Tuesday in Easter 3 - Luke 7

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Had District Pastors' Conference yesterday, and one of the services used the TDP readings.  The similarity between John's disciples and the Emmaus disciples strikes me.  Expectations affect everything, as I have been told, learned personally, and try to teach pre-marital couples.  When I get most disappointed, I try to stop and ask, "What expectation of mine was not meant?  Was I realistic?  Could I even have verbalized it beforehand?"

John's disciples, the crowds Jesus speaks to after they leave, the Emmaus disciples, and us as well, have this in common - we are naturally theologians of glory.  We expect some messianic muscle to be flexed.  John the Baptist in prison makes about as much sense as the Redeemer getting crucified.  We get disappointed in God because we think He should have done things differently, which results in false belief, despair and other great shame and vice. 

But God sends the Cross to His only-begotten Son - and all His children - so that we can be saved from sin, so that the sin in us will be killed. 

The Good News is that Jesus did what was necessary

by the miracle of His death and resurrection

                                                                             as foretold in the Scriptures
to forgive us our false expectations. 

And to quote William Cwirla from our previous District Pastors' Conference,
                  stack up all our expectations and questions

about life in the world to come,

and the answer is "It will be better than that."