It was Palm Sunday, and the family's 6-year old son had to stay home from church because of a bad throat. When the rest of the family returned home carrying palm branches, the little boy asked what they were for. His mother explained, "People held them over Jesus' head as he walked by."
"Wouldn't you know it," the boy fumed. "The one Sunday I don't go to church, and Jesus shows up!"
Today we have a very different version of Jesus appearing, but for some time not even being recognised. The account of Jesus meeting two of his followers on the Road to Emmaus (Luke 24:13-35) is filled with all kinds of questions about why they couldn’t see him for who he was, but to concentrate too much on those questions is perhaps to ignore perhaps the main thrust of the account, and that is to question our own ability to view and walk with the Risen Lord Jesus.
Why these 2 followers couldn’t recognise Jesus is a mystery. We are told that their eyes were kept from recognising him… Perhaps they were too overcome by grief to even consider the possibility that the rumours they had heard of his resurrection were true… perhaps all hope had been taken out of them as they watched Jesus dying on the cross… Perhaps they were just distracted by the pressures of every day life… whatever the reason they couldn’t see Jesus.
And this is so often sadly true for us as well, because we can be easily distracted by all manner of simple things. Perhaps it’s being busy, or not busy enough, perhaps it’s by bearing grudges against others, or failing to see the possibilities in your own life, perhaps it’s a pre-occupation with getting Church things right as opposed to focusing on getting to know God right !
It’s all too easy to be distracted and fail to see Jesus alongside us… And this was the experience for these two disciples that day. But as they walked they talked about their passion for Jesus, about their hopes, about the possibilities that he had opened up for them. And they talked of how all this seemed to end at the cross, but now was there maybe a glimmer of hope ?
And Jesus was there to remind them of the things that they knew but were ignoring – the teaching of Moses and the prophets – was it not necessary that the Messiah should suffer before entering into glory ??
And the 2 followers were clearly captivated. They knew something was happening as they listened to this companion on their journey, and they urged him to come and stay with them. He did, and as he shared the meal with them, he broke the bread, blessed it and gave it to them, and their eyes were opened, and they recognised him…. In sharing a meal together with his followers, Jesus was recognised, and then he vanished. He went and they went off to tell others that they had seen the risen Jesus.
Easter is a wonderful season in the Church calendar. It is about new life, about new hopes, fresh starts. It is about love and forgiveness, and immeasurable mercy and grace. It is about celebrating rebirth… But all of these things are just a start, a foretaste of new and exciting adventures ahead. We are in the period between resurrection and Pentecost – the day when the Holy Spirit was given to the early Church.
And we must be careful that we don’t get stuck here. It’s very easy to carry on our Christian lives rejoicing in the joy of resurrection, celebrating the great feasts, celebrating Christmas and so on, and yet forget that these are only small parts of our overall lives, and we are challenged to do and enjoy more, so much more !
Easter challenges us to go out and live the resurrection message of hope and rebirth, and fresh starts, and the other things I mentioned a moment ago, and we do those things secure and firm in the knowledge of the strength of the Holy Spirit with us… We celebrate Easter but we journey on through Pentecost and through the times of growth and change in our lives and in the Church and in the world, and through the times of pain for us and for others, through the times of joy, through the times of excitement.., and we keep journeying with Christ at our side.
The Church is a group of people committed to knowing Jesus better and helping others to get to know him better. A hugely important part of this message in the gospel today is the fellowship that was being enjoyed as Jesus became known, and it is a fellowship we must all be aware of. As we break bread today in the service, as we share the bread and wine, we are sharing a meal with family, and with Christ at the head of our table.
That is the privilege that Jesus has given us. That is the special place we have been given within his kingdom. A place at his table… And so the message of this account for us today is to look for Jesus, to recognise him all around us in the lonely, the lost, the disadvantaged, as well as the comfortable and the powerful, and to be ready to greet him with hospitality, to invite him in to share our lives…
Jesus was frustrated as he walked with his followers. That is clear from his tone as he told them about the teaching of Moses and the prophets, but he didn’t let that affect how he treated them. He welcomed them back, he accepted their invitation, and he showed himself to them… There will be times of doubt in our lives, there will times when we are distracted, or simply not looking out for him, but he will never turn away from us, and he will never refuse our invitation to play a bigger part in our lives.
And so wherever we are on our Emmaus Road journey we hold out our hands to Jesus, and ask him to walk with us more closely as we seek to follow his will for our lives, and do his work in the world today. AMEN
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