| First
Reading | Psalm | Epistle | Gospel |
| Acts
2-14a, 36-14 | 116:1-17 | 1
Peter 1;17-23 | Luke
24:13-35 |
The
book of Genesis contains the ancient tale of God who in the guise of three strangers,
approached the camp of Sarah and Abraham. True to ancient custom of the desert,
the strangers were received with the utmost hospitality, and a substantial meal
was prepared. Time had not been kind to Abraham and Sarah. God had promised them
a large family. Yet as the years went by and they moved from place to place with
their flocks, the promise of many descendants grew dim. The desert becomes lonely
and dangerous when there are no future generations to take your place.
All
these forebodings were pushed aside as evening wore on. It became apparent that
their guests were no ordinary travelers who had gone astray. Finally there came
the arresting revelation that God was among them, eating with them, in their tent.
The roles of host and guest became reversed. At the end of the evening, God departed
from Abraham and Sarah after reiterating the original blessing. A renewed sense
of hope and meaning for their life came with the cool dawn. They were assured
that they would indeed have a family and that their descendants would, in turn,
populate the earth and convey a blessing to all humanity. Perhaps the most important
part of the divine blessing was that it encompassed a vision of a much wider life
than just the immediate future or known world.
It
has been suggested that the story of the disciples on the road to Emmaus was patterned
after this ancient story of Israel's ancestors. The disciples were leaving Jerusalem
behind, their hope in Jesus seemingly slipping into disillusionment . Yes they
had heard some rumors, but as they trudged to Emmaus, these stories seemed more
and more improbable. A stranger joined them and they shared with him their disappointment.
The stranger took their doubts and began to put their story into a much larger
context. A lot of what Jesus had said began to fall into place. Connections and
patterns never remotely appreciated and heretofore confusing, began to emerge.
The disciples invited this stranger to share a meal and spend the night with them.
As the evening progressed, it became apparent, that this stranger, too, was no
ordinary traveler. At some point there was a gasp with the cry, "It is the
risen Lord!" Jesus vanished from their sight, but not before leaving a blessing,
a blessing that fulfilled all of God's promises and opened up a road much wider
and a journey much longer than any road between Emmaus and Jerusalem. It is no
wonder that the disciples felt energized after that night with Jesus. Rather than
sleeping, they immediately returned to Jerusalem, proclaiming Jesus was risen
indeed.
One
of the factors contributing greatly to exhaustion and depression, is falling into
the trap that we have to do it alone, that it all depends on us, and if we fail,
all will be lost. There will be no one to help us and no one else will truly understand
anyway. I suspect what helps to tie these two stories together is the revelation
that we are not alone, we don't have to do it all, and that the present and the
future doesn't simply depend on us. In both these stories the roles are fluid,
God is both guest and host, and so are we. God is there for us and we are also
allowed to be there for God. God is giving us an example — to invite, to
let others, even strangers, into our lives and hearts.
In
the days after Easter, Jesus appears to the disciples, asking "Have you any
fish; do you have any food? Come let us sit down together at table, or on the
sand of the lake shore. Come, let our fellowship refresh and encourage us."
The risen Jesus, like the pre-Easter Jesus, accepts mutual help from his friends.
In
encounters, when two or three are gathered together, when barriers between host
and guest, giver and receiver become ambivalent, I wonder if the spirit of the
risen Jesus doesn't slip in. At first we may be unaware, but then we gradually
sense that we have been given a deeper vision and the promise of a richer blessing.
We too, become energized again just as the disciples who one walked the Emmaus
road.
And
I offer this to you in the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, Amen
