Their hopes were not wrong, just out of focus. They were looking for a prophet mighty in deed and word, like Moses, to lead the people out of bondage; instead, they got Jesus, a prophet mighty in deed and word who died on a cross. This suffering was not in their script, so Cleopas and friend failed to discern what God had done in the resurrection of Jesus, even when the Risen Lord was walking right beside them. Why?

To find out, we must step back in and resume the story.

The post “Did Not Our Hearts Burn Within Us?” (Hays, 2002) first appeared on Theology and Ethics.