"Burning Hearts"

His teaching set their hearts on fire,

Though they couldn’t tell twas He,

From Scriptures showed them God’s desire,

To save and set them free.

That night when He broke the bread,

They saw it was the Lord,

Thrilled with everything he said,

That night they traveled toward,

Jerusalem where they had been,

They ran to tell the others,

Finding the eleven then,

Who knew it was another,

Time when Jesus showed Himself,

To prove that He was raised,

His presence was the proof itself,

And filled their hearts with praise.

So never doubt that He is near,

Our burning hearts will tell,

That Jesus Christ is raised and here,

To heal and make us well.

“Then their eyes were opened and they recognized Him; and He vanished from their sight. They said to one another, ‘Were not our hearts burning within us while He was speaking to us on the road, while he was explaining the Scriptures to us?’” (Luke 24:31-32, NAS)

Another early appearance of Jesus happened when two disciples, Cleopas and another, were walking the seven mile journey from Jerusalem to Emmaus after the weekend of Jesus’ death and resurrection. Jesus joined them on the road and His questions turned to an in-depth Bible study as they traveled together. He explained from Moses and all the prophets “the things concerning Himself in all the Scriptures.” (v. 27) What must that have been like? They recognized Jesus when He broke bread at the table, but then He vanished. They were so excited they returned to Jerusalem to tell the eleven that night! When we read teh Scriptures it’s the same. The One who inspired it can explain it to us.

Lord, speak to us and set our hearts on fire, in Jesus’ name.

Art by Alfredo Rodriguez, used by permission. Thanks, Alfredo, and God bless you.