mattnews.biz — Lest We Forget
It seems every September I end up in a circle of people and we recall when and where we were when the news was released that two planes had struck the towers of the World Trade Center. I was sitting in my english class during my Sophomore year of highschool. I don’t recall it as vividly as everyone else, because I don’t place a large significance to the WTC attack. I’m not a conspiracy theorist that claims it was an inside job, but personally that attack didn’t affect me greatly at all. I didn’t know anyone in New York. No friends, no loved ones. I didn’t know any of the first responders at the site. I do, however, recognize the significance that the event held in our nation’s history, and the significance that the site holds for many today.
A friend of mine was telling me about the site as it stands currently. He was telling me about the awe and reverence placed on the area when you visit, as he did not too long ago. The names on the monuments and everything that is representative of the tragedy that struck that day in 2001. To some of us this site represents vulnerability and a disruption of peace. To others it represents an escalation with foreign relations. Lives lost, heroic efforts, fear, revenge, resilience. The WTC site is considered a place of historic significance, and rightfully so. It disrupted and changed the course of history. These emotions are evoked at most historic sites for some, and historic sites help us to recall or even evoke those events.
Children who grew up knowing about the 911 attack, but not living through it can only find its significance in the way the history is portrayed and possibly by visiting the site. It’s the way a lot of us recount history. In America we can visit battle grounds of the American Revolution, The Civil War, the Great Depression. All throughout the south you can visit the sites of historic plantations and walk inside former slave quarters. There is another way we can recount and perhaps relive history and that’s through tradition, but what is the significance of recalling and understanding history? So we don’t forget.
I want to recount this story from the Gospel of Luke and look at an interpretation of the events recalled in the text. In Luke Chapter 24 starting in verse 13 Luke is reprising an account of two disciples just after Jesus death, and burial. The two disciples are making their way to a village not too far from Jerusalem. Here’s how the story starts…
“Now that same day two of them were on their way to a village called Emmaus, which was about seven miles from Jerusalem” Luke 24:13 (HCSB)
Let’s sit here for a second. So we have two disciples and they are on their way to a village called Emmaus. One thing I’m learning from my time meditating on the Bible is that these documents were crafted for the purpose of convincing the reader to take the message of the good news to heart. So as the writer’s craft these gospels they are very intentional with every detail added, so when I see the name of a city I know there is a reason that name is there. So we see that these disciples were making their way to Emmaus. What’s important about Emmaus?
Almost 200 years before Jesus would start his ministry a Greek speaking Seleucid king named Antiochus IV Epiphanes¹ would rule over the province of Judea from 175 B.C. — 164 B.C. He would impose Hellenism on the territories he ruled and forbid the practice of Judaism. In 167 a priest known by the name Matthias would defy Antiochus’ decree, as recorded in 1 Maccabees 2:22 “We will not obey the king’s decree, and we will not change our way of worship in the least.” (a note on 1 Maccabees. Most Christian denominations do not hold Maccabees as Holy scripture, however, consider it a work of historical significance as a piece of Second Temple literature that would have been circulating and been known during the time of Jesus and His disciples.) After Matthias’ death, his son, Judah Maccabee, took the mantle as leader and began what is now known as the Maccabean revolt². One of the battles from that revolt was, the Battle of Emmaus.³ ⁴
This battle is recorded in 1 Maccabees 3:55–4:25⁵. Judah splitting his forces up and ambushing the Greek Seleucid forces and gaining the victory in 166 B.C. leading the Jewish people to believe they had effectively began the withdrawal of the Greek empire from Judea, however the Greeks recuperate and overtook the Jewish revolt later on. The Battle of Emmaus was considered one of the greatest victories ever by a man that was considered one of Israel’s greatest military leaders.
So these two disciples were heading to a town that would be considered the equivalent to Gettysburg for Americans, a town of great historical significance going down in history as one of the greatest victories, and what were they doing? “ Together they were discussing everything that had taken place.” Luke 24:14 (HCSB) These two disciples were talking about Jesus’ arrest, death, and burial.
So the resurrected Jesus’ walks up to them and asks them, “Hey, what are you talking about?” Here Luke writes that the disciples didn’t recognize Jesus and state, “Their eyes were prevented from recognizing Him.” One thing I want to point out here, that the text does not say that The Lord prevented them, but their own eyes prevented them.
So the disciples respond to this “stranger”, “Are You the only visitor in Jerusalem who doesn’t know the things that happened there in these days?” (v18) and Jesus responds, “What things?”
“Are you, really the only one visiting Jerusalem who doesn’t know?” It’s only been a few days. But they fill Jesus in anyway, “The things concerning Jesus the Nazarene, who was a Prophet powerful in action and speech before God and all the people, 20 and how our chief priests and leaders handed Him over to be sentenced to death, and they crucified Him. 21 But we were hoping that He was the One who was about to redeem Israel.”
Jesus of Nazareth who was a prophet, and powerful. He was sentenced to death by the leaders and priests, but… we were hoping he was going to be THE ONE.
21b Besides all this, it’s the third day since these things happened. 22 Moreover, some women from our group astounded us. They arrived early at the tomb, 23 and when they didn’t find His body, they came and reported that they had seen a vision of angels who said He was alive. 24 Some of those who were with us went to the tomb and found it just as the women had said, but they didn’t see Him.
25 He said to them, “How unwise and slow you are to believe in your hearts all that the prophets have spoken! 26 Didn’t the Messiah have to suffer these things and enter into His glory?” 27 Then beginning with Moses and all the Prophets, He interpreted for them the things concerning Himself in all the Scriptures.”
Jesus talking to them as a stranger gets frustrated at their lack of understanding, “Oh my gosh you guys are so dim! Don’t you understand that the Messiah was supposed to suffer. Your interpretation of the Messiah is wrong!”
See the traditional view of the Messiah, and these beliefs are still held today, that he will be a great political leader, charismatic, and a great military leader who will win battles for Israel⁶. So you have these two disciples on their way to Emmaus because the guy who they thought was THE ONE has been handed over and is dead, it’s been three days, and now his body is missing. “How unwise and slow you are to believe,”
Then they make it to the village and they are about to part ways and, still not recognizing Him, they invite Jesus to dinner and a sleepover. The story continues,
“It was as He reclined at the table with them that He took the bread, blessed and broke it, and gave it to them. 31 Then their eyes were opened, and they recognized Him, but He disappeared from their sight,” (v30–31). What does this remind you of?
“14 When the hour came, He reclined at the table, and the apostles with Him. 15 Then He said to them, “I have fervently desired to eat this Passover with you before I suffer.”
19 And He took bread, gave thanks, broke it, gave it to them, and said, “This is My body, which is given for you. Do this in remembrance of Me.” ⁷
Jesus was giving them the Lord’s supper. He was reenacting that Passover meal, which this is still considered the Passover season at this time. That’s when they recognized Him. “Then their eyes were opened.”
See, they had lost hope and were going back to remember one of the greatest military leaders of Israel, because this Jesus guy, who they thought was the next military leader, wasn’t, but that’s because their understanding of who the Messiah was supposed to be was skewed. It was only when they were brought to a better understanding of what they were looking for and then the act of remembrance through the breaking of the bread and that Jesus had to suffer did they recognize Him.
There’s a few things I want to say here. One is the power of rituals, traditions, and history. One of the quotes I used to hear a lot as a kid, but rarely hear anymore is “Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it.” Locations, liturgy, and remembrance are important tools for us to keep us aware of the past, but to my second point is the power of the past to give us hope looking forward. A friend posted on their social media about the tradition of Groundhogs day and her hopes of when “our” generation fully “takes over” it will dissipate. But what is the purpose of Groundhogs day? It’s to remind us that spring is coming. It gives us hope that winter will end! It’s a great tradition to have. The disciples had a historical place of remembrance that would give them hope, but it gave them hope in the wrong thing. Jesus brings them back to remembrance through the Lord’s supper and corrects the place where they should find their hope.
[1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Antiochus_IV_Epiphanes
[2] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maccabean_Revolt
[3] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p6XtZgqw2qc
[5] https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=1%20Maccabees+4&version=GNT
[6] http://www.jewfaq.org/mashiach.htm
[7] https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Luke+22%3A14-23%3A56&version=HCSB
