Disappointment Is His Appointment

In the gospel of Luke there’s a story about two disciples who were leaving Jerusalem. They were devastated because Jesus had been crucified, and in their minds that was the end of the story. Then suddenly the resurrected Jesus joined them on the road to Emmaus, but they didn’t know it was Jesus.

He basically turned to them and said, “Hey, guys, why the long faces? What’s going on?”

One of them replied, “You must be the only person in Jerusalem who hasn’t heard about all the things that have happened there the last few days” (Luke 24:18 NLT).

Jesus asked them to tell Him about it, so they began telling Jesus about Jesus. Then as they were walking along, Jesus rebuked them and said, “You foolish people! You find it so hard to believe all that the prophets wrote in the Scriptures. Wasn’t it clearly predicted that the Messiah would have to suffer all these things before entering his glory?” (verses 25–26 NLT).

So Jesus told them about all the Old Testament passages that pointed to His death.

I would love to have been around for that conversation. As they reached the end of their journey, Jesus acted as though He would keep going, so the two disciples invited Him to stay. It was only when they sat down to eat and Jesus blessed the bread, broke it, and gave it to them that they realized it was Him. And then He disappeared.

Afterward they said, “Didn’t our hearts burn within us as he talked with us on the road and explained the Scriptures to us?” (verse 32 NLT).

Maybe today you’re disappointed with God. You feel as though He has let you down, that He has failed you. But disappointment is His appointment. God wants to restore your faith today, and He can use His Word to bring you back to spiritual life again.