Jesus on the Road to Emmaus

Acknowledging God

All Glory and Honor

He Has Risen

Luke 24:13-24 The Message

The Road to Emmaus

13-16 That same day two of them were walking to the village Emmaus, about seven miles out of Jerusalem. They were deep in conversation, going over all these things that had happened. In the middle of their talk and questions, Jesus came up and walked along with them. But they were not able to recognize who he was.
17-18 He asked, “What’s this you’re discussing so intently as you walk along?”
They just stood there, long-faced, like they had lost their best friend. Then one of them, his name was Cleopas, said, “Are you the only one in Jerusalem who hasn’t heard what’s happened during the last few days?”
19-24 He said, “What has happened?”
They said, “The things that happened to Jesus the Nazarene. He was a man of God, a prophet, dynamic in work and word, blessed by both God and all the people. Then our high priests and leaders betrayed him, got him sentenced to death, and crucified him. And we had our hopes up that he was the One, the One about to deliver Israel. And it is now the third day since it happened. But now some of our women have completely confused us. Early this morning they were at the tomb and couldn’t find his body. They came back with the story that they had seen a vision of angels who said he was alive. Some of our friends went off to the tomb to check and found it empty just as the women said, but they didn’t see Jesus.”

For Reflection

They did not recognize Jesus because they did not expect to see Him again. The explanation offered in the discussion of the Christ Event shows us how deeply disappointed they were in His death.  Perhaps they expected Jesus to return, but not so soon.  They didn't know what to make of the reports of Christ's disappearance from the tomb.  In spite of Jesus's foretelling his passion, they could not see Christ.  

Pray

Pray so that you will be able to see the Living God, Christ walking beside you, counseling you, comforting, you, and encouraging you. Pray.

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Live in Humble Service

Acknowledging God

All Glory and Honor

He Has Risen

John 13:12-17 The Message

10-12 Jesus said, “If you’ve had a bath in the morning, you only need your feet washed now and you’re clean from head to toe. My concern, you understand, is holiness, not hygiene. So now you’re clean. But not every one of you.” (He knew who was betraying him. That’s why he said, “Not every one of you.”) After he had finished washing their feet, he took his robe, put it back on, and went back to his place at the table.
12-17 Then he said, “Do you understand what I have done to you? You address me as ‘Teacher’ and ‘Master,’ and rightly so. That is what I am. So if I, the Master and Teacher, washed your feet, you must now wash each other’s feet. I’ve laid down a pattern for you. What I’ve done, you do. I’m only pointing out the obvious. A servant is not ranked above his master; an employee doesn’t give orders to the employer. If you understand what I’m telling you, act like it—and live a blessed life.

For Reflection

All life events are, to some extent, clouded by mystery!  Think not?  Think again. Do you always have all the information to perceive a life event in all its nuances, its history or its impact on the future?  We have a hard enough time perceiving our present accurately. To what extent do we know the motives of others, or their feelings, or intentions? Our understandings are always filtered by our expectations, values, attitudes, beliefs, and experiences. We are not hard-wired to each other nor to God. There are things hidden from us because of our limitations to see.

Christ wanted to make sure that the Disciples understood the implications of His life.  Jesus wanted the Disciples to understand that following Him would require a second order change in how they see themselves, their communities and their God.  Jesus wanted them to understand how obedience to the will of God would change the way they live their lives.

Pray

Pray, study, and discuss the meaning of the Holy Scriptures.  Pray so that you will be able to become a more authentic Christian. Pray to follow the will of God.

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Wash One Another's Feet

Acknowledging God

All Glory and Honor

He Has Risen

John 13:1-6 The Message

Washing His Disciples’ Feet

13 1-2 Just before the Passover Feast, Jesus knew that the time had come to leave this world to go to the Father. Having loved his dear companions, he continued to love them right to the end. It was suppertime. The Devil by now had Judas, son of Simon the Iscariot, firmly in his grip, all set for the betrayal.
3-6 Jesus knew that the Father had put him in complete charge of everything, that he came from God and was on his way back to God. So he got up from the supper table, set aside his robe, and put on an apron. Then he poured water into a basin and began to wash the feet of the disciples, drying them with his apron. When he got to Simon Peter, Peter said, “Master, you wash my feet?”

For Reflection

What could Jesus have done? He could have chosen to call Judas out, charged him with conspiracy, and set the disciples upon him. He could have struck Judas down and made a public display of Judas treachery. Christ chose instead to wash the disciple's feet. It was an act of service, an act of kindness, an act of grace. The foot washing was withheld from no one. It was an act of prime Christian obedience to the will of God. It was an act that defied the conventional response to fear, persecution, and violence.  It defines a preferred response to the corporal world's common reactions.

Pray

Pray. Meditate on Christs foot washing. Think about the times you could have chosen an alternative response to a perceived threat. Imagine the result of an alternative answer. Pray for the courage to take a Christ-like path to resolve untoward issues.

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Do This in Remembrance of Me

Acknowledging God

All Glory and Honor

He Has Risen

1 Corinthians 11:23-26 Amplified Bible

The Lord’s Supper

23 [a]For I received from the Lord Himself that [instruction] which I passed on to you, that the Lord Jesus on the night in which He was betrayed took bread; 24 and when He had given thanks, He broke it and said, “This is (represents) My body, which is [offered as a sacrifice] for you. Do this in [affectionate] remembrance of Me.” 25 In the same way, after supper He took the cup, saying, “This cup is the new covenant [ratified and established] in My blood; do this, as often as you drink it, in [affectionate] remembrance of Me.” 26 For every time you eat this bread and drink this cup, you are [symbolically] proclaiming [the fact of] the Lord’s death until He comes [again].

For Reflection

Received from the Lord, Paul's words make the sacrament of the Lord's Supper as important to Christians as Passover is to Jews. Christians are to remember the Passion of Christ as a salvation story just as the Jews remember the salvation from in the Passover.  We are to remember that our salvation paid in blood is both spiritual and physical. We are to remember Christ's victory over violence.  We are to remember Christ's remarkable grace.  We are to remember Christ's willingness to forgive.  We are to remember Christ's abiding obedience to the will of God. We are to remember our role in the realization of God's Kingdom.

Pray

Pray so that you will remember the Christ Event.  Pray so that you will develop a more intimate relationship with God.  Pray so that you will remember your God Story.

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Jesus Foretells His Suffering and Death

Acknowledging God

All Glory and Honor

He Has Risen

Mark 8:31, 9:1 Amplified Bible 

31 And He began to teach them that the Son of Man must [of necessity] suffer many things and be rejected [as the Messiah] by the elders and the chief priests and the scribes, and must be put to death, and after three days rise [from death to life].

The Transfiguration
9 And Jesus said to them, “I assure you and most solemnly say to you, there are some of those who are standing here who will not taste (experience) death before they see the kingdom of God after it has come with power.”

For Reflection

Jesus had to experience a violent death to show the world that violence does not result in peace as the religious leaders had expected.  The expected messiah was supposed to fight their battles for them. But in His resurrection, this messiah defeated death and established a kingdom with a foundation of self-sacrifice and compassion.  In spite of all attempts to squash the movement, God created God's Kingdom on Earth.  Some were so blinded by their expectations and desires to keep the status quo, they could not perceive God's presence in Christ nor the establishment of God's kingdom.

Pray

Pray so that you will become aware of God's presence in your life.  Pray for those who see beyond their realities into the kingdom. Pray for those who are willing to die for God.  In death, there is no sting.

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Jesus and the Road to Emmaus

Acknowledging God

All Glory and Honor

He Has Risen

Luke 24:13-24 The Message

The Road to Emmaus

13-16 That same day two of them were walking to the village Emmaus, about seven miles out of Jerusalem. They were deep in conversation, going over all these things that had happened. In the middle of their talk and questions, Jesus came up and walked along with them. But they were not able to recognize who he was.
17-18 He asked, “What’s this you’re discussing so intently as you walk along?”
They just stood there, long-faced, like they had lost their best friend. Then one of them, his name was Cleopas, said, “Are you the only one in Jerusalem who hasn’t heard what’s happened during the last few days?”
19-24 He said, “What has happened?”
They said, “The things that happened to Jesus the Nazarene. He was a man of God, a prophet, dynamic in work and word, blessed by both God and all the people. Then our high priests and leaders betrayed him, got him sentenced to death, and crucified him. And we had our hopes up that he was the One, the One about to deliver Israel. And it is now the third day since it happened. But now some of our women have completely confused us. Early this morning they were at the tomb and couldn’t find his body. They came back with the story that they had seen a vision of angels who said he was alive. Some of our friends went off to the tomb to check and found it empty just as the women said, but they didn’t see Jesus.”

For Reflection

They did not recognize Jesus because they did not expect to see Him again. The explanation offered in the discussion of the Christ Event shows us how deeply disappointed they were in His death.  Perhaps they expected Jesus to return, but not so soon.  They didn't know what to make of the reports of Christ's disappearance from the tomb.  In spite of Jesus's foretelling his passion, they could not see Christ.  

Pray

Pray so that you will be able to see the Living God, Christ walking beside you, counseling you, comforting, you, and encouraging you. Pray.

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Dangerous Results of Unfaithful Action

Acknowledging God

Follow in My Ways

Keep My Statutes and Ordinances

1 Kings 9:6-9 The Message

6-9 “But if you or your sons betray me, ignoring my guidance and judgments, taking up with alien gods by serving and worshiping them, then the guarantee is off: I’ll wipe Israel right off the map and repudiate this Temple I’ve just sanctified to honor my Name. And Israel will become nothing but a bad joke among the peoples of the world. And this Temple, splendid as it now is, will become an object of contempt; visitors will shake their heads, saying, ‘Whatever happened here? What’s the story behind these ruins?’ Then they’ll be told, ‘The people who used to live here betrayed their God, the very God who rescued their ancestors from Egypt; they took up with alien gods, worshiping and serving them. That’s what’s behind this God-visited devastation.’”

For Reflection

Hard Question:
Does God punish? Perhaps so. But if God punishes, God rarely (if ever) has done so without hope of blessings to follow--a path to reconciliation.  Many scholars of scripture call it God's chiding or course correction.

Much of the time, I think, God has just let those who sin suffer its natural consequence.  God chooses not to intervene but repeats God's overture to accept light over darkness. 

Pray

Pray so that you develop a more intimate relationship with God.  Pray so that your life choices result in the blessings that naturally follow your abiding love for God.

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