During the Spaces series, Beyond the Weekend will preview the coming weekend’s message rather than looking back at the previous one—mirroring our group curriculum and helping prepare our hearts for the upcoming sermon. This week, that means looking ahead to The Road.

Read: Luke 24:13-35 | Listen: Luke 24

“They asked each other, ‘Were not our hearts burning within us while he talked with us on the road and opened the Scriptures to us?’” Luke 24:32 

Two disciples trudge the seven dusty miles from Jerusalem to Emmaus. As they walk, they talk through their grief over the last few days. They hoped Jesus was their Messiah who would set Israel free from Rome. Instead, they watched Jesus die a brutal death on the cross. Now rumors of an empty grave only add confusion to their sorrow. A stranger joins them on the road, listens intently to their story, then gently rebukes them. He opens their eyes to how all of Scripture pointed to him and his suffering. He came to set them free, not from Rome, but from sin. By the time he breaks bread at their table, disappointment gives way to recognition and great joy.

We know disappointment, too. Life often doesn’t look like we’d expected. We hoped God would heal a marriage, open a door, or answer a prayer in a certain way. We often find ourselves on our own dusty road, confused and empty-handed. Jesus meets us there through his Word. The same Scriptures that revealed him to two grieving disciples still reveal him to us. Every promise and unresolved longing finds its answer in Jesus, whose death and resurrection give us hope for eternity and for life’s struggles today. When we open the Bible, the Holy Spirit opens our eyes to who Jesus is and what he’s done for us.

 TODAY: Pray about a disappointment you’re carrying. Ask God to reveal himself to you there. “God, I hoped you would _____. I don’t understand what you’re doing. Help me trust you based on your character and what you accomplished in Jesus.”