Summary: After years of despising Jesus, Cleopas, a relative, has a sudden revelation that convinces him Jesus is indeed the Messiah.
Style: Dramatic monologue. Duration: 5-6min
Actors: 1M Scripture: Luke 24:13-35
Characters
Cleopas
Script
I’m not a very important man. My story was only told by Dr. Luke, not Matthew, Mark or John. I wasn’t considered a disciple and I never shared much about my life with Jesus. It might surprise you to know that I was a part of his family. So I knew him as a child. When he moved back from Egypt with his parents I saw him quite a bit. He was a very good boy. Exceptional really. We were all jealous of Mary and Joseph. We thought they had some secret to raising children. Then of course James came along and that theory was abandoned.
As I watched Jesus grow into a young man it was no surprise that He would later be called Rabbi. He knew scripture like no other child I’ve ever seen. His Abba, my brother Joseph, was so proud of him. He would always say, “Here, listen to my son! Is he not the most intelligent c hild?” J oseph’s beliefs were confirmed by the priests in Jerusalem when Jesus was 12. He amazed them all with his knowledge of the Torah. Our father set his heart upon Jesus and all other grandchildren were held up to him in comparison and found wanting, my Jacob included. They lived in his shadow, but they adored him, too. Everyone did, except me. I resisted him quietly, j ust watching. Sometimes I felt like he watched me, too, and knew my thoughts. It was unnerving!
As Jesus grew, a shift happened. He became distant and began to withdraw from the family. When he was with us, he had a far away look in his eye like there was somewhere else he would rather be. One day we heard that some cousin of Mary’s declared publicly that Jesus was the Son of God! Incredible right? What were they thinking? After that his disciples would occasionally corner a member of the family and question us about his life. I was always dismissive of their interest and on a few occasions downright rude to them. I had no time for Jesus and his men. I thought them all to be fools.
Then came the day when the family began to question and my doubts seemed justified. My father lay dying and nothing we did helped. He asked for Jesus over and over. Mary and his brothers went to look for him and couldn’t get past the crowd. Word was sent to Jesus and he didn’t even seem to care that he was needed. When my father passed and Jesus did not come I hardened my heart towards him and never spoke his name.
As time went on, our family was horrified to hear that he ransacked the temple, threw tables and chased the sacrificial animals all out. Crazy right? He called the temple in Jerusalem his Father’s house? That action earned him no favors with the Jewish leaders. But his disciples were elated, especially Peter. That guy was like a stone wall and he dared anyone to try and come against Jesus.
Once Jesus did the unthinkable. I heard that his disciples even openly questioned him on this. He took them through Samaria! That’s right. Walked right through that God-forsaken land of half Jews. Not only that, he stopped and had them go buy food in town prepared by Gentiles. No good Jew would do such a thing! In the end, he convinced hundreds of Samaritans to believe he was divine. They even began to call him the “Messiah” after their journey through that wretched place.
We later learned that he went home to Nazareth and was rejected by the elders there. I thought it served him right in my own heart. Such a proud thing to proclaim you are the fulfillment of scripture in your own hometown. No wonder they tried to throw him off a cliff! Pure blasphemy! What happened to the innocent little boy we once knew?
So many other stories I could tell you. One more outlandish than the next. People far and wide began to truly believe Jesus was God in the flesh, the fulfillment of the prophecies of old, and many were sure he came to save us from the Romans. His name was on everyone’s lips far and wide and a time came when he could barely move about without a crowd following him. Stories spread like wildfire of healings, sermons on top of mountains, rebuking those in authority who questioned him, and raising people from the dead? When would our family’s shame ever end?
Then the threats from the leaders of the Jewish temple began. His mother was very worried and we all hoped he would just stay away from Jerusalem for a time. We tried to get word to him for Mary’s sake but in his quiet way he was fearless. He came into town anyway and all of Jerusalem seemed to believe he would be our new King. Everyone but the temple rulers. I saw for myself the hatred in their eyes as the children cried out to Jesus and he stood surrounded by them. I thought to myself, “I must be right about Jesus. If the leaders of our synagogue believe him to be a fraud it must be true.” You see it soothed the anger and resentment I held in my heart towards Jesus.
Our family watched as Mary grieved knowing that the religious leaders would not tolerate his behavior for long. Then came the Passover. All that week, people were celebrating and watching for the next place Jesus would show up and do a miracle. You could feel the anticipation.
Then suddenly, it was all over. Just like that Jesus handed himself over to the priests to be tried. He never even attempted to get away or defend himself. The disciples scattered, even Peter. A detestable trial was held at night so the people would not protest. He went before Pilate, but by then there was nothing the people who loved Jesus could do. The priests had everyone so stirred up and so many lies were spread about Jesus. Before we knew it he was hanging on a cross. The worst death imaginable. His crime was written above his head: King of the Jews.
The disciples hid in fear and Peter would speak to no one. It was told that he denied he even knew Jesus. It seemed impossible! Every ounce of joy and hope was snatched away from those who believed in him and everyone was afraid of their shadow. At the end of the week I started home. Home to Emmaus. Though it seemed my beliefs about Jesus were confirmed I took no pleasure in it. I couldn’t stand to hear all the rumors and stories another day. I just wanted to be home.
A friend and I were walking on the road and he kept talking about everything that was being said. How the women thought they saw an angel, how Peter and John went into the empty tomb and saw his bindings like he had just stood up out of them. I wanted nothing to do with it and told him so. In fact, I told him very loudly. At that moment the stranger approached.
This man. There was something about him that I couldn’t look away from. When we told him what was happening in Jerusalem, as if anyone could not know, he called us all fools! Can you believe that? Then he talked to us about the scriptures and our hearts burned like fire. We hung on his every word. Before we knew it we were at my home and I asked him to come in for a meal. Out of hospitality I asked him to bless the food…It still rings like an explosion in my head. As he prayed, my ears focused on his voice. Where had I heard that voice before? Realization dawned and I opened my eyes quickly only to see him staring intently at me. It lasted but a fraction of a second before he disappeared. But what light dawned! In that instant all my questions were answered. I knew then that he was everything I ever doubted. He was the good boy I knew. He was the perfect young man my father adored. He was the Messiah! And Jesus was alive! In that flash of time I saw him over the bed as my father smiled and slipped into eternity. He was there even though no one saw him. He came to me at my lowest point of unbelief. In that briefest of looks I drank The Living Water and my nephew became my Savior. I will NEVER be the same again.
I’m not a very important man, but Jesus? Infinitely important.
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© Copyright Regina Bynum, all rights reserved. The script may not be reproduced, translated or copied in any medium, including books, CDs and on the Internet, without written permission of the author.
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