The other Robert Stevenson
In 1872, a great demonstration was held in New Castle, Scotland. Crowds had gathered to give tribute to a man who had been born exactly 100 years before. His name was Robert Stevenson, and he was the grandfather of the famed writer, Robert Louis Stevenson. Robert Stevenson had distinguished himself as an engineer in Scotland, and the parade in his honor featured dozens of banners. At the center of the procession walked a group of peasants who lived a great distance away, in the tiny village where the elder Stevenson had been born. They carried a small banner which, though not as attractively adorned or large as some of the other signs, it bore the most profound message. It read: “He was one of us!”
We may be like those peasants in more ways than one. As we find ourselves marching shoulder to shoulder with others who honor Christ, our banners for him may not be as attractively adorned as theirs. We may not be as knowledgeable about Scripture. We may not be as gifted in our ability to speak or sing. We may not possess as captivating a personality as others who love the Lord. But humble though our own life may be, we can still hold up the sign with the most inspiring message: “He was one of us!”
In Luke, Chapter 24, two of Jesus’ disciples are walking from Jerusalem to Emmaus -- a seven-mile journey. As they talk to each other about what had happened in Jerusalem during the past few days, Jesus himself joins them. “But their eyes were kept from recognizing Him,” Luke tells us. They didn’t realize that “He was one of us.”
The Risen Christ listens patiently as they tell him the story of the crucifixion on Friday and the empty tomb on Sunday morning. Clearly, these events have left them confused and bewildered. Therefore, Jesus transforms the conversation into a teaching experience. He says to them, “O foolish men, and slow of heart to believe all that the prophets have spoken!” Then, “Beginning with Moses and all the prophets, he interpreted to them in all the Scriptures the things concerning himself”.
Great teacher that he was, Jesus had so successfully related to the two disciples that they invited him to stay the night with them in Emmaus:
“So, he went in to stay with them. And when he was at table with them, he took the bread, and blessed and broke it, and gave it to them. And their eyes were opened, and they recognized Him ... Then they said to each other, “Did not our hearts burn within us while he talked with us on the road, while he opened to us the Scriptures?”
In the famous novel, “The Shoes of The Fisherman,” there is a line that reads, “It costs so much to be a full human being that there are very few who have the enlightenment to pay the price.” Most of us know what the price to be a disciple of Christ is, but we don’t know the cost. Take time today to examine both the price and the cost.