Sunday
04/19/20 - Sidney UMC
Sermon Title:
“Passing the Peace of Christ”
Old Testament
Scripture: Psalm 16
New Testament
Scripture: 1 Peter 1:3-9
Gospel Lesson:
John 20:19-31
He is Risen! He is
Risen, Indeed. Alleluia!
My friends, my brothers and sisters in Christ, welcome once
again on this our Second Sunday of Easter. Last Sunday, we celebrated Christ’s glorious
resurrection, as he was physically raised to new life. In doing this, Jesus
conquered sin, death, darkness, and evil, inviting us into new life, hope, love
and eternity with him. In fact, in our United Methodist Church Articles of
Religion, “Article III—Of the Resurrection of Christ” says,
“Christ did truly
rise again from the dead, and took again his body, with all things appertaining
to the perfection of man's nature, wherewith he ascended into heaven, and there
sitteth until he return to judge all men at the last day” (UMC BOD, pg. 64).
So, Easter morning isn’t just symbolism, it’s a literal
bodily resurrection of Jesus Christ. There are also other recorded resurrections
in Bible to, like Lazarus, that Jesus raised from the dead. The difference with
cases like Lazarus though, is that Lazarus was indeed raised to life, yet he
died again on earth after he was resurrected. Jesus on Easter, however, is
alive eternally, and will never again die.
We hear of this reality, once again in our reading for this
morning from 1 Peter 1:3-5, which says:
“Blessed be the God and Father of
our Lord Jesus Christ! By his great mercy he has given us a new birth into a
living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, and
into an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading, kept in
heaven for you, who are being protected by the power of God through faith
for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time” (1 Pet. 1:3-5, NRSV).
So, Peter tells us that through the resurrection of Jesus
Christ we are offered great mercy, new birth, and a living hope. Through Christ
we are offered forgiveness, and life eternal. We are also offered through Christ
a spiritual inheritance in heaven. Since this is true, and since Jesus is our
King and our Lord, we are then heirs to God’s Kingdom. Due to this, we are
royalty. This makes us all princes and princesses, as Christ is our King, and
we will inherit his heavenly kingdom.
Last Sunday, as we know then, Jesus rose from the dead. If
this is true though, then how can we have a gospel reading for this morning
with Jesus alive and present? Didn’t he die on the cross? The answer to this question,
is that Jesus appeared to his disciples in different places and in different
times for 40-days, after his resurrection, before ascending into heaven.
In my lifetime, I have heard a great many “ghost stories” before.
In fact, there are various television shows where groups of people try to track
down and communicate with ghosts and spirits. I don’t personally believe in ghosts,
but for those who do believe in ghosts, it certainly provides them evidence of
the afterlife. Is it possible for our souls to stick around earth when we die
for a while? I guess, but I don’t read anything in the Bible to this effect, so
I don’t personally believe this.
I raise this topic of ghosts and spirits though, because
for 40-days after Jesus was crucified, entombed, and resurrected last Sunday on
Easter Sunday, the Bible says that he appeared periodically to his disciples.
Some people have argued that the disciples were so overcome with the grief of
Jesus’s death that their minds played tricks on them. Some others would argue
that the disciples merely saw the spirit or the “ghost” of Jesus. Yet, if Jesus
was indeed physically resurrected, then he would have a body to, wouldn’t he?
Does the resurrected Christ that appears to the disciples
for 40-days claim to have a body? The answer is absolutely!
In fact, in the version of Christ’s resurrection that I
read from the gospel of John last Sunday on Easter, we might remember that Mary
Magdalene was crying. Mary Magdalene was crying, because she thought that Jesus’
body was stolen and taken from the tomb. She then confuses the risen Christ, thinking
that he was the gardener. You also might remember that Jesus then calls to
Mary, and then she sees the resurrected Christ. Once again, from last Sunday,
Jesus says to Mary in John 20:17:
“Jesus said to her, “Do not hold on
to me, because I have not yet ascended to the Father” (Jn. 20:17, NRSV).
Jesus tells Mary Magdalen not to
hold on to him. Kind of hard to hold onto an apparition or a spirit without a
body.
So, for the next 40-days, Jesus
appears here and there, at least 10 times according the scriptures. Next Sunday,
Jesus appears to two of the disciples on the road to Emmaus, and this morning Jesus
appears to all the disciples initially, except Thomas. Thomas doesn’t believe that
his friends saw Jesus though, and this is where we get the expression of a “Doubting
Thomas.”
A good question to ask here further,
is why did Jesus appear to his disciples for 40-days, and why was he seen alive
by at least 400-500 people after his resurrection? Couldn’t Christ have just ascended
into heaven to sit at the right hand of God the Father, until he returns to
earth? He could have, but he had some unfinished business here on earth. For
those who believe in ghosts, which I do not, some argue that ghosts are here on
earth because they have unfinished business. What would Jesus’ unfinished business
be?
If we remember Maundy/Holy
Thursday, the night of the Last Supper, we might remember that Judas Iscariot
betrayed Jesus for 30 pieces of silver. Judas Iscariot didn’t get it.
On the day of Jesus’ trial, torture,
mockery, and crucifixion, or Good Friday, Peter denied Jesus three times, and
all but the beloved disciple or John stuck around. They all ran away out of
fear. This could have very well saved their lives at the time that they did
this, but they certainly don’t fully understand yet who Jesus is. It seems clear
that at the Last Supper, on Good Friday, and even on Easter itself that no one
really “gets it” yet.
In fact, the scripture tells us
that until the day of Pentecost, which is Sunday May 31st this year,
that the disciples won’t fully get it. This is the day that they are filled
with the Holy Spirit, we wear red, we talk about the disciples speaking in tongues,
tongues of fire, and then they go forth preaching, loving, and healing in the
name of Jesus Christ. Pentecost in when the Christian Church officially begins,
as some of us are slow learners. We know Christ, but as we know him more, we
become more like him.
The disciples knew Christ, but
they didn’t fully understand who Jesus was, or the mission that Jesus called
them to. To me, it is as if the disciples needed reminders and a little
encouragement on the way to Pentecost. It is as if the disciples need these
40-days of Jesus’ post-resurrection appearances to learn more, to understand
more everything Christ did and said.
Our gospel lesson for this morning,
is a prime example of this. After Jesus was crucified and resurrected, Jesus’
followers were in hiding because they feared for there lives. After the day of
Pentecost though, their lives are still on the line, but they preach and live
the life saving gospel of Jesus Christ anyway. Church tradition holds that all the
original 12 disciples of Jesus, died brutal deaths, except the Apostle John who
exiled to the Island of Patmos. So, after Pentecost, after the Holy Spirit
moves with tongues of fire, the disciples are ready to go.
Today though, they are not ready.
It is like a soldier going through basic training and training after basic
training. In part, the sergeants and the officers need to assess the soldier’s
readiness for whatever they are called to do. I have seen clips and stories about
the rigor of Navy Seal training, and how they want the best, and prepare them
as such. Jesus’ disciples are not ready to start the church, and he appears to
them for 40-days, I think, to help them along.
Let’s look at our gospel of John
reading for this morning once again, that says:
“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” (Jn. 20:19-23,
NRSV).
In this gospel lesson once again,
the disciples are in a locked house. Perhaps we could say that they were quarantined!
Sound familiar to anyone right now? They feared for there lives. Jesus didn’t
knock on the door, he just appeared. Did he walk through the wall with his
body? Well he is God.
My sermon title for this morning comes
from what Jesus says next in this scripture. From this scripture and many other
examples of Jesus, we have one of my favorite parts of our church services.
This part of the service that I love so much is that of “Sharing the Peace of
Christ.” This is the time in the service where we, “pre-Coronavirus,” shake
hands, hug, say hello, and often say, “May the peace of Christ be with you.”
It was very common for Jews to
say “Shalom, meaning peace,” as this “was a common Hebrew greeting and a
blessing in the first century” (Africa Bible Commentary, pg. 1320). Jesus greets
the disciples with this common greeting, and as such we do so every Sunday.
When we do this, I see and feel the love of Christ, and feel the peace of
Christ. We do “Sharing the Peace of Christ” so well in fact, that sometimes I must
tell people to “break it up” and sit down, so that we can go back to our
service.
For some of us, the “Sharing the
Peace of Christ” is a time where we are encouraged and uplifted, and I think
that Jesus’ post-resurrection appearance this morning happened for the same reason.
After saying this to his
disciples, Jesus then shows the disciples, Thomas excluded, as he wasn’t there,
the nail holes in his hands and the wound in his side. He wants clearly to show
them that he is alive, and that he had the wounds from his crucifixion. The
disciples feel great and uplifted due to this, and again the risen Christ says,
“Peace be with you.” Jesus then breathes on the disciples and tells them to receive
the Holy Spirit. He then tells them that they can forgive sins, or not forgive
sins, as to empower them.
After this though, the disciples
are still not ready, but they are more so than before this appearance from
Jesus. “Peace be with you,” or “Shalom,” and receive the Holy Spirit. Not the
full measure of the Holy Spirit on the day of Pentecost, but more of it.
The Gospel of John continues
saying:
“But Thomas (who
was called the Twin), one of the twelve, was not with them when Jesus came. So
the other disciples told him, “We have seen the Lord.” But he said to them,
“Unless I see the mark of the nails in his hands, and put my finger in the mark
of the nails and my hand in his side, I will not believe.” A week later his disciples were again
in the house, and Thomas was with them. Although the doors were shut, Jesus
came and stood among them and said, “Peace be with you.” Then he said to
Thomas, “Put your finger here and see my hands. Reach out your hand and put it
in my side. Do not doubt but believe.” Thomas answered him, “My Lord and my
God!” Jesus said to him, “Have you believed because you have seen me? Blessed
are those who have not seen and yet have come to believe” (Jn. 20:24-29, NRSV).
The Apostle Thomas returns after this appearance
from the risen Christ, and as you can imagine, the disciples are very excited
about this. So obviously they tell Thomas. Thomas doesn’t believe them though,
which is why sometimes he is called “Doubting Thomas.” Yet, in Thomas’ defense,
Peter denied Jesus three times on Good Friday, and everyone but John ran and
hid during the crucifixion of Jesus.
The
idea then that the disciples were not fully ready to lead the church and bring the
gospel to the world yet, seemed evident, at this point. The disciples will be
ready to do this on the day of Pentecost, but they just aren’t ready yet.
A
week after Jesus appeared to all the disciples, but Thomas, he appears again to
them, this time with Thomas. Again, Jesus says, “Peace be with you,” as we “Share
the Peace of Christ” every Sunday. After this greeting, Jesus then invited
Thomas to put his finger in the nail holes in his hands, and to put his hand in
his wound where the spear that entered him on his cross.
The
next part of this gospel lesson is very interesting to me. Thomas then says to
Jesus “My Lord and my God!” This is the not the interesting part though. The interesting
part is what it then says once again:
“Jesus said to
him, “Have you believed because you have seen me? Blessed are those who have
not seen and yet have come to believe” (Jn. 20:29, NRSV).
What Jesus is telling the Apostle
Thomas, is that he now believes because he was physically in the presence of
the resurrected savior, but soon Jesus will ascend to heaven. Jesus is saying
to Thomas, those in who you teach, instruct, and tell about me, will not have
the luxury of seeing me resurrected like you are right now. Thomas believe and preach
and live the gospel.
We
know that Jesus appears after his resurrection at least 10 times, and maybe
others that might not be recorded in scripture. Why can I speculate about others
that might not be recorded in scripture? Well the last two verses of our
scripture reading from the gospel of John for this morning is the end of the
gospel of John. So once again, this is how the gospel of John ends:
“Now Jesus did many other signs in the
presence of his disciples, which are not written in this book. But these are
written so that you may come to believe that Jesus is the Messiah,
the Son of God, and that through
believing you may have life in his name” (Jn. 20:30-31, NRSV).
So according to the Apostle John, to
conclude his gospel, Jesus said and did many other things, yet he didn’t put
them in this gospel. The ones that he did include are so that we would believe
that Jesus is the Messiah, the risen savior of the world. Since the Apostle
John was put in exile by the Romans on the Island of Patmos near modern day Turkey
though, you would think that he would have plenty of time to write more, but
who knows!
So
today friends, brothers and sisters, Jesus appears to his disciples who are
locked away and scared, and he cares for them. He knows that their faith is not
yet strong enough to run the church, so he presents himself to encourage and
embolden them. It is my hope and my prayer that during this Coronavirus Epidemic
shutdown and quarantine that Jesus will present himself to you. We won’t see
him physically again until he returns to earth, but may we feel his presence in
our hearts and our souls. May his love move us to action and to serve others. May
Jesus spiritually break through our locked houses and fill our worried hearts
and souls with his peace. Friends, “Peace be with you.” Amen.
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