Walking With the Lord Jesus

The Passover had occurred just days ago and such a Passover as had never been before because the one and only true lamb had been slain for the sin of the world to take away its tragic consequences.

John had proclaimed Jesus to be the “Lamb of God”, but John was dead and the disciples of Jesus were scattered just as the Lord had said when he cited to them the words from Zechariah, “I will smite the shepherd, and the sheep shall be scattered” (13:7; Mark 14:27).

Their hearts were heavy beyond consolation. What could they say to one another when all their hopes had been dashed to the ground; the one who they loved was dead, secure in a tomb. He could not hear Peter’s sobs of repentance, his utter shame, nor could he hear them struggle to understand – “we trusted that it had been he which should have redeemed Israel.” The darkness that had shrouded Jerusalem three days earlier had not lifted from the despairing disciples.

Two left Jerusalem to begin the walk to a very small village called Emmaus, about three score furlongs, or in our measure about 11 kilometres from Jerusalem. They had left not knowing what momentous happenings were unfolding in Jerusalem.

“Abide with us: for it is toward evening”

The shadows of evening were lengthening as a stranger joined the two and began to converse. Why did Jesus join the two travellers? Why not go to his mother whose soul had been pierced through with the Roman sword as foretold by the aged Simeon; or why not go to the eleven apostles?

The Scripture is not profuse with unnecessary words; it deals with important facts but does not always give us the reasons behind these facts, so we try to piece together what little we have and assemble the scenario.

Luke tells us there were two disciples, one was named Cleopas, the other unnamed. Why not tell us the name of the second? Perhaps it was a woman, perhaps the wife of Cleopas for they obviously lived together (Luke 24:29) – “Abide with us”, and perhaps it was such a well-known couple it was not necessary to name her.

Who was Cleopas?

The first fact we have is that he was husband of one of the Marys (John 19:25): “Now there stood by the cross of Jesus his mother, and his mother’s sister, Mary the wife of Cleophas, and Mary Magdalene.” It is a tragic picture of souls united in love and grief, a sorrow that no words can be found to describe.

Now relationships in the Scripture are not always as clearly defined as we are used to outlining them and the term “sister” can be loosely defined to be sister or sister in law. It would be inconceivable to have named two actual sisters Mary, as Mary the mother of Jesus and her sister Mary as in John 19:25. The likelihood is that she was a sister-in-law, wife of one of Mary’s brothers or a sister to Joseph, a very loving close relation of Mary, highly spiritual having been brought up to await the coming of Messiah.

They then, Cleopas and Mary, appear to be uncle and aunt to Jesus. Perhaps they had filled a gap in the daily life of Jesus, being ones whom he could go and talk with in the absence of Joseph, now dead. They could share with Jesus their wisdom knowing how Joseph would have encouraged his stepson. I imagine they were key personnel in the ecclesia in Jerusalem, the parent images to whom the members could turn.

Other texts give the name of Cleopas to be that of Alphaeus, father of James, one of the twelve; so he was interwoven with the life of Jesus.

Walking with Jesus

The Scripture tells us that “some have entertained angels unawares” (Heb 13:1) but sorrow turned to joy when it was discovered that Cleopas had entertained the risen, immortal Jesus unknowingly! “Did not our heart burn?” was the only possible response as the words of Scripture were unfolded in the absolute truth of their meaning.

Mourning to joy

Jesus opened up the Scriptures, “beginning at Moses and all the prophets” to show them “the things concerning himself ”. The Psalms are, as it were, the diary of our Lord’s life written aforetime. He had now lived it out as foretold in Psalm 31:5, having committed his life into his Father’s hand, and Who had now redeemed him from the power of the grave.

“And he vanished”

The evening had come on but the dark held no fears. Without a moment’s thought they set out to walk the eleven kilometres to Jerusalem. Their Lord, he which “should have redeemed Israel”, was risen; this must be proclaimed first to the small ecclesia and then the world!

Jesus had in the meantime appeared to the apostles but it seems to me that Cleopas was the key figure to bring the straggling ecclesia together and establish them. James, the half-brother of our Lord, who later became the key figure in Jerusalem did not in the earliest stage fill this role, and some of the apostles had returned to Galilee as the Lord had commanded. So it may be that the Lord’s appearance to Cleopas was necessary that he might bear witness to the risen Christ and the one spoken of in all the Scripture.