Jesus because their hearts were slow to believe what the Scriptures said about Him… “O foolish ones, and slow of heart to believe all that the prophets have spoken!” (Luke 24:25). But as He conversed with them on the road and opened the precepts of the Scriptures to them, the tiny spark of faith that remained in their hearts caught fire and their understanding was ignited. The busyness and trials of this temporal life can distract us from the study of God’s Word, but the Spirit within us exhorts us to imitate the appreciation Peter had for the precepts of Jesus… “After this many of his disciples turned back and no longer walked with him. So Jesus said to the Twelve, ‘Do you want to go away as well?’ Simon Peter answered him, ‘Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life, and we have believed, and have come to know, that you are the Holy One of God’” (John 6:66-69). As we devote ourselves to the precepts of God’s Word, we become more sensitive to His presence and we see more of Jesus in this busy life.

As we grow up into Christ, our anticipation and awareness of His presence grows as He develops in us…

The Heart that Sees Jesus.