Sermon Tone Analysis

TITLE:  People Like Us SCRIPTURE:  Luke 24:13-35

 

As Luke tells the Easter story, several women discovered the empty tomb.

They had taken spices to the tomb on Easter morning to prepare Jesus' body for burial, but instead found themselves confronted by two angels who asked,

 

    "Why do you look for the living among the dead?

He is not here, but has risen" (Luke 24:5).

So the women left the tomb and reported this news to the disciples.

But the disciples didn't believe the women.

They considered their report nothing but "an idle tale."

After all, these were just women!

What did they know!

But Peter didn't dismiss their report.

Peter ran to the tomb and found it as the women had described it.

The tomb was open.

The linen cloths that had wrapped Jesus' body were lying there -- no longer in use.

Peter went home amazed -- not sure what to think, but amazed!

Then Luke tells this story of the two disciples on the Emmaus Road.

On Easter afternoon, these two disciples were walking from Jerusalem to Emmaus, a distance of about seven miles.

They had been in Jerusalem for the Passover, but it had been a terrible Passover.

They were disciples of Jesus, and had gotten the shock of their lives when they learned that Jesus had been crucified.

They could hardly believe it!

Luke says that as they were walking along that dusty road toward their Emmaus home, they were "talking with each other about all these things that had happened."

One of the things that had happened, of course, was the crucifixion.

But another thing was the report that the tomb was empty.

These two disciples were discussing those things as they went along -- trying to make sense out of nonsense.

Why would anyone kill Jesus?

What had gone wrong?

Why would the tomb be empty?

What had happened?

Would the authorities hunt down the disciples next?

These two disciples must have wondered if their lives were in danger.

And then a stranger joined them -- a stranger who seemed to know nothing about Jesus.

That was nonsense too!

How could anyone know nothing about Jesus?

So they began to tell him about Jesus -- how Jesus was "prophet mighty in deed and word" -- how the chief priests and leaders handed Jesus over to be crucified -- how the disciples had hoped that Jesus would be the one, but their hopes had been dashed by the crucifixion.

They also told him about the women's report that the tomb was empty.

But then the stranger interrupted them.

He said, "O how foolish you are and how slow of heart to believe all that the prophets have declared."

And then he went on to teach them the scriptures --scriptures that they had studied since they were children.

He taught them things that they had never heard before.

Then they arrived in Emmaus.

The sun was beginning to set, so these two disciples -- still not understanding that they were talking to Jesus -- invited him to stay for the night.

Jesus joined them for dinner.

Now in the Jewish home, the host -- the man of the house -- would take the bread and break it and bless it and pass it around the table.

But this night, Jesus did that.

He was the guest in this house, but he acted as the host.

Luke says:

 

    "When (Jesus) was at the table with them,

    he took bread, blessed and broke it,

    and gave it to them."

You recognize those words, don't you!

They are very much like the words we use to observe the Lord's Supper.

They describe what Jesus did at the first Lord's Supper.

He took the bread and blessed it and broke it and gave it to the disciples.

But listen to what Luke says next.

He says:

 

    "Then their eyes were opened,

    and they recognized him."

And then Jesus vanished from their sight.

So even though night was falling and it was seven miles to Jerusalem, these two disciples got up from their dinner table and walked back to the city so they could tell the other disciples what they had seen.

They found the apostles and the other disciples talking excitedly about Peter, who had seen Jesus (24:34).

And then Luke concludes the story with these words.

He says:

 

    "Then (the two disciples) told what had happened on the road,

    and how (Jesus) had been made known to them

    in the breaking of bread."

"Jesus had been made known to them in the breaking of bread" -- just as Jesus is made known to us today in the breaking of bread.

End of story!

It's an unusual story -- told only by Luke -- but it's famous.

Google "Emmaus Road" and you will get hundreds of hits: 

 

- There's an Emmaus Road publisher -- and an Emmaus Road Quartet -- and an Emmaus Road Cafe. 

 

- There are Emmaus Road Churches and Emmaus Road Ministries. 

 

- In San Francisco, there is an Emmaus Road "Emergent Cohort for those of us seeking to follow Jesus."

I'm not sure what an Emergent Cohort is, but the good folks of San Francisco apparently do.

There are Emmaus Road groups all over the world.

Emmaus Road is famous!

When I read the Emmaus Road story again this year, one of the things that stood out for me was that Jesus picked two Minor Players for a role in his Major Story.

We know the name of one of them -- Cleopas -- but that's it.

We know nothing about Cleopas other than his name, and we know nothing at all about his companion.

Were they buddies?

Were they husband and wife?

Nobody knows!

But in Luke's Gospel, Cleopas and his companion were two of the first three people to see the risen Lord -- Peter being the third (24:35).

The women at the tomb didn't see Jesus.

They saw only angels.

Later that evening, Jesus would appear to all the disciples, but Jesus chose Peter, the leader of the disciples -- and these two nobodies -- for the signal honor of the first sightings.

I don't think that happened by accident.

I don't think Jesus just decided to walk down the Emmaus Road to see who he might see.

I think that Jesus chose to reveal himself to Cleopas and the unnamed disciple for good reason.

I think Jesus did that to encourage the rest of us nobody disciples.

Most of us are unknown Christians once we get a block or two from this church -- and much of the work that we do for Jesus seems pretty minor.

We go through our churchly routines.

We conduct worship.

We teach our children about Jesus.

We have youth groups.

We have Bible study groups.

We help people in need.

I think that we deserve a good grade for doing what a church should be doing.

BUT we are pretty ordinary.

We are ordinary Christians doing ordinary things.

Nothing earthshaking!