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Together on the road

April 25, 2020

Easter 3 – 2020

Luke 24:13-35

Marian Free

In the name of God who walks beside us on the road. Amen.

The story of the road to Emmaus is one of my favourite Easter stories. Luke’s retelling captures my imagination and I feel as if I am walking with Cleopas and his companion (his wife?) trying to work out what had happened over the past few days. Even though I know the end of the story, I am caught up in their grief and confusion, their intrigue as to who the stranger might be and finally in their recognition of Jesus. As Luke tells the story, I am there on the road and at the table. I don’t immediately recognise who it is beside me but on reflection realise that I had known it was Jesus all along.

Cleopas and his companion were not Galileans (as were the twelve) so they had probably not accompanied Jesus to Jerusalem. Their hopes and expectations about Jesus were almost certainly based on their experiences during his week in the city. Along with many others, they would have been caught up in the excitement surrounding Jesus, impressed by his teaching and filled with the hope that he was the one who was to come. Jesus’ crucifixion and death had thrown all this into question, yet it seems that they had not completely lost hope but had waited in Jerusalem to see if he would be raised as he had predicted. (“It has been three days,” Cleopas says.)

Otherwise, why would they have lingered? Emmaus was only a couple of hours walk away and there was no need to remain in the city once the Passover festivities were over. Indeed, it might have been dangerous to stay if they could have been identified as followers of Jesus. Yet, they had remained.

It is clear that they had heard reports that morning, that the tomb had been found empty by the women (something that had been verified by Peter). They may have been reminded, as the women were, that Jesus would rise on the third day. This would explain why they delayed going home, leaving Jerusalem mid-afternoon instead of in the cool of the morning. If Jesus was alive (as the angels had said), surely they would hear of it and be able to see him for themselves. Finally, they can wait no longer and with heavy hearts they begin the journey home.

Even so, they cannot stop thinking about the events of the past few days. As they walk, they are absorbed in conversation, analysing what has happened, trying to make sense of it all and wondering how they could have been so mistaken as to think that this man who was crucified was the one sent by God to save them. It is no wonder that they do not recognise Jesus when he comes alongside them. Presumably they imagine that he is just another pilgrim returning home from the festival and they don’t pay him much attention. They were certainly not expecting to see Jesus. Three days had passed, and he hadn’t been seen alive and, if he was alive, there would have been no reason for them to have expected him to leave Jerusalem at least not without his disciples. What is more, Cleopas and friend may never have seen Jesus without the crowds and may never have had a close enough look to recognise him in the absence of his friends.

Never-the-less, they expect this stranger to be a mind-reader and they jump to the conclusion that if he had been in Jerusalem he must certainly be as concerned about the recent events as they were. Interestingly, though they are surprised at Jesus’ apparent ignorance, they are not at all surprised that he should have such a good grasp of scriptures and that he should be able to explain and to interpret Jesus’ death.

We are not told whether or not Jesus’ words convinced them that the Christ had to die, or whether his explanation provided them any comfort. After all, the stranger had not told them that Jesus was alive only that the Christ had to suffer and then enter his glory. The stranger’s interpretation might have gone some way in explaining the events of the past few days, but it will have told them nothing about the present or the future or the impact that Jesus would have on their lives or on the lives of others who had believed in him. They might have wondered what use was a Christ who died and entered his glory and how was it possible that such a Christ could change anything and would that Christ make any difference in the long term or would he be, as he seemed, just a moment in history.

Cleopas and friend are still confused when they reach their home, but their sense of hospitality will not allow the stranger to continue his journey in the dark. They invite him to stay with them. At the meal table the stranger “took bread, blessed and broke it, and gave it to them”. In so doing he was repeating the actions of Jesus at the Last Supper when he took bread, blessed and broke it and gave it to the disciples. Only then do the two really see the stranger, and seeing him, recognise him and, recognising him, realise that they knew who he was all along.

In difficult and uncertain times, we too get caught up and become self-absorbed in our own troubles. We try to figure things out for ourselves, wonder what has happened and worry about the future. We can forget that Jesus is always with us, and often, it is only with hindsight that we understand that he has been walking beside us all the way.

It is now a full month since our last service together in the church and we have no idea when the lock-down will end or what the future will look like. As we travel our own paths in these strange times, let us pray that we will be attentive to the presence of Jesus, open to all that this experience has to teach us and eager to share with each other what we have learned when we are together again.

Tags:Cleopas, confusion, Emmaus, recognition
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Second-guessing God

April 29, 2017

Easter 3 – 2017

Luke 24:13-31

Marian Free

In the name of God who alone knows all things. Amen.

Too often, we make up our minds about people and situations without having all the facts at our disposal. For example, many of us (myself included) feel that we are in a position to make statements about the present political situation in the United States and elsewhere, about the war in Syria or about the housing crisis in Australia. Using information that we glean from news sources, radio or TV programmes or from our own experience, we confidently utter what we believe to be truths even though we do not necessarily know the complexities of the situation. Truth be told we would probably find it difficult to engage in social conversation if we hadn’t formed some sort of opinion on these issues. With any luck our conversation partner might add some further information that helps us to rethink our position or to engage in some proper research around the issue so that we are properly informed.

We do the same with people don’t we? Sometimes we form an opinion on the basis of only half the story. When someone behaves in a way that we don’t expect or that doesn’t meet with our approval, we can be quick to form a judgement about him or her. On closer acquaintance with the person we may learn something about their background and history that not only explains their behaviour, but that also challenges our first impression and forces us to rethink our opinion.

Cleopas and his companion (his wife? have made up their minds about the recent events in Jerusalem. They are returning home from the festival of the Passover – despondent and confused. So much has happened over the past few days and, try as they might they cannot make sense of it. Based on their preconceptions, they had come to believe that they knew who Jesus was and what he might mean for Israel. Although (unusually) we have the name of one of the pair, we know very little about them. Apparently they, with thousands of others, have been in Jerusalem for the festival of the Passover. Given that they know the disciples, it is possible that they themselves were already members of Jesus’ circle. At the very least they had been drawn into the excitement and anticipation that attended Jesus’ entry into Jerusalem. They had been caught up in the things that he had said and done over the past few days. Along with many in the crowds they had believed that Jesus was “the one who was going to redeem Israel”. But all their hopes and expectations were dashed when, on the eve of the Passover, Jesus was put to death in the most horrible and unexpected way.

Now they do not know what to think. They are ill equipped to interpret Jesus’ violent and shameful death. Even though there are reports that Jesus has risen they are returning home as planned assuming that the story has ended – that Jesus was not “the one”. Their life, they believe will go back to the way it always was and they will continue to wait for a Redeemer.

Cleopas and his companion leave Jerusalem and begin walking the seven miles to their home. As they walk they revisit the events of the last few days, trying to make sense of what had happened. How could something that began so well end so badly? How could it be that something that appeared to be so certain came to nothing – worse than nothing? What could it possibly mean? Where was God in all of this?

The pair is so caught up in their own thoughts that they don’t pay attention when someone catches up and begins to walk with them. They certainly don’t recognise the person as Jesus. The stranger recognises their grief and draws them out. Using the scriptures he explains that the events of the past few days make perfect sense in the context of Moses and the prophets. More than that the idea of a suffering Messiah is perfectly consistent with God’s purpose and will.

It is not clear whether or not the two are comforted or reassured by Jesus’ words, but he has said enough that they seem anxious to continue the conversation when night falls and Jesus makes as if to walk on further. When they are at table and Jesus breaks the bread they finally see that it is the risen Jesus who has joined them. At last all the pieces of the puzzle are in place. Once they have seen for themselves that Jesus really has risen from the dead, everything else becomes clear, the words of scripture begin to make sense. Jesus’ death was not the end that they had thought it was! They had drawn the wrong conclusion – everything had happened just as it was supposed to. God had acted in history as Moses and the prophets foretold. Jesus was the Redeemer of Israel! Even though it is now evening, Cleopas and his wife leave for Jerusalem at once so that they can share the good news with the remainder of the disciples.

Having all the information enables us to make sense of the world around us. It helps us to put events into perspective and to make intelligent judgments about current affairs as well as about the people we encounter.

When things trouble us, when the world does not make sense, it is important not to jump to conclusions, not to believe we can work things out for ourselves and most importantly, not to second-guess God. Sometimes, with the benefit of hindsight, we will be able to find meaning in events that at first didn’t make sense. Sometimes we will be given or will find information that fills in the details that were missing and that helps us to put the pieces of the puzzle together. At other times we will simply have to keep going with our lives, believing that Jesus will draw beside us as a source of strength and meaning.

Only God has the whole picture. Hard as it is, there are times when we will have to put all our trust in God, believing that God will pull us through and that at some point – in the near or distant future – we will at least come to understand the rich tapestry of joy and sorrow, tragedy and triumph that makes up our lives.