Closer

JtM and I were working on the class outline for this evening. One of he scriptures he pulled to include in the lesson was the ending of the walk to Emmaus passage. First, look at this verse:

When he was at the table with them, he took bread, gave thanks, broke it and began to give it to them. Then their eyes were opened and they recognized him, and he disappeared from their sight. They asked each other, "Were not our hearts burning within us while he talked with us on the road and opened the Scriptures to us?" (Luke 24:30-32)

They recognized him in the breaking of the bread. That has always reminded me of communion. See this verse:

While they were eating, Jesus took bread, gave thanks and broke it, and gave it to his disciples, saying, "Take and eat; this is my body." (Matthew 26:26)

But, even though it does remind me of communion, there is another scene in the Bible when Jesus breaks bread:

And he directed the people to sit down on the grass. Taking the five loaves and the two fish and looking up to heaven, he gave thanks and broke the loaves. Then he gave them to the disciples, and the disciples gave them to the people. (Matthew 14:19)

What is it that brings us closer to God? When do we feel his presence most clearly? Could these two instances of breaking of bread, which are echoed in the Emmaus passage, offer us a clue? We will encounter God in Communion -- when we are loving God, and in service -- when we are loving our neighbors.