B, Easter Day
Luke 24:13-35 The Rev.
Prayer: O Lord to see you is the end and the beginning. You carry us and you go before us. You are the journey and the journey’s end. Amen.
In our Gospel story this evening, two men are doing what all
of us have done at one time or another.
Two individuals are going on a trip.
They are traveling from
As they are traveling, they begin to do what we would do, if
we were taking a trip with a friend.
These men talk about what’s on their mind. They talk about current events. They discuss the events that happened in
Now, some of their friends had also heard that some women had gone to Jesus’ tomb and they had seen a vision with Angels who said Jesus was alive. Then some of their friends went to the tomb and the stone was rolled away and it was empty, just as the women had said. These men had not gone to the tomb, but their friends had. They had heard these stories and this is what these men were talking about as they walked along. They didn’t know what to make of Jesus’ death and they certainly didn’t know what to make of the empty tomb.
As they walk down the road, talking about these things, they
encounter a fellow traveler. This
traveler walks with them for awhile and asks what they
were talking about. The traveler asked
them why they looked sad. The men
said—are you the only one who doesn’t know what’s
happened in
The men on the road tell their new acquaintance about Jesus. They tell him about his death and these confusing stories about an empty tomb and a vision their friends had seen with angels who said Jesus was alive. Then…this stranger who had recently joined them has the audacity and the boldness to give these men a scripture lesson. As they walk along, the stranger takes them back to the Old Testament and tells them that Moses and the prophets had foretold that the Messiah would undergo such things. In the stranger’s scripture lesson, the stranger must have reminded them that the Messiah would come from King David’s line. He probably reminded them about the prophet Isaiah foretelling in chapter 53 that the Messiah would be a Suffering Servant.
When the three reached their destination, the town of
That evening, when they sat down to eat, something unexpected happened. The stranger took the bread, blessed and broke and gave it to them. The scripture says their eyes were opened and the two travelers recognized the stranger that had spent the better part of the day with them. They recognized that Jesus had been the stranger on the road that had walked with them and talked with them and had explained the scriptures to them.
Jesus suddenly disappears from their midst and that night
these two men decide to walk all the way back to
This story about these two travelers comes at the end of Luke’s Gospel and it is rich in material for our reflection. In several ways I think we can identify with the two travelers. We may find ourselves like the travelers in the story trying to discern the meaning of the Gospel story. We may wonder what to make of the stories of the Crucifixion. We may wonder what to make of the stories about Jesus’ empty tomb.
One thing that has always stood out to me is that the two travelers in the story did not recognize the stranger in their midst. Why did it take them so long to recognize Jesus?
What was going on with them that they didn’t see Him or recognize Jesus sooner? The text doesn’t give us any indication.
I think there is an implication here for our day to day life. If you think about it, we could ask ourselves these same questions. Certainly the circumstances are different—we aren’t talking with Jesus as we walk down a road. The question and implication for us is why don’t we recognize Jesus in our own lives? What is it about us, or what is it about our life that keeps us from recognizing our Lord in our day to day activities?
Most of us have a lot of things we are juggling. Many of us have a lot of things on our mind. Maybe stress in our life is keeping us from recognizing Jesus. If we are worried about our finances or worried about losing our job or supporting our family that might be the number one thing on our mind. If we—or if someone we love is seriously ill and fighting a disease—the illness and the thought of losing our loved one might be the most important thing on our mind. Sometimes we naturally focus on what we worry about. We focus on the things that bring stress into our lives.
In the story, as they went on their way, the travelers
talked about what was on their mind.
They were confused and disturbed about what happened in
I think this points to the idea that focusing on what we are worried about and stressed about can keep us from seeing the presence of the risen Christ in our lives. In the story, Jesus was walking with the travelers for the better part of a day and they didn’t even know it. In a similar way, Jesus travels with us in our lives. One way to think about it, is that Jesus walks with us every day. The presence and Spirit of God is with us as we go about our daily life and daily activities.
Sometimes you and I have to ask God to open our eyes and help us to see God’s presence in our life. God is with us as we travel through life. Sometimes we don’t recognize Him.
It was in the act of sharing their bread with a stranger that they recognized the risen Lord in the fellow traveler. They reached out to someone else in hospitality and friendship. They shared what they had with the stranger. The implication might be that we recognize Jesus when we give to others. The implication might be that we see Jesus when we do the things Jesus might do—when we give, when we share, when we serve.
Finally, notice that it was at the table, sharing a meal together that they discovered their traveling companion was the Lord himself. In just a moment we will have a meal together. We’ll celebrate Communion with one another. As we always do at every Communion service, we’ll ask the Spirit of the risen Lord to join us.
By God’s grace, I suspect that you and I will find that like the two travelers on the road… the Risen Lord will be ‘known to us in the breaking of bread.’
Happy Easter!
Amen.