Luke 24:13-35; Acts 2:14a, 36–4; 1 Peter 1:17–23
Introduction
What do you do when truth stands right in front of you, meanwhile you do not recognize it? When hope is alive, but you’re still walking as if it is dead?
That was the tension of the first Easter. Jesus was not in the grave, but His followers were still buried in confusion, grief, and unanswered questions. And if we are honest, that’s where many people still live today. We are aware of the resurrection, but unsure of how to respond to it.
The question is, how will we respond to the Risen One?
A dusty road with two disillusioned travelers. A shattered hope in the man called Jesus, unseen and unrecognized, even though the risen One walks beside them. The tragedy is not that Christ is absent, but that He is present and not perceived.
Encountering the Resurrection
The Emmaus narrative offers a profound experience of resurrection life. The disciples are “kept from recognizing Him.” This is an indication that divine revelation is not attained by works but granted by grace. Jesus interprets Scripture, “beginning with Moses and all the Prophets,” reframing suffering as a necessity to glory. The resurrection is not a reversal of life but a fulfillment.
Recognition comes in the breaking of bread. See this, the Word and Table converged, and their response? “Were not our hearts burning within us?” The inward ignition and instinct lead to their outward proclamation. The resurrection encounter produces a response to witness.
Responding to the Risen
Now turn to Acts 2:14a, 36–41. Here stands Peter, once fearful, but now fearless. In fact, the resurrection experience has recalibrated his mindset and heart condition, his true identity. In verse 36 of Acts 2, Peter declares, “God has made this Jesus… both Lord and Christ.” The term (Kyrios) - Lord, denotes sovereign authority; "Christos" (Messiah) affirms divine appointment. With these words, the crowd was “cut to the heart,” which (κατενύγησαν, katanussō) — a piercing conviction.
Peter’s words are clear: “Repent and be baptized.” "Repent" (Metanoeō) is not mere remorse, but a total reorientation of the mind and a turned-around life. "And be baptized." Baptism signifies our incorporation into the resurrected life of Christ (cf. Romans 6:3–4). In responding to the message of the risen Lord, “...and there were added that day about three thousand souls" (Acts 2:41). Responding to the resurrection multiplies the church community.
The Risen Transforms
Apostle Peter then articulates the ethical implications of this new life. “Conduct yourselves with fear throughout the time of your exile.” The word, fear, from the Greek word "phobos", here denotes reverence, respect, but not terror. This is because believers have been “ransomed… with the precious blood of Christ.” The resurrection validates the efficacy of that ransom.
He introduces a critical concept to us, “born again… through the living and abiding word of God.” This new birth is not biological, but eschatological in nature, which is rooted in the imperishable seed of God’s Word (cf. John 1:12,13).
The Christian’s new life is thus a response to the resurrection reality. It is not self-initiated. It is the Spirit-enabled life. As Karl Barth wrote, “The resurrection is the revelation of the faithfulness of God.” Our response to the risen Christ is grounded in that faithfulness.
Let us understand that our response to the risen Lord flows as revelation → conviction → transformation → witness. They call us to see the resurrection not as an isolated doctrine, but as an interpretive lens for all of life.
Consider 2 Corinthians 5:15, “He died for all, that those who live might no longer live for themselves.” The resurrection redefines purpose. And Colossians 3:1, “If then you have been raised with Christ, seek the things that are above.” The indicative, being raised, grounds the imperative, seeking things above.
The resurrection experience is the beginning of God’s executed strategy to re-colonize the world into His original purpose.
So what does it mean to respond to the Risen?
It means walking with Jesus, the risen Christ, even when unrecognized. It is about our trust in His Word to give meaning to all our confusion. It means allowing conviction to pierce deeply, not defensively. It means embracing the new identity in Him, being redeemed, reborn, and reoriented. It means becoming witnesses not just in speech, but in substance.
Conclusion
The Emmaus road ends in Jerusalem. The private encounter becomes public testimony. The same must be true for us today. Our private encounter with Christ must be a public spectacle.
He is not behind us in memory. He is not ahead of us in abstraction. He is with us in the present, powerful, and calling.
Will you recognize Him? Will you repent? Will you rise with Him?
Because to encounter the Risen Christ and remain unchanged, that is the only true impossibility.
Amen!
Shalom aleikhem...
