April 23, 2023             Text:  Luke 24:13-35

Dear Friends in Christ,

In 1799 the armies of Napoleon appeared on the heights above the town of Feldkirch, Austria.  It was Easter, and the rays of the rising sun glittered on the weapons of the French, as they appeared drawn up on the hills to the west of the town.  The Town Council was hastily called together to consult what was to be done.

After much discussion, the dean of the Church rose and said, “My brothers it is Easter Day!  We have been reckoning our own strength, and that fails.  Let us turn to God.  Ring the bells and have service as usual, and leave the matter in God’s hands.”

They agreed to do as he said.  Then from the church towers in Feldkirch there rang out joyous peals in honor of the Resurrection and the streets filled with worshippers hastening to worship.  The French heard the sudden ringing of the joy bells with surprise and alarm.  They concluded that the Austrian army had arrived to relieve the place.  So they hastily fled, and before the bells had ceased ringing not a Frenchman was to be seen.

Today the bells of Easter still ring with joy.  They rang for the two men on the way to Emmaus.  The living Lord rekindled their faith so that their hearts burned within them.  Do you still have the ringing of the Easter joy in your soul?  Let’s take a walk and find out . . .

“ARE YOUR HEARTS STILL BURNING?”

We join the two men on the road.  They are experiencing life without Christ and wondering what has happened.  There is no burning fire of faith or hope left in their hearts.

Without the living Christ the heart is cold.  We see this every day in our world.  The cold heart expresses itself in the coarsest language, the crudest behavior, the cruelest actions.  The cold heart seeks a warmth by embracing more and more things that are contrary to God’s Word.

We can have a cold heart as well.  If we don’t suffer that way, then we may experience a sad heart – a heart weighed down with sorrow or suffering or sin.  Do you have a troubled heart?  You are perplexed by the problems of this life and let it affect your mind and attitude.  How about a weak heart?  Struggling with the trials and temptations thrown your way.  Is your heart doubting?  Wondering if God is really walking with you and working for your good.  Or maybe you suffer a lukewarm heart.  You question the Bible.  Societal change creeps into your brain.  You need a good fire of faith to lift you up.

The living Christ comes to open our minds, warm our hearts, and give us a living hope.  Jesus joins the walkers and explains the Scriptures.  He meets these sad, troubled, weak, doubting and lukewarm hearts with hope.  “Beginning with Moses and all the Prophets, he interpreted to them in all the Scriptures the things concerning himself.” (v. 27)

The words of Jesus rekindle faith.  The hearts of these men are set of fire, they are burning with joy.  Is the same joy you have?  As Christ walks with you do you feel His presence?  He is the promised Messiah and the Risen Savior.  Faith, and hope and joy abound for these men and for us.  “Please stay Lord, we want to hear more.”  They run to tell the disciples.  There in Jerusalem Jesus appears again to the believers.  Their hearts are warming up.

We have that same warmth for our hearts.  Life can no longer bog us down with guilt or the fear of death.  Life is not hopeless.  We have been born anew “into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead.” (1 Pet. 1:3). We do not walk alone in this life.  We do not walk alone to the grave.  The risen Christ promises, “Because I live, you also will live.” (John 14:19)

There is a little more giddy up in our steps.  These two disciples were just shuffling along but now they have good news to share which means they hurry to tell it.  The living Lord changes everything.  We have a living Savior in the midst of sorrows and joy, in the midst of life and death.  We live by faith in him and the power of the resurrection.

Easter Island is one of the remote islands of the world.  Found 2,000 miles west of Chile, it is so named because the Dutch discovered it on Easter 1722.  Fewer than 8,000 people live here, but many tourists visit occasionally.  For us, Easter is no island.  This Sunday is no holiday excursion.  We don’t celebrate Easter and then forget it.  It is an ongoing reality because Jesus lives!

When life is grinding you down, remember “Christ is risen!”  When facing a seemingly insurmountable problem we have hope because “Christ is risen!”  When standing at the grave of a loved one, all is not sad because “Christ is risen!”  

When your steps are heavy and spirits sagging, Christ walks with you.  He speaks to us in His Word.  He opens our eyes to His grace and love.  Hearts are warmed.  They burn with joy and peace.  Weak hearts are filled with strength.  Doubtful hearts are given confidence.  Lukewarm hearts have conviction.  Cold hearts are given heat from the “lifeblood poured from his sacred veins.”  

Wasn’t that a great walk?  Doesn’t your heart feel better?

Amen.      

April 9, 2023 – Easter Text:  John 20:19-23

Dear Friends in Christ,

Have you ever encountered this situation?  You are at the grocery store and run into an old acquaintance.  You make the proverbial small talk and then ask the question, “So how’s life?”  You expect the cliched answer, “Fine.”  Or they might say, “living the dream.”  You don’t expect to hear this.  “Well, I’m separated from Harry.  The kids seem to blame me.  I’ve hated my job for years and I’m just trying to make it day by day.”  She’s scared.  She’s angry.  Her life has been less than fulfilling.  She’d like to leave it all behind, start over, and start really living life.

Sometimes, it’s our youth.  Sometimes a midlife redirection.  Sometimes its burnout from a 30-year job.  Sometimes it’s the energy we put into the kids.  We can all go through cycles where we think it’s really time to start living.  The ideal is different for all of us, but usually includes a faraway vacation, spending lavishly or putting our time into something we really love.  Then we will really live.  But people can return from the feel-good trip and still feel empty.

The Bible has something to say about really living, and it’s not found in the Swiss Alps or the gearshift of the BMW.  We don’t need middle age or burnout to trigger a life worth living.  For us as Christians what we need is Easter.  We need the empty tomb and shouts of “He Is Risen!”  We need the appearance of Jesus to his disciples, showing them His . . .

“LIFE-GIVING HANDS”

The disciples were acting like the friend who felt her life was a mess.  John writes, “the doors being locked where the disciples were for fear of the Jews.” (v. 19).  If the Jews were so corrupt as to orchestrate the crucifixion of an innocent man, what would stop them from coming after his disciples next?  Many of these men had abandoned Jesus in the Garden of Gethsemane.  Even though Jesus had been preparing them for his death, they still seemed shocked that it happened.  They were acting like Jesus was dead.  They were afraid and they felt guilty.  They were trapped in their own mid-life crisis.

Jesus wanted to calm their nerves.  He didn’t start with, “So how’s life?”  What he said was, “Peace be with you.” (v. 19).  They had heard the reports but hadn’t seen Jesus with their own eyes.  “Guys, it’s me!  I’m not a ghost.  I’m not dead.  I am very much alive.  “He showed them his hands and his side.”  They saw the life-giving hands and knew they were looking at their resurrected Lord.  He is risen indeed.

It took them a moment, but they finally grabbed hold of Easter that evening – it’s joy.  “Then the disciples were glad when they saw the Lord.” (v. 20). No more fear, but Easter joy that makes life really worth living.  Have you grabbed hold of that Easter joy?

Jesus was alive but it was not a static thing.  His life-giving hands had a life-fulfilling mission.  “As the Father has sent me, even so I am sending you.” (v. 21). Jesus was sent by God to forgive sins.  He knows asks us to be His ambassadors.  That is real living.

What a big job.  The disciples had to be overwhelmed.  They go from terror to being commissioned by Christ.  He knows what they need, “He breathed on them and said to them, Receive the Holy Spirit.” (v. 22). The Holy Spirit worked so powerfully through these men that 50 days later these uneducated Galilean fishermen were apostolic fishers of souls.  When people heard Peter’s sermon, 3,000 souls were added to the Christian Church that day.

Christ even gave them the message.  “If you forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven them; if you withhold forgiveness from any, it is withheld.” (v. 23).  It is a big day when a child is given the keys to the house, and even bigger milestone when they hand over the keys to the car.  With these words, Jesus confidently hands every believer the keys to heaven.  We are opening or closing the doors to heaven by forgiving or not forgiving.  The keys are the special power and privilege Christ gives only to Christians.  Forgiving sins and announcing peace is what Jesus did on Easter when he showed His life-giving hands.  What better way to live Easter daily than to use our hands for God’s life-giving purpose – to forgive our brothers and sisters.

What can be more meaningful than forgiving an estranged spouse?  Reconciling with a co-worker?  Resolving differences with an old friend?  Keys are only useful if you use them.  God gave them to you to use.  Living at peace with God and your neighbor makes life really worth living.  Those disciples took that message from the life-giving hands and made it their life-giving mission.  Empowered by the Holy Spirit that night, they went.  Today more than two billion Christians scattered around the world owe a debt of gratitude to the church’s humble beginnings that Easter evening.

So, how’s life?  Are you stuck?  Thinking you don’t really have anything to live for?  Stop acting like Jesus is dead.  He is not.  Look at the life-giving hands. Jesus is alive!  Let’s act like it.  Let’s pray like it.  Let’s believe like it.  Let’s embrace his call, “I am sending you,” and bring the gospel to the other six billion people in our world one soul at a time.  Let’s receive his Holy Spirit and use the keys to proclaim peace.  Live life like there is no death, because Easter means there is no death.  Easter makes life really worth living.

Amen.