THE ROAD TO EMMAUS The Point: Jesus is alive and He has freed us from sin! Scripture: Luke 24:13-35 LESSON OVERVIEW On the day of Jesus resurrection, there was still much confusion about what had happened. Two of His followers debated what they had heard as they walked along the road outside Jerusalem. Suddenly, Jesus appeared to them and explained God s plan of redemption from beginning to end. They didn t recognize Jesus at first. But when their eyes were opened, they realized it was Jesus and that He is ALIVE WELCOME Arrange the large group area with a wider than usual center aisle. You may even consider having kids facing one another with an aisle between them. This will help them stay focused on the actors at the end of the lesson. Before the teaching time, create posters with the words ALIVE & FREE. Happy Easter! I m so excited to be here with you guys this morning. Today, we re talking about the resurrection of Jesus and a really awesome encounter that happened on that day. OPENING GAME/ACTIVITY Before we open our Bibles, let s play a little game called Guess Who? Here s how you play: I will put up a picture of a celebrity on the screen, but the celebrity s face will be covered. I ll slowly remove the squares to show their face. Whenever you think you know who it is, shout out the name of that celebrity. Are you ready? Create a PowerPoint slide for each celebrity. Use colored shapes or lines to cover the celebrity s picture. Create multiple slides with less and less shapes covering the face. If PowerPoint in not available, print the picture and use colored paper to cover the celebrity s face. Slowly remove the colored paper to reveal the face. Give kids a chance to guess the celebrity s identity as the picture is revealed. Toss candy to any kid who is able to correctly identify the celebrity. After the game, say: Wow, you are pretty good at the Guess Who game! Why was it so easy for you to identify those celebrities? (Pause for responses) We know them, right? We ve seen their faces plastered on TV or magazines, so we can easily recognize them. Free Lesson from MattMo.org: The Road To Emmaus 1
Do you think you would still recognize these celebrities if you weren t expecting to see them? For instance, what if you were at a gas station and Taylor Swift walked in with no makeup, a hat on, and wearing sweatpants and a sweatshirt. Would you recognize her? Some of you might still recognize her, but certainly some of us wouldn t. So, what if you had just gone through a really traumatic experience? What if something terrible had just happened to a family member or friend and you were thinking about that and trying to deal with it? Is it possible that the great Taylor Swift could walk by and you not even notice? Of course it s possible! TEACHING TIME CONTINUED We see the same thing happen in today s encounter with Jesus. Two of Jesus followers were so shocked by everything that was happening, they didn t even recognize Jesus! Open your Bible to Luke 24. As you re turning in Bibles, let me fill in the gaps from where we left off last week. Last week, we saw the sadness and despair of Jesus disciples. Their hope seemed lost because Jesus was dead and buried. They were very confused by what was going on, and they didn t understand why Jesus had died. Luke 24 begins with the Easter story that we all have probably heard. On that Sunday morning, the earth shook and an angel of the Lord rolled back the stone that covered the tomb. When the tomb was opened, it was empty. Jesus had risen from the grave! Now, you would think that the disciples would be celebrating, right? I m sure that they had some hope, but they were still very confused about what was going on. They had lots of questions and doubts. In this story, two of Jesus disciples had heard the news of his resurrection. They were still scared and confused, but they were about to have an encounter with Jesus. Let s read Luke 24:13-27. These two men were so confused that they had started to argue with one another. The Bible says they were talking and discussing, which really translates into debating. They were arguing over what had really happened. They were just trying to make sense of everything. They are so confused that they actually tell the story of Jesus to JESUS! Then, Jesus explained to them how the prophecies had told them everything about Jesus. Jesus started way back with Moses, and as they walked He showed them how the Scripture pointed to a Messiah. We don t know what Jesus told them as He taught them, but we do know what the Old Testament says about God s demand that a sacrifice be made to pay the penalty of sin. Free Lesson from MattMo.org: The Road To Emmaus 2
The Bible is clear that the punishment for sin is death. So, in the Old Testament, God set up a way for His people to offer sacrifices for sin. The people would sacrifice an innocent lamb to represent the payment for their own sin. The system was not perfect because they would have to repeat this sacrifice every year. Can you imagine what the two men were thinking as they heard Jesus teaching? The events of the last few days were very fresh on their minds, and now Jesus was connected the dots to show them why it all happened. Jesus was the innocent lamb that was the sacrifice for other people s sin. But he was also different than the lamb because he was the final sacrifice. He was the once-and-for-all payment for sin. Isaiah 53:5 says, But he was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was on him, and by his wounds we are healed. As Jesus taught the two men, you can imagine the light bulb going off over their heads as they got it. They had been so confused about why Jesus died. And now, they were even more confused about why the tomb was empty and where Jesus had gone. But as Jesus connected the dots, the disciples saw the big picture. They saw that Jesus had willingly died on the cross to pay the penalty for sin. They saw that the empty tomb was Jesus promise that he would rise again after three days. Suddenly, it all made sense. But they still didn t realize that this man was Jesus. When they reached the village, the men asked Jesus to come and eat with them. While they were eating, Jesus gave thanks and broke the bread, just like he had done at the Last Supper before his death. When he did this, the men realized it was Jesus that had been teaching them. When they realized it was Jesus, he disappeared from their sight. The men sat there for a moment and thought of all that Jesus had taught them along the road. They thought about how he had shown them the reason he died and the reason he rose again. Then, they headed back to Jerusalem to tell the others about their encounter with Jesus. I ve often wondered what that trip back was like. They had just spent all day on a tiring journey, but the journey was with Jesus. They had to be excited and overwhelmed with everything they had just witnessed. Their conversation might have been something like this Actors will enter from the back or side of the room. They will enter the room as if they have just left the house where they ate with Jesus. They should be excited, but not too rushed. A suggested script for the actors is at the end of the lesson.if actors are not available, you may choose to use the movie clip from Road to Free Lesson from MattMo.org: The Road To Emmaus 3
Emmaus (https://youtu.be/4qkra-yoiic?t=25m10s). Start the clip at 25:10 and end at 26:59. So what does this encounter with Jesus mean for us? Why is it important for us to read about this story on Easter Sunday? Look at Luke 24:32. Read Luke 24:32 After Jesus had left, both men admitted what they were feeling as they walked along the road. Even before the realized Jesus was alive, they felt convinced by what the Bible said about Jesus. By the time they had reached the village, they understood why Jesus had died and risen again. Even though they hadn t seen Jesus, they had faith that He is alive and has freed them from sin! This is especially important for us. We cannot see Jesus or touch his wounds as some of the disciples did. We didn t get to hear the angels announce that he is risen from the tomb. But, as we read these encounters with Jesus and the rest of Scripture, we can understand that Jesus died to free us from sin, and we can have faith that Jesus is alive! That s our bottom line for today: Jesus is Alive and He has freed us from sin! The disciples believed and trusted in what Jesus had done for them. They had faith that Jesus sacrifice could free them from sin. After they believed, they went to spread the news with others and help them to believe. So what will be your response? First, Jesus wants us to believe. He wants us to believe in His power to make us free and alive. If we place our faith in Him as the ultimate sacrifice for our sin, the Bible says that he will forgive us and give us new life. Once we ve made the decision to trust in Him and follow Him, Jesus calls us to spread the news to others and help them to understand why Jesus died and rose again. Let s pray and then we ll get into groups to talk more about this amazing encounter with the resurrected Jesus. SMALL GROUP TIME GO AND TELL Supplies: pen and blank sheet of paper for each kid You may have already done so this year, but take some time to share your testimony with the group. Focus on your encounter with Jesus and how He called you to follow Him. Be sure to tailor the testimony to the formula: life before Christ, encounter with Jesus, life after Christ. Optional Activity: Free Lesson from MattMo.org: The Road To Emmaus 4
If you work with older children who have come to faith in Jesus, encourage kids to think about their story. Using your own testimony, explain the three categories (life before Christ, encounter with Jesus, life after Chris). Give each kid a pen and blank sheet of paper. Instruct kids to use the paper to write their own faith story by using the three categories. Provide time and space for them to think and write their story. Keep them focused on the task and minimize distractions of other students. When they ve finished, you may ask if any of them are willing to share their faith story. Mingle and visit with kids, as they are thinking and writing their faith story. First, be helpful and encouraging as they think of what to write. Give them suggestions or ideas of things they might want to include, but don t write the story for them. Second, be listening for stories that might have red flags works based salvation, missing a salvation experience, etc. This will be a great opportunity to share the Gospel with kids! DISCUSS THE FOLLOWING QUESTIONS AS A SMALL GROUP: 1. What do you think the disciples were feeling on that Sunday morning when they heard that Jesus tomb was empty? 2. Do you think they still had doubts about Jesus? Why or Why not? 3. Why do you think the two disciples did not recognize Jesus? (The text says that they were kept from recognizing him, which implies that Jesus intentionally blocked this knowledge from them) 4. Do you think Jesus intentionally hid his identity from the two men? Why do you think he would do so? 5. The Bible says that the two men stood still, their faces downcast. What emotions do you think they were feeling at that time? 6. How did Jesus explain the truth to the disciples? What did he use as evidence? 7. What was the purpose of the lamb sacrifice in the Old Testament? 8. How was Jesus similar to the lamb sacrifice? How was He different? 9. When did the two men recognize Jesus? What did he do to make them realize it was him? 10. Where might the disciples have seen Jesus give thanks and break bread before? (Feeding of the 5,000 or the Last Supper) 11. What did the men mean when they said, Were not our hearts burning within us while he talked with us on the road and opened the Scriptures to us? 12. Why is this story important for us? 13. Even though we can t seem him, how can we have faith that Jesus is alive? 14. How has Jesus death and resurrection made us alive and free? (alive through eternal life, free forgiveness of sin) 15. What was special to you about today s encounter with Jesus? What did you hear or read that stuck out to you? What will your response be to the lesson? Free Lesson from MattMo.org: The Road To Emmaus 5
(give kids an opportunity to ask questions and respond to the lesson with their own thoughts and responses) Free Lesson from MattMo.org: The Road To Emmaus 6
Script for Road to Emmaus Actors Actors enter the room as if they have just left the meal with Jesus. They are excited and amazed. They are dressed in the traditional Bible robes. Actor 1: It all makes sense now Jesus is the Messiah! The fulfillment of all the prophecies! Actor 2: It was like a burning in my heart as He explained it to us! The prophet Isaiah said that the Messiah would be born of a virgin Actor 1: Jesus was! Actor 2: And Micah prophesied that the Messiah would be born in the village of Bethlehem Actor 1: That s where Jesus was born! Actor 2: Isaiah also said that He would give sight to the blind, hearing to the deaf, and make the lame to walk. Actor 1: (excitedly) Yes, we saw those things with our very own eyes! He even brought the dead back to life! And remember Jesus cousin John? He pointed to Jesus and said, Behold the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world. He was saying that Jesus was the ultimate sacrifice and His blood was shed for our sin. Actor 2: And when Jesus was on trial, they asked him if he was the long-awaited Messiah and He said, I am. That means Jesus wasn t tortured and beaten for anything He had done wrong. He was punished for our sin. He was paying the penalty for us as our substitute. Actor 1: And He didn t die because he was weaker than those who hated him. He was doing exactly what He intended to do all along. He suffered and died because He loves us. Actor 2: So His resurrection was the ultimate victory over the powers of sin and death. Jesus has crushed Satan and sin just like God promised to Adam and Eve. Actor 1: Do you realize what this means? It means we re free! We re forgiven and made right with God! Jesus is alive and He has freed us from sin! We ve got to tell the others. Actor 2: I know! Let s hurry! Actors run out of the room with excitement. Free Lesson from MattMo.org: The Road To Emmaus 7