Easter Day by James Clarke

It is the evening of the Day of Resurrection.

“We left too soon! Let us in! It’s Cleopas! Let us in! We have seen him! He is alive!
“Quiet, Cleopas.. do you want the Temple guards to come here! Shhhh!
“Come in, yes we know, Simon has seen him, and is much happier, back to himself again.
Let’s get the door locked.. now. Tell us what happened to you”
The room was buzzing with chat, excitement and worry mixed, but fell absolutely silent, and
wondering as Cleopas told their story:
“Well, we two were walking home to Emmaus, because we wanted to be there before dark,
and talking about it all, and wondering if we dare believe that Jesus is alive again. All sorts of
thoughts were coming back to us. Had Jesus meant this when he talked about rebuilding the
Temple in three days? And the times when he took Peter aside and told him that he must
suffer to do his work for his Father?
“We wondered just exactly what the women had seen this morning, and Peter and John did
confirm the tomb was both empty and tidy. We hadn’t seen any Angels, at that point I think
we wished we had gone into the garden and seen the tomb for ourselves, truthfully, we were
lost in a maze of thoughts and wishes, mostly that it was true, but just unable to believe it!
“Suddenly, a stranger joined us on the road. We just thought we had been so wrapped up in
our own conversation, that we hadn’t noticed him. Anyway, this stranger asked us what we
were worried about, we were amazed that he didn’t know about the events of the weekend
and said so. Then he told us that we should have believed, because Messiah was always
going to suffer and die for the people. He went right back to Moses and the Prophets
confirming that the Saviour of the people would suffer and die but would live on. Our hearts
were hammering away as he talked, but we did not recognise him at all. Naturally we asked
him to join us for the night, and we sat down for supper together.
“Then, then, he picked up some bread, tore it into pieces, gave thanks and offered it to us,
immediately we knew him…he is alive! We could not recognise him, he did not look like the
man we loved before, but our eyes and mind were opened. It was him, he is alive!”
Suddenly, the room was silent again, and standing in the middle of them all was Jesus, this
time recognisable as himself, and in his words:
“Peace be with you!”
Some were confused and anxious, but Jesus spoke again:
“Why are you worried, and doubting, look here, it is me, look my hands and feet,
touch me, I am no ghost, I have flesh and bones!”
Jesus asked for food, and reminded the community that they are to be witness to all this,
starting in Jerusalem, but to wait until he sends “power from on high” to strengthen them.

If you've appreciated this, why not...

Subscribe on YouTube Follow on X Like on Facebook Contact Dave

Make a comment

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.