At some point in our lives, we all retreat to a place that is safe, a place where all of the bad things cannot reach us. As little kids, it’s often to the arms of mom and dad who will protect us from the monsters under our beds or in our closets. As we get older, we retreat to a close friend who will be there for us when everything seems to be going wrong in our lives. Or there might be that special place where we can go where no one knows about, where all of the bad seems to be kept at bay. Today, that is exactly where we find the disciples, in a place that is safe from all harm and danger.
On the evening of that first Easter Sunday, the disciples are not rejoicing in that their Lord has risen from the dead just as He promised. Rather, they are cowering in a locked room, fearful that what happened to Jesus would happen to them as well. All of this seems out of place with what happened in the early morning hours. Peter and John, along with the Marys see first-hand that the tomb of Jesus was empty. They hear from the angels and from Jesus Himself that He has risen from the dead as He promised He would. With news like that, the disciples should be shouting it from the rooftops on every street corner. But that’s not what they’re doing, because reality has set in for them: what happened to Jesus could happen to them as well.
When we see everything that happened to Jesus since His triumphant entry into Jerusalem, one can hardly blame the disciples for hiding out in a locked room. Jesus was falsely charged and put to death because of His heretical teaching according to the Pharisees. They wanted to stamp out the false teaching of Jesus and everyone who taught it. That meant that the same punishment could come to the disciples as well. In their very limited thinking, they thought that hiding in a room with the doors locked would keep them safe from all harm and danger that could befall them. Much to their chagrin, they weren’t as secure as they thought.
The number of people in the locked room has increased from ten to eleven in the blink of an eye. Suddenly, “Jesus came and stood among them and said to them, “Peace be with you.”” Somehow, Jesus managed to appear in this locked room without being noticed, without a means to unlock the doors. At first, it would appear that the disciples are not as safe as they thought they were. If Jesus could appear in this room, then anyone could appear. But the greeting that Jesus gives is one that is meant to bring peace and comfort to them. This is not just an empty greeting. This is full Gospel. It is an absolution. The greeting is in keeping with the Greeter. The first thing He does is to forgive their sins and declare that all is well.
What comfort the disciples should have right now! It’s a comfort that they are desperately in need of at this moment. “When he had said this, he showed them his hands and his side. Then the disciples were glad when they saw the Lord.” The disciples were glad when they saw the Lord and recognized Him as Lord by the wounds and scars on His body! This first time that Jesus speaks peace to them, He speaks in terms of forgiveness giving peace from fear. It is a joyful assurance, the presence of God, the complete opposite of fear. Yet just days ago on Good Friday, there was no peace for the disciples. All of them had left Jesus in fear, especially Peter. They were deathly afraid the Jews would come for them too. That’s why the doors were locked.
But now in this moment, there is peace, even if it is only temporary, though the peace that Christ brings isn’t temporary. It is a peace that is everlasting, one that transcends beyond the here and now, for it is that peace that passes all understanding. Christ returned from death to give peace from fear. He gives to us His forgiveness. He gives to us His peace. It is peace in Christ which only He can give. He gave it to the disciples on Maundy Thursday when He instituted His Supper and He will give that peace to you in just mere moments when you come and receive His body and blood. Christ has come to give us all peace, that peace of knowing that our sins have been forgiven.
The result from Christ’s statement: peace from fear. The disciples rejoiced because their relationship was restored. We can rejoice also because we have nothing to fear because our sins are forgiven.
Startled as they were, Jesus says to them again, “Peace be with you. As the Father has sent me, even so I am sending you.” What is it that Jesus is saying to them? The Savior not only assures them of peace, but He also commissions them to announce peace to the world. Peace comes from forgiveness of sins. It is peace between God and men through the work of Christ. It is peace of conscience to the sinner. This peace was Jesus’ way of saying that these idlers were still precious – and useful – to him. Jesus’ word of peace was their forgiveness, and now they had the power to share that same forgiveness with the world.
During this first meeting, the disciple Thomas was not present. When the disciples saw Thomas next, they told him how Jesus had appeared to them in the locked room. Thomas, known for his doubting, refused to believe unless he saw everything for himself.
To ease the fears of Thomas, Jesus tells him the same thing that He told all the other disciples: “Peace be with you.” Jesus doesn’t stop there. He tells Thomas, “Do not disbelieve, but believe.” Immediately, after Thomas put his hands in the wounds of Jesus, Thomas believes.
Jesus tells you the same thing today: “Do not disbelieve, but believe.” We understand Thomas, don’t we? We believe Jesus died and rose and even that He’s given us eternal life in heaven. But do we really, always, believe that because my Redeemer lives, we will live also or do our doubts leave us with no peace?
Jesus forgave Thomas’ unbelief. He returned to make Thomas whole, to give him the contentment of faith that is found only in Him. He comes today to us, to forgive us of our unbelief. We doubt. We question. We waver. But Jesus, through what He did for us on the cross, forgives us of our doubt, our questioning and our wavering. Through His gift of His body and blood, He continues to strengthen and keep you in the one true faith until life everlasting. That one true faith is found in Him.
True peace, as the Bible describes it, is always a product of the restored relationship between God and man, and that is only a result of the forgiveness that Christ earned for us on the cross. The Lord brings His peace to you. He has paid the price for your sin and disobedience. Peace with God has come at a cost, but Christ has borne that cost for you. And now, He brings that peace to you.
Therefore, do not be troubled. As the risen Lord visited His disciples, so He visits you. As He spoke peace and forgiveness to them, so He speaks it to you. As He came to them with His risen body and blood, so He comes and gives you His body and blood for the forgiveness of your sins. No matter what your sinful nature or circumstance might argue, you can be certain by God’s grace that you are at peace with God, because you are forgiven for all of your sins. In Jesus name, amen. Now the peace of God that passes all understanding, keep your hearts and minds through faith in Christ Jesus, amen.