Learning to Walk and Talk and Eat and See.
Good Morning Friends,
Sunday’ sermon was on the how through the breaking of bread and the reading of scripture and the interpretation of scripture two disciples’ eyes were opened to receive the risen Christ. We all face, at times, a discouraged walk to Emmaus, but can also experience something along the way to help us.
With the proper perspective we can learn how to increase our endurance and outlast the struggles in life… to walk and not grow faint, run and not grow weary. Filtering our desires through Jesus helps us to recognize the relationship we have with the divine. Friends, in our relationship with Jesus we need to be like children Learning to Walk and Talk and Eat and See.
Scripture: For to this you have been called, because Christ also suffered for you, leaving you an example, so that you might follow in his steps. Maybe we might discover that Jesus has been with us all along
1 Peter 2:21 (ESV)
And by this we know that we have come to know him, if we keep his commandments. Whoever says “I know him” but does not keep his commandments is a liar, and the truth is not in him, but whoever keeps his word, in him truly the love of God is perfected. By this we may know that we are in him: whoever says he abides in him ought to walk in the same way in which he walked.
1 John 2:3-6 (ESV)
Therefore, as you received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk in him,
Colossians 2:6 (ESV)
Now that same day two of them were going to a village called Emmaus, about seven miles from Jerusalem. They were talking with each other about everything that had happened. As they talked and discussed these things with each other, Jesus himself came up and walked along with them; but they were kept from recognizing him. He asked them, “What are you discussing together as you walk along?”
Luke 24:13-17 (NIV)
It was I who taught Ephraim to walk, taking them by the arms; but they did not realize it was I who healed them.
Hosea 11:3 (NIV)
At that time the disciples came to Jesus and asked, “Who, then, is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven?” He called a little child to him, and placed the child among them. And he said: “Truly I tell you, unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven. Therefore, whoever takes the lowly position of this child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven. And whoever welcomes one such child in my name welcomes me.
Matthew 18:1-5 (NIV)
Message: Yogi Berra once said, “I came to a fork in the road and I took it.” We laugh at this because we know that we have to choose. Every day we have to choose and some paths we will take together with our brothers and sisters in faith in other denominations and some paths we will take with the people in the worshiping community we attend on Sunday and some paths with just with our family and some with our spouse and some choices will lead us down our own path. We cannot all make all the same decisions each day but we can make one and that is by faith and grace to walk the righteous path acknowledging Christ as our savior.
With this proper perspective we learn how to increase our emotional endurance.
On that first Easter day the living hope of the resurrection had not yet been experienced by those on the road to Emmaus. They had yet to experience the joy of God’s glory. Let us put ourselves in their shoes as they set out on the journey and its maze of emotions. They were trapped in their misery. They had erected a wall of hopelessness. We can sympathize with their bewilderment for we too, two thousand years later have been in the same position…too preoccupied to notice that Jesus is walking with us. Here the road to Emmaus becomes a symbol of our journey of faith. Here the Scriptures, their interpretation and the breaking of bread are the sacraments for the meeting with the Lord. Here our eyes are opened though love.
Friends,
Hosea the prophet of love knew that the greatest single hindrance to the realization of God’s purposes in man is pride. When confronted with it in our lives we have to start over like children not unlike the disciples on the Road to Emmaus. In today’s scripture from Hosea the writer uses the metaphor of the Father and son… of learning to walk with the guiding hand of a parent. They describe the training of the child Israel…of our training as Christians. Think of the individual who begins life. The child needs to be fed and cared for but soon this helplessness gives way to initiative and growth in community. The child learns to walk and act for himself and yet he is still under parental control. So too in our scripture reading about walking, we learn that we must follow Jesus, walk with Him as a child. In Matthew, Jesus responds to the disciples’ prideful argument about who is greatest by pointing to the attributes of a child… their instinctual faith, innocence, their sincere expectation of God’s grace and help. Friends, you are a beloved child of God. He loves you and is not going to give up on you. He longs to hold you up to His cheek in a loving embrace. He is not going to destroy you or abandon you. You have been adopted by the God of Israel. He is calling you out of your sin so He can teach you, have you know His ways even as he helps you take the first steps in Learning to Walk and Talk and Eat and See.
Pray we have a place to walk with God and experience Him face to face. Pray we hear Christ say “Come unto me.” Follow me.” with no threat or coercion only love. Pray we are ready to follow the heavenly path. Pray our eyes are opened in the sacraments of reading, hearing and tasting the Word. Pray we know where we are going on the journey. Pray Lord that you open the eyes of our hearts. Pray we see you high and lifted up. Pray we become reborn as children of the Kingdom.
Blessings,
John Lawson
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