Northwood United Church

Encountering the Christ

Luke 24:13-35
April 6, 2008
Rev. Dr. Doug Lobb

Two friends were walking to Emmaus and they were talking about the events that had just taken place in Jerusalem. Why Emmaus? For any of you who have been there, it is a small insignificant dusty little village with no distinguishing features. The Bible says it's about seven miles from Jerusalem which meant it was like walking from here to White Rock.

While these two people were walking they were joined by a third person. Luke says this person was Jesus but they did not recognize him. Isn't that strange? It is only three days since Jesus was tried and crucified in a very public death, yet two of his followers did not recognize him.

"What are you discussing", Jesus asks. Cleopus, one of the two answers, where have you been? Are you the only one who doesn't know about the happenings that have taken place this week? Jesus of Nazareth was a mighty prophet in deed and in word, before both God and the people. Our chief priests and leaders condemned him to death and handed him over and he was crucified just three days ago. We had hoped he was the one who would redeem Israel."

Now we see their concern. They were devout Jews who hoped that Jesus was the Messiah in the Jewish view which was the one who would step in, rid the country of their Roman captors and restore Israel to the grandeur and power of King David's days. They were in mourning: their hopes had been dashed.

But they continued, "Some of the women of our group, astounded us. They were at the tomb early this morning but they did not find a body. They told us they had seen a vision of an angel saying he was alive. Some of us went to the tomb and saw it just as they said but we did not see him."

This stranger, to them, said, "O, how foolish you are and how slow you are to believe what the prophets have declared; and then he interpreted them from Moses to the prophets."

It is now about super time and the stranger walked ahead as if he was going, but the two begged him to stay and have supper with them. When the stranger took the bread, broke it and blessed it, they recognized him but he vanished from their sight.

Then the two looked at each other and said, "Didn't our hearts burn within us as we were talking on the road?"

The remarkable thing about this story is that it is so unremarkable. The two disciples on the road to Emmaus were very much like many if not most of our society; they were unable to see beyond empirical evidence.

In 2001, I was at Olivet College in Olivet Michigan. I was there because it is affiliated with the Congregational Christian Churches and I was the executive of that group. Olivet is a very small Liberal Arts college in Western Michigan that is dedicated to providing an education for those who were unable to get into the much larger State Universities. I ran into an industry recruiter from the Ford Motor Company.

"What are you doing here?" I asked. He said, "I am looking for people who can write; people who have imagination". He continued, "I interview many grads who are superb engineers, good mathematicians and scientists but they have no imagination, they are possessed with facts, figures and scientific evidence. I'm looking someone who can see beyond that and write about the vision, the principle the idea that is taking shape."

Will Willimon, formerly of Duke University and now a United Methodist Bishop says, the students had an auction on campus so he stated that he would write a love letter to a person of the bidders choice. In due time a young co-ed came and asked him to write a letter to her boyfriend. After asking if she was unable to write to her own boyfriend she said, "Look, I paid $25.00 for you be because I am in electrical engineering." Willimon said I could see her point.

The two on the road were upset. Their faith world had been crushed because they were unable to see beyond their human understanding. That dear friends, is exactly the problem for millions today. Many are unable to grasp a spirit that is alive; a reality that death could not hold and a presence that comes to you and me in different ways; none of which are visible.

St. Augustine, a bright you man with a superb twelfth century classical education went to Bishop Ambrose and said he was having trouble reading the Bible. He said he was unimpressed because it had poor literature and was crudely edited. Ambrose replied, "You young fool! You can't get it because when you read 'fish', you see a fish when you read 'bread', you see a loaf" Then Ambrose taught him how to read imaginatively; to see the meaning beyond the surface.

For the two on the road the story was over. Their hopes had proven to be empty. But when Jesus, whom they did not recognize, retells the events in the language of their own tradition, they respond with hospitality. While eating supper, when Jesus breaks bread and gives it to them the experiences of the road and the table come into focus. They look a round but he is gone but they say, "When he was walking with us, didn't our hearts burn within us?"

Frederick Buechner writes: "Emmaus is whatever we do or wherever we go to make ourselves forget that the world holds nothing sacred: that even the wisest and braves and loveliest decay and die; that even the noblest ideas that men have had-ideas about love and freedom and justice-have always in time been twisted out of shape by selfish men for selfish ends."

You see friends, God is always with us and always will be, but it seems we can only feel it when we least expect it; and often we only recognize the feeling of his presence when we look backwards.

It wasn't what the two on the road expected; heartbroken and confused they were it discussing the events. Suddenly he appeared but they didn't recognize him: they were too caught up in the grief and confusion.

Looking back they said, yea, that's who it was; we didn't recognize it until he blessed the bread at supper.

Stay loyal folks, keep the course. He'll come to you in the common and the ordinary-when you least expect it. We can't make God fit our schedule-it might even happen this morning in the breaking of the bread but whenever it happens, you will be able to look back and with the travelers say, didn't our hearts burn within us.

It might not be what we expected but, we will sense his presence. He's alive! Thanks be to God!

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