John 20:19-31 19On the evening of that first day of the week, the disciples were together behind locked doors because of their fear of the Jews. Jesus came, stood among them, and said to them, “Peace be with you!” 20After he said this, he showed them his hands and side. So the disciples rejoiced when they saw the Lord.
21Jesus said to them again, “Peace be with you! Just as the Father has sent me, I am also sending you.” 22After saying this, he breathed on them and said, “Receive the Holy Spirit. 23Whenever you forgive people’s sins, they are forgiven. Whenever you do not forgive them, they are not forgiven.”
24But Thomas, one of the Twelve, the one called the Twin, was not with them when Jesus came. 25So the other disciples kept telling him, “We have seen the Lord!”
But he said to them, “Unless I see the nail marks in his hands, and put my finger into the mark of the nails, and put my hand into his side, I will never believe.”
26After eight days, his disciples were inside again, and Thomas was with them. Though the doors were locked, Jesus came and stood among them. “Peace be with you,” he said. 27Then he said to Thomas, “Put your finger here and look at my hands. Take your hand and put it into my side. Do not continue to doubt, but believe.”
28Thomas answered him, “My Lord and my God!”
29Jesus said to him, “Because you have seen me, you have believed. Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.”
30Jesus, in the presence of his disciples, did many other miraculous signs that are not written in this book. 31But these are written that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name.
Peter, one of the first witnesses of Jesus' resurrection, speaks about the significance of Jesus’ resurrection: “Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! By his great mercy he gave us a new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead” (1 Peter 1:3). Amen.
The disciples had big plans after the Passover holiday was over. James and John were planning to go fishing with their dad, Zebedee, on the Sea of Galilee. Peter was looking forward to his mother-in-law’s delicious lamb and legumes. Matthew was going to walk his children to school so they could sit at the feet of their rabbi. Andrew and Nathanael were going hiking across the Judean countryside. Thomas was planning to help his twin brother plant spring crops.
Then, within a few days, everything changed!
Their plans fell through when Jesus was arrested, crucified and buried. There was no time for hiking, fishing or planting. There was only time to hide! There were more important things to be doing. Like staying alive!
All of us had big plans around the Easter holiday. Maybe you were planning on going fishing with your kids. But now you are stuck inside with those same kids. You were looking forward to the big Easter feast with your family. But with the “safer at home” orders in place, no one could come over and you couldn’t go over there, either. You were planning to drive your kids to school so they could sit at the feet of their teachers. Now your children have their feet propped up on the sofa watching their teachers on their Chromebooks.
You were going to go for a long hike, but the parks are all closed. You were going to plant a garden, but if you live in certain states, gardening supplies are off-limits.
Today we begin a series for the Easter season entitled, “What do we do when our plans fall through?” Today we specifically examine what happens when we’re locked in a room.
Imagine what the disciples must have been feeling. Here was their Rabbi – their Teacher and Master for the past three years – dead. They had witnessed incredible miracles of healing. Heard masterful teaching from the mouth of God. Shared intimate meals with the Messiah. They had dedicated their lives to Jesus.
But now he was dead. Crucified as a criminal. Buried in a borrowed tomb.
They felt tremendous sorrow.
They also felt fear. They were afraid that the Jewish religious leaders were sending their temple guards – or worse, the Roman soldiers – after them next.
They were frustrated. They expected places of honor in Jesus’ kingdom – on his right and on his left – but now that kingdom was lost. They had seen what Jesus had accomplished in the past. They expected even greater things for the future.
They were angry. They deserted Jesus in Gethsemane. They abandoned him at Calvary. Now they heard the testimony from the women, the Emmaus disciples, John and Peter, but they couldn’t bring themselves to believe it. They were angry at themselves for their unbelief.
Maybe you don’t have to imagine what the disciples were feeling. Because you feel the same things. You have similar fears, frustrations and anger.
You are afraid of what Covid-19 will do to our elderly or those with compromised immune systems. You are afraid of what the isolation and depression will do to you. You are afraid of what this shutdown will do to our jobs and economy.
You are frustrated at the contradictions from our elected leaders. You are told not to leave your house … unless you have to, then you can. You are told to wear masks in public because they may help … but they may not. You can’t gather for a drive-in worship service at your church … but you can go to the drive-through for a fish fry or beer. You can’t gather together as a large group in the church … unless that large group is at Home Dept, Wal-Mart or Costco.
You are angry at your family because you’re tired of being around them – all the time. You’re angry at yourself for all the junk food and TV you’re binging. You’re angry with your spouse because the two of you haven’t saved enough in your emergency fund. You are angry at yourself for your lack of faith in God to take care of this whole mess.
As we sit in our locked homes, we can relate. The disciples were locked in for fear of the Jews. We are locked in for fear of a virus. To be honest, our lock-down is much more luxurious than that of the disciples. We aren’t sitting in a room filled with ten middle-aged guys stinking of sweat and fear. We sit in fully furnished homes with central heating and air conditioning, big screen TVs and smart phones. Our biggest struggle is not having enough toilet paper.
The greatest fear the disciples felt wasn’t necessarily the Jews, though. It was death. Death had taken Jesus from them. And if death could take away the One who could raise the dead, then death could easily take them.
This is ultimately why we are locked in our homes right now. We are afraid of death. We’re afraid of bringing death into our home when we go to the grocery store. Or carrying death with us when we visit our elderly parents. We are adverse to dying for any reason and by any means.
The wages of sin is death (Romans 6:23). But no one wants to be paid those wages. No one wants to be uncomfortable. No one wants to suffer. No one wants to die. But at the same time, no one wants to repent of the sins that lead to death.
Fear was never meant to rule our lives. God never meant his creation to live in terror of anything or anyone. Fear reveals where our heart’s love is directed. We fear because we love something in this world too dearly and we do not want to be deprived of it. We are afraid of losing our job, because we find our self-worth in our occupation. We are afraid of our internet going out, because we have become addicted to our Wi-Fi and binge-worthy shows. We are afraid of losing our sports and children’s athletics because we have consistently put them ahead of our worship of our God.
Maybe God didn’t like the way we were ignoring him and abusing his blessings … so he sent us to our rooms.
Fear is all about losing something important to us. Trust is about God being the most important something in our lives. Trust always conquers and replaces fear. Perhaps while we are locked in our rooms, we will learn to repent of the way we have mistreated God and the Holy Spirit will teach us to put him back where he properly belongs in our lives.
The disciples were afraid, frustrated and angry because they should have known better. They had Jesus’ own words that he would be betrayed, denied, arrested and crucified. He gave them the sign of Jonah that he would be in the belly of the earth for three days. He promised he would rebuild the temple in three days.
They should have believed. They should have repented of their unbelief. They didn’t believe the women who had seen the risen Christ or John and Peter who had seen the open tomb or the Emmaus disciples who had broken bread with Jesus that afternoon. The fear of death had locked them up more than anything else. That was their real problem.
That’s our problem, too. That’s the real reason we are locked up in our homes right now. Yes, we are cautious. We are careful. We are caring for other people to slow the spread of this pandemic.
But, ultimately, we are all afraid of dying.
That’s why Jesus appears to the disciples in the locked room. He knows they are afraid. Notice, he doesn’t go to Caiaphas’ house or Pilate’s place or Herod’s palace. He goes to the locked room. He goes to meet his fearful disciples. He shows them his hands – his scars proving his victory over death. He shows them his feet – his wounds proving his crushing of the devil. He shows them his pierced side – his laceration proving his triumph over sin. He comforts their fearful hearts saying, “Peace be with you.”
Jesus says to you, “Peace be with you.” He wants you to know the kind of peace that quiets the soul and removes fear from the heart. No matter what circumstances you face, Jesus’ wounds prove he is the victorious, powerful and ever-living Savior.
Jesus’ freshly pierced side and nail-scarred hands and feet prove to you who he is and what he has done for you. He has covered the cost of your salvation. This is not a teacher with wounds or a man with wounds – this is your God with wounds! Those wounds prove that your anger is forgiven. Your fear is melted away. Your frustration is removed. Your peace with God is regained.
Your cause for separation from God – sin – has been paid for. Your biggest bully – Satan – has been crushed. Your greatest fear = death – has been conquered. And if your greatest enemy is dead, then there is nothing else to be afraid of.
Peace was the only thing the disciples were missing in their locked room. Peace is the one thing we can’t shop for while we are sequestered. Peace is the main thing Jesus breathes upon his disciples.
Jesus’ peace is more than a pause in earthly hostility and war. Jesus’ peace proclaims, “I am one with God.” Jesus’ peace assures you that the barrier of sin and guilt has been overcome. Jesus’ peace also tells you that you belong to him. He is your refuge and strength, an ever-present help in times of trouble.
This peace also guards your heart and life through faith. It checks the outbreak of sin and fear from within your heart. It even hinders the world’s evil influence from overwhelming you. It drives fear from your heart and replaces it with trust in the Lord. That trust in the Lord creates a buffer so that fear can no longer reign supreme within you. Jesus’ peace is what you need to have right now. It is what you need to continue to hear.
Jesus offers us proof he is alive and sin is dead. The holy holes in Jesus’ hands, feet and side are proof that God the Father has accepted his Son’s sacrifice. Our debt to God is paid. It is finished. Hell is closed to us. Heaven is opened to us.
Spring sports, confirmation ceremonies, graduation parties, work, vacation, surgery … All of us had plans. Everything was organized, arranged and put into our calendars. Then suddenly all our well-laid plans became disorganized, broken and scattered. Your plans have fallen through.
When you are sequestered with only your anger, frustration and fear to keep you company, what do you do? Repent. Repent of your anger, frustration and fear. Remember Jesus’ promises. Remember that because Jesus has defeated your greatest enemy of death, you have nothing left to fear. Replace your fear of dying and everything else with a renewed trust in the Lord who is in control of all things. Recall the resurrected Jesus appearing behind locked doors. Rejoice that you have a powerful, victorious and ever-living Savior. He comes to you behind your locked doors with the exact words you need to have right now, words you need to hear right now, “Peace be with you.” Amen.
Paul, another witness of the risen Christ, said it this way, "Since death came by a man, the resurrection of the dead also is going to come by a man. For as in Adam they all die, so also in Christ they all will be made alive." (1 Corinthians 15:21-22). Amen.