Jesus Meets Us Where We Are, Ås We Are

Sermon for April 10, 2005

1. Good Morning! Let’s Pray – O Lord, may the words of my mouth and the meditations of our hearts be pleasing to You O Lord, our Rock and our Redeemer. Amen.

2. Opening Comments: Well guess what, we have the same Gospel reading for today as we had on Easter Sunday – that’s interesting isn’t it? I have to believe that our Lord wants us to dig a little deeper on this one.

This reminds me of the joke about the new preacher who preached a scintillating inaugural sermon and preached the same sermon on the following Sunday and so on and so one for the next 6 weeks when finally the Chief Elder of the Church thought it was about time he found out what was going on. When he asked the preacher why he was doing this the preacher answered something like this, “I suppose I’m awaitin until y’all git it. When ya git it, I’ll move on!” Do I hear an “Amen” out there? Ha!

Well can anybody remember what we focused on during Easter Sunday? No . . . neither could I quite frankly. We focused on the “Road to Emmaus” passage.

It’s important to realize that with very good reason, the story of the road to Emmaus is thought to be the best parallel we have in the New Testament to our weekly celebration of the Eucharist. This idea could be a little surprising to some who might think the Last Supper would hold more similarities. Luke, however, reminds his community, who are like us, that even though they, like us, are prevented from seeing Jesus, they can still have a life-changing experience of His presence.

The disciples are on a journey of faith and Jesus meets them where they are, as they are.

3. Review of the Scripture. Let’s review the story once more and look for how Jesus meets these disciples. Let’s learn from Him how He meets us and how He can meet others through us. In other words, our reflection this morning is not only going to be instructive on how Jesus comes to us but will help us know better how to approach others in our growing commitment to disciple others.

Let’s remember that Jesus has just died on the cross. We know that He has just been resurrected but these two desolate disciples of His don’t know this and they’re about as depressed as you can get. Let’s looks once again at how He comes to them and remember this is how He comes to you and how we, perhaps, are to come to others.

Please turn with me to the Gospel of Luke chapter 24:13-35:

Luke 24:13 Now that same day (as Jesus’ resurrection) two of His disciples were going to a village called Emmaus, about seven miles from Jerusalem. 14 They were talking with each other about everything that had happened. 15 As they talked and discussed these things with each other, Jesus himself came up and walked along with them; 16 but they were kept from recognizing him. Why? Why were they kept from recognizing Him? Could it have been to show then and us that Jesus comes to us in all sorts of disguises but come to us He most certainly does. Do you remember that statement that I often quote from Pierre De Caussade – “A living faith is nothing else than a steadfast pursuit of God through all that disguises, disfigures, demolishes, and seeks, so to speak, to abolish Him.” Could it be that Jesus was teaching these disciples how to ‘sense” Him – to learn how to trust their hearts? For we will learn soon that ‘their hearts were burning within them as He spoke’ but their eyes didn’t recognize Him – but – yes, but their hearts did! They didn’t realize that the Risen Lord Himself was their traveling companion! How much does our reality reflect theirs? We, like them, may not see the extraordinary in the ordinary!

Let read on verse: 17 He asked them, “What are you discussing together as you walk along?” Jesus didn’t tell first He asked first. He met them where they were, as they were.

They stood still, their faces downcast. 18 One of them, named Cleopas, asked him, “Are you only a visitor to Jerusalem and do not know the things that have happened there in these days?” Cleopas can’t believe that the tragedy of what has happened hasn’t affected everyone. The gloom he felt covered the entire world and yet here was someone apparently unaffected by it.

And Jesus replied to His question with this statement: 19 “What things?”

And His disciples replied, “About Jesus of Nazareth He was a prophet, Did you hear that – “He WAS” a PROPHET! He WAS – past tense, and what was He? A Prophet – not God, not Lord but a Prophet. Let’s read on: He was a prophet, powerful in word and deed before God and all the people. 20 The chief priests and our rulers handed him over to be sentenced to death, and they crucified him; 21 but we had hoped – Did you hear that “HAD HOPED” – what had they hoped? - that he was the one who was going to redeem Israel. And what is more, it is the third day since all this took place. 22 In addition, some of our women amazed us. They went to the tomb early this morning 23 but didn’t find his body. They came and told us that they had seen a vision of angels, who said he was alive. 24 Then some of our companions went to the tomb and found it just as the women had said, but him they did not see.” Here we’re told that they had heard about Christ’s resurrection appearances but still they were down cast. Does this remind you of our reflection upon doubting Thomas last Sunday?

Does this remind you of yourself? How often are you down case – depressed – forgetful – so easily forgetful that Jesus is resurrected – He’s alive and well and comes to us on the dusty byways of our individual lives – even to you and you and you and me! But we, more often than not, don’t recognize Him – what a tragedy that most of us live out our Christian lives as if He were just a memory and not a real and living present being – present with us – not always visible to us but no less present to us in the “dailyness” of our lives!

Do you believe this? This is precisely what Jesus wants us to believe right now – right here.

He wants us to believe that He comes to us to listen to us – to stand with us and ultimately to reveal Himself to us – but I’m getting ahead of myself. Let’s return to the reading – verse 25:

Luke 24:25 He said to them, “How foolish you are, and how slow of heart to believe all that the prophets have spoken! Wow! Now that’s good counseling technique isn’t it? That sounds like most of our very gentle and very “pastoral” pastors of today. Never challenging but ever encouraging – ever permissive. But Jesus, the Good Shepherd says to us - “How foolish you are, and how slow of heart to believe all that the prophets have spoken! Slow of heart to believe. Slow of heart to believe! Is this an indictment of your faith and mine? Are you and I “slow of heart to believe.” Like the disciples, our hearts may burn but still we refuse to believe – we’re so terribly “slow of heart” aren’t we – O Lord “speed up our heats” we pray – Amen! Let’s read on – verse 26:

26 Did not the Christ have to suffer these things and then enter his glory?” So you hear what Jesus is saying here? He’s saying that what has happened was prophesied many many times in the Old Testament – why then are you so shocked? The prophets told you again and again that the Christ was going to have to suffer but then He would most certainly enter His glory! Can’t you hear His chastisement? Can you hear it aimed at you? I can feeling Him aiming it right at me here and now!

O Lord forgive us and speed up our hearts we pray in the name of our resurrected Lord . . . Amen!

Now let’s read on: 27 And beginning with Moses and all the Prophets, he explained to them what was said in all the Scriptures concerning himself. Wow! He – God incarnated . . . explained – revealed – showed them where He was spoken of again and again in the Old Testament.

How do you think they reacted to Jesus explanations? . . . . . . . . Wonder? Joy? Ecstasy? Fascination? Yes, probably all of these! Let’s read on:

Luke 24:28 As they approached the village to which they were going, Jesus acted as if he were going farther. Now I want to stop here and examine this action of Jesus – what did it say again, “He acted as if.” The Greek word being used here is “prospoie÷omai” and it means to imitate a particular type of behavior as a means of indicating a presumed intent. It means ‘to pretend, to give the impression that, to act as though.’ Can you hear what we’re being told about how God disciples us? He’s not beyond “pretending” to teach us, to entice us, to draw us into His intent!

He acts as if… sometimes! Is our Lord in Your life? Is He with you as He is with these disciples? We can know one thing that He’s doing everything in His power to disciple us – to draw us into apprehending His presence with us. He wants us to want Him – He wants us to respond to the “burning in our hearts” so much that we reach out and draw Him to ourselves – just as these disciples drew Him to them! Ah! He’s a tease – to the end that we would reach out for Him! Ha! Let’s read on now:

29 But they urged him strongly, This is what they did – this is what we’re also to do – we’re to “urge Him strongly!” when was the last time you urged Jesus strongly? Ha – I suspect that you haven’t done this for a long time – like me.

Let’s read on: 29 But they urged him strongly “Stay with us, for it is nearly evening; the day is almost over.” So he went in to stay with them. Have you ever asked Jesus just to stay with you? Now there’s a thought. As we begin to pray – could we ask Him to stay with us to hear our prayers – to become present to Him as we pray!

Let’s read on:

Luke 24:30 When he was at the table with them, he took bread, gave thanks, broke it and began to give it to them. 31 Then their eyes were opened and they recognized him, and he disappeared from their sight. Then they recognized Him – When was that again? When He broke the bread! We’ll come back to that soon.

It’s interesting isn’t it – almost curious that Jesus sudden disappearance of Jesus doesn’t seem to cause them distress! Why I wonder? Could it be that they have a profound realization that He will come again! Ah! That’s the great anticipation of all of us – He will most assuredly come again! He told us “Lo, I am with you always to the very end of the age! Ah!

Reading on : 32 They asked each other, “Were not our hearts burning within us while he talked with us on the road and opened the Scriptures to us?” Here we see them realizing what their own hearts were trying to tell them! How is the resurrected Lord revealed to us? Yes, BY WAY OF OUR HEARTS! OH HOW HARD THIS IS FOR THOSE OF US WHO HAVEN’T YET LEARED TO “SEE AND HEAR WITH THEIR HEARTS!”

Let’s read on: Luke 24:33 They got up and returned at once to Jerusalem. There they found the Eleven and those with them, assembled together 34 and saying, “It’s true! The Lord has risen and has appeared to Simon.” 35 Then the two told what had happened on the way, and how Jesus was recognized by them when he broke the bread.

What did they tell them? That they recognized Jesus too but when did they recognize Him? Yes! . . . when He broke bread!

What is this “broke bread” code for? Yes, the Eucharist. It’s in the Eucharist – in the breaking of the Bread that our eyes are opened and we’re able to see what our hearts are revealing to us – our host – the Lord Jesus Christ Himself!

And so it’s in the Eucharist that the Church offers the hospitality of the risen Lord to the unseeing and lonely world!

Let me close with a quote from Fr. Richard Leonard S.J.

“Every Sunday as part of our journey of faith we embark on our road to Emmaus. There is never any point in us coming here pretending to be different from how we actually feel and who we are. God sees our hearts and minds and wants to meet us in the midst of our lives, whatever they may be like. The Emmaus story teaches us that Jesus firstly wants to listen to us before He wants us to listen to Him.

Emmaus, however, was not just about the disciples and their lives, in the same way that the Eucharist is not just about our lives either. Christ opens the scriptures to us each week so that we can make sense of our experience, see the ways in which God is present and absent and recognize our own foolishness. As with the Emmaus disciples, we are welcomed to the table of the Lord where we recognize Christ in the breaking of the bread and the pouring of the cup. This meal enables us to go out from here and proclaim to all we meet that Christ is risen!”

Amen and Amen!

Let’s pray . . .