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1. Locked in Fear
In response to Mary Magdalene’s proclamation of the risen Jesus of abundant life, of a world forever changed and open with possibility what do the disciples do? They hide. They hide in fear behind locked doors. They are not out looking for Jesus, so Jesus seeks them out. He meets them in their locked room offering them peace in place of fear. A locked room, like a locked heart is no barrier to Jesus. Christ comes to us, unhindered by our fears and defenses.
He shows them his hands and his side, and they know it’s Jesus. The wounds bear witness to the worst that the world can do, and disclose the truth that the worst is overcome. If even this can be overcome, what is there to fear? What will prevail but peace.
Then he reiterates his offer of peace.
The peace Jesus announces is not one that can allow the disciples to remain behind locked doors.
This peace comes from the knowledge that in spite of all the hurt and harm the world can and does inflict, God’s compassion and care embodied in Jesus stands again in their midst. The one who offers the words of peace is the very one who has endured the brunt of that chaos and hatred, yet now stands in their midst, risen indeed!
No sooner is the peace offered than the sending of the disciples in mission is directed. “As the Father has sent me, so I send you.”
2. Supply
But Jesus never sends us to do what he asks without equipping us for it. So he breathes on them the Holy Spirit. The very breath of God that hovered over the waters and was given at creation is given to these timid and bewildered disciples. As it was in the Genesis account, “then the Lord formed man from the dust of the earth, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life.; and the man became a living being. (Genesis 2:7, Ezekiel 37:9). Humankind became alive, alive with God’s life. These disciples are brought to life.
The Spirit represents the continuing presence of Christ with his disciples and the creative power of God always at work to enliven creation itself. They, by the Spirit, will be doing what Jesus was doing. Christ’s work will continue through the disciples. Jesus has accomplished the defeat of death and has begun the work of new creation. His followers don’t have to do that all over again.
They are pushed through the door back into the world where good and evil contend.
Paul writes, “do not be ashamed, then, of the testimony about our Lord… but join me in suffering for the gospel, relying on the power of God, who saved us and called us with a holy calling, not according to our works but according to his own purpose and grace.” (II Timothy 1:8-9).
The gift is that God is saving us in accordance with an eternal plan and purpose. The task is that this calls us into a life of holiness. We are saved and called into a holy calling. When God calls, God enables that calling to be complete. God will not call us into mission and then arbitrarily withdraw the power to fulfill that ministry. God will enable the power to fulfill and enjoy the calling.
3. Forgiveness
For what?
“If you forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven them; if you retain the sins of any, they are retained.” (20:23).
They are to pronounce, in God’s name and by God’s Spirit the message of forgiveness to all who believe in Jesus. We are in the business of setting people free.
If you forgive someone’s sins, they’re gone for good. If you don’t forgive sins, what are you going to do with them?” (20:23 Message)
If you let go of and release the sins, they are released. If you seize, grasp, hold on, they will remain.
The first witness to Jesus given in this gospel comes from John the baptizer, who declares Jesus to be “the Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world.” (1:29). That mission of Jesus is now the ongoing mission to his friends. To the extent that his friends refuse the mission, the sins of others remain. To the extent that his breath is breathing in them, the sins of the world are taken away.
We’re about liberating work. We want the world to respond to Christ in faith and receive grace to turn from narcissism, pride, violence, sloth.
Sometimes we retain our own childhood guilt and that can easily prevent us from forgiving others. Sometimes we may not even be aware of how deeply a hurt from the past is blocking us from health in the present. If we are judgmental, scared, disgusted or shocked, by the sin or brokenness of another, we probably have work to do ourselves. Something in us in need of healing.
How easily we can grow bitter and jaded. Hebrews 12:15. “See to it that no once misses the grace of God and that no bitter root grows up to cause trouble and defile many.”
By forgiving, we give up the right to revenge, to perfection, to justice, to hold the offense against them, and instead we give forth to ourselves – or to the other person- freedom from the past and an openness toward the future. Forgiveness is a gift we give ourselves and others. Hannah More has written, “A person will find it cheaper to pardon than to resent. Forgiveness saves the expense of anger, the cost of hatred, the waste of spirit.”
They are a sanctifying presence in the world. Bringing liberation and freedom. The commission to contend with sin as it afflicts and affects the world is the wedge that holds the door open to the public domain. They bear the forgiving, transforming love of God into every sphere of human experience. Out the door and into the neighborhood.
Spirit of the Living God, fall afresh on me. #288
Melt me, mold me, fill me, use me.
We join our voices with the chorus of creation, praising our God of resurrection glory! The trajectory of death has been disrupted. God’s promise of a world made new, redeemed by Christ’s passion, is worthy of trumpets, tambourines, and dance! We celebrate you, Savior God. We adore you. We approach you in prayer full of gratitude and praise.
But we continue to grieve the state of our world, the illness that lays so many low, the violence of war and the troubled spirits of those oppressed. Hear our prayers for peace, Redeeming God. Heal the rifts that break us apart. Humble the oppressors bent on war. Empower the diplomats, mobilize the nations toward peace. Protect the people of Ukraine.
Encourage us, God of grace, in our witness. May we not fear or avoid your call to shine and serve. Give us the courage to face our painful truths so we can participate in necessary and faithful change. Grant us the wisdom to learn from our past so we can help build towards your glorious future. We confess at times we have an unforgiving spirit, unable to forgive others and even ourselves. Help us to accept and share your forgiveness and create within us a forgiving spirit. Guide us in all we say and do, Inspiring God, so we can bear witness to the hope you offer and the path Christ has paved. As the Body of Christ, hear us now as we pray as Christ taught us,
37 The hand of the Lord came upon me, and he brought me out by the spirit of the Lord and set me down in the middle of a valley; it was full of bones. 2 He led me all around them; there were very many lying in the valley, and they were very dry. 3 He said to me, “Mortal, can these bones live?” I answered, “O Lord God, you know.” 4 Then he said to me, “Prophesy to these bones, and say to them: O dry bones, hear the word of the Lord. 5 Thus says the Lord God to these bones: I will cause breath[a] to enter you, and you shall live. 6 I will lay sinews on you, and will cause flesh to come upon you, and cover you with skin, and put breath[b] in you, and you shall live; and you shall know that I am the Lord.”
7 So I prophesied as I had been commanded; and as I prophesied, suddenly there was a noise, a rattling, and the bones came together, bone to its bone. 8 I looked, and there were sinews on them, and flesh had come upon them, and skin had covered them; but there was no breath in them. 9 Then he said to me, “Prophesy to the breath, prophesy, mortal, and say to the breath:[c] Thus says the Lord God: Come from the four winds, O breath,[d] and breathe upon these slain, that they may live.” 10 I prophesied as he commanded me, and the breath came into them, and they lived, and stood on their feet, a vast multitude.
11 Then he said to me, “Mortal, these bones are the whole house of Israel. They say, ‘Our bones are dried up, and our hope is lost; we are cut off completely.’ 12 Therefore prophesy, and say to them, Thus says the Lord God: I am going to open your graves, and bring you up from your graves, O my people; and I will bring you back to the land of Israel. 13 And you shall know that I am the Lord, when I open your graves, and bring you up from your graves, O my people. 14 I will put my spirit within you, and you shall live, and I will place you on your own soil; then you shall know that I, the Lord, have spoken and will act, says the Lord.”
John 20:19-23
When it was evening on that day, the first day of the week, and the doors of the house where the disciples had met were locked for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood among them and said, “Peace be with you.” After he said this, he showed them his hands and his side. Then the disciples rejoiced when they saw the Lord. Jesus said to them again, “Peace be with you. As the Father has sent me, so I send you.” When he had said this, he breathed on them and said to them, “Receive the Holy Spirit. If you forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven them; if you retain the sins of any, they are retained.”