River City Church - Smyrna, GA
Religion & Spirituality:Christianity
Josh looks at the story of the two disciples on the Emmaus Road from Luke 24. We see in this story how Jesus interacts with us. He asks us what we're thinking or feeling. He listens and is present with us. We often don't recognize Him. He explains things that our heart knows to be true, and when we invite Him in, our eyes are opened. And we continue the journey towards the fullness of the gospel with Jesus. Luke 24:13-35; Acts 2:42-44; Psalm 116:1-4, 12-19.
Josh shared three quotes in the message:
1. "And Jesus listens. He hears them out, allowing them the balm of articulation. And then — when they’re done — He tells the story back to them, and as He does so, the story changes. In His retelling, it becomes what it really always was — something far bigger, deeper, older, wiser, and richer than the travelers on the Emmaus road understood. 'Here’s what you’re leaving out,' Jesus seems to say. 'Here’s what you’re missing.' When Jesus tells the story, He restores both its context and its glory. He grounds the story in memory, in tradition, in history, in Scripture. He helps the travelers comprehend their place in a narrative that long precedes them, a narrative big enough to hold their disappointment without being defeated by it. When Jesus tells the story, the death of the Messiah finds its place in a sweeping, cosmic arc of redemption, hope, and divine love that spans the centuries. When Jesus tells the story, the hearts of his listeners burn."
- Debie Thomas
2. "Then, as the shadows lengthen and the evening comes and the busy world is hushed, another character falls into step with them and asks what were they discussing with each other while they walked along. This question stops them in their tracks. They 'stood still' Luke says suggesting that when God enters a conversation we think we are having with one another - when our horizontal perspective on the human condition is assumed from above and crossed by the vertical perspective of God's word, we cannot but find our lost self standing still. We have surely come to a crossroad. At issue are not the miles before us but the moment at hand and the eternity that has just invaded time.... God's word interrupted the church's idle conversations and effectively called a halt to our frantic forward momentum? Where were we going when the question of a stranger prompted us to confess that we had lost our way? What was it about the one who had listened that turned the details of despair into beseeching?"
- Cynthia A. Jarvis
3. "It has been suggested that hospitality is the key to evangelism in our day, so this text offers a window to spiritual practice and post-modernity. Actions more than words, welcome more than self promotion and protection provides the space where others might fearlessly enter in and find themselves at home. Sharing the common meal transgresses boundaries and allows communion with Christ, who meets us whenever we gather at the Lord's table - or at the tables that provide self-giving welcome."
- Molly T. Marshall
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