How can I move from fear to peace?

“Breathe on Me, Breath of God”

(John 20:19-23, Preaching: Pastor Stephen Magee, September 26, 2010)

19 On the evening of that day, the first day of the week, the doors being locked where the disciples were for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood among them and said to them, “Peace be with you.” 20 When he had said this, he showed them his hands and his side. Then the disciples were glad when they saw the Lord. 21 Jesus said to them again, “Peace be with you. As the Father has sent me, even so I am sending you.” 22 And when he had said this, he breathed on them and said to them, “Receive the Holy Spirit. 23 If you forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven them; if you withhold forgiveness from any, it is withheld.”

On the evening of that day... (19)

On the evening of the first Resurrection Sunday, the disciples were afraid. They were so afraid that almost all of them were together behind locked doors. John tells us that they were afraid of their own countrymen, the Jews. I guess that there was plenty to be afraid of. After all, the political and religious leaders had just put Jesus to death. It was obvious that these disciples could be identified by many people as followers of Jesus Christ.

They were afraid even though Peter and John had witnessed an empty tomb, at least a tomb empty of the body of Jesus Christ. John had carefully considered the way that tomb looked, and especially the position of the cloths that had once covered the deceased body of Jesus of Nazareth, and he had come to the conclusion that Jesus had risen from the dead. They had also received the report of Mary Magdalene who had plainly told them that she had seen the Lord, and that He had given her a message to relay to them about His coming ascension to heaven.

Still, they were behind locked doors. We imagine ourselves courageous, and we train certain people to be brave in situations where their lives may be in danger, but there are many things that make even brave people afraid. Even the fact of the resurrection might not be entirely comforting to the disciples. Though Jesus had risen from the dead, their lives were still in danger. We tend to feel more secure when events are predictable. These men were way out of their comfort zones.

The doors were locked. But then He came. He did not knock on the door. He just came and was standing among them. Some old facts are worth repeating here. He had told them that He would rise from the dead. He had performed miracles and was teaching about the kingdom of heaven. In terms of the powers that be on earth, the situation was dangerous. Long before this point the religious leaders had come to the conclusion that anyone who believed that Jesus was the Christ would be removed from the synagogues. Many people did not want to know anything about a risen Son of God. But here He was. He was undeniable, but so was the danger from the Jews.

“Peace be with you.” (20-21)

He speaks to them these familiar words of comfort that we hear as believers in Christ today: “Peace be with you.” This does not suggest that all your troubles are gone. There are still many who would not be happy to hear the news of the resurrection. There are many people all over the world today who will not be glad to hear that their sons or daughters have come to the conclusion that Jesus Christ is the Son of God and that He is the beginning of a new resurrection world. Old ways are rejected when something this big and new is embraced. The Christian life is not a denial of grounds for fear, but it is the embracing of a message of peace between God and man.

Over thirty years before this point in the hill country of Judea near the town of Bethlehem, there were shepherds keeping watch over their flocks by night. Suddenly the angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord was shining around them, and they received there that night the announcement of the birth of a child. The coming of that child had something to do with peace. Remember? Suddenly there were many angels saying, “Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace among those with whom he is pleased!”

Jesus came to bring peace to men. These men are afraid. They are behind locked doors for fear of the people they live with and for fear of the religious and civil authorities in their country. The resurrected Son of God is with them. Many people will not be happy about the resurrection of Jesus. He knows all about their predicament, and He says to them, “Peace be with you.”

While the kind of peace that disciples of Jesus have is not freedom from danger or from the anger of those they live with, they do have peace. They have the most important peace that they could ever have. They have peace with God. Their sins have been forgiven. The emblems of that forgiveness are visible in the wounds that He shows them. He showed them His hands and His side. They were glad. They knew it was the Lord. When He rose, He did not rise to be mortal again, subject to injury and death. He rose to immortality, but He bore the marks of our salvation in His body, and even after Jesus ascended to heaven, He still had these signs of the blood that was shed, a blood of the one righteous Man, a blood that speaks forgiveness to the humble who will receive His Word. This is the peace that Jesus brings. We long for forgiveness and acceptance by God. We have it in the wounds of Christ.

“As the Father has sent me...” (21-23)

But there is more to the peace that we have now than the forgiveness of our sins, there is a new peace that comes to those who accept the purpose of the church, to be agents of the pronouncement of this new kingdom, and this lavish forgiveness of sins in the blood of the Lamb. That may sound counter-intuitive if you think of the situation that the disciples faced. They were afraid of their families, their neighbors, and the authorities in their country. Their danger was not removed. How can there be any peace in the commission that Jesus gives to these disciples, and through them, to the whole Christian church throughout this dangerous age?

Jesus was sent forth by the Father in mission. That mission cost Him His life. Now He is sending forth the men who were His frightened friends. They were to proclaim the forgiveness of sins, even as we do now in this worship service today. We confess our sins together and repent every Sunday, on the day of resurrection. We acknowledge together and receive together the pardon that is ours from God for all who call upon the Name of the Lord. We proclaim the Lord's death as we partake of the Lord's Supper. Will we be forthright about this mission that Christ entrusted to the church?

He says that the mission is ours. “If you forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven them; if you withhold forgiveness from any, it is withheld.” What a responsibility for the church, to speak and to withhold words of forgiveness based upon the Word of God. For all who repent and believe, there is forgiveness. For those who do not repent and believe, we cannot speak those words from God. This is a frightening calling when enemies may be on the other side of the door, enemies that do not want to hear about the forgiveness that comes to us through faith in Christ.

But we cannot have the fuller peace that we were created for unless we have a sense of purpose. We have a job given to us by the King of Glory. We speak into a dangerous world as those who are willing to give a reason for our hope. Whatever you do to bring order and beauty to a world that needs workers and families and citizens, do it as one who is part of the only organization in the world that has been charged with the heavenly task of speaking forgiveness to others.

Yet you will reject the peace of purpose because of the power of fear if you are left to your own strength. If all that you have is from this fading creation, you may just stay behind locked doors for fear of your countrymen. But did you notice that Jesus breathed on them with the breath of heaven, the wind of a new creation. Today may God breathe His Holy Spirit on you and on us, so that we will embrace the peace that comes with our purpose that we must not reject. And may we speak words of true peace in a dangerous world according to the Word of the King of peace.

1. What do we know about the condition of the disciples on that Sunday night?

2. How is that the disciples were finally glad?

3. What is Jesus revealing about the Holy Spirit here?

4. What is the commission he gives here?