E Start from Moses

Two travellers wey don tire dey drag dia leg for one dusty road for di end of long day. One stranger join dem dey waka for dia side. And e ask di one question wey dem no want answer: why una face dey sad like dis?

Na di Sunday after dem crucify Jesus. Two of im followers, one of dem wey im name na Cleopas, dey waka from Jerusalem go one village wey dem dey call Emmaus, about seven miles away. Dia heart heavy. Dem don hope say Jesus na di one wey go redeem Israel. But dem hand am over and crucify am. And now, to make everything confuse pass, some women from dia group go di tomb dat morning, find am empty, and talk say angels tell dem say e dey alive. As di two dey waka and dey discuss am, Jesus imself come near and waka with dem. But something hold dia eyes so dem no recognise am.

Di stranger ask wetin dem dey discuss, and dem stop, dia face dull. Cleopas talk, na only you be visitor for Jerusalem wey no know wetin don happen? And dem pour out di whole story. Then di stranger talk. Una foolish people, wey una heart slow to believe all wetin di prophets don talk! No be say di Christ must suffer dis things, and then enter im glory? E no be wickedness. E be like teacher wey dey talk, di answer don dey your front all di time. And e start from Moses and all di prophets, e explain to dem inside all di Scriptures di things wey concern am.

Imagine dat waka. Seven miles of di greatest Bible lesson wey anybody don ever give. Maybe e talk about di first promise for di garden, di child wey go crush di serpent. About Abraham, and di blessing for all nations. About di lamb for Passover. About di son of David, di shepherd, di Branch. About di servant wey suffer for Isaiah. Luke no tell us which passages. E just tell us say all of dem na about Jesus. When dem reach Emmaus, di stranger make like say e wan continue im journey. Dem beg am, stay with us, night don near. For di table e take bread, bless am, break am and give dem. And sudden sudden, dia eyes open. Na Jesus. And e disappear from dia eyes. Dem tell each other: No be so our heart dey burn inside us, as e dey talk with us for road, and as e dey open di Scriptures give us?

Dem run all di way back to Jerusalem dat same hour, for dark, and dem find di eleven disciples wey dey talk, di Lord don rise for true, and e don appear to Simon. As dem dey tell dia story, Jesus imself stand for dia middle. E show dem im hands and im feet, and e chop piece of fish for dia front. Then e talk: Dis na di words wey I tell una when I still dey with una, say everything must happen wey dem write about me for di law of Moses, and for di prophets, and for di psalms. Then e open dia mind make dem understand di Scriptures: say di Christ go suffer and rise from death for di third day, and say dem go preach repentance and forgiveness of sins for im name to all nations, starting from Jerusalem.

Where Emmaus dey? Luke talk say e be sixty stadia from Jerusalem, about seven miles. But nobody today know for sure which village e be. People don suggest at least three places over di centuries, including Amwas, Abu Ghosh and el-Qubeibeh, and scholars still dey argue am. One line of old manuscripts even write one hundred and sixty stadia instead of sixty.

E Start from Moses. You go find am for Luke chapter twenty-four, verse twenty-five to twenty-seven and verse forty-four to forty-seven. Through dis Christmas series, we don waka through plenty of di promises wey Jesus fit don open for dat road. Di child inside di manger na di one wey all of dem dey point to, and di risen Lord show im friends say dia Bible don dey tell im story from di beginning. So see one question wey you go carry dey go. Jesus show say di whole Bible dey point to am. Which Old Testament promise for dis Christmas series surprise you pass?