Are We On the Road to Emmaus?
This Sunday, April 30, 2017, Pastor Bill preached on the Luke 24:13-35 text. This text is Jesus encountering two followers on the road to Emmaus. One is named in the text and the other is not. I penciled in myself with Cleopas as the other one journeying on the road as Pastor Bill was preaching.
After Easter attendance is generally down, and I have been a member of the church long enough to expect that phenomenon. Then I found myself asking, is Jesus chasing me too? He clearly caught the two followers who, as Pastor Bill put it, were getting out of town. Luke says in verse 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.” They clearly had given up their hope. They were clearly leaving town and their hope in Jesus.
We talked a lot about hope in the bible study today related to this lesson. We settled on the word “trust” as a class. Of course, Pastor Bill reminded us that we should say a “certain” hope. That got me to thinking that like Cleopas and the other one journeying with Cleopas, we were present for the big event and could not make it back to church. It is as if we are saying that nothing in my life changed as a result of Easter services.
I wonder if that is true. Has nothing changed since you were in church on Easter Sunday? For me, we have had several personal changes. The one thing I know is that the joy I experienced on Easter Sunday has not faded. Unlike the two on the road to Emmaus, I know that my redeemer lives. Each Sunday is a chance to celebrate the resurrection, especially the weeks following Easter when all of the lessons begin with the resurrection.
Take a moment with me to reflect on the ones that were closest to Jesus. Are we on the road, leaving town or are we hiding in a room so not to be found out as a Christian. One of the joyous events coming next week is confirmation. In the confirmation service, three of our young people will publically leave the road and proclaim their faith. What a joy it will be to see their courage in speaking to us next week.
My prayer for you is that you share the joy from Easter with others. As you share that joy, as Jesus did with the two on the road to Emmaus, you regain the hope and want to be again with the other believers. After Jesus reveals himself in their sight, the two leave the same hour. From Luke 24: 33 “And they rose that same hour and returned to Jerusalem. And they found the eleven and those who were with them gathered together,”
Like me, Jesus is looking for us on the road. I am looking forward to seeing you in Church on Sunday.