by Karin Lindstrom based on Luke 24

This is T.J., your field reporter for N.Y.C.U. — news you can use. Today I have breaking news from Cleopas, one of Jesus' followers.

Yes. Jesus is very alive!

But Jesus died last week — crucified, dead, buried.

T.J., I know it sounds impossible, but my friend and I walked and talked with Jesus. Trust me, He isn’t dead.

Tell our viewers what happened.

Well, we were headed to the village of Emmaus, talking about all the things that had happened recently. As we were walking, this guy caught up with us.

Who was it?

Jesus! But we didn’t know it.

You didn’t recognize Jesus?!

No. Weird, huh?

So did He talk to you?

Yeah. He started asking questions about what happened in Jerusalem. I figured maybe He wasn’t from around here. I mean, the whole town knew about Jesus being crucified.

Did you bring Him up to speed?

Yep. We told Him all about Jesus’ crucifixion and how some of the women had visited the tomb and found His body missing. The women reported that an angel said, “Jesus is alive.” We told Him how we doubted it was true, even though the tomb was empty.

Was Jesus upset by your unbelief?

I would say so! He called us fools and asked, “Why can’t you simply believe all that the prophets said?”

Then He told us how the Scriptures explained everything about Jesus. The words of the prophets pointed to how Jesus, the Messiah, would have to suffer before going to heaven.

Did you figure out He was talking about himself?

Nope. We walked all the way to Emmaus and didn’t recognize Him. He wanted to keep going, but we begged Him to stay overnight and eat with us. There was something about the guy. Just being around Him made our hearts excited!

When we sat down to eat, Jesus tore the bread and asked God’s blessing on it. He handed each of us a piece, and that’s when we knew — it was Jesus!

Wow, Cleopas! Were you excited?

Yeah. It was so awesome! I wish we’d realized it was Jesus sooner.

You must’ve had a million questions for Him.

I did! You won’t believe this, T.J., but the moment we recognized Jesus, He disappeared! Just vanished! One second, Jesus — the next second, zippo.

He disappeared?

He was totally, completely G-O-N-E.

What did you do?

My friend and I hightailed it back to Jerusalem, chattering the whole way. Jesus’ explanation of the Scriptures had pumped us up. Everything was making sense.

What happened when you reached Jerusalem?

We joined Jesus’ other followers. A few of them were whooping it up, proclaiming Jesus was alive. Peter, one of the disciples, had seen Him. But others still had their doubts.

Did you tell them you’d seen Jesus, too?

Absolutely! We were telling them all about it, when — get this — Jesus appeared out of nowhere!

Really?

It freaked everyone out, but He said, “Peace be with you.”

How’d people react?

They were hysterical. They thought He was a ghost.

Was He able to make them believe?

He said, “Look at my hands; look at my feet — it’s really me. Touch me. Look me over from head to toe. A ghost doesn’t have muscle and bone like this.”

Most of those gathered thought it was too good to be true.

What happened next?

Jesus asked for some food.

Food?

Yeah. So we gave Him a piece of leftover fish, and He ate it — right before our eyes.

That must have shocked everybody.

It did. Everyone watched awestruck as He showed us from Scripture how the Messiah would suffer and rise from the dead on the third day so we could be forgiven and be friends of God!

Wow, Cleopas, that is incredible news!

It doesn’t stop there, T.J.! Jesus promised He’d send the Holy Spirit to help us.

Then Jesus led us out of the city. He lifted His hands and blessed us. As He did, Jesus miraculously rose up into heaven! I wish everyone could’ve been there. Because they couldn’t, I’m doing my best to spread the awesome news. I hope you and your viewers will do the same.

For once, I’m at a loss for words, Cleopas. You heard him: spread the good news! This is T. J., wrapping up another miraculous story, from your No. 1 news source, N.Y.C.U., where we always bring you News You Can Use.

	Q: What dessert do birds like best? A: Chocolate “chirp” cookies. Rawlin K., 11, Louisiana Clubhouse Jr. Click here to subscribe