When Understanding Isn’t Either/Or
Luke 24 and the tension between reason, revelation, and responsibility
It’s been hard to stay on my routine of Bible study in the midst of the Christmas season, and I realize the irony of that statement given the entire season is about Jesus Himself (or supposed to be).
In the grocery store yesterday looking for a package of hot dogs so that Ac could recreate some elf scene that needed them 😂, I heard playing on the radio a song and the vocalist kept repeating “Jesus is jealous of Santa Claus.” What a ridiculous statement to make, though I understood the singer’s intention.
I have been feeling untethered.
This morning I decided to start a new devotional that I’d bought specifically for 2026. I wanted to wait until January 1st because then it all lines up perfectly (OCD much), but I felt a small stirring to abandon the desire of neatness and just dive in.
I’m so glad I did.
I spent some time in Luke 24, where Jesus is on the road to Emmaus with the two disciples revealing the scriptures. I invite you to read it and then I want to show you what I saw.
The Road to Emmaus
13 That very day two of them were going to a village named Emmaus, about seven miles[a] from Jerusalem, 14 and they were talking with each other about all these things that had happened. 15 While they were talking and discussing together, Jesus himself drew near and went with them. 16 But their eyes were kept from recognizing him. 17 And he said to them, “What is this conversation that you are holding with each other as you walk?” And they stood still, looking sad. 18 Then one of them, named Cleopas, answered him, “Are you the only visitor to Jerusalem who does not know the things that have happened there in these days?” 19 And he said to them, “What things?” And they said to him, “Concerning Jesus of Nazareth, a man who was a prophet mighty in deed and word before God and all the people, 20 and how our chief priests and rulers delivered him up to be condemned to death, and crucified him. 21 But we had hoped that he was the one to redeem Israel. Yes, and besides all this, it is now the third day since these things happened. 22 Moreover, some women of our company amazed us. They were at the tomb early in the morning, 23 and when they did not find his body, they came back saying that they had even seen a vision of angels, who said that he was alive. 24 Some of those who were with us went to the tomb and found it just as the women had said, but him they did not see.” 25 And he said to them, “O foolish ones, and slow of heart to believe all that the prophets have spoken! 26 Was it not necessary that the Christ should suffer these things and enter into his glory?” 27 And beginning with Moses and all the Prophets, he interpreted to them in all the Scriptures the things concerning himself.
28 So they drew near to the village to which they were going. He acted as if he were going farther, 29 but they urged him strongly, saying, “Stay with us, for it is toward evening and the day is now far spent.” So he went in to stay with them. 30 When he was at table with them, he took the bread and blessed and broke it and gave it to them. 31 And their eyes were opened, and they recognized him. And he vanished from their sight. 32 They said to each other, “Did not our hearts burn within us while he talked to us on the road, while he opened to us the Scriptures?” 33 And they rose that same hour and returned to Jerusalem. And they found the eleven and those who were with them gathered together, 34 saying, “The Lord has risen indeed, and has appeared to Simon!” 35 Then they told what had happened on the road, and how he was known to them in the breaking of the bread.
This chapter is one of the best narrative examples of a tension I’ve felt and wrestled with whenever I think about my salvation.
There are the two primary camps whenever you explore this:
Predestination & Calvinism
Free Will & Arminianism
Simply stated… one says God determines it, reveals it, and decides it. One engages more of our response, responsibility, and will.
Did I get saved because God revealed it to me, or did I have free will and say yes to Him? There are pitfalls on either side by the way.
But look at what happens here in Luke.
First… Jesus explains the scriptures. In verse 27, Jesus begins to teach how all the Old Testament prophets pointed to Jesus.
This is the moment where Jesus is using rational explanation.
→ Reason is engaged.
Second… Their hearts burned within them. This is in verse 32. It’s the Spirit bearing witness to truth.
→ This is internal witness by the Holy Spirit.
Third… Their eyes were opened. This is the part where God intervenes. The rational reasoning PLUS the internal witness of the Holy Spirit caused their eyes to be opened. You can’t escape the divine nature of this moment.
→ Revelation happened when God granted it.
Fourth… They immediately sprung into action. Action wasn’t the mechanism of faith. It was the response to it.
→ Human responsibility.
It appears that there are elements of both camps in this one narrative. God’s divine work, activation of our logical side, revelation through the Spirit, and human action and responsibility.
Luke doesn’t try to explain why and how. Both realities co-exist.
This can be tricky for people to understand. How could both free will and determinism co-exist? Isn’t that irrational?
This is where I turned to ChatGPT for help understanding the difference between:
Irrational thoughts
Trans-rational thoughts
Because at first glance, it can seem like asking someone to believe that both operate simultaneously might feel irrational.
To be irrational is to violate logic itself. An irrational claim contains a true contradiction- like saying someone is both married and a bachelor at the same time, in the same sense. ← That’s important.
That kind of statement collapses under even basic reasoning. Christianity does not ask for that kind of belief.
But trans-rational is something different.
Why “determinism + responsibility” sounds irrational.
People assume it means:
A person is fully caused by God
and
A person is fully self-caused
That would be a contradiction - same category, same sense. But that is not what historic Christianity claims.
The category mistake people keep making.
They collapse two different levels of causation into one.
Biblically, we’re dealing with:
Ultimate causation (God’s sovereign will)
Proximate causation (human choice, intention, desire)
Different levels. Different senses.
Christian theology says:
God is sovereign over outcomes
Humans are responsible for intentions and actions
It does not say:
Humans are puppets with no real agency
Or that humans act independently of God
Again: different questions, different categories.
If you got lost in that reasoning, it boils down to this….
When it comes to Christian theology and some of these tougher matters, people oversimplify theology and flatten it into something it’s not.
Let’s use another example - the Trinity.
At first glance, it could appear to be irrational. God is 1. God is 3? How is that possible? It looks like it’s violating logic (therefore irrational).
But Christian theology is not saying:
God is one person and three persons
God is one being and three beings
That would be irrational.
What Christianity actually claims is:
God is one in being / essence / nature
God is three in person
Different categories. Different senses.
“Being” answers what something is.
“Person” answers who someone is.
Same subject. Different predicates. As you can see, it’s easy for this nuance to get lost.
Yes, it might seem like a heavy topic to dive into three days before Christmas, but I discovered something as I did that exercise.
I’d been feeling untethered prior to sitting down to do some study. I didn't “feel” God close to me (not because He isn’t, but because I am often distracted).
When we wait to feel something before acting, we miss an opportunity to connect with Him. I would have missed this entire moment today if I hadn’t sat down despite my lack of feeling.
I needed help this morning. I needed the logic and reason of a devotional. And once I sat down and activated my brain, I felt the Holy Spirit stir in me as I read the scripture. My heart moved.
It’s a good reminder.
I hope you’re able to find a few moments this week to connect to the One who is the reason we celebrate.
Merry Christmas. ❤️