Easter 3A

Third Sunday in Easter, Year A

In the name of the Father, and of the +Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.

Christ is risen! He is risen indeed! Hallelujah!

A little over a year ago, some of you may remember that we had a visitor in our pews one week. A bald man, early 50s, by himself. I noticed him during announcements, but I didn’t see him before worship started, so I didn’t have time to go over and properly welcome him. He kind of stood out because he was wearing sunglasses inside…which I found kind of unusual, but he was here to hear God’s Word, so I didn’t really mind. Sometime during the sermon, he put on a baseball cap. I’m not gonna lie…that kind of got on my nerves. He didn’t come in wearing the hat. He put it ON after he came inside. During my sermon, no less. I was very much looking forward to meeting him after the service and trying to find a polite way to mention that it’s not a Christian gentleman’s practice to wear a hat during worship. He didn’t do anything else unusual for the rest of the service, and we didn’t have communion that day, so I didn’t see him up close until the end. When I got back to the door, Lori pulled me over and told me who this guy was: my Air Force buddy John, who I’ve known since 1998. This is the guy I named my younger son after. One of my closest friends…and I didn’t recognize him. Of course, I wasn’t expecting him, either - he didn’t tell me he was coming to see us. We have laughed many times about that incident since then.

I don’t see John even once a year anymore. We talk on the phone and exchange emails, but our in-person time is very limited since we both retired from military service. I *should* have recognized his face. But I definitely was not expecting him. There was no earthly reason for John to be sitting in our pews that day. It simply didn’t register for me that my very good friend would be in North Carolina at all…let alone in our church building. My dad would say: “what we see depends on what we are looking for.” One of his favorite Salada tea tag bits of wisdom. I certainly wasn’t looking for my friend John.

That whole incident helps me to think about the story of the Road to Emmaus, as we read in the Gospel this morning. Cleopas and the other disciple were definitely not looking for Jesus the Nazarene as they walked to Emmaus that morning. There was no earthly reason for them to expect to see Jesus in their travels. Let me say that again: there was no earthly reason for them to expect to see Jesus in their travels. There was, however, a heavenly reason. Luke tells us that their eyes were prevented from recognizing them… that their eyes were “kept from recognizing him.” Jesus had a purpose for that.

Because the two thought this man was just another traveler on the road with them, someone who was oblivious to what had just happened in Jerusalem, they had the opportunity to tell this “stranger” about Jesus and what he taught, and their shattered hope that he might have been the Messiah. “[This] was just what Jesus wanted, namely that these two should express themselves fully and thus enable Jesus to clear up the very things that were so dark and perplexing to them and to all the rest of the men. Jesus chose these two because they were two and could serve as two witnesses, not only to testify that they had seen him, but to testify to all that he was telling them about the Scripture prophecies regarding his death and his resurrection.” [Lenski, 1183.]

And then, after he had the chance to teach them the Scriptures from his divine understanding, and explain it all to them everything in the Old Testament that concerned him - the Messiah - then they had a meal together. Now...

“Think of the first meal in the Bible. The moment is heavy with significance. ‘The woman took some of the fruit, and ate it; she gave it to her husband, and he ate it; then the eyes of them both were opened, and they knew that they were naked’ (Genesis 3:6–7). The tale was told, over and over, as the beginning of the woes that had come upon the human race. Death itself was traced to that moment of rebellion. The whole creation was subjected to decay, futility and sorrow.

“Now Luke, echoing that story, describes the first meal of the new creation. ‘He took the bread, blessed it, broke it, and gave it to them; then the eyes of them both were opened, and they recognized him’ (verse 31). The couple at Emmaus—probably Cleopas and Mary, husband and wife—discover that the long curse has been broken. Death itself has been defeated. God’s new creation, brimming with life and joy and new possibility, has burst in upon the world of decay and sorrow. Jesus himself, risen from the dead, is the beginning and the sign of this new world.” [N. T. Wright, Luke for Everyone (London: Society for Promoting Christian Knowledge, 2004), 296.]

There are quite a few parallels between Genesis and the Gospels. This is not coincidence… this is simply a reflection of God’s plan. Creation - Adam, new creation - Jesus. One meal eaten in disobedience and with sinful intent opens their eyes, and it brought conflict with God, condemnation, and death. This new meal, eaten in obedience and with faithful intent opens their eyes, and it brings recognition of their Savior, who gave them grace, forgiveness, and eternal life.

Luke tells this story in such a way that it helps us to live in it ourselves. Like Cleopas and his companion, we are invited to listen to the explanation of the Bible, and to have our hearts burning within us as fresh truth comes out of the old pages and sets us on fire. Luke emphasizes what the church all too easily forgets: that the careful study of the Bible is meant to bring together head and heart, understanding and excited application. This will happen as we learn to think through the story of God and the world, of Israel and Jesus, not in the way our various cultures try to make us think, but in the way that God himself has sketched out. Only when we see the Old Testament as reaching its natural climax in Jesus will we have understood it. Equally, we will only understand Jesus himself when we see him as the one to whom [all of] scripture points, not in isolated [verses or passages taken out of context,] but in the entire flow of the story. [Wright, 297.] Then we, too, will find our hearts burning within us.

When we come to the Lord’s Supper and receive His Body and Blood, broken and shed for us for the forgiveness of our sins, we are reminded of all that Christ has accomplished FOR US in his death and resurrection. This meal is to remind us of that every time we eat it. We taste forgiveness in our mouths. And this serves a greater purpose: it sanctifies us. That’s just a fancy word for “makes us holy”. This is God’s wish for us - that as we study God’s Word and hear His Gospel proclaimed…and as we receive the Sacrament, that the Holy Spirit would work on each one of us to bring us closer to Him, and to help us to grow in our faith. This is how we become more holy. Deeper faith, walking closer with God, being more like He created us to be…more like Christ. My friend and colleague Pastor Paulette McHugh made this observation: “my sanctification is not for me, but for the community, so that THEY may see Jesus and be drawn to him.”

Yesterday, we held our Craft and Yard sale - the first of our intentional efforts in support of our Vision Points: to be a Great Commission church, to grow in our outreach, and to grow our stewardship to support outreach. This is exactly what Pastor Paulette was talking about. As we pursue this vision for our church family, we will grow in ways that will help our community to see Christ in us. Also not by coincidence, this is what God wants for us, both as His Church and for each of us as His children - for the world around us to Christ in us. As we invite the community to participate with us, let us all pray that they *do* see Christ in us, and that we keep that as our goal - to show Christ to the community in what we do and say, and in how we love our neighbors.

When you come to receive the Sacrament of the Altar today, let that be your prayer. Don’t reach out to grab the element. Come to His Table humbly, and hold out your hand to receive His body and blood. Then, having received your Lord and Savior in those elements, receive Him into your heart as well. Let Him refresh your faith and bring you closer to Him. As this is happening, watch how your words and deeds in the days ahead will show those around you that Christ is indeed in you. And then see how He uses you to build His Kingdom.

Christ is risen! He is risen indeed! Hallelujah!

In the name of the Father, and of the +Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.