“And beginning with Moses and all the prophets, he interpreted to them in all the Scriptures the things concerning himself.” (Luke 24:27)

As He walked with two downcast and deeply disturbed disciples on the road to Emmaus, the risen Jesus opened the word for them in a powerful, transforming way. Their hearts burned within them (Luke 24:32) as they came to realize that the Scriptures testified to Jesus, and the truth of the Gospel transformed their despair into a sure and living hope.

Jesus’ use of the Scriptures in this way was not an isolated incident. Again and again, He engaged His hearers with biblical texts in ways that pointed to Himself. This was all together fitting, for as Jesus said in John 5:39: “You search the Scriptures because you think that in them you have eternal life; and it is they that bear witness about me.” The Apostles shared this approach. When they opened the written word, they did so to point to the glories of the incarnate Word. As we read their sermons in the book of Acts, this is abundantly clear. Their extended written sermons and teachings—in the form of the New Testament letters—also reveal that they understood the Scriptures principally as concerned to testify about Jesus.

How does our own reading of, study of, contemplation upon and proclamation of the Scriptures—both Old and New testaments—compare with Jesus’ and the Apostles’ practice? Are we opening the word to point to the Word? I recently heard a sermon on an important Old Testament character. We were challenged by this biblical hero’s passion and faithfulness. It was a convicting message, but the only mention of Jesus was a passing reference in the first sentence of the sermon’s introduction. No mention was made of the fact that only in the Gospel of Jesus Christ is there power to save and transform our lives. Beyond a sense of conviction, I wonder what my fellow believers took away from the message. After a few days or weeks of a renewed effort to live more faithfully, I wonder how they felt when they realized they were unable to live up to their aspirations. I wonder, too, about any unbelieving visitors who may have heard that sermon. Perhaps some had finally mustered the courage to visit a church, sensing that something was amiss in their lives. Did some walk away convinced that, “Yes, that’s it—I need more passion in my life!”? If so, I can only hope that they dared to return to services in subsequent weeks and that on those occasions Christ was more adequately proclaimed.

Sadly, I have come to recognize that in the many years of my own preaching and teaching, I have not always exposited the Scriptures in ways that pointed plainly to the incarnate Word. Now and henceforth I pray that whenever I open the word—especially in service of others—I may resolve, as Paul put it, always and only to preach Christ (Col. 1:28; 1Cor. 1:23; 2:2).