Road to Emmaus

3rd Sunday of Easter

Reading: Luke 24:13-35

Grace and peace to you in the name of the Father, Son, & Holy Spirit. Amen.

I don’t know about you, but this past week was one of the hardest for me. For whatever reason, this was the week that it hit me, really settled into my bones, that this quarantined life is going to stay awhile. At first I took comfort in the ‘temporary,’ getting by with the ‘one day at a time’ mentality, but now, facing another month and probably more of solitude, I figure it’s time to settle in for the ride and embrace the journey. Perhaps you’ve had similar moments with yourself or your family this week. Perhaps you too have hit a wall, maybe even more so because of the confused signals you are getting from different leaders around the world.

We are all handling this virus differently, but I think we are all on the same road to Emmaus. The two disciples of Jesus we heard about in the gospel this morning were on a journey home, leaving behind dashed hopes and dreams, carrying enormous grief having had experienced a traumatic event. We too are experiencing trauma. We too are on a journey of immense grief.

They had been oppressed and dreamed of a liberator. They had gotten their hopes up, let themselves believe that Jesus was the Messiah, anticipated a Roman defeat and instead they not only watched their perceived Messiah die, but felt that very death inside of them too, like swallowing a stone, sinking to the pit of their stomachs. They had heard what the women said, that the tomb was empty, but so what? They didn’t seem to believe he had risen, for they begun their long journey home, back to ‘life as they knew it before.’

Whoever these disciples were (fishermen, tax-collectors, shepherds) they were on the road back to ‘normal,’ back to ‘life as they knew it.’ All the way they were mulling over their experience, grappling what it all could mean, probably wondering if any of it was even worth it… Then a stranger joins them and wants to hear about their experience, perhaps the only being on the continent that hasn’t heard of this fellow Jesus and what happened to him. Yet this stranger ends up explaining to them how of course it was necessary for this Jesus to die! He seems an informed Jew, well aware of the Scripture and able to put all the pieces together starting from the very beginning. Yet the disciples are still unaware of this stranger’s true identity.

Having finally reached Emmaus, the stranger seems to have every intention of continuing on to who knows where, but the disciples graciously invite him to stay. To stay and eat. Maybe because they were originally very hospitable people, but perhaps this practice was something they embraced from the example of Jesus. Either way, it is then, in the breaking of the bread that their Savior is revealed to them. In the simple sharing of a meal, in the simple breaking of bread the risen Christ is revealed to have been in their midst all along.

What was it that blinded them from seeing Christ before? Why was it that Jesus did not reveal his

identity before now? I have so many questions! But perhaps, it was grief. Their heartache and pain glazed over their eyes and over their hearts.. the grief like a swallowed stone pulling their gaze down to the ground instead of into the eyes of this stranger. For it is in our hardest times that we often feel the furthest from God.. and they had literally just watched their supposed God die! What was the point? Where was the hope? And Jesus.. Jesus does not barge onto their path demanding they cheer up or think positive.. instead he joins them on their journey. Listens to them. Shares God’s Word, God’s history with them. And sits down with them for dinner. As seminary professor, Matt Skinner says, “lament takes time. And sometimes lament is the journey that leads us… to recognition and new life. That new life walks alongside us, patiently, whether we know it or not.”

This morning it is you and I on the road to Emmaus, full of grief or some emotion that remains unnamable at least for now.. we are on this journey trying to walk back towards ‘normalcy’ and mulling over what has happened and is happening and what it all might mean for the future.. we may wonder how we could ever go back to normal again?.. We may not be able to fully comprehend and make meaning out of what is happening just yet.. but we know something big has taken place, something life altering, something that will change the world as we know it forever.. and maybe that’s not a bad thing.

Hold onto your seat for a second, unpopular opinion coming your way… I don’t believe that everything happens for a reason.. but I DO believe that God takes whatever DOES happen and transforms it into life. The disciples witness a murder of a beloved, supposed Savior. Something TERRIBLE happened! Yet God transformed death into LIFE! And that has been the business of God all along and I certainly don’t expect God to stop now. Something TERRIBLE has happened and is happening. Thousands have lost their lives to this virus! Make no mistake there is reason to grieve. BUT make no mistake, God is still present. Christ himself walks this road with us, patiently journeys with us, whether we recognize it or not. God is at work bringing life out of death yesterday, today, and tomorrow.

I see this life breaking through in the ways we are taking care of one another. My great-grandma, she’s 98 and my favorite person in the whole world, she lives alone and she has taken a few bad falls this year. Out of the blue her niece who she hasn’t seen for 30 some odd years is a healthcare professional and she called grandma up and now she comes almost daily to take the dog out, take out the trash, make sure grandma is comfortable and has food and everything she needs. This is life. I see this life breaking through when I see pictures of big cities like Los Angeles before and after going into lock-down and the skies are clear! I see this life breaking through when I see animals embracing having their habitats to themselves and multiplying! This is life.

We have experienced a collective trauma and life will never be the same as it once was.. but perhaps we will rise up to new life, better life. Stronger. Together. Finding life in one another rather than in consuming products. Finding life in the skies, trees, wildlife, and animals we see from the road of our journey… all life created by God, created with as much intent as God created humanity with..

On this road to wherever it is we are going.. may we leave space to lament.. but may we also sit down together, break bread, and reveal God in our midst. The Lord God lives among us, walks with us and leads us home. May we follow with open ears and open eyes, always ready and willing to be transformed into new life. Amen.