Preaching the Scriptures

The Rev. Jeremiah Williamson Luke 24:13-35 Broken Let's be clear: the road to Emmaus was the road out of town.   It was not a path to spiritual enlightenment or renewal.   The two followers of Jesus did not expect a divine surprise as they traveled the seven miles back from Jerusalem.   They were on the road to Emmaus because their hopes were dashed.   They were leaving Jerusalem because things did not work out.   Because it was over. This was their first experience of the Easter world.   Not praise; not worship; not belief.   The first thing these two followers of Jesus did after the resurrection was pack it in.   Things did not work out and it was over. Jesus had been their guy.   They were the early adopters.   They joined the fan club.   They owned the merch.   They were all in.   It was Jesus' deeds; they were amazing.   It was his words; they were captivating, life-changing.   Everyon...

The Rev. Jeremiah Williamson John 20:19-31 He Keeps Showing Up Where was he?   Everyone else was there in the room, but he was gone and while he was gone, he missed it.   Now, in Matt's defense he had never attended an Easter Vigil before; he did not know about the sudden transition from the dark anticipation of the Vigil into the first dramatic Easter acclamation.   And so it was just after the baptism when he left; it seemed like the perfect time to slip out, under the cover of darkness – just for a couple of minutes.   But in that brief period of time a lot happened.   When Matt returned to the nave it was no longer dark in the church.   The lights were on, the candles were out, bells were ringing, the congregation was joyfully singing the Gloria.   He told me after the service, “ I stepped out to go to the bathroom and when I came back in, everything was different.   I missed Jesus coming back! ”   Where was he? ...