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This column represents the thoughts and opinions of The Rev. Carl Roth. This is not the opinion of the Elgin Courier.
In Luke 24:13-35, the evangelist takes us into the afternoon of that first Easter Sunday. The early morning events are now over. Most of Jesus' disciples are back in Jerusalem in a house with the doors locked for fear of the Jews. The afternoon sun is approaching the horizon as two disciples are walking on the road out of Jerusalem. They’re heading for their house in Emmaus and as they plod along, Cleopas and another disciple discuss all that has happened.
“Can you believe it?” one says. “Jesus is gone. He was the best candidate yet for the Messiah, but boy, what a letdown. Can you believe he’s dead? And, what do we make of those hysterical women telling everyone that the tomb is empty? How could that have happened?”
Somewhere along the way, a stranger comes to them and joins them in their sad march down the road. Now we know that this was Jesus, but they hadn’t a clue – actually, Jesus intentionally kept their eyes from recognizing him. The stranger asks them what they are talking about, and the two Emmaus disciples stop and hang their heads in sadness. Cleopas asks the stranger, “What rock have you been living under? Are you the only person in town who doesn’t know what’s been going on?” This stranger, who ironically is really the only one who knows what is going on, asks, 'What sort of things?' Then the Emmaus disciples recount the past few days’ events and report the women’s claim about the empty tomb.
Then the stranger chastises them. It seems almost rude, “You fools. Why don’t you believe what the Bible says? Aren’t the scriptures clear? The Christ had to suffer and die and then rise again. That’s the way God planned it. Look — here and here and here — all these passages in Moses and the Prophets — the whole Old Testament talks about this. God is the God of the living, not of the dead!”
But they still don’t quite get it. Their hearts burn with a mixture of anticipation, fear, and confusion. They are intrigued, but not sure of what they’re hearing. As they approach home, the stranger says, “Well, I enjoyed the company. Bye now.”
“Wait,” the disciples urge, “we’re not going to let you keep going at night — you must come to our house. We’ll be your host. Sir, please abide at our house this evening.”
“Of course,” the stranger replies. “I’d love to stay.”
They recline at the table, continuing to discuss current events. The hosts bring out the meal, complete with bread and wine. Then something remarkable happens: the stranger takes the bread, gives thanks, breaks it and begins to give it to them.
And then they get it. The Lord opens their eyes. But then he’s gone. Yet they’re not sad about him leaving. They return to Jerusalem with great joy, knowing that their redeemer lives. They share their story with the 11 apostles and others, telling how Jesus revealed himself in the breaking of the bread.
But where had Jesus gone? Why hadn’t he stayed the night at the house of the two disciples? They invited Him to stay, and Jesus went in to stay with them. Then he started to break bread and give it to them, and poof, he was gone. What kind of staying is that?
The answer is in the breaking of the bread. In Luke and Acts, the breaking of the bread is the shorthand name for the Lord’s Supper. On Pentecost, after 3,000 people were baptized and brought into the church, Luke tells us that, “They devoted themselves to the apostles' teaching and to the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to the prayers” (Acts 2:42). In other words, the Christians committed themselves to God’s word, which was taught by the apostles. They put together their offerings to support the church and help the poor; they celebrated the breaking of the bread, the Lord’s Supper, and they offered up the prayer of the church. That doesn’t sound too different from what we do each week at church, does it? Our worship service simply follows the apostolic pattern of worship, handed down from Jesus to the apostles to us.
On the road to Emmaus, Jesus took bread, gave thanks, broke it, and gave it to them, just as he had done with his 12 disciples a few nights before, on Maundy Thursday. And what had Jesus told His disciples that night? He had said, “Take, eat; this is my body, which is given for you. This do in remembrance of me … Drink of it, all of you; this is my blood of the New Testament, which is shed for you for the forgiveness of sins. This do, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of me.” In the breaking of the bread on Maundy Thursday, Jesus revealed how he would save his disciples from their sins, on the cross. He would offer his body and blood up as a sacrifice for the sins of the world, and from then on until the end of the age, “as often as we eat and drink it,” Jesus has delivered forgiveness of sins and Communion with him to disciples in the Christian church.
The breaking of the bread. That’s how Jesus revealed himself to the Emmaus disciples. On the road they had been talking about all the events of the past week, and it’s not hard to imagine that the 12 apostles had told other disciples about the Last Supper. Then Jesus came along and preached a sermon to them about the suffering and resurrection of the Christ, with the entire Old Testament as his text. Next, Jesus celebrated his supper again and the Emmaus disciples received the first Easter Communion. That’s how Jesus chose to reveal himself to them.
So, what does all this mean for us? The Emmaus story shows where Jesus clearly reveals His purposes to us. In the breaking of the bread, Jesus tells us what he has done for us. He has given his body into death for us and has poured out his blood for the forgiveness of our sins. The altar is the best place to recognize who Jesus is. He’s your crucified savior. The altar is the best place to recognize God’s attitude toward you. He loves you and gives himself to you. Here is where Jesus provides the full meaning of his passion, death and resurrection — it’s all for you. He did all this to save you from eternal punishment from your sins, and to give you a new life in him.
What’s more, in the breaking of the bread Jesus actually comes to give out the benefits of his saving work to us. His words of institution do what they say. What God says, he does. His words make Christ’s body and Christ’s blood truly present under the bread and wine. Here we receive Christ’s body, that lamb without spot or blemish who gave himself up for us. We receive the very blood that redeemed us. They give us complete forgiveness, life and salvation. They bestow upon us the robe of Christ’s righteousness. They strengthen our faith and help us in the struggle against sin. So, let’s not neglect his precious gift from the Lord Jesus, but gladly receive it and make use of it often, just as He has invited us to. Every Sunday morning, we ask our savior the same question as the Emmaus disciples, “Lord Jesus Christ, will you not stay with us?” And just as he did on the road to Emmaus, Jesus replies to us, “Of course. I’d love to stay. Meet me right here. Come join me at my table.” Amen.
