"I Am Still With You"  2014

Psalm 139:1-6, 17-18            Luke 24:13-35

 

Psalm 139:1-6, 17-18

O Lord, you have searched me and known me. You know when I sit down and when I rise up; you discern my thoughts from far away. You search out my path and my lying down, and are acquainted with all my ways. Even before a word is on my tongue, O Lord, you know it completely. You hem me in, behind and before, and lay your hand upon me. Such knowledge is too wonderful for me; it is so high that I cannot attain it. How weighty to me are your thoughts, O God! How vast is the sum of them!

I try to count them—they are more than the sand; I come to the end—I am still with you.

 

Luke 24:13-35

Now on that same day two of them were going to a village called Emmaus, about seven miles from Jerusalem, and talking with each other about all these things that had happened. While they were talking and discussing, Jesus himself came near and went with them, but their eyes were kept from recognizing him. And he said to them, “What are you discussing with each other while you walk along?” They stood still, looking sad. Then one of them, whose name was Cleopas, answered him, “Are you the only stranger in Jerusalem who does not know the things that have taken place there in these days?” He asked them, “What things?” They replied, “The things about Jesus of Nazareth, who was a prophet mighty in deed and word before God and all the people, and how our chief priests and leaders handed him over to be condemned to death and crucified him. 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 took place. Moreover, some women of our group astounded us. They were at the tomb early this morning, and when they did not find his body there, they came back and told us that they had indeed seen a vision of angels who said that he was alive. Some of those who were with us went to the tomb and found it just as the women had said; but they did not see him.” Then he said to them, “Oh, how foolish you are, and how slow of heart to believe all that the prophets have declared! Was it not necessary that the Messiah should suffer these things and then enter into his glory?” Then beginning with Moses and all the prophets, he interpreted to them the things about himself in all the scriptures. As they came near the village to which they were going, he walked ahead as if he were going on. But they urged him strongly, saying, “Stay with us, because it is almost evening and the day is now nearly over.” So he went in to stay with them. When he was at the table with them, he took bread, blessed and broke it, and gave it to them. Then their eyes were opened, and they recognized him; and he vanished from their sight. They said to each other, “Were not our hearts burning within us while he was talking to us on the road, while he was opening the scriptures to us?” That same hour they got up and returned to Jerusalem; and they found the eleven and their companions gathered together. They were saying, “The Lord has risen indeed, and he has appeared to Simon!” Then they told what had happened on the road, and how he had been made known to them in the breaking of the bread.

 

When I read Bible stories   like the one about the road to Emmaus,

            I find it helpful to look for a connection

                                              behind the human drama of whatever is doing on,

                                                by relating it to my own life and experience.

Finding a connection between the events and experiences of my life

            and the stories, situations, and characters of Scripture

                            can help me understand the point of the passage  better.

 

That connection also helps me   interpret my own life situations,

            and recognize God at work in my life accomplishing grace,

                            teaching and showing me truth, blessings and purpose,

                                    even amid my trials, disasters, and deepest losses.

 

    What I mean  is that life  helps interpret and explain Scripture,

            and the Bible  can help me   make sense of the events of life.

 

Several years ago, I got a call from my brother and sister,

            letting me know that Mom was very sick, diagnosed with cancer,

                        and we needed to be together to talk about her options.

                So Kathy and I made plans for a quick trip East for a few days.

 

Once we got to the hospital, we found my mother in good spirits.

            When her doctor came by,

                        he explained the situation and answered our questions,

                                    and we talked about various treatment options …

            … and her doctor was very encouraging about a full recovery.

 

We were hopeful and encouraged by all that we heard.

            But that night,   she had a terrible and devastating stroke,

                        and when she died just few days later,   we were crushed.

 

I could not process how quickly and terribly things

            had turned from hope and optimism

                        to the deepest and darkest grief I had ever known.

            I was numb and confused, and I was in great pain.

                           I went on autopilot, and just wanted to get back home,

                                    and try to escape the reality of those awful days.

 

That’s probably pretty close to how Cleopas and his companion

            felt along their journey, traveling home on the road to Emmaus.

 

Just a week earlier,

            they were probably part of the Palm Sunday procession,

                           celebrating the triumphant entry of Jesus into the city

                                    amid all those shouts of joy, anticipating victory.

 

            They probably noticed the growing conflict

                        between Jesus and the religious authorities,

                                                           but nothing could have prepared them

                                                            for the sudden and awful events of Friday ---

            -- and how long, painful and awful the next day

                        of observing the Sabbath must have been for them.

 

            Finally, on the next day they could travel home to Emmaus…

                        … get away so that they could think and process it,

                                    and go someplace where maybe the pain wasn’t so raw.

 

   They had hoped and believed that Jesus was the Messiah,

            the one who would defeat and end the hated Roman occupation.

 

For any Jew, their greatest and brightest hope,

            their greatest desire was for the long-promised Messiah—

                        -- whom they assumed would restore Israel,

                                    back to the glorious days of King David’s kingdom.

 

But their savior   had been   betrayed,   scourged   and crucified…

            … and no doubt you could see their wounded disappointment,

                        and the devastation of their hope, aspirations and dreams

                            as they trudged dejectedly  down the road toward Emmaus.

 

            You can almost hear the grief in their words of vs. 21:

                                    But we had hoped that he was the one to redeem Israel.            

 

What a haunting phrase of despair, “but we had hoped…”

            In the King James version, it’s translated,  “but we trusted…”

 

We trusted,    and built our lives on Jesus and his ministry.

            We trusted,   and left our occupations and homes to follow him.

We trusted,

            but now that hope has turned to grief, defeat and despair…

                            … so we are leaving Jerusalem and going home to Emmaus.

 

But Emmaus is a lot more than just a geographical spot on the map.

            In 1966 Elvis Presley sang about it , “Heartbreak Hotel”,

                                    down at the end of lonely street,   

                                                for broken-hearted to cry away their gloom…

 

            … Emmaus is where we go when life gets to be too much for us,

                        it’s where we go when we feel lost, abandoned and alone,

                               to escape  and get away  to nurse our hurts and wounds.

 

But as  they are traveling the road to Emmaus,

            they are joined by their risen Lord, but don’t even know it.

 

Luke the storyteller seems to love the irony, of Jesus,

            the only one who really understands all that happened,

                        asking the travelers, “what things took place in Jerusalem?”

 

It is interesting that when Jesus asks

            they correctly recount all the facts about what had gone on;

                            including the empty tomb, the vision of angels,

                                    and even the testimony of the women who saw Jesus;

            --  and yet they do not understand -- they do not believe…

 

… they still don't see or appreciate what is going on,

            or even recognize that it is Jesus  walking & talking with them.

vs. 25-26

            Jesus said to them, "Oh, how foolish you are, and how slow of heart to believe all that the prophets have declared!  Was it not necessary that the Messiah should suffer these things and then enter into his glory?"

 

There are several words that can be translated, ”foolish or fool”,

            this one specifically describes when you miss the point.

                It’s to not recognize something or connect the dots…

                    … you’re looking at it, but not seeing or understanding it.

 

Often times when we are struggling with a loss or disappointment,

            we become so obsessed with our own disasters and problems,

                and so dwell on the hurts  & issues  & failures of our lives,à

                                    that we actually miss seeing the presence of Jesus

                                        right there walking & talking and comforting us; 

            -- the grace is there, but we just don’t see or recognize it.

 

            This  story of the walk to Emmaus

               is far more than just a simple resurrection appearance story.

It is the story of our faith journey

            where there are hurts, disasters and disappointments,

                        where we struggle with broken dreams and failed hopes…

 

            … and the grace    is the promise and assurance

                        that Jesus is with us always, and walking with us always,

                                    even when we don’t see or recognize him at first.

 

It is amid   our disasters and deepest disappointments

      that we  MOST need  to be conscious of God's abiding presence,

                  à which is the theology and point  of the rest of this story.

 

** First, it is when they invite Jesus to stay with them,

            following customary Middle Eastern hospitality,

                        they invite their guest to break the bread,  vs. 30       

                            "he took bread, blessed it and broke it, and gave it to them"

In the fellowship of the meal they share together,

    they suddenly recognize Jesus,  before he vanishes.

 

The words,    "he took bread, blessed it and broke it, and gave it to them"

            are the same words,

                        at the feeding of the 4000 and 5000, at the Last Supper …

… Luke is saying,

            we are present with Jesus at the sacrament of Communion,

               and that is the mystery of fellowship we share at the Table.

 

** The second piece of theology and point of this story,

            was the presence of Jesus in the interpretation of Scripture,

                        as later they recognized

                           that Jesus had shown them how all of Scripture

                                                    is about God’s gracious love

                                                            as it’s revealed through Jesus Christ, vs. 32               "Were not our hearts burning within us while he was talking to us on the road, while he was opening the scriptures to us?"

 

** The final piece of theology and point of this story

            is that the presence of Jesus with them,

                        through the faithful interpretation of Scripture,

                                    and in sharing the meal and fellowship of Communion…

… their eyes were opened and they recognized Jesus,

            and in response,   they rushed off to tell others the Good News.

 

Luke wants us to know through this story, that as we travel,

            we come to recognize Jesus  in word, in sacrament, and witness …

 

… and the story of Emmaus,

         is the story of our God who will not abandon   or leave us alone;

                    but walks with us through all our broken dreams and losses.

 

That plaintive cry, “but I had hoped” from   our road of Emmaus

            is where Jesus comes and ministers to us in our need,

                               making every trial and trouble somehow a gift,

                                        an opportunity to discover what God wants us to see.

 

Fellow travelers, as we walk along our life's  roads of Emmaus,

            consider these words of promise and hope from Psalm 139:

                        O LORD, you have searched me and known me.  You know when I sit down and when I rise up;  you discern my thoughts from far away.  You search out my path and my lying down, and are acquainted with all my ways.   I come to the end—I am still with you.

 

The question beloved and invited guests at the Table today:

            will I submit to the will, purpose and timing of the Lord,

                who is always present and faithful,  with me and for me?…

                            … will I trust and receive the grace of the Lord this day?