The Master’s disciples’ usual human fixation on death—final and devastating—meant they wouldn’t have STOLEN his body, as Jewish leaders claimed. First, HOW could they steal the body? Guarded by 16 armed-to-the-teeth Roman soldiers ordered to prevent it? Beyond HOW, WHY would the disciples want to steal his body? Could they find comfort in Christ’s corpse when his life had aggrieved them? Would they show people a corpse as proof they could live again?
Omitting much of what the passage suggests...while the men of Emmaus thought and proposed and questioned and debated, Jesus mysteriously joined them—as a stranger, invading their privacy; tutoring their ignorance; rebuking their unbelief; awakening their hope; stirring revival in them. All in such fascinating conversation that the seven miles felt like a yard, and they too quickly arrived at the village—where only their insistent invitation kept him from walking on. That leads to our second couplet: Meal/Mystery. Why did Jesus TEACH them on the road and REVEAL himself as they ate? First, because of the custom mealtime symbolized in that culture. When a host invited a guest to his home the guest automatically reversed rules and became ruler. Thus, once at table Jesus seamlessly transitioned from guest to ruler of Cleopas’ house. Expressing his Lordship of their life, not merely the forgiveness of their sins. Jesus warns every disciple: if we want his forgiveness, we shall have it, but it comes with an obligation on our part. When he knocks on the door of our mind, we open the door, he’ll come in AND when he does, HE’S the BOSS. Forget self-improvement, self-discovery, self-fulfillment or anything else about SELF! The personal pronoun “I” has use in discipleship only in saying I DIE to self. Every-after is CHRIST lives and rules and monopolizes us! End Part II
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