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He is Risen! therefore We Recognize the Lord!
Alleluia! He is Risen! And Therefore
We Recognize the Lord!
Luke 24:13-25
May you become more aware of the grace of God that is yours, the love and mercy revealed in Christ Jesus!
Why didn’t He Reveal Himself Sooner?
Two men, walking down the road together, trying to get home for dinner.
Distraught, emotions all over the place as they try to make sense of Jesus’s death. Emotionally drained, they desperately need rest.
Even as Jesus begins to walk with them, He will comment about the deep discussion they are having, which leads me to one question.
Why does He wait so long to reveal Himself to them? Why?
Or is there a lesson for us, in how Jesus ministers to these men, who are crushed and broken
including perhaps, realizing how God ministers to us?
Our Struggle to Hear God!
It seems sometimes, like everyone has gone, or is going through a walk like these men.
You don’t even have to hear their voices, to hear the stress, the anxiety, the despair as they speak.
The Man they thought was the answer not to just their dreams, but the dreams of a nation. The Messiah, the long awaited anointed one of God, who was to deliver them to change their lives, to fix everything, from their economy to their families.
They had the kind of dreams that we see in one of those California Lottery commercials, as the winner dreams of the new yacht, the chaffered limousine, the mansion up on the hill with the heliport.
Except, the odds of Jesus being the Messiah were about a trillion to one better than the lottery. You see, as they informed “undercover Jesus”, they had based their hopes on the fact that Jesus had done miracles, and had talked with great authority. That He was a leader, confirmed not only by people, but by God himself. Blind could see, people who never walked, completely healed, those who had been dead, raised to life. Even the Samaritans and Gentiles knew hope because of Jesus. It had to be him.
They knew that Jesus spoke for God.
Then, they killed him.
If that isn’t a reason to put your trust in Him, to look for Him to fulfil the promises that were so well known, the promises they heard about in their synagogues ever Sabbath all their lives…
Those hopes, those expectations, everything they know about the Messiah, were crushed. Everything they had hoped for, taken away in a few hours on Friday…
So why didn’t Jesus relieve their suffering, calm their storm by simply revealing His presence?
Yet God hid himself, even though they saw Jesus, they didn’t know Him….
Who Are These Two That Hear the Whole Story?
Beyond that question, I have another question about these two men, walking so defeated, so overwhelmed on the road to Emmaus. Why them? Why do they get to hear Jesus explain they entire Old Testament?
Shouldn’t it be Matthew or John? They will be writing the Gospels…
Shouldn’t it be Peter and James? Why aren’t the leaders of the apostles
Why Cleopas and some guy we don’t even know the name of?
Why did Jesus choose to minister to these two? Having chosen them, why didn’t He reveal Himself sooner? Why did Jesus deliver to them a lecture about the Old Testament, instead of simply revealing Himself so that their pain would cease?
The Story Reveals
When we hear, that over several hours as they walk, Jesus explained that everything from the first five books of the Bible that Moses wrote, through all of the prophets, we have to hear the conclusion that is drawn. Look there in verse 27, the things concerning Him. Jesus explains that the Bible is all about Him. That is what it reveals, or rather, who it reveals.
In this way the Lord shows us the proper method of interpreting Moses and all the prophets. He teaches us that Moses points and refers to Christ in all his stories and illustrations. His purpose is to show that Christ is the point at the center of a circle, with all eyes inside the circle focused on Him. Whoever turns his eyes on Him finds his proper place in the circle of which Christ is the center. All the stories of Holy Writ, if viewed aright, point to Christ.
What these men needed to know, was that Christ’s death was from the beginning, the plan. Jesus had to suffer, Jesus explains, it needed to be done. Over and over that was the plan revealed in the Old Testament. The word of God, the Old Testament Covenant promises, the Old Testament pictures of Christ like Isaac on the altar, the sacrificial system, the picture of the tabernacle and the temple and the prophecies of Isaiah, Jeremiah, Ezekiel, Hosea….
They needed Jesus to be revealed to them, and He was. Not the way we would expect at first. Rather, they learned that God had planned, from before the foundation of the world, to have Christ suffer and die. It was necessary, it wasn’t a detour, but the very way in which we are saved. They needed to understand this, so that they understand the depth of the love of God for His people.
Jesus taught them, He revealed Himself to them, without revealing Himself to them.
They couldn’t let Jesus leave. Not that they realized there was one revelation left that had to happen to them.
He Reveals Himself
That is where the most miraculous moment for these two men, and for all of us like them occurs.
Thanks is given, bread is broken, and even as they lose sight of Jesus, yet they finally know Him.
They realize He is with them, and all of the hopes and all of the blessings come flooding back. These men, moments before, weary, tired and broken, know Him in the breaking of the bread. The presence of Jesus overwhelms them, even as it gives them the strength to climb back up the mountain to return to the apostles. We aren’t talking about a hike from here to the Towne Center – we are talking about walking from here to Disneyland – if Disneyland was uphill.
Why didn’t Jesus reveal himself earlier?
I don’t know. What I do know is that when He did reveal himself, it was the perfect time, they had heard, they knew of His love. They got it, and their life was forever changed. Even as they confirm what the others had seen, had known, what matters in that moment, was Jesus appearing, and how they recognized him in the breaking of the bread.
for us.
Why don’t we see God all the time? Why do we have to walk these roads, knowing the despair? Knowing the pain, and wondering, “where is God in all of this?”
I don’t know. I know beyond a shadow of a doubt He is here, with His people. But I don’t know why sometimes we walk that same road, not hearing the testimony of those we would normally trust.
I do know that we have all the same promises that God will redeem His people. We can know Christ through the pictures of Him that are drawn all over the Old Testament, We can hear all the prophecies and know that God has never, and will never abandon His people. We know He walks with us, even if we aren’t always aware of His presence.
We can recognize His presence, here and now, even in the breaking of the bread.
Knowing those promises, that God will use even what was planned for evil for good, that nothing can separate us from Him, that all will work for good, and that He will complete the work He began in us, we taste and see He is good. Our eyes are opened to His presence. We are 21 days out from Easter, yet the season continues. We know He is Risen – just as we have learned this has been His plan…. But because He is risen, we can recognize Him, we can know Him, and rest assured of His love and work that we shall know His peace, even now throughout all eternity.
A peace that goes beyond our understanding – but guards our hearts and minds in Christ Jesus. AMEN?
AMEN!
Thursday, Good Friday and Easter… not just History
Devotional Thought of the Day:
23 As for us, we proclaim the crucified Christ, a message that is offensive to the Jews and nonsense to the Gentiles; 24 but for those whom God has called, both Jews and Gentiles, this message is Christ, who is the power of God and the wisdom of God. 1 Corinthians 1:23-24 (TEV)
5 Since we have been united with him in his death, we will also be raised to life as he was. 6 We know that our old sinful selves were crucified with Christ so that sin might lose its power in our lives. We are no longer slaves to sin. 7 For when we died with Christ we were set free from the power of sin. 8 And since we died with Christ, we know we will also live with him. 9 We are sure of this because Christ was raised from the dead, and he will never die again. Death no longer has any power over him. 10 When he died, he died once to break the power of sin. But now that he lives, he lives for the glory of God. 11 So you also should consider yourselves to be dead to the power of sin and alive to God through Christ Jesus. Romans 6:5-11 (NLT)
1 Since you have been raised to new life with Christ, set your sights on the realities of heaven, where Christ sits in the place of honor at God’s right hand. 2 Think about the things of heaven, not the things of earth. 3 For you died to this life, and your real life is hidden with Christ in God. 4 And when Christ, who is your life, is revealed to the whole world, you will share in all his glory. Colossians 3:1-4 (NLT)
19 For when I tried to keep the law, it condemned me. So I died to the law—I stopped trying to meet all its requirements—so that I might live for God. 20 My old self has been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me. So I live in this earthly body by trusting in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me. 21 I do not treat the grace of God as meaningless. For if keeping the law could make us right with God, then there was no need for Christ to die. Galatians 2:19-21 (NLT)
For the past thirty years, there has been a tendency to deal with Jesus, and especially the cross and the resurrection as a historical event. It is where they start, and Sunday there will be a lot of sermons that try to prove the resurrection.
But if that is all they do, if they engage people in “just the facts”, the message of Holy Week, the message of Christ’s death and resurrection will be overlooked. The heart of the message will be missed.
Re-read the passages above. There you hear that the Resurrection isn’t just about events 2000 years ago. They are events that are current, the proof is not just seen in the claims of Josephus or Eusebius, but in our very lives. We were there, or perhaps it is better to say we are there… our sins being laid on Christ, our lives being re-generated with His resurrection.
Because the death and resurrection, everything changes in our lives, the hope that we have for this life, and for the next is not some day dream possibility. It is the expectation based on the promises we have been given, the guaranty of that not being some historical proofs, but of something more – of a life filled with the Holy Spirit…
21 It is God himself who makes us, together with you, sure of our life in union with Christ; it is God himself who has set us apart, 22 who has placed his mark of ownership upon us, and who has given us the Holy Spirit in our hearts as the guarantee of all that he has in store for us. 2 Corinthians 1:21-22 (TEV)
The “all that He has in store for us” is not about wealth or fame or riches in this life, it is something far more. That we walk with Him now, that we are not just welcome in the presence of God, but that He desires us there, and draws us into His presence.
That just isn’t a historical event, it is something we live and breath. It is what establishes who we are, brings healing to who we were, and assures us of Christ’s presence in our lives.
Today on Holy Thursday,
Tomorrow as our hearts are found at the cross…
In times like Black Saturday, when we wonder if God is dead,
And on Sunday, as we realize we have risen with Him, just as He said!
Amen.
The Lord’s Supper… why it is a regular practice….a regular need in my life…
Devotional/Discussion thought of the Day:
4 “But he endured the suffering that should have been ours, the pain that we should have borne. All the while we thought that his suffering was punishment sent by God. 5 But because of our sins he was wounded, beaten because of the evil we did. We are healed by the punishment he suffered, made whole by the blows he received. 6 All of us were like sheep that were lost, each of us going his own way. But the LORD made the punishment fall on him, the punishment all of us deserved. Isaiah 53:4-6 (TEV)
10 The LORD says, “It was my will that he should suffer; his death was a sacrifice to bring forgiveness. And so he will see his descendants; he will live a long life, and through him my purpose will succeed. 11 After a life of suffering, he will again have joy; he will know that he did not suffer in vain. My devoted servant, with whom I am pleased, will bear the punishment of many and for his sake I will forgive them. 12 And so I will give him a place of honor, a place among the great and powerful. He willingly gave his life and shared the fate of evil men. He took the place of many sinners and prayed that they might be forgiven.” Isaiah 53:10-12 (TEV)
23 For I received from the Lord the teaching that I passed on to you: that the Lord Jesus, on the night he was betrayed, took a piece of bread, 24 gave thanks to God, broke it, and said, “This is my body, which is for you. Do this in memory of me.” 25 In the same way, after the supper he took the cup and said, “This cup is God’s new covenant, sealed with my blood. Whenever you drink it, do so in memory of me.” 26 This means that every time you eat this bread and drink from this cup you proclaim the Lord’s death until he comes. 1 Corinthians 11:23-26 (TEV)
56 Another man of faith wrote to me: “When you have to be on your own, you can notice clearly the help of your brothers. Now, when it comes to my mind that I have to put up with everything ‘all alone’, I often think that, if it weren’t for that ‘company we keep from afar’—the holy Communion of Saints!—I would not be able to preserve this optimism which fills my heart.” (1)
I have served as a pastor for 15 some years, and as a Chaplain prior to that. In that time I have preached in churches of a number of denominations, and have been settled where I am now, in the Lutheran Church, for a good deal of that time. In both groups. (the Restoration Movement/Christian Church/churches of Christ and the LC-MS) the practice has been that of communing often, though “often” is up to local interpretation. (Some celebrate weekly, others bi-weekly, some more often than that!)
My own preference is as often as possible, even to the extent that if a number of people wanted to celebrate it daily, I would, and would rejoice over it.
Why?
Read the passages above. Hear of the love of God, the desire to form with us a community, and the extent to which Christ would suffer and die, in order to make possible this relationship. In participating in this feast, in proclaiming the death of Christ until He comes again, we proclaim a depth of love that extends through every part of our live. We come humbly together, before the throne of God, we celebrate the grace of God, the gifts of God.
We feast with Him, a foretaste of the promised feast to come, because we have been made His children, because He took on every one of my sins, every sin of every person at the altar, who I serve, as I give the Body broken for them, as they take this cup of the New Covenant, shed for the forgiveness of sin. As we with angels and archangels, with all the company of heaven, with everyone who has every trusted in God’s promises made to them, revealed in the scriptures.
As we celebrate His presence, His love, His glory, which we begin to see, simply as we find rest for our souls, as we are gathered.
I love the TEV’s words from Isaiah…. read them again..
We are healed by the punishment he suffered, made whole by the blows he received.
11 After a life of suffering, he will again have joy; he will know that he did not suffer in vain. My devoted servant, with whom I am pleased, will bear the punishment of many and for his sake I will forgive them.
How can you not desire to realize this often? How can you not be comforted by these words, this remembrance not just of the suffering and death, (and resurrection!) But the comfort of the words that reveal to you the love of God who promises to never leave us, never to forsake us.
How can we not proclaim this death, this love, this Lord of Life’s love, and how can we not desire to, often?
It’s our very life… as His people. (this is where I find the greatest source of strength, as I realize His love is for all of us)
Lord, have mercy on us, and teach us to treasure that mercy!!
Escriva, Josemaria (2011-01-31). Furrow (Kindle Locations 456-460). Scepter Publishers. Kindle Edition.
Rejocing During Lent? Inconcievable? Not at All!
Devotional THought of the Day:
25 Then David and the elders of Israel and the generals of the army went to the house of Obed-edom to bring the Ark of the LORD’s Covenant up to Jerusalem with a great celebration. 26 And because God was clearly helping the Levites as they carried the Ark of the LORD’s Covenant, they sacrificed seven bulls and seven rams. 27 David was dressed in a robe of fine linen, as were all the Levites who carried the Ark, and also the singers, and Kenaniah the choir leader. David was also wearing a priestly garment. 28 So all Israel brought up the Ark of the LORD’s Covenant with shouts of joy, the blowing of rams’ horns and trumpets, the crashing of cymbals, and loud playing on harps and lyres. 29 But as the Ark of the LORD’s Covenant entered the City of David, Michal, the daughter of Saul, looked down from her window. When she saw King David skipping about and laughing with joy, she was filled with contempt for him. 1 Chronicles 15:25-29 (NLT)
16 “To what can I compare this generation? It is like children playing a game in the public square. They complain to their friends, 17 ‘We played wedding songs, and you didn’t dance, so we played funeral songs, and you didn’t mourn.’ Matthew 11:16-17 (NLT)
1 Don’t let your life be sterile. Be useful. Blaze a trail. Shine forth with the light of your faith and of your love. With your apostolic life wipe out the slimy and filthy mark left by the impure sowers of hatred. And light up all the ways of the earth with the fire of Christ that you carry in your heart. (1)
Tonight my church will gather to celebrate the love of God. Perhaps it is more accurate to say God will gather them, for that too is part of the celebration.
We are in the beginning days of Lent, just a week ago we celebrated Ash Wednesday, with a service that…could only be called a celebration. It wasn’t just that we had a much larger group than is our pattern. It was the idea that people gathered, and with reverent smiles they were marked with ashes, knowing that this reminder of their sin, which grieves them, would be accompanied by another trip forward, to receive the Body and Blood of Christ, proof that God wouldn’t leave them in ashes, that they would not be left in the dust.
That’s something to rejoice in, that’s something to celebrate, and even…like King David, dance over.
Yes, like Isiah, we are people who sturggle with sin, (and sometmies struggle is a strong word) , who live in a world that more and more rejoices in sin. This is indeed something we should grieve over, it is something that we should never be callous about either. Christ grieved and wept as He looked over Jeruslaem, the prophets wept as they reminded Isarel of what would be the consequences of their sin, especially their abandoning their relationship with God in order to choose idols of their own making. Even so, Jesus went on to the cross, to do something about that grief, just as the prophets would foretell not just of doom and judgment, but of the glory of Christ incarnation, death and resurrection, and what it means.
So to, our journey of Lent, the remorse and grief we find as we review our lives, is tempered by the glory of God. The shear joy of realizing that we will soon be in Holy Week, Good Friday, Easter Sunday! The joy of knowing that our grief has been dealt with, our expectation of God’s promises have been fulfilled. This is also a season of expectation, a season of hope that is guaranteed by the presence of the Holy Spirit! How can we not be excited y the promise, and knowing it is fulfilled in Christ.
And so each service is a mini-lent to easter celebration, from the death of sin, to the resurrection to life in Christ, celebrated as we feast together at the altar (and on Wednesday nights, at the table)
Rejioce? How can I not, when the glory of God is present, when His people are gathered together, when He gives us life and shares with us His mercy, His peace, His love?
As we walk through lent, even as the priests and David walked with God toward the Holy CIty, let us rejoice in His glory. As well, may the light of His glory draw all to Him.
AMEN.
(1) Escriva, Josemaria (2010-11-02). The Way (Kindle Locations 171-173). Scepter Publishe(1rs. Kindle Edition.
A Day filled with memories… yet that word…brings to mind
Devotional thought, late in the day:
23 For I pass on to you what I received from the Lord himself. On the night when he was betrayed, the Lord Jesus took some bread 24 and gave thanks to God for it. Then he broke it in pieces and said, “This is my body, which is given for you. Do this to remember me.” 25 In the same way, he took the cup of wine after supper, saying, “This cup is the new covenant between God and his people—an agreement confirmed with my blood. Do this to remember me as often as you drink it.” 26 For every time you eat this bread and drink this cup, you are announcing the Lord’s death until he comes again. 1 Corinthians 11:23-26 (NLT)
I started this morning by heading out to visit my mother. Along the way, I stopped for breakfast a a place I worked during college. Five years or so ago, they remodelled it. I guess the did recently, restory the walls tables and dining counter. It was like being at home, after a long time ago. (the hostess figured out how long ago… nice girl reminding me how old I am!)
On the way, I stopped at my dad’s gravesite, or more exactly, the National Cemetary columbarium – the wall in which his ashes are now kept. The picture here is of his plaque.
Then my mom and I shared quite a few memories over lunch, which in and of itself brought other memories. Dad’s been gone 4 months tomorrow, and yet… it doesn’t seem like its been that long.
Then one of the first songs I leared on the guitar, (gulp 42 years ago) came on among the music they played in the restaurant. Thoughts of the catholic brother who taught me came to mind. Then, I looked up at the television hanging off the ceiling behind my mom, and there was a game at Pepperdine, where i worked for most of the 1990’s. Without a doubt, that University is fhe finest place I’ve worked for, and watching basketball games in the fieldhouse there was always great. In the 14 years since i’ve left, I haven’t seen them on television once, yet this day, on a television in a restaurant some 100 miles from the campus, in a retirement town, there they are?
Then came the news, a reminder that 20 years ago, (while I was at Pepperdine) we suffered the Northridge Earthquake. At the time, Kay and I were living in this cute i bedroom apartment. Memories of seeing the carpent and linoleum ripped in half – the early morning spent on Topanga Blvd with 600 other victims. We would not live in that place again, save for a night without water, electricity, etc, when they said it was safe – only to wake up the next morning with signs we had to rip through, telling us the building was again red tagged and you weren’t allowed to enter. (nice of them to let us know when they made the decision sometime around midnight!)
Memories abound,,, some are good… some are… well, let’s just say some are. They mean something because of the time we invested, the people we knew.
One of the things that really comes alive in Lutheran theology is the understanding of remembering and the sacraments. Luther’s words about starting and ending each day remembering that you are baptised are often repeated, not because of the act itself, but because of the promises given to us,
Even more, the passage above is precious, for it is more than just memories – it is the process of re-living the moment, of our minds dwelling on and in the moment. All of those memories of past times are very important, but this time with Christ, with comprehending with heart and soul as well as mind – that He is with us, that His love meant dieing for us, and bringing us through that death so that we will live with Him….
There are memories, then there is doing this…
May it be ever more than a distant memory….May it be our lives, lived in communion with Him. AMEN
Burdened? With those of Christ, or Those of the World?
Devotional Thought of the Day:
28 “Are you tired? Worn out? Burned out on religion? Come to me. Get away with me and you’ll recover your life. I’ll show you how to take a real rest. 29 Walk with me and work with me—watch how I do it. Learn the unforced rhythms of grace. I won’t lay anything heavy or ill-fitting on you. 30 Keep company with me and you’ll learn to live freely and lightly.” Matthew 11:28-30 (MSG)
414 Is the burden heavy? No, a thousand times no! Those obligations which you freely accepted are wings that raise you high above the vile mud of your passions. Do the birds feel the weight of their wings? If you were to cut them off and put them on the scales you would see that they are heavy. But can a bird fly if they are taken away from it? It needs those wings and it does not notice their weight, for they lift it up above other creatures. Your “wings” are heavy too! But if you did not have them you would fall into the filthiest mire. (1)
It’s one of the great mysteries of ministry, the ability to endure, and the strength that comes when we shoulder the burdens we are called to bear as we walk with Jesus.
There are days and weeks where pastors and others who serve the church get worn down, we are tired and weary and nearly breaking under the strain. I saw such a week ago, at another pastor’s memorial service. So many of my brothers looked worn down, beaten, broken. I didn’t pay much attention to the service to be honest, as I was mostly praying for the pastors sitting on either side of me. We are a tired bunch these days, many of us overburdened, many of us at the point where we can forget to look to Jesus. As we forget it is He that works through us, caring for His people.
As I was reading this morning, I came to the above quote from St. Josemaria. Having read of his life, of the existence during a civil war when brothers were dieing, of working tirelessly to see a vision where people – all people of the church realized that they were God’s worksmanship – that He had a role for each one, I realized these just weren’t words of advice. These were words of experience, words that shared the hope of realizing that we live at our best, when we take on those burdens of Christ.
Similarly, Eugene Peterson’s translation of an oft quoted passage strike home as well. It talks of the relationship we have with Christ. The relationship based on letting Him lead, letting Him choose the burdens we must carry. He replaces the burdens of sin, and shame, and guilt and resentment and regret with grace, with love, with putting all that aside to walk with Him, as He re-creates lives, as He restores what was broken, as He brings healing to that which was sickened and weakened by neglect and oppression. That’s God’s work, not really ours, though often it happens as we talk, as we hold the hand of one weeping, praying for them.
The burdens we do carry… seemingly heavier than those we set down, set us soaring. Not because they make us stronger, for that is not the nature of a wing. Wings primarily work because they catch the wind, and the wind pressure supports them and lifts them up. This is how the Spirit works in us, the Holy Spirit, the Comforter, who dwells in us, who cleanses us, who works through our words to bring people into that amazing relationship we have with God.
Ultimately, there is a time to stop, to listen to breathe. To pick up my guitar or sit at my keyboard (music not this one) and play… and realize the God who named me as His child, who called me into this ministry, who knows what He is doing. For if we don’t do that, surely we shall crash, surely we won’t be able to get out of the crud we entered as we ministered to people dealing with it in their lives. It’s the lesson an old Baptist jail chaplain taught me, as we served together. He told me when I left the jail, before I started my car to sit there, take a few moments to realize Christ’s promises to me in baptism. to remember that He has cleansed me, that He has taken all the real burdens from me, and that He will never leave me.
That’s a burden that is a blessing, and enables us to do everything else.
May you find the time today to take on His burden/blessings. AMEN
English: fragment of the Gospel of Matthew (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
(1) Escriva, Josemaria (2011-01-31). Furrow (Kindle Locations 1858-1864). Scepter Publishers. Kindle Edition.
Related articles
- The Heart of Theology & the Heart of Ministry is the Heart of Christ (justifiedandsinner.com)
- Needing a Sanctuary… because we know He is there… (justifiedandsinner.com)
- Only Requirement to Come to our Church. Do you, or have you ever taken a breath… (justifiedandsinner.com)
The Power and Mystery of the Faith…..
Devotional THought of the Day:
“And because he offers and promises forgiveness of sins, it cannot be received except by faith. This faith he himself demands in the Word when he says, “Given for you” and “poured out for you,” as if he said, “This is why I give it and bid you eat and drink, that you may take it as your own and enjoy it.”
35 Whoever lets these words be addressed to him and believes that they are true has what the words declare. But he who does not believe has nothing, for he lets this gracious blessing be offered to him in vain and refuses to enjoy it. The treasure is opened and placed at everyone’s door, yes, upon everyone’s table, but it is also your responsibility to take it and confidently believe that it is just as the words tell you.
36 This, now, is the preparation required of a Christian for receiving this sacrament worthily. Since this treasure is fully offered in the words, it can be grasped and appropriated only by the heart. Such a gift and eternal treasure cannot be seized with the hand.
37 Fasting and prayer and the like may have their place as an external preparation and children’s exercise so that one’s body may behave properly and reverently toward the body and blood of Christ. But what is given in and with the sacrament cannot be grasped and appropriated by the body. This is done by the faith of the heart which discerns and desires this treasure.”
Yesterday, two church services, very similar, yet in some ways…different.
I love watching people commune – to see them lifted up as the approach and kneel, or stand and receive the Body and Blood of Christ.
They aren’t theologians, and though those serving can ellucidate how the communication of magesterial attributes of Christ are seen in the Eucharist, in reality, it matters little to them. They know what they’ve heard – given for you, and shed for the forgiveness of sins – and that is enough. For this Body and Blood is not primarily to be discoursed about, its primary function is not theological – it theophilian – it helps us love and adore the God who gives Himself to us, in so many ways, and yes – through a simple piece of bread, and a simple sip of wine.
It is indeed a treasure..
A treasure of the heart – a treasure, not only of our faith in God, but also in His faithfulness towars us….
There is so much to say… the words could go on forever…
But I will leave you with Paul’s words this morning…
What you must solemnly realize is that every time you eat this bread and every time you drink this cup, you reenact in your words and actions the death of the Master. You will be drawn back to this meal again and again until the Master returns. (MSG)
Go…often… and know the Lord is with you!
(1) Tappert, T. G. (Ed.). (1959). The Book of Concord the confessions of the Evangelical Lutheran Church. (pp. 450–451). Philadelphia: Mühlenberg Press.
Related articles
- The Eucharist and Its Effective Work on our Hearts: (justifiedandsinner.com)
Distributing Christ’s Body and Blood… a incredible burden…and gift
Christ the Saviour (Pantokrator), a 6th-century encaustic icon from Saint Catherine’s Monastery, Mount Sinai. NB – slightly cut down – for full size see here (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
Devotional Thought of the Day
23 For I pass on to you what I received from the Lord himself. On the night when he was betrayed, the Lord Jesus took some bread 24 and gave thanks to God for it. Then he broke it in pieces and said, “This is my body, which is given for you. Do this to remember me.” 25 In the same way, he took the cup of wine after supper, saying, “This cup is the new covenant between God and his people—an agreement confirmed with my blood. Do this to remember me as often as you drink it.” 26 For every time you eat this bread and drink this cup, you are announcing the Lord’s death until he comes again. 1 Corinthians 11:23-26 (NLT)
Monsignor Escrivá replied, “My Mass is never the same from one day to the next. Every day I linger, in a different way, on this prayer or that offering or that other petition. The Mass, which for me is Opus Dei, wears me out; it exhausts me! I thank God that this is so. It is a wonderful, divine burden, because it is not I but he, God, who carries it. All priests, be we sinners like me, or saints as some are, are never ourselves: it is Christ who renews his sacrifice of Calvary on the altar. I don’t ‘preside over’ anything. I am Christ at the altar! I consecrate in persona Christi, in the person of Christ, because I give him my body, my voice, and my poor heart which has so often been stained but which I want him to purify.”
It came as a bit of surprise this morning, as the pastor approached me during the passing of the peace. I suppose I am on vacation… if we as pastors ever really take such, and I would say we do not… we just go on enjoyable mission trips!
His assistant was out…his wife sprained her ankle… so would I assist him in distributing the Lord’s precious Body and Blood. He could not have given me a bigger blessing – to allow me to serve his people alongside him! Yet, once again, I realize that we aren’t really serving… we are being served, just simply passing on what Paul and Peter, Matthew and Luke, passed on to us.
The gift of God, for the people of God.
And yes… even doing that little thing… was precious, and in a way wearying…as I served the chalice… as people were blessed…
Much as St.Josemarie writes, another lesson learned, another blessing received. Though our theology differs some…there is that sense of observing – and watching the Holy Spirit work as people are nourished with Christ! Even more feeling at home, in this parish I’ve never visited…in the state I was born in… The burden born, sort of… seeing the spirit of people cared for, as Christ replaces the burden they carry with His love….As He cleanses, heals, forgives…
Please, please… think as you prepare and receive the Lord’s Supper…as we who serve distribute it…what great joy there is to be called to His Supper!!!!
Rejoice, the Lord is with you!!!!
(1) (1)Urbano, Pilar (2011-05-10). The Man of Villa Tevere (Kindle Locations 2977-2988). Scepter Publishers. Kindle Edition.
Thankful for many friends… whose love for me demonstrates their faith.
Devotional Thought of the Day:
34 I give you a new commandment: love one another; you must love one another just as I have loved you. 35 It is by your love for one another, that everyone will recognise you as my disciples.John 13:34-35 (NJB)
I spent five days this week with other servants of God at a deacons conference and then at a pastor’s conference.
Saw a lot of old friends, many of who showed interest in how I was doing with my father’s death two weeks ago.
I came home to folks in crisis… not my family but those in my church family. It’s been a hard morning – a very hard morning.
But for 5 friends – my wife, a young pastor, a vicar, a deacon, and a friend who gave to me the most precious gift you can give a pastor. A friend who let me be her pastor… who let me speak to her of God’s grace. That takes a sense of God’s love and trust that is incredible and is a blessing.
You see, loving each other isn’t just about the kind words and deeds whcih we usually count as showing love. It is equally loving, even more loving, to let someoen in close enough to see your hurts, your pains, your embarassment and ask – is God still with me? Not that we don’t know this in our heads, but our hearts so deperately need to hear this as well. It takes great amounts of love to let people in, to let them care about you, to let a pastor, pastor you.
And to do so, letting me in, trusting God to work thorugh me… is one of the greatest ways to show love.
So in these days… I am thanking God for many… but especially for the friends who not only call me pastor… but let me…
a very precious gift you give me…
God Bless….
D†
Look! There He is!
Devotional Thought of the Day:
Agnus Dei
Lamb of God
Son of God
You take away our sin
Lamb of God
Son of God
You take away our sin
Grant us peace! Grant us peace!
Grant us peace! Grant us your peace!
Your peace
In a little less than an hour, those words , so familiar to Lutheran deacons, will be reintroduced to them with a new melody, as they kick off the afternoon session of their annual continuing ed conference.
They are the words we sing – after the words of institution, after the the passing of the peace, as we re-focus, and think about the Lord, and about His supper, and about why we find this feast to be The Feast.
When I got to my present church, this was when the pastor and the elders communed – while everyone else sang. Now, we wait till after to sing, because I need the time to realize His presence, to examine myself and realize my incredible need for that presence, to comfort, to heal, to make me aware of His love, His mercy, His peace. To welcome me to the feast where He is the host (and the double meaning of that word intended)
But I would advise you, to do the same – to take that time before communion, to stop and consider….
There He is! There is the Lamb of God, the very one John the Baptist pointed out to His disciples. The Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world…. So let our cries go out to Him. Lord – grant us peace, grant us your peace!!!!!
And as we leave every burden at the rail… as He takes them from us…may we walk away with a smile that betrays the fact that because He has invited us there…. we do know His peace.
Look – there He is… the Lamb of God… for you!
And so may you voice with Simeon – as you take and drink, as you receive His gift…
Nunc Dimittis
O Lord now let your servants depart in heavenly peace
For we have seen the great salvation of Christ our Lord
For-told by the prophets
fulfilled for all to see
A light unto the nations
and Israel’s glory
All glory to the Father
All glory to the Son
All glory to the Spirit
The Great God Three in One
As it was in the beginning
Is now and shall ever be
Amen! Amen! Amen!
For you are His…forever!
Lamb (Photo credit: freefotouk)
