Fifty Days of Glory

Fifty Days of Glory Outline of Readings: April 23rd—Chapter 1 April 30th—Chapters 2 & 3 May 7th—Chapters 4 & 5 May 14th—Chapters 6 & 7 May 21st—Chapters 8 & 9

Fifty Days of Glory Chapter 2 On the Road to Emmaus Luke 24:13-35

Fifty Days of Glory Who is Cleopas? “Now there stood by the cross of Jesus His mother, and His mother’s sister, Mary the wife of Clopas, and Mary Magdalene.” John 19:25 “…among whom were Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James and Joses, [Joseph] and the mother of Zebedee’s sons.” Matthew 27:56

Fifty Days of Glory “We would think that if the Lord truly wanted to launch a movement to transform the world He would have first appeared to powerful, influential, and educated people, or at least to those He had spent three years grooming. But no! He appeared to Mary Magdalene and other women, to Cleopas, and to someone whose name we do not know. We can take comfort in this. He wants to come to us, and, when we let Him, He wants to deepen our relationship with Him.”

Fifty Days of Glory “…God the Father intentionally prevented their initial recognition of Jesus so that the eventual recognition would be coupled with both further disclosure as to who He is, and with what the church throughout the centuries should include as central aspects of her life.”

Fifty Days of Glory 4 reasons Jesus was not just a prophet/teacher

Fifty Days of Glory 4 reasons Jesus was not just a prophet/teacher • He presumed to forgive sin;

Fifty Days of Glory 4 reasons Jesus was not just a prophet/teacher • He presumed to forgive sin; • He called God His Father in a way that made Them equal;

Fifty Days of Glory 4 reasons Jesus was not just a prophet/teacher • He presumed to forgive sin; • He called God His Father in a way that made Them equal; • He made Himself the center of the message;

Fifty Days of Glory 4 reasons Jesus was not just a prophet/teacher • He presumed to forgive sin; • He called God His Father in a way that made Them equal; • He made Himself the center of the message; • He treated the Law in a way no rabbi would.

Fifty Days of Glory Two Truths About Spiritual Journeys

Fifty Days of Glory Two Truths About Spiritual Journeys • Jesus walks with us on the journey;

Fifty Days of Glory Two Truths About Spiritual Journeys • Jesus walks with us on the journey; • There is an actual goal.

Fifty Days of Glory “…while we don’t have the just-raised human Jesus walking next to us in [the] same way as He was present at Emmaus, Jesus is surely present. Through the Holy Spirit, we have walking with us nothing less than the body of Christ the church, the place where Jesus’ own disciples are called to offer companionship, truth-telling rebuke, patient teaching and fellowship meals.”

Fifty Days of Glory “Jesus never spoke to the issue of homosexual behavior, chastity, idol worship, or several other issues because He did not need to. Where Jesus was silent about an Old Testament moral teaching, it is because He endorsed it. There can be no playing off of a tolerant Jesus against an intolerant Old Testament… There can be no playing off Jesus against Paul, either.”

Fifty Days of Glory Why might Cleopas and his companion not made the connection between the OT and events of Holy Week?

Fifty Days of Glory Why might Cleopas and his companion not made the connection between the OT and events of Holy Week? • They might have had only a moderate commitment to their faith;

Fifty Days of Glory Why might Cleopas and his companion not made the connection between the OT and events of Holy Week? • They might have had only a moderate commitment to their faith; • They might have had blind spots in their understanding of their religion;

Fifty Days of Glory Why might Cleopas and his companion not made the connection between the OT and events of Holy Week? • They might have had only a moderate commitment to their faith; • They might have had blind spots in their understanding of their religion; • Often, it is not until one experiences the fulfillment of a promise that one fully understands the original promise.

Fifty Days of Glory “As we watch Jesus challenge His companions on the walk to Emmaus, we must ask ourselves, if we were to walk along with Jesus on a similar journey, might He be warranted in calling us ‘foolish…and slow of heart to believe’ either because of an overly skeptical mind of because of a mind that quickly wanders off to non-biblical ideas that tickly our fancy (see 2 Tim. 4:3)?”

Fifty Days of Glory “At the same time we should be encouraged that Jesus continues to accompany us as we walk the Emmaus roads of life. Malcolm Muggeridge (1903—1990), that most remarkable convert to the Christian faith, noted that ‘wherever the walk, and whoever the wayfarers, there is always this third presence ready to emerge from the shadows and fall in step along the dusty, stony way.’”

Fifty Days of Glory Discussion Questions: • Compare the experiences of the Emmaus road, the Damascus road (Acts 9), and the Bethsaida road (Mark 8:22-25).

Fifty Days of Glory Discussion Questions: • How should we balance our attention between the journey and the destination?

Fifty Days of Glory Chapter 3 Be Known to Us in the Breaking of the Bread Luke 24:28-35

Fifty Days of Glory “Once Jesus has been invited into the life of a person, however, His desire is to establish ownership. He will not enter our house as a mere guest, but only as a landlord.”

Fifty Days of Glory “Once the Emmaus travelers had invited the stranger into either their house or the inn, Jesus assumed the role of the head of the family. He did not merely sit at the table with them. He presided at the meal, a rather extraordinary presumption, especially if this be their house.”

Fifty Days of Glory “N. T. Wright notes that there are but two places in the entire Bible where people eat an then find that their eyes are suddenly opened. In Genesis 3:6-7 Adam and Eve ate of the forbidden fruit and discovered they were naked. In Luke 24:30-31 the Emmaus walkers at of the food offered by Jesus and discovered the strangers was the Christ…

Fifty Days of Glory “…We are invited by the biblical authors to see in this post-Resurrection appearance of Jesus a typological fulfillment, a reversal of the tragic situation of the Garden of Eden. One time of eating resulted in eyes being opened to their sin, shame, and estrangement from God. The other time of eating result in eyes being opened to recognize the risen Christ…

Fifty Days of Glory “…Comments Arthur A. Just, Jr., ‘Just as Adam and Eve's eating of the forbidden fruit was the first meal of the fallen creation, so this meal at Emmaus is the first meal of the new creation on the first day of the week.’”

Fifty Days of Glory “When Adam and Eve were offered food by the serpent and ate, their eyes were opened and they knew good and evil. When the two disciples on the Emmaus road were offered food by the risen Jesus and ate, their eyes, too, were opened and they knew who their traveling companion was, that he had been raised, and that hew was the focal point of all the Scriptures.”

Fifty Days of Glory Three Important Truths That Come From Viewing The Emmaus Meal as Holy Communion:

Fifty Days of Glory Three Important Truths That Come From Viewing The Emmaus Meal as Holy Communion: • The Early Church had Communion on what was at least a weekly basis;

Fifty Days of Glory Three Important Truths That Come From Viewing The Emmaus Meal as Holy Communion: • The Early Church had Communion on what was at least a weekly basis; • The was always a specific order to the service of Holy Communion;

Fifty Days of Glory Three Important Truths That Come From Viewing The Emmaus Meal as Holy Communion: • The Early Church had Communion on what was at least a weekly basis; • The was always a specific order to the service of Holy Communion; • Holy Communion has always been more than a memorial, it is a means of grace.

Fifty Days of Glory Why did Jesus leave so mysteriously?

Fifty Days of Glory Why did Jesus leave so mysteriously? • To show that, although regular, mountain-top experiences are not designed to last long;

Fifty Days of Glory Why did Jesus leave so mysteriously? • To show that, although regular, mountain-top experiences are not designed to last long; • To underscore the fact that He would not be with them much longer;

Fifty Days of Glory Why did Jesus leave so mysteriously? • To show that, although regular, mountain-top experiences are not designed to last long; • To underscore the fact that He would not be with them much longer; • To demonstrate His Resurrection body.

Fifty Days of Glory “As many commentators have pointed out over the centuries, this narrative is a symbolic presentation of the liturgy. We come to Mass, like these two disciples, often walking in the wrong direction. This is why we beg, in the Kyrie Eleison, for the forgiveness of sins. But Jesus, with infinite patience, comes to join us, opening up for us the meaning of the Scriptures, showing us once again how the Old Testament story culminates and centers around Him. This is the Liturgy of the Word."

Fifty Days of Glory “Though this illumination is necessary, it is not sufficient. We don’t fully understand who Jesus is until we sit down with Him at the sacred sacrificial banquet that makes present His saving cross. In the liturgy of the Eucharist, in the breaking of the bread and the drinking of the cup, we see Him in His real presence. Finally, having seen, we move, presumably in a more correct direction.”

Fifty Days of Glory “First, the ‘stranger’ walks with Cleopas and his companion towards Emmaus, unfolding the Scriptures to them. This parallels the first half of the liturgy, the ‘Ministry of the Word,’ with Scriptures read and taught. Second, the stranger sits at the table with them and becomes known as Jesus as He ‘breaks bread,’ that is celebrates communion. This parallels the second half of the liturgy, the ‘Ministry of the Sacrament.’”

Fifty Days of Glory “Then, the two run back to Jerusalem to tell the others. This parallels our being sent forth for witness and service. In the Anglican tradition this is expressed in a post-Eucharistic prayer which includes the words, ‘…send us out to do the work you have given us to do…’ and in the dismissal, ‘Go in peace to love and serve the Lord.’”

Fifty Days of Glory “Each of the post-Resurrection appearances of Jesus teaches us something about what the church would be like after Jesus’ Ascension and what the church should be like today. In the appearance on the road to Emmaus He is trying to tell us that both Scripture and Holy Communion are to be front and center in the life of the church.”

Fifty Days of Glory Discussion Questions: • If the Eucharist is a sacrament and sacrament is an efficacious means of grace, how would you explain this to someone who doesn’t speak “churcheses”?

Fifty Days of Glory Discussion Questions: • In Communion, what is the difference between remembering Jesus and recalling things you have learned about Jesus?

Fifty Days of Glory Discussion Questions: • Can a sacrament bring a past encounter into your present experience? How about a future encounter, such as the marriage feast of the Lamb?

Fifty Days of Glory Next week: Chapter 4—“Behind a Locked Door” & Chapter 5—“The Apostles’ Commission Restated”

Fifty Days of Glory