Opening Prayer:
Creator of all, we thank you for the opportunity to gather in study. Open our minds and hearts. By the power of the Holy Spirit, unite us in faith, hope, and love. Help us to be faithful to the gospel and to walk humbly with you. Grant us your peace as we grow in wisdom and understanding. We pray in Jesus’ name. Amen.
Luke 24:13-35 What tends to block receptivity to Christ’s presence in your own life?
This is one of the best known and loved resurrection stories. The setting is still the day of Resurrection, not in Jerusalem, but on a dusty road to Emmaus. The circle of disciples was larger than just the twelve. Two of them, Cleopas and a companion, were sadly returning to their homes after the Sabbath and the tragic death of Jesus. Their destination was the village of Emmaus, about seven miles northwest of Jerusalem. (Several possible sites for Emmaus have been identified, including one about 20 miles from Jerusalem; but there is no certainty about which, if any, is the correct one.) Just as their ancestor Abraham entertained angels unawares, so Christ was with them and they did not know it.
1 Peter 1:17-23 What empty (and enriching) ways have we inherited from our forebears in the faith?
The incentive for holy living is the realization of how much our salvation has cost the Son of God. The image is that of a ransom for the release of a slave—usually done with the payment of money (“silver or gold”) and sealed with a sacrifice (of an animal). But their release from slavery (to sin) was paid not by mere gold but by something far more precious—Christ’s gift of his life. He became the Paschal (Passover) lamb, the sacrifice that sealed the liberation. Jesus himself talked of this (Mark 10:45). This redemption had been God’s intent from the beginning, but he says they are the ones blessed by seeing the fulfillment.
Acts 2:14a, 36-41 When have you found yourself “cut to the heart” and left asking, “What should I do?”
Peter’s sermon strikes a contrast between what his audience did with Jesus and what God did with him. As Peter says in v. 36, “This Jesus whom you crucified,” “God has made him both Lord and Messiah.” Although most of the sermon (vv. 14-41) describes God’s exaltation of Jesus to a position of royal authority from which Jesus pours out the Holy Spirit, it also is accusatory. It underscores how the audience’s intentions concerning Jesus differed from God’s. The sermon had its intended impact – the people pleaded with Peter to tell them what to do, and he did so. What do Jesus’ death, resurrection, and exaltation demand from Peter’s audience? First, Peter calls for repentance – a changed mind or a new understanding. Second, Peter tells his hearers to be baptized “in the name of Jesus Christ” so that they may be delivered from their sins. Third, Peter declares that the Holy Spirit is promised to all whom God calls. This is the same Spirit of power that Jesus said God promised (Luke 24:49) and would empower Jesus’ followers (Acts 1:8). Finally, the new order of things instituted by Jesus’ resurrection and exaltation allows for rescue from all that is debilitating about this corrupt–literally, “crooked”–generation.