John 19: 19 – 36 NLT
Jesus Appears to His Disciples
19 That Sunday evening the disciples were meeting behind locked doors because they were afraid of the Jewish leaders. Suddenly, Jesus was standing there among them! “Peace be with you,” he said. 20 As he spoke, he showed them the wounds in his hands and his side. They were filled with joy when they saw the Lord! 21 Again he said, “Peace be with you. As the Father has sent me, so I am sending you.” 22 Then he breathed on them and said, “Receive the Holy Spirit. 23 If you forgive anyone’s sins, they are forgiven. If you do not forgive them, they are not forgiven.”
Jesus Appears to Thomas
24 One of the twelve disciples, Thomas (nicknamed the Twin), was not with the others when Jesus came. 25 They told him, “We have seen the Lord!”
But he replied, “I won’t believe it unless I see the nail wounds in his hands, put my fingers into them, and place my hand into the wound in his side.”
26 Eight days later the disciples were together again, and this time Thomas was with them. The doors were locked; but suddenly, as before, Jesus was standing among them. “Peace be with you,” he said. 27 Then he said to Thomas, “Put your finger here, and look at my hands. Put your hand into the wound in my side. Don’t be faithless any longer. Believe!”
28 “My Lord and my God!” Thomas exclaimed.
29 Then Jesus told him, “You believe because you have seen me. Blessed are those who believe without seeing me.”
Purpose of the Book
30 The disciples saw Jesus do many other miraculous signs in addition to the ones recorded in this book. 31 But these are written so that you may continue to believe that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God, and that by believing in him you will have life by the power of his name.”
This part of chapter 20 occurs in the evening of the same day that Mary, Peter, and John had seen Jesus. It was also the same day that Jesus walked with two of his followers on the road to Emmaus. Yet despite hearing the reports from all these people, the disciples were still hiding in fear behind locked doors. They lived in an occupied country ruled by the Romans who had a reputation for cruelty and violence. They also knew their own people under the Jewish synagogue leaders were not on their side either. They were in the middle of political warfare, and they were aware of the horrendous consequences on that hill outside Jerusalem.
But they had heard the reports from the people who had seen Jesus, or been told by the angels of Jesus’ resurrection. I wonder if they were also afraid of facing Jesus because they had run away in the Garden of Gethsemane. But when Jesus does show up in this miraculous way, the first thing He says is, “Peace be with you”.
Then there is Thomas. He reminds me so much of our culture today. “I’ll believe it when I see it” is our mantra. We are doused in a scientific mindset. (Now I don’t mind that mindset; my husband was a science teacher and science was a passion of his.) But when we insist on factual, seeable information 100% of the time, we rule out the spiritual world and the power of God. Can’t you just see yourself in Thomas’ shoes? People are saying that Jesus has come back from the dead. Talk about great “fake news”. ‘Right’ says Thomas – “I won’t believe it unless I see the nail wounds in his hands, put my fingers into them, and place my hand into the wound in his side.”
You’d think that when Jesus showed up to specifically talk to Thomas, Jesus might have given him a lecture on the past three years of being with Jesus and all the miracles he had witnessed. But … what does Jesus say? “Peace be with you.”
We’ve seen three examples of people who met Jesus after the resurrection. Mary was enveloped in grief – so much she couldn’t even comprehend angels sitting right in front of her. She wasn’t even able to recognize Jesus because she was so distraught. The disciples were hiding behind locked doors. They were terrified for their own safety. They had left their jobs to follow Jesus for 3 years, but now they were without a cause and their leader was dead. Roman execution might be their future. Thomas was just fed up with all the spiritual emphasis – he wanted tangible proof. If Jesus was who He said He was, then prove it.
For each reaction to His death, Jesus had the same reaction. “Peace be to you.” Jesus didn’t reprimand them for their grief, fear or doubt. In each situation, Jesus was patient and loving, and He made sure they knew He was alive and present. And … on each situation, Jesus gave them something to do – go spread the word of His resurrection.
Jesus does the same thing for us today. He understands our fear, doubt, and grief from life’s difficult events. He offers each of us peace. And He gives each of us a purpose for living. In each of our unique places on this planet, we can share the life changing news that God loves us totally and completely. Jesus is alive and present!
Our song for today is In Christ Alone by Owl City.