John 20:19-31
Do you remember that ad campaign from about twenty years ago? Somebody started taking out billboard ads that were meant to look like messages from God. They were usually kind of funny. One of them said, “Well, you did ask for a sign.” Some were cute and encouraging, like “Come on over, and bring the kids.” Or “Let’s meet at my house Sunday, before the game.” Or “Loved the wedding; invite me to the marriage.”
Some were a little more ominous, although still funny, like, “You think it’s hot here?” “What part of ‘Thou shalt not’ didn’t you understand?” My favorite has always been, “Don’t make me come down there.”
I love that one because, well, it reminds me of my parents. And yes, I have probably said it, or something like it, myself at some point in all my years of parenting. I love it for those reasons, and also because God did come down. And he will come again. And, how do we feel about that?
With our text today, we have an opportunity to think about how the first disciples felt about it.
Last week we read the resurrection morning story as Luke tells it, in which the women who arrive at the tomb see that the stone is rolled away, the body of Jesus is missing, and two dazzling guys, probably angels, are waiting for them. They tell the women they are looking in the wrong place, because Jesus is not dead, he is risen. Then the women run off to tell the men all of this – which the men do not believe.
John’s telling of the story is a little bit different – which shouldn’t surprise anyone, because isn’t it perfectly natural that everyone has a slightly different version of how things happened? In John’s gospel, Mary Magdalene is alone that morning, and when she sees how everything has been overturned, she runs back to the men. A couple of the men run back to see for themselves, but they don’t understand so they just return home, John says, the place where they have been staying in Jerusalem.
Mary stays and sees the angels – but that’s not all. She has a face to face encounter with Jesus himself. Jesus tells her to go and share the good news with the disciples, which she does immediately. Unlike Luke, John doesn’t say that the men did not believe – but neither does he say they did.
All we know was that they remained behind locked doors. John tells us they were locked in because of their fear of the Jews, but I don’t believe they were really afraid of the Jews. After all, they were Jews – each and every one of them. It’s possible they were afraid of the Romans. Although, they were not afraid to run to the tomb that Sunday morning, so they might not have been afraid as they claimed.
Not of the Jews. Not of the Romans. It’s possible they were afraid of Jesus. Because he was back. And what would that mean.
They weren’t looking so great right now. They had saved themselves, but they couldn’t save Jesus. They would not stand with him through his ordeal of the week before. Peter, for all his bravado, would not declare his allegiance to Jesus. Instead, he lied three times and said he did not know him. None of these men had been able to accompany him to the cross. None of them had been willing to fight for his life.
And I’ll bet they were really miserable about that – not just Jesus’ death, but their own failures. Part of them had died when Jesus died. But that didn’t mean they were ready to welcome him back. What would he do? What would he say?
Such a concern would be legitimate. Jesus had a legitimate beef with these guys. Perhaps they were thinking of the law saying you shall give life for life, eye for eye, tooth for tooth and so on. Even though Jesus said something different, but they might not have remembered that. People rarely seem to remember that he had said to them, “You have heard it said, ‘eye for eye, tooth for tooth,’ but I say to you … if anyone strikes you on the right cheek, turn the other also.”
Our adherence to this lovely and gracious ideal is tested every day. Last Sunday we grieved the violent attacks against Christians during their Easter celebrations in Sri Lanka. These attacks were claimed to be payback for attacks against Muslims at worship in New Zealand last month. Those attacks were also religiously and racially motivated. It goes on and on.
And just Saturday we bore witness to another synagogue shooting, as people worshiped on the last day of Passover. Again, someone acting out their anger, feeling justified in doing so.
We are so used to seeing acts of violence born of vengeance and rage, because this is what people do. But Jesus taught his disciples, “love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you.”
Would someone who teaches this be someone they need to fear?
They stayed inside, behind a locked door. Maybe they though a locked door could keep him out.
When it was evening on that first day of the week, and the doors of the house where the disciples were staying were locked – locked for fear of something; maybe just for fear of coming face to face with themselves. Could they forgive themselves for failing Jesus like they did? They grieved his death, their failure, and this loss of hope.
Turn the bolt, lock the door on hope, on freedom, on life.
Then Jesus busts in.
The book of Revelation says, “Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If any hear my voice and open the door, I will come in and eat with them and them with me.” Many have interpreted this verse in art, and we get these paintings of Jesus standing in front of a door; knock, knock. He politely waits.
Can you imagine that, really? The one who busted out of hell, busted out of the grave, right through that stone – is he going to stand outside and wait?
When it comes down to it, neither locked doors nor massive stones, not even death can keep him out. Jesus came in and stood among them and without waiting for a greeting or a response, he wished them peace. Peace. And this means I forgive you. I love you. We’re good, you and me.
He showed them his wounds. He breathed on them the breath of life, and he gave them a job: Go out, be my witnesses, and spread forgiveness.
And now they can, because once they have received forgiveness and the new life in the Spirit, they can share that forgiveness with everyone.
I wonder what this world would be like if everyone who professes to be Christian lived by these principles.
Do we welcome Jesus back? We sure do need him. There are too many messengers of hate and death. We need words of peace and forgiveness. We surely need his Spirit – the breath of life.
