Meditation for April 12, 2007
From The Rev. Peter A. Munson
Luke 24:13-35
"Now on that same day two of them were going to a village called Emmaus, about seven miles from Jerusalem, and talking with each other about all these things that had happened. While they were talking and discussing, Jesus Himself came near and went with them, but their eyes were kept from recognizing Him. And He said to them, "What are you discussing with each other while you walk along?" They stood still, looking sad. Then one of them, whose name was Cleopas, answered Him, "Are you the only stranger in Jerusalem who does not know the things that have taken place there in these days?" He asked them, "What things?" They replied, "The things about Jesus of Nazareth... how our chief priests and leaders handed Him over to be condemned to death and crucified Him... Moreover, some women of our group astounded us. They were at the tomb early this morning, and when they did not find the body there, they came back and told us that they had indeed seen a vision of angels who said He was alive..." Then He said to them, "Oh, how foolish you are, and how slow of heart to believe all that the prophets have declared! Was it not necessary that the Messiah should suffer these things and then enter into His glory?" Then beginning with Moses and the prophets, He interpreted to them the things about Himself in all the scriptures. As they came near the village to which they were going, He walked ahead as if He were going on. But they urged Him strongly, saying, "Stay with us, because it is almost evening and the day is now nearly over." So He went in to stay with them. When He was at the table with them, He took bread, blessed and broke it, and gave it to them. Then their eyes were opened, and they recognized Him; and He vanished from their sight. They said to each other, "Were not our hearts burning within us while He was talking to us on the road, while He was opening the scriptures to us?" That same hour they got up and returned to Jerusalem; and they found the eleven and their companions gathered together. They were saying, "The Lord has risen indeed, and He has appeared to Simon!" They they told what had happened on the road, and how He had been made known to them in the breaking of the bread."
Where Will Jesus Show Up Today?
Easter Sunday is a day - a huge, critically important day in the life of Christians. It also happens to be the most well-attended day of the church year. There is also something known in the Church as the Easter season, or Eastertide. It is that period of 50 days (40 days if counted to the Ascension of Jesus into heaven) from Easter Sunday to the Day of Pentecost. During this season of Easter, church attendance is not like it is on Easter Sunday, yet it is still Easter! There is a season of Easter because there was a period of time, after that first Easter Sunday, when Jesus kept showing up to various people - usually the core group of disciples. Throughout this period of forty days, Jesus keeps "popping up" - showing disbelieving disciples His wounds, explaining the scriptures to them, even eating with them. We have one such story here. According to Luke, it took place on the afternoon of that first Easter morning, while two disciples (not part of the inner twelve) were on a 7-mile walk to Emmaus.
A few points for us to think about from this "Road to Emmaus" story:
First, in the beginning of this encounter, "their eyes were kept from recognizing Him." Is this something God caused? Not likely. There are times when we simply miss the signs that God, in the form of the risen Lord (through the presence of the Holy Spirit), is with us. Perhaps their grief got in the way. Perhaps their shock in hearing from the women that the tomb was empty got in the way. Perhaps the difficulty they had in believing that Jesus could be raised from the dead got in the way. In any event, they missed the fact that Jesus was right there with them. At least, for a while, they missed this fact. This happens to us, too. Maybe God shows up sometimes in a way that we are not expecting, in a way that doesn't fit with the "box" we have put God in. But God, being God, can show up in all sorts of unpredictable and imaginative ways - in the voice of a friend or a family member, in the voice of an enemy, through a book or movie, through music, through nature, in the midst of a quiet moment or a moment of intense anguish, when you've gone for a walk because you are confused and can't sit still... who knows how or when the risen Lord might show up?
Second, sometimes God might show up in familiar settings - in ways that you and I have experienced God before. "When He was at the table with them, He took bread, blessed and broke it, and gave it to them. Then their eyes were opened, and they recognized Him..." (Luke 24:30-31) Maybe these two disciples had been there at the feeding of the 5000, when Jesus 1) took the bread, 2) blessed it, 3) broke it, and 4) gave it to them. They certainly had been with Him in more intimate settings, when they were gathered around a table for a simple meal, and Jesus took the bread, blessed it, broke it, and gave it to them. Perhaps they were at the Last Supper, or had heard the others talk about it. In any event, there was a certain way that Jesus used His hands when He prayed over the bread. There was a certain way that He spoke. There was a certain way that He looked at them when He handed them the bread. And when He did all those things, after they arrived in Emmaus, the light bulb clicked on. "It's Him! It's Jesus!"
You and I have had certain ways that we have experienced the risen Lord to be with us over the years. For me, there have been four especially prominent ways. 1) When I am reading the Bible and meditating on what I read. 2) When I am praying with a small group of people. 3) When, as a community, we celebrate Holy Communion together. 4) When I am out by myself - or with one or two other people - hiking, or sitting by a lake or a mountain stream. I am tempted to say that the Lord doesn't show up every time I am doing one of these things. Truth be told, the Lord does show up in each of these instances, but sometimes I don't show up to His presence. Sometimes, my eyes are "kept from recognizing Him", because of what is going on inside me. But many, many times, I have experienced the presence of the risen Lord in these situations. So in these situations - in particular - I should be on the lookout! You have certain ways, perhaps quite diferent from my experiences, where you have more regularly experienced the Lord's presence. If so, you might want to keep putting yourself into those situations, and you might want to keep paying attention! Because God wants our attention, I think.
Third, we need to learn from this story that we should be paying special attention when our hearts are burning. When Jesus was explaining the scriptures to them, they still hadn't quite recognized Him yet. But their bodies were trying to tell them something. "This guy really knows His stuff! When He explains the scriptures, I can't wait to hear what He is going to say next! I am so excited, and I totally lose track of time, or the fact that I've just walked two more miles." Their hearts were trying to tell them something, and it was this: "You are in the presence of the living God!" When our hearts are burning within us, we need to pay attention, and ask, "What's going on? Is this You, Lord? Are You back? Or have you been here all along, and I am just now becoming aware of Your presence?"
If we believe in a risen Lord, then it stands to reason that He could show up anywhere, anytime, in any circumstances. If "the Lord is risen indeed", then Easter is not just a day. In fact, it really can't even be limited to a season. It's more like a way of life, and a way of going through life - a way of looking at the world. Where will Jesus show up today? That is the question we need to be asking ourselves.