I learned quite a lot from Paul’s message this week. Sure, I’ve known the story of Holy week since I was a child— people honor Jesus as he arrives in Jerusalem on what we call Palm Sunday, then comes the Last Supper, the Garden of Gethsemane, the trial, the crucifixion and the resurrection. I know and believe all of those things happened and that Jesus is indeed the Messiah. But I think that my knowledge of those events from a historical perspective has prevented me from really seeing some of the larger “life application” lessons in Luke’s account of Jesus’ death and resurrection.
I love the way that Luke notes how Jesus’ uncle, Cleopas, called him “the man from Nazareth.” (You gotta love the way Luke, the physician, gives attention to every little detail… that’s how I like my doctors, too!) It’s also interesting to me that Cleopas and his travel buddy didn’t have any rebuttal for the man they were walking with (Jesus) calling them foolish for overlooking prophecies. Instead their only response was to beg him to stay the night with them.
I also find it difficult to overlook the parallels between this part of the story and how so many people come to meet Christ these days. Many of us who have received Jesus in our lives have testimonies of hearing the story of the gospel, acknowledging that Jesus is Lord, receiving Him into our lives through prayer, and then not much else happens. We sort of go back to life as usual. It’s almost as if we invite Jesus into our lives and then add him in with all of the other things on our plate.
Similarly, in this story, Cleopas and his friend have to invite Jesus and receive him as a guest. I imagine them maybe giving the undercover Messiah some water to wash his feet and setting an extra place for him at the table, as they would any other evening when entertaining a guest. But, what I think they did differently than many people who have invited Christ into their lives, is that they allowed him to take that place at the head of the table and break the bread right away. Luke’s attention to detail says nothing of the men correcting Jesus when he sits at the head of the table or informing him that the job of breaking bread is reserved for the master of the house. Something within them simply seems to grant Him top honors without hesitation and then BOOM- as soon as they allowed Him to have His deserved place of honor, these everyday followers of Christ (who were not the esteemed apostles) have their eyes opened and they get to see and experience the risen Lord FIRST HAND!
Oh how I wish that we all would have the wisdom of Cleopas and his friend! So often we receive Christ but fail to begin a relationship with Him until months or even years later. And for what? If we would all allow God to take the top place in our life, we could then experience incredible things through Him. But instead, I fear that we all too often tend to add Him as one more thing on our plates of life. Whether it be having quiet time, praying, attending church, or serving others— I don’t think many of us would claim to truly allow Christ to rule in our lives. But I think we would all say we want to experience Him in a more real, first hand way. How silly of us to think that we can have one without the other!
Jesus asks us to remember Him, not on Easter, nor on Sundays, but in our everyday, routine task of eating. It seems as though He wants to be coming alongside us on the road of life, and opening our eyes to His goodness, but He is a polite and honest guest, who won’t force His way to the top (where He knows He belongs.)
I hope that, if you find that you have added Jesus as one more thing on your plate of life instead of taking everything on your plate from Him, that this Easter season will help you rework that equation. I pray that we will all remember Jesus as we break bread daily, and that we would allow Him to sit at the head of our table and fill our plates. If we’re going to invite Him into our lives, let’s let Him abide where He belongs.
- Christina