[This reflection by David Makanjuola was published in the weekly news bulletin of Horley Baptist Church, 31/Mar/2024]
By the time this article is being read, we will be approaching the end of the run up to Easter. I have been pondering over the passages laid out in the Essential Jesus reading plan that some of us have been following for the last couple of months. The last few days have turned the focus to Christ’s resurrection. One thing I noticed but haven’t been able to understand is why those who encountered Jesus after he had risen didn’t recognise him.
Most of them had spent the better part of 3 years with him. They had walked with him, talked with him and just days before, some had shared supper with him and soon after, watched him die. How come they didn’t recognise him when he rose from the dead? They included:
- Mary Magdalene, John 20 verses 11-18
- Cleopas and the other man on the road to Emmaus, Luke 24 verses 13-32
- The disciples when he appeared to them in the room, Luke 24 verses 36-43
- The disciples when he appeared to them and shared breakfast with them by the seaside, John 21 verses 4-14
In each instance, they realised soon after, but not at first.
For the two on the road to Emmaus, we are told that they were kept from recognising him. However, later on their eyes were opened, and they recognised him just before he disappeared from their sight. They asked each other, “Were not our hearts burning within us while he talked with us on the road and opened the scriptures to us?”
My thoughts? We will sometimes (perhaps often) not recognise God’s presence in our daily lives, at least at first, but He will open our eyes and our hearts soon enough. At times like this, we will also experience that ‘divine heartburn’ like the disciples on the road to Emmaus.
Let us trust Jesus when he says “Surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age”, though we may not always recognise him even when he is alongside us. Let us cast our minds from Easter back to Christmas, and remember that his name is also Immanuel – God with us.
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Last week’s reflection: We Are Family by Dennis Ginter
Contributed by David Makanjuola; © David Makanjuola