Narrative Lectionary Key Verse for Today
“After this he appeared in another form to two of them, as they were walking into the country. And they went back and told the rest, but they did not believe them.”
NL Daily Devotion for Thursday, April 4, 2024
by R. M. Fergus, Clergy Stuff
Ah, it wasn’t just Mary who wasn’t believed. Although lacking in pretty much every other detail, this does evoke the story of the walk to Emmaus. Two disciples walking in the countryside running into Jesus, then running back to the others to tell them what had happened. In the Luke story (Luke 13-36) we hear that Jesus himself stood among them as Cleopas and his companion were telling the others what had happened. But in this account, when they share their story, once again, the rest “did not believe them.” And I can surmise that, as with Mary Magdalene, they “would” not believe them.
Sometimes in our grief, we can’t see what is right in front of us. Sometimes we are so convinced of the tragedy and injustice of the world that we don’t recognize all the ways Jesus is still among us, still working in real and vital ways in and through us and other people. It can be easy to become cynical, to reject even compelling testimony because we can’t make it “fit” with our experience of the “bad” things.
Jesus calls us to open our eyes and our hearts to his presence, to hear his voice in the loving voices of others, to set aside our cynicism long enough to hope.
When do I have the hardest time reconciling Jesus’ presence with what I see happening in the world.
