“Now that same day two of them were going to a village called Emmaus, about seven miles from Jerusalem. They were talking with each other about everything that had happened. As they talked and discussed these things with each other, Jesus himself came up and walked along with them; but they were kept from recognizing him.” Luke 24:13-16

On Resurrection Sunday, two disciples packed it up and left town. One was named Cleopas, the other unnamed. However, Cleopas’ wife, Mary, was one of the women at the crucifixion. It’s conjecture, but maybe the pair walking down the road to Emmaus was a married couple. It seems they stayed in Jerusalem for the death and burial of Christ, they stayed for the Sabbath, and then they decided to leave, just when things were starting to get good.

This reminds me of a time PB and I went to a Brewer baseball game.

Our team fell behind in the first inning and stayed that way through eight innings. Our two best hitters combined for one walk out of ten at-bats. It was a slow day at the diamond. By the end of the eighth, we were still down by one run and PB was getting antsy. He leaned in and whispered, “If we leave now, we can get a jump on the traffic.” The bottom of the order was due to bat in the ninth, so I reluctantly agreed and we beat the crowd out of the stadium.

Before we found our way to the car, the Brewers had two men on base. Before we left the parking lot, the game was tied. Before we left the city limits of Milwaukee, our pitcher mowed down the order in the tenth inning. And before we reached the suburbs, the crowd (the very same crowd we so cleverly beat out of the ballpark) was enjoying a come-from-behind victory. We missed it because we gave up before it was really over.

Sometimes we just quit too soon. There’s a win coming within minutes, but we throw in the towel, thinking it’s over, when in reality we are standing on the brink of something big. 

Cleopas and his companion almost missed out on the comeback victory. But Jesus listened in on their conversation and kindly walked with them in their sorrow and disillusionment. As the two disciples were desperately searching for truth, Truth Himself joined them.

There’s a saying, “It’s not over till the fat lady sings.”
It means that we shouldn’t presume
to know the outcome of an event
that’s still in progress.
We shouldn’t assume
that something is irreversible.
We shouldn’t give up on God’s plan, ever.
We shouldn’t leave the stadium until the last out.