Skip to main content

Introduction to Worship for 4/30/2017

By

Followers of the Way:

Renowned Jesus scholar John Dominic Crossan made a profound statement about this week’s gospel reading. “Emmaus never happened,” Crossan wrote. “Emmaus always happens.” What we are invited to grapple with in that statement is the truth that the factual (historical) significance of the resurrection stories is secondary to a more profound truth: the risen Christ is with us. Now. Here. That is what the early church began to learn, and it is what enabled them to move on.

Luke 24:13–35

The exact location of Emmaus is not known. Perhaps this uncertainty forms a commentary on the focus scripture. Emmaus may be anywhere. Hearts burning and eyes opening do not take place in only one place, either geographical or spiritual. Emmaus comes into sight wherever a path leads us toward communion with God and whenever we recognize the risen Christ among us.

On the day of Jesus’ resurrection, two disciples walk along the road to Emmaus with Jesus, informing this “stranger” about the events in Jerusalem over the past three days. The disciples know the details of the story, yet they do not understand the events they have witnessed. Jesus explains the scriptures and their hearts are burning, yet they still do not know why.

The disciples extend a gracious invitation to the “stranger” to stay and eat with them. The text tells us that Jesus “walked ahead as if he were going on.” This response speaks on several levels. Custom held that such an invitation should only be accepted when made with insistence. Luke records that the disciples “urged him strongly” to stay. Jesus’ preparation to continue ahead hints at another truth. Jesus does not force himself upon others. God’s grace does not barge in where not wanted, but neither will it stand apart when invited in.

Jesus’ actions during the meal are described with four verbs: take, bless, break, give. These same four verbs are used to describe the feeding of the five thousand (Luke 9:16). Three of these verbs also occur in Luke’s account of the Last Supper in Luke 22:14–20, with “give thanks” replacing “bless.” While the twelve disciples left that table not understanding fully, these two disciples leave the table at Emmaus with fresh understanding. They rush to declare, “Christ is risen indeed!”
• • • • •
We do not always recognize God’s companionship on the road. We do not always sense “the living and enduring word of God” on our own. Jesus’ words and actions continue to call out to who we are and what we need. What encounters assure you of the presence of Christ? When you declare, “Christ is risen indeed!” what is your hope? How will you witness to this truth?

Connecting scripture and life

The fact that Jesus appears and disappears in this story, and that we do not know a location of the town of Emmaus, have led some scholars to speculate that the story may be a metaphor for the everyday moments when we encounter the risen Christ in our lives today.
  • When are some times you feel the risen Christ accompanying you on your life’s journey?
  • How important is this in the life of the church today?
  • How can we be both followers of Jesus, and followers of the way?

Comments

  1. INSPIRED BREADJune 26, 2017 at 12:01 AM


    Thanks for sharing this blog. Worshiping Jesus plays an indispensable role in rekindling our spiritual fire, and keeping it burning.Connecting Christians Around The World

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Introduction to Worship for 9/24/2017

By
Bless the Water: This week our creation theme is Water. As an introduction to the theme, we will be looking at the beginning of the second creation story in Genesis. Genesis 2:4b–14 In the first story (Genesis 1:1––2:3), water is there from the beginning, and creation is an act of separating everything else from the waters, and then bringing life to the land—after light and darkness and planets and the sun and moon are brought forth.      In the second story, the land has already been created, and there is a stream that waters all of the land. God creates the human from the land, and we can’t grasp the pun in English, but adam (human or man) is made from adamah (humus or earth). We’re probably most familiar with verses 8 & 9 in this text, when God creates a garden and puts adam into the garden with the green and growing things, including the tree of life and the tree of good and evil. But then the author describes the four rivers that surround the garden, a...
Post a Comment
Read more

Introduction to Worship for 9/25/2016

By
1 Timothy 2: 1-7 With the community addressed in 1 Timothy, we are reminded that God’s people pray in all circumstances. We are urged to pray for everyone, including political leaders, so that all people may live in God’s reign of peace and wholeness – shalom. God’s wise ways lead and encourage us as we seek to live prayerfully as members of the Body of Christ and also citizens of our own countries. Prayer is part of living faithfully as citizens of God’s realm. God’s people are called to pray for peace and justice for all people. What does it mean to pray in Jesus’ name for leaders? How might prayerful living strengthen us to work for justice, even as we pray for God’s shalom? Family activity (can be adapted to families of all ages) What is your favorite way to pray? Take a few minutes to reflect on this and think about one of your favorite prayers. You might think about when and where you like to pray, too. Draw a picture of prayer – either a picture of them praying or a ...
Post a Comment
Read more

Introduction to Worship for 4/2/2017

By
Hope Against All Hope There are disappointing moments in life, times when it seems as though there may be no hope. And then there are those times when we are, literally, beyond hope—times when it would appear that, no matter what, there is no going back. Our story this week reminds us that with God the impossible is, at best, a slight inconvenience. As Paul points out in Romans 8:11, “if the Spirit of the one who raised Jesus from the dead lives in you, [this same Spirit] will give life to your human bodies also…” John 11:1–45 The story of the raising of Lazarus from the dead can stretch the limits of our believing. But getting hung up on whether or not the story took place as written can distract us from the great point of the story. We know that John presents us with stories that are not in the synoptic gospels, and which (such as turning massive amounts of water into wine at Cana) seem questionable. But John’s points are not confined by fact; they are about something much more...
Post a Comment
Read more