Pastor's
Weekly Sermon
Easter 2B – April 11, 2021
John 20:19-31
Behind Closed Doors
For us, it’s been a full week since Easter day. We’ve already celebrated, we’ve had our family dinners, and we’ve been eating left over ham for a week now. And we’re about sick to death of chocolate Easter eggs and jelly beans by now, But I’m going to ask you to pretend that this is Easter morning all over again. No one except a few women know that Jesus has risen and is alive. Our Easter story tells us of the evening of that first Resurrection day, and as yet, no one is celebrating anything. In fact, this is the day that Christianity almost died because this was the day the disciples were stuck with fear and dread behind closed and locked doors. And Christianity cannot survive inside closed and locked doors.
The disciples are still in shock and very shaken by the brutal crucifixion of their leader, Jesus. They are numb and devastated by his death, and they are afraid the same thing will happen to them. They are beyond disappointed and disillusioned that their expectations and hopes have been dashed. Following Jesus seems to have led nowhere. They are still pondering how everything could have gone so horribly wrong. They also wonder how they could have been so wrong putting all their faith and trust in this man they believed to be the Messiah. They thought they knew Jesus. It seems they didn’t know him at all. Was his message a sham? It got him killed, and he is dead and gone like every other person. Was their hope misplaced, was their loyalty misguided? Did they back the wrong horse? They have too many thoughts, too many emotions, too much grief. Too numb to know what to do now.
We don’t know if they have heard the wild tales the women bring from the tomb. It seems they know nothing that has happened. They are hiding huddled together. Their fear of the Judean authorities has led them to run and hide. They are like the sheep without a shepherd, hiding from a marauding thief. I suppose one good thing you can say about these fear-stricken disciples is that at least they are still together. At least they are united in their fear and grief.
But closed and locked doors cannot keep out the Risen Lord. Suddenly, in the midst of their darkness and confusion, despite locked doors, Jesus appears and stands among them, greeting them with, “Shalom! Peace be with you!” And just to make sure this stunned bunch knows who he is, Jesus shows them some ID—proof of his identity—he shows them his nail-scarred hands and side. In that moment, their eyes were opened, their darkness turned to light, their sorrow turned to joy, in fact the word ‘joy’ doesn’t really describe their feeling. “Delirious” might be a better word. They rejoiced as no one has rejoiced before!
STORY – MY DOG WHEN I’VE ONLY BEEN GONE FOR THE DAY – HE MUST THINK I HAVE COME BACK FROM THE DEAD!!! HE GOES CRAZY WITH DELIRIOUS DOG JOY! That’s the kind of delirious joy I’m sure the disciples knew when Jesus appeared in their midst.
This becomes a kind of resurrection day for the disciples too. I’m sure that this unexpected visit from Jesus, who they saw brutally killed, had taken their breath away. Can’t you just see them all staring wide-eyed and holding their breath, trying to make sense of what they are seeing. Jesus gives their breath back to them. In fact he breathes his breath upon them. He breathes the gift of Peace on them. He breathes the Holy Spirit into them. You might even say that this is their Re-Creation day, for In the beginning, in the first days of Creation, God breathed the Spirit into the first man, activating him and bringing him to life with God’s very breath. So too, on this day, Jesus breathes on his disciples and breathes his Holy Spirit into them, And just like in the beginning of creation, Jesus is Re-creating them, Re-energizing them, Empowering them anew with his Own Spirit—banishing their fear and darkness and replacing it with joy, power and light, and with his own life flowing thru them.
This resurrection day is a kind of Graduation day too. The peace Jesus gives them is a peace that empowers and encourages them. It is a peace that looks towards the future and will not let them remain behind locked doors. And just as graduates get set to leave behind the walls of the school and go out the doors, forward into the world, so too the disciples are empowered and emboldened to unlock their doors and go out into the world with this marvelous Resurrection news.
Jesus gives them a new status and a new role. They are no longer just disciples—a word that means student and followers. They are no longer just students soaking up the teachings of Jesus, He now names them as “Apostles”. With the peace and life of Jesus flowing thru them they are now “those who are sent”. They are sent into the world just as God has sent Jesus into the world.
Peace be with you, he says. As the Father has sent me so I send you.” He gives them a Commission to go out; he gives them marching orders, telling them, “As the Father has sent me, so I send you.” they are sent outside these walls, to open the doors outward and to take the good news of Jesus Christ out to the world.
The peace that they have been gifted with and the change in status they have received propels them out from behind the closed and locked doors into the world.
So What are they to do when they go out the doors? They are to do the work of forgiveness. They are sent to be God’s “ambassadors of reconciliation” (as St. Paul would say.) they have been graced with the power and responsibility to forgive sins in the name of our Gracious God who so freely forgives us. The are sent into the world to
Contend with sin as it afflicts and affects the world, and to share the Peace of the Holy Spirit and the Good news of the gospel of the Risen Jesus. `
The Apostles were turned into Easter Missionaries sent into the world, empowered by the Holy Spirit to carry the forgiving, transforming love of God into every human realm.
And you know what, that same commission is given to us Also. The Risen Christ claims us as Easter missionaries. We are also sent outside the walls and doors of our churches to bring the transforming love of God into every nook and cranny of human life. For to stay behind our doors and walls is death to a faith community. The Holy Spirit is meant to flow thru us and out into every corner of our world.
EXAMPLE -- DEAD SEA –IT’S DEAD BECAUSE WATER DOESN’T FLOW THRU IT. Sea of Galilee has fresh waters flowing thru it. So too our each one of us, and our church needs the Living Water of Jesus—the Holy Spirit flowing thru us. We too are sent beyond the doors of the church.
The Love of God is meant to flow thru us to our work places, the places where we volunteer, to the farm and field, to the places where we play, to even the grocery store or the gas station, to even person we encounter along the way whether its an old friend or a clerk at the check out counter. We are sent out of these walls into all the places where people live, and work and play in our communities.
Many of our churches and Christian people are still living on the Good Friday side of Easter fearful behind closed doors. That’s a recipe for spiritual stagnation. The Peace Jesus breathed on his Apostles is meant for us too. We too receive a Blessing, for we are the ones who have not seen and yet we belief. We also receive Christ’s joy and the blessing of his presence in and among our faith community. And just like the disciples of long ago, Jesus beckons to us also to open the doors and go beyond our walls so that we might become apostles and enthusiastic believers on this side of Easter.
Easter isn’t just one day. It’s an event which turns the world upside down! It is still here and now. It didn’t just happen 2000 years ago, but it is still happening and unfolding even today!
Maybe you are familiar with Rev. Nadia Boltz-Weber. She is a contemporary preacher and an uncommon minister. She writes that “Resurrection isn’t reversal” I love that! You know, sometimes I feel we think getting thru to easter is a return to normal. We sigh and say, “Whew! We made it thru Lent. Now we can go back to normal.” If that’s how we think then we aren’t truly Easter people—transformed and made into New Creations! Part of what Lent was about was getting rid of some of the old, tired clutter and baggage in our lives, of leaving it behind so that we can embrace the new life Jesus brings us.
We need to think about this because we will have to look at ourselves anew after we get thru this Covid time and return to our churches. Will we go back to the way things were, to business as usual? Or will we come to a resurrected life of faith? Will we let go of old stagnant and lifeless practices and move forward into a new life of faith with new eyes and new vision because of what we have been thru this past year? I pray we will choose resurrected life. I hope we will come bck to a church and a faith more alive than when we left it!
Let us be Easter people. Let us look forward and claim that Peace of Jesus and open ourselves to the Holy Spirit flowing thru us so that we might Eagerly and joyfully share the Good news of God’s Embracing, transforming, inclusive, inviting and forgiving and life-giving love wherever we go. And that’s Good News worth shouting about!
John 20:19-31
Behind Closed Doors
For us, it’s been a full week since Easter day. We’ve already celebrated, we’ve had our family dinners, and we’ve been eating left over ham for a week now. And we’re about sick to death of chocolate Easter eggs and jelly beans by now, But I’m going to ask you to pretend that this is Easter morning all over again. No one except a few women know that Jesus has risen and is alive. Our Easter story tells us of the evening of that first Resurrection day, and as yet, no one is celebrating anything. In fact, this is the day that Christianity almost died because this was the day the disciples were stuck with fear and dread behind closed and locked doors. And Christianity cannot survive inside closed and locked doors.
The disciples are still in shock and very shaken by the brutal crucifixion of their leader, Jesus. They are numb and devastated by his death, and they are afraid the same thing will happen to them. They are beyond disappointed and disillusioned that their expectations and hopes have been dashed. Following Jesus seems to have led nowhere. They are still pondering how everything could have gone so horribly wrong. They also wonder how they could have been so wrong putting all their faith and trust in this man they believed to be the Messiah. They thought they knew Jesus. It seems they didn’t know him at all. Was his message a sham? It got him killed, and he is dead and gone like every other person. Was their hope misplaced, was their loyalty misguided? Did they back the wrong horse? They have too many thoughts, too many emotions, too much grief. Too numb to know what to do now.
We don’t know if they have heard the wild tales the women bring from the tomb. It seems they know nothing that has happened. They are hiding huddled together. Their fear of the Judean authorities has led them to run and hide. They are like the sheep without a shepherd, hiding from a marauding thief. I suppose one good thing you can say about these fear-stricken disciples is that at least they are still together. At least they are united in their fear and grief.
But closed and locked doors cannot keep out the Risen Lord. Suddenly, in the midst of their darkness and confusion, despite locked doors, Jesus appears and stands among them, greeting them with, “Shalom! Peace be with you!” And just to make sure this stunned bunch knows who he is, Jesus shows them some ID—proof of his identity—he shows them his nail-scarred hands and side. In that moment, their eyes were opened, their darkness turned to light, their sorrow turned to joy, in fact the word ‘joy’ doesn’t really describe their feeling. “Delirious” might be a better word. They rejoiced as no one has rejoiced before!
STORY – MY DOG WHEN I’VE ONLY BEEN GONE FOR THE DAY – HE MUST THINK I HAVE COME BACK FROM THE DEAD!!! HE GOES CRAZY WITH DELIRIOUS DOG JOY! That’s the kind of delirious joy I’m sure the disciples knew when Jesus appeared in their midst.
This becomes a kind of resurrection day for the disciples too. I’m sure that this unexpected visit from Jesus, who they saw brutally killed, had taken their breath away. Can’t you just see them all staring wide-eyed and holding their breath, trying to make sense of what they are seeing. Jesus gives their breath back to them. In fact he breathes his breath upon them. He breathes the gift of Peace on them. He breathes the Holy Spirit into them. You might even say that this is their Re-Creation day, for In the beginning, in the first days of Creation, God breathed the Spirit into the first man, activating him and bringing him to life with God’s very breath. So too, on this day, Jesus breathes on his disciples and breathes his Holy Spirit into them, And just like in the beginning of creation, Jesus is Re-creating them, Re-energizing them, Empowering them anew with his Own Spirit—banishing their fear and darkness and replacing it with joy, power and light, and with his own life flowing thru them.
This resurrection day is a kind of Graduation day too. The peace Jesus gives them is a peace that empowers and encourages them. It is a peace that looks towards the future and will not let them remain behind locked doors. And just as graduates get set to leave behind the walls of the school and go out the doors, forward into the world, so too the disciples are empowered and emboldened to unlock their doors and go out into the world with this marvelous Resurrection news.
Jesus gives them a new status and a new role. They are no longer just disciples—a word that means student and followers. They are no longer just students soaking up the teachings of Jesus, He now names them as “Apostles”. With the peace and life of Jesus flowing thru them they are now “those who are sent”. They are sent into the world just as God has sent Jesus into the world.
Peace be with you, he says. As the Father has sent me so I send you.” He gives them a Commission to go out; he gives them marching orders, telling them, “As the Father has sent me, so I send you.” they are sent outside these walls, to open the doors outward and to take the good news of Jesus Christ out to the world.
The peace that they have been gifted with and the change in status they have received propels them out from behind the closed and locked doors into the world.
So What are they to do when they go out the doors? They are to do the work of forgiveness. They are sent to be God’s “ambassadors of reconciliation” (as St. Paul would say.) they have been graced with the power and responsibility to forgive sins in the name of our Gracious God who so freely forgives us. The are sent into the world to
Contend with sin as it afflicts and affects the world, and to share the Peace of the Holy Spirit and the Good news of the gospel of the Risen Jesus. `
The Apostles were turned into Easter Missionaries sent into the world, empowered by the Holy Spirit to carry the forgiving, transforming love of God into every human realm.
And you know what, that same commission is given to us Also. The Risen Christ claims us as Easter missionaries. We are also sent outside the walls and doors of our churches to bring the transforming love of God into every nook and cranny of human life. For to stay behind our doors and walls is death to a faith community. The Holy Spirit is meant to flow thru us and out into every corner of our world.
EXAMPLE -- DEAD SEA –IT’S DEAD BECAUSE WATER DOESN’T FLOW THRU IT. Sea of Galilee has fresh waters flowing thru it. So too our each one of us, and our church needs the Living Water of Jesus—the Holy Spirit flowing thru us. We too are sent beyond the doors of the church.
The Love of God is meant to flow thru us to our work places, the places where we volunteer, to the farm and field, to the places where we play, to even the grocery store or the gas station, to even person we encounter along the way whether its an old friend or a clerk at the check out counter. We are sent out of these walls into all the places where people live, and work and play in our communities.
Many of our churches and Christian people are still living on the Good Friday side of Easter fearful behind closed doors. That’s a recipe for spiritual stagnation. The Peace Jesus breathed on his Apostles is meant for us too. We too receive a Blessing, for we are the ones who have not seen and yet we belief. We also receive Christ’s joy and the blessing of his presence in and among our faith community. And just like the disciples of long ago, Jesus beckons to us also to open the doors and go beyond our walls so that we might become apostles and enthusiastic believers on this side of Easter.
Easter isn’t just one day. It’s an event which turns the world upside down! It is still here and now. It didn’t just happen 2000 years ago, but it is still happening and unfolding even today!
Maybe you are familiar with Rev. Nadia Boltz-Weber. She is a contemporary preacher and an uncommon minister. She writes that “Resurrection isn’t reversal” I love that! You know, sometimes I feel we think getting thru to easter is a return to normal. We sigh and say, “Whew! We made it thru Lent. Now we can go back to normal.” If that’s how we think then we aren’t truly Easter people—transformed and made into New Creations! Part of what Lent was about was getting rid of some of the old, tired clutter and baggage in our lives, of leaving it behind so that we can embrace the new life Jesus brings us.
We need to think about this because we will have to look at ourselves anew after we get thru this Covid time and return to our churches. Will we go back to the way things were, to business as usual? Or will we come to a resurrected life of faith? Will we let go of old stagnant and lifeless practices and move forward into a new life of faith with new eyes and new vision because of what we have been thru this past year? I pray we will choose resurrected life. I hope we will come bck to a church and a faith more alive than when we left it!
Let us be Easter people. Let us look forward and claim that Peace of Jesus and open ourselves to the Holy Spirit flowing thru us so that we might Eagerly and joyfully share the Good news of God’s Embracing, transforming, inclusive, inviting and forgiving and life-giving love wherever we go. And that’s Good News worth shouting about!
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