I was looking again at Luke 24 yesterday, as about to lead the Bible Study at Perth YMCA, with the thoughts again of being poised between memory and hope lingering around my brain again.
I think it fair to consider that in that moment for the world, just after the resurrection, when history had changed, there was an element of chaos, an element of confusion. Women were being reported seeing ghosts, Bodies disappearing, expectations were dashed, a King had died unexpectedly, what were the 11 disciples to make of it all. Peter went fishing again ( John 21) went back to his comfort zone, what he was used to, these two disciples fled home ( Luke 24 v 13) left the City, the source of all this confusion. Poised between memories that spoke of hope, and memories that hurt, and had no present realisation or promise of hope in the future.
So what does Jesus do, meets them on the road where their memory was painful, encourages them to reflect and then in their present, re orientates them to new life, a new hope and promise of what is a new reality. That old King is no longer dead.
Poised between memory and hope.
