Ghost Stories: Road to Emmaus RUMC April 24. 2016

Ghost Stories: Road to Emmaus

RUMC April 24. 2016

Dead man walking… or should I say formerly dead man walking. This is not a scene from “Night of The Living Dead.” This Jesus is very much alive.

 Jesus is very alive walking along the road to Emmaus with Cleopas and his companion. They talk. He talks and they do a lot of listening, but these guys were spiritually blind.

•           They were blind to the prophecies of the scriptures… They knew them in their heads, but they just couldn’t see the whole picture.

•           They were blind to how Jesus fit into that story of scripture… They couldn’t see how the messiah could come to such a tragic end.

•           They were blind to the reality of the resurrection… Yes, they had been told that he had been raised, but without seeing, they just could not believe.

•           They were blind to the presence of God among them… even when Jesus himself was walking beside them...

•           They were blind to hope

•           Blind to the kingdom

•           Blind to life

•           Blind to the greatest miracle of all time.

The truth is their kingdom eyes were shut tight.

•           I sometimes try to pretend I am blind… as an excuse for not noticing that Robyn got her hair done, or new glasses, or a new outfit… but I don’t think she believes me.

•           Other times I don’t have to pretend. I can look and look for something and not see it. The other night it was Noah’s flip-flop… he had it on his foot one minute and the next he didn’t. We looked and looked. He finally went home and I looked and looked again… do you know where I found it? Lying in plain sight not 10 feet from where I was sitting. Don’t even laugh… because you have done the same thing.

In all honesty… in all seriousness there are also times when our spiritual eyes are shut tight.

•           We keep our eyes closed so that we neither see nor smell the guy who smells funny when he asks us for a couple of bucks.

•           In the name of minding our own business, we shut our eyes to the neighbor who runs out of food before they run out of month.

•           We turn a blind eye to the emaciated children on TV justifying it with something like “someone else will help them.”

•           Like the two men from Emmaus, we are blind to the fact that we are not alone on this road of life. Jesus walks right beside us as our companion and guide every step of the way.

•           Like the men on the road, we are blind to the wondrous miracles that God is doing in our midst. Yes, we try to point them our here on Sunday morning… but to be honest even the church is blind to probably blind to 90% of the “miraculousness” around us.

•           Like the Emmaus men on that first Easter day, we know the story of the Bible or at least our favorite parts, but too often, we just can’t see what it has to do with us us.

When it comes to our kingdom eyes… either we have them closed tight, or we are honestly completely blind.

The good news is that at the other end of his ministry, at the beginning, Jesus preached from the prophet Isaiah, saying. "The spirit of the lord is upon me, because he anointed me to preach the gospel to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim release to the captives, and recovery of sight to the blind…"  He promised RECOVERY OF SIGHT TO THE BLIND! On that first Easter Evening, Jesus was there to make good on his promise. Jesus opened the kingdom eyes of Cleopas and his companion.

While walking along the road to Emmaus, with their human eyes, they saw only the human Jesus, they saw the suffering Jesus, they saw the dead Jesus hanging on the cross. That’s all they could see.

Then Jesus took the bread, blessed it, broke it, and handed each of them a piece.  And immediately they recognized him. RECOVERY OF SIGHT TO THE BLIND! Just as Jesus promised, he gave them “kingdom eyes. “

For them it came in the breaking of the bread… for us it MAY happen in the sacraments in the breaking of the bread or the pouring of the water… but it can just as easily happen when we are reading scripture, when we are on a retreat, when we are in worship, on the job, or with our families. Or when we serve the least of these: the smelly, the dirty, the homeless, they very young and the very old, the vulnerable.

The good news is that for those who will see… Jesus offers recovery of sight and replaces our blindness with 20/20 kingdom vision.

"The spirit of the lord is upon us, because he anointed us to preach the gospel to the

poor. He has sent us to proclaim release to the captives, and recovery of sight to the blind…"

We have seen glimpses of kingdom vision from time to time.

•           This congregation and its leaders had Kingdom eyes when we saw that the children and families were not coming on Sunday and we started LIGHT for them.

•           Carol Mayberry had kingdom eyes when she said; “You know maybe we could be part of this project building grain bin homes in Haiti.”

•           We had kingdom eyes when Jim Ellenberger saw an opportunity to be part of a miracle and the leadership team didn’t bat an eyelash appropriating special money to support last year’s GR8 event to speak to the brokenness in our school district.

•           Amanda had kingdom eyes when she wondered if we might be able to use Halloween to share God’s love with children in our neighborhood and she led us in Trunk or Treat.

•           Jennifer had kingdom eyes when she saw an opportunity to thank the many, many people who make LIGHT possible while offering the kids an opportunity to do the servant work of kingdom making.

•           The youth have kingdom eyes when they sign up to give up a week of their vacation to go sleep on the floor of a church, and work their tails off for people they have never met in Chicago or Indianapolis this summer.

RECOVERY OF SIGHT TO THE BLIND… We can see with kingdom eyes if we will. Whether it is in the breaking of the bread, or the breaking of our hearts, let us see the kingdom miracles that God is doing among us, and kingdom opportunities God is offering us.

 But the kingdom of God is not only out there… is in here. And once we have seen the world with kingdom eyes, we have to turn our kingdom eyes to ourselves asking “Where is the kingdom of God alive and well in us?”

Sometimes seeing the kingdom alive in ourselves is kind of like trying to see the back of our heads or lick our elbow.

•           I promise you, however, if you look at yourself with kingdom eyes you will see the kingdom of God alive and well in your loving and your serving.

•           If you look at yourself with kingdom eyes, you will see the kingdom of God in your gifts, skills, and passions.

•           If you look at yourself with kingdom eyes, you will see all kinds of Kingdom potential to change the world for God.

Like I said, however, seeing the kingdom alive in ourselves is kind of like trying to see the back of our heads or lick our elbow. (I know you are dying to try to lick your elbow just because I mentioned it. Researchers say 75% of people will try to lick their elbows when they are told they can’t… but please wait until you get in the car.)

Anyway…let’s help each other. Instead of looking for the kingdom in ourselves, it is much easier to see the kingdom of God in our neighbor. Look at your neighbor with kingdom eyes. Where is the kingdom of God at work in them? What are their kingdom gifts? What are their kingdom skills? What are their kingdom passions? What are their kingdom ministries? There are post it notes and pencils in the pews… we have plenty. I want you to take a pencil and two post-it notes. Now, looking at your neighbor with kingdom eyes I want you to write a gift your neighbor has, a skill they have, a passion they have, or a ministry your neighbor does or could do for the kingdom of God. Write it on the Post-it note and put it on your neighbor.

There are a couple of rules

•           One gift or ministry per post it

•           Don’t put it on the back of their head where they can’t see it. Put it on an arm, a leg, or the torso where they can see the kingdom gifts that you see in them. Take 30 seconds to do that to those sitting near you so that everyone has at least two notes naming what they look like through kingdom eyes.

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Wasn’t that fun? Now, take at least two more notes and I want you to get up and move around using you kingdom eyes, look for the kingdom in other people here today. Place additional kingdom notes on as many people as you can in one minute. I want to see you up, moving around, and making kingdom notes for all of our brothers and sisters in the kingdom.

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FREEZE…just stay where you are for a minute. Look around you. Look at all the kingdom notes. Look at yourself. Look at all the kingdom notes others have placed on you. Take a minute to read all the notes people have placed on you. Each of these notes names either

•           a way you are in ministry or

•           A way you could be in ministry.

 One of our goals as a congregation this year is every person in ministry…

Get it? Each of these notes names either

•           a way you are in ministry or

•           A way you could be in ministry.

This is what we are talking about… seeing with kingdom eyes where the needs and hurts and hopes of the world intersect with the love, the gifts, and the skills God has placed in us.

Look at those kingdom notes again. Pick one that appeals to you. Pick a note that grabs your attention, one that is close to your heart, one for which you have a special passion.

•           If you have a gift or ministry in mind and it is not there, don’t worry, go ahead, and make a note for yourself.

•           If you can’t decide between two notes, take both of them.

Take the note that most appeal to you and write your name on it. It is yours and no one else can do it in just the way you can. While we are singing, “This is amazing grace” go ahead and each of you bring you favorite note up here and put it on the cross. If walking is hard for you, send it up with someone else. I want a note from each of you up here. Come and offer your ministry while we sing.

<<<This is amazing grace>>>switch to ipad but keep the PowerPoint up in easyworship

 This is the amazing grace is that if I take my ministry and give it to Jesus I can only do so much,

 But 70 of you bring your gifts up here my gift is multiplied over and over.

But that’s not all because your gift is multiplied over and over too.

Look at that… not with human math, but with kingdom math.

Not with human eyes, but with kingdom eyes.

•           One person can love, but multiply that by 70 and see the kingdom come.

•           One person can offer hope, but multiply that by 70 and see the kingdom come.

•           One person can help someone, but multiply that by 70 and see the kingdom come.

•           One person can pray with someone, but imagine the power of multiplying that prayer by 70 and see the kingdom come.

•           One person can share their faith with someone , but multiply that by 70 you better hold on to your hat because the kingdom of God is upon us.

Do you see it? Do you see the kingdom around us?

Do you see the kingdom around you and in you?

If not, look again using your kingdom eyes because I guarantee you it is here.

Benediction:

May the kingdom of God surround us.

May the kingdom of God be in you.

May thy kingdom and thy will be done is us as it is in heaven.

In the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. AMEN