The Lord has blessed us with a brilliant and beautiful week, with showers and plenty of sunshine. We are blessed to have Micah and Simeon with us here for a week. They have been riding their bikes in the parking lot - a big thrill to ride their bigger bikes here for the first time. We have been able to take them to some of the beautiful places in the area - farms, parks, playgrounds. Yesterday afternoon I spent some time in the garage, when I found it needful to take something to the basement. When I did so, Micah and Simeon, not having seen me go, got worried about me. They looked for me, but couldn't find me, so they called 911 to say they couldn't find Grandpa - he's lost! We were all delighted once we found each other. There is always joy somewhere when the lost is found.
We will meet for our mid-week service beginning with a meal at 6:00 PM, followed by Bible study at 6:30 PM, then adult choir practice at 7:30 PM.
I have been reading on the post-resurrection appearance of our Risen Lord. One of the moving and powerful appearances of our Lord took place in Luke 24. It was an evening scene taking place on the First Easter Evening. As the travelers made their weary way to Emmaus a stranger fell in alongside them. For them it was going to be one of the most wonderful walks in history! We know, of course, that it was the risen Jesus, but somehow the travelers didn’t recognize him. In fact, Luke tells us, "they were kept from recognizing him." It wasn’t an accident that they didn’t notice who he was, or else they were too preoccupied to look Him in the eye. Our Lord was Risen but not recognized. The stranger asked them, "What are you discussing together as you walk along?" Then they poured out their sad story to someone who seemed so willing to listen.
How wonderfully kind and compassionate is our Lord. He could well have been upset with them, to say the least, for their lack of faith in him. Hadn’t he told them that "unless a seed dies, it abides alone, but if it dies it bears much fruit"? (John 12:24). Yet, Jesus did not berate them; rather, "In his infinite courtesy, Jesus remembered the frailty of over-strained nerves and bewildered minds and came, not too suddenly or overwhelming upon them, but in a way which He alone could do, revealed Himself as the Risen Christ."
The way that Jesus dealt with the situation is a lesson to all that are in a position to help those who have lost hope. Those who are without hope need companionship. They need a listening ear more than a stream of good advice. The last thing needed is a brisk "cheering up", idle talk, the well-meant instruction to "snap out of it". Instead, let us come alongside, and love them by listening, by accepting what it is that they feel.
The way that Jesus dealt with the situation is a lesson to all that are in a position to help those who have lost hope. Those who are without hope need companionship. They need a listening ear more than a stream of good advice. The last thing needed is a brisk "cheering up", idle talk, the well-meant instruction to "snap out of it". Instead, let us come alongside, and love them by listening, by accepting what it is that they feel.
The spokesman for the travelers, Cleopas, expressed surprise at even being asked what was worrying them, "Are you the only one living in Jerusalem who doesn’t know the things that have happened there in these days?" There seems to have been a note of incredulity in the voice of Cleopas, but Jesus continued patiently and asked, "What things?" "About Jesus of Nazareth," they eagerly replied.
The two Emmaus-bound disciples were correct in their theology as far as it went. They told the stranger that this Jesus "was a prophet, powerful in word and deed before God and all the people" (20). The use of the past tense implies that He wasn’t relevant to the present; otherwise they wouldn’t have been in their present downcast state of mind. Their experience of Jesus was in the past, and they thought they were alone. The Cross had taken Him from them, and their minds could not make sense of the changed situation, or adjust to it. Their understanding of the Cross limited, and the experience had only negative connotations to them.
The two Emmaus-bound disciples were correct in their theology as far as it went. They told the stranger that this Jesus "was a prophet, powerful in word and deed before God and all the people" (20). The use of the past tense implies that He wasn’t relevant to the present; otherwise they wouldn’t have been in their present downcast state of mind. Their experience of Jesus was in the past, and they thought they were alone. The Cross had taken Him from them, and their minds could not make sense of the changed situation, or adjust to it. Their understanding of the Cross limited, and the experience had only negative connotations to them.
We have all heard exciting testimonies of what Jesus has done in the past - but what about the present? The past is history. Jesus is, and must continue to be, a present reality. He continues to come alongside us. Do we always recognize him beside us? Life has many distractions - hard work, routine, tiredness, ill health - which can so grind us down that we carry on mechanically, never lifting our eyes - or minds - from the dust of the earthly road we travel. We become unaware of the glory and strength of His presence with us. Life loses its meaning and leaves us washed out, but this story gives us hope.
Jesus is still here among us. He is the unseen "stranger", walking with us, listening to us and, if we are willing to hear his voice, revealing himself to us. Christ is risen from the dead! Christ is the Savior! Christ is the hope of the world!
Jesus is still here among us. He is the unseen "stranger", walking with us, listening to us and, if we are willing to hear his voice, revealing himself to us. Christ is risen from the dead! Christ is the Savior! Christ is the hope of the world!
The two disciples lost no time in retracing their steps to Jerusalem to share the Good News. May that be our experience this Easter time and for the rest of our lives.
In Christ,
Brown
Friday April 20, 2012
Television Outreach
Time Warner Cable Channel 4
Time 7:00 PM
Saturday Evening Worship Service:
Location: First United Methodist Church
53 McKinley Avenue
Endicott, NY
Sponsored by: Union Center United Methodist Church
Time: 6:00 PM gathering for Coffee Fellowship
6:30 PM Worship Service
Date: Saturday, April 21, 2012
Speaker: Dave Hettinger
Special Music by Jane Hettinger
