Have you heard of anybody deconstructing their faith? This has been a hot topic in recent years. It is not as new as some would have us believe. After Jesus' crucifixion, two of his disciples decided to defect. They were heading home to Emmaus. Incognito, Jesus joined them and asked about their sorrow. Then he taught them about himself from the scriptures. He saw them, spoke to them, and stayed with them when they arrived. When he revealed himself to them, they remembered how his teaching about himself ignited their hearts. It could happen to us! Message based on Luke 24:17-27.
Quotes:
Robert Browning:
. . . and I find it hard to be a
Christian as I said!
Still every now and then my head
Raised glad, sinks mournful--
all grows drear
Spite of the sunshine . . .
But Easter day breaks!
but Christ rises!
Mercy every way
Is infinite -- and who can say?
Duane Brooks: Jesus opened the tomb, opened the scriptures, opened their eyes to see him, and opened their minds to believe. What did Jesus say? What is Jesus saying to us today?
Lewis Smedes: Hope is to our spirits what oxygen is to our lungs. Your spirit dies when hope dies. They may not bury you for a while, but without hope you're already dead.
Dr. Carl F. H. Henry: Jesus planted the only durable rumor of hope amid the widespread despair of a hopeless world.
John Claypool: Every exit is an entrance.
Duane Brooks: When sadness stops us in our tracks, we may listen for his voice and know that he will come looking for us because we are his own.
Duane Brooks: Even if we walk away, Jesus is seeking us; he will find us.
Jack MacGorman: The Bible has always been for me a meeting place with God.
Eugene Peterson: You don't live in a mechanistic world ruled by necessity; you don't live in a random world ruled by chance; you live in a world ruled by the God of Exodus and Easter. He will do things in you that neither you nor your friends would have supposed possible.
Eugene Peterson: The most important question isn’t “What does this mean,” but “What can I obey?” Simple obedience will open up our lives to a text more quickly than any number of Bible studies, dictionaries, and concordances.
Fleming Rutledge: Any manifestation that reveals Jesus’ true identity occurs because the power of God is at work upon the eyes, ears, and hearts of the recipients.
John Stott: We live and die. But Christ died and lived!
Mike Yaconelli, in his book Dangerous Wonder: The Christian life is more than just finding Jesus; it is following Jesus.
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