AfterWords: "Jesus in ... Communion"

 

Luke 24:13-16; 28-35

As we move through this season of Resurrection, through this Easter Season, we hear again the stories from that time in Jesus’ ministry. Really, these stories should be as well-known to us as the various Christmas stories since Easter is the very thing that validates Christmas. So, let’s continue with the “Walk to Emmaus” story.

The two disciples in the Emmaus Road story have already unknowingly been intercepted by the Risen Jesus. In their loss, brokenness, and confusion, they have shared with Jesus…and they have learned from Jesus. Jesus has shown them how the Scriptures have told the story of the coming Messiah…and all he was to do and suffer.

As these two disciples stop for the night, they invite Jesus to stay with them. They invite Jesus into their lives…they extend the gift of hospitality to this fellow they’ve been traveling with. Hospitality is a hallmark of God’s people all through Scripture. In Genesis, Abraham invites travelers to stop and eat with him. In the wilderness, God’s people are directed to welcome the foreigner and stranger within their gates. And, in the New Testament we find  Paul telling the Roman Christians to practice hospitality (Rom. 12). The writer of Hebrews reminds people to practice hospitality because in doing so, “some … have unknowingly entertained angels.” So, our disciples here invite the stranger (Jesus) into their lives.

As was and is one of the greatest forms of hospitality, the disciples invite the unknown traveler to eat with them. As they prepare to eat, Jesus takes the bread, blesses it, breaks it, and hands it to them. And in that moment, their eyes are opened, and they see Jesus.

At that Last Supper before the crucifixion, Jesus took bread to represent himself. There were other foods at the table—lamb, vegetables, various herbs. But, Jesus chose the one food that would be on the disciples’ tables every day if not for every meal: bread. His hope was for them to break bread (literally) and remember him, remember what he had done.

For the first several hundred years of the Church, there were no altar tables, no paraments, no crosses, no candles. Communion—the Lord’s Supper—was practiced at a meal, at a regular table. Today, thanks to ‘sliced bread,’ we don’t break bread too often. But, at least we have Communion Sunday—a time we gather at the Table and truly break bread. We remember together who Jesus is and what God has done for us in and through Christ Jesus.

Our reading of the Emmaus story reminds us we are called to be a people of hospitality, a people who invite others into our lives…and who accept invitations into others’ lives. We also recall that Jesus comes to us in the simple act of breaking bread. May we be a people of hospitality, and may we experience Jesus in the breaking of bread…or the tearing of tortilla.

Sunday, May 4, 2025
“Jesus in … Communion”
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