A Note From Rob ...
Week of April 26
The Gospel lesson from Luke this week follows Jesus’ appearance to those walking to Emmaus after the
resurrection. It is an important one because as Jesus appears to the disciples he acts human, has his scars and yet
appears before them as the resurrected Jesus, once dead not alive.
The theological significance of those realities may be lost to us but they were not lost to the first century
Christian movement. It was important that the person before them was actually the Jesus who was crucified until
dead. He did something with them that he had done countless time before. He ate with them. And the wounds
from the crucifixion were visible. There could be no mistake about it. The person before them was Jesus of
Nazareth whom they followed.
Another observation from the text is that they went back to business as usual after Jesus’ death. Without
the resurrection nothing changed. Until they knew that God had somehow made a definitive statement that this
movement which had begun before their eyes, was not over, life held no more promise than before they met Jesus.
The leader and the author of the movement was still alive. His power had been seen in perhaps the most
significant manner possible. He defeated death. If he had the power to defeat death, then who or what could
possibly defeat this movement? They were amazed, joyful and hopeful.
Without the resurrection in history, the Christian movement would have faded into the obscurity of just
another movement of first century Palestine. However, with the resurrection, the power of God to transform
individuals and society is seen in the first and every century since.
I think part of the significance of the resurrection story is that Jesus appeared to them as a human with his
scars while revealing God’s power. That is something you and I can do as well. That is the Easter message for you
and me. We are human and scarred but triumphant. Our victory comes not because of our wit, charm or intellect;
not because of who we are or what we possess but through the power of God that makes our humanity and
vulnerability manifest and in so doing the hero of the story is the God of the victory, not the beneficiaries of the
resurrection.
I hope to see you Sunday.
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