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THE RISEN SAVIOR BRINGS
PEACEFUL ASSURANCE.
JOHN 20:19-31
In
the name + of Jesus.
“On the evening of that first day of the week, the disciples were together behind locked doors because of their fear of the Jews” (John 20:19). The Jewish religious leaders had demanded the crucifixion of Jesus. Jesus’ disciples feared that they were next. So, they locked themselves in this upper room while the pilgrims in Jerusalem were still celebrating the Feast of Unleavened Bread. But the disciples of Jesus had other fears weighing on them. By the evening of that first Easter, they had already heard the reports of the women. The women spoke of the angels at the tomb. They could even report they had seen the risen Jesus. Peter and John could report that Jesus’ tomb was, indeed, empty. This should have resulted in joy; it did not.
The disciples remembered the last time
they had seen Jesus. For most, that was
in the Garden of Gethsemane. While Jesus
was being apprehended, they fled into the night. Peter had seen Jesus from Caiaphas’ courtyard
right after Peter had denied him three times.
John witnessed Jesus’ death from the foot of the cross. All had failed him. If they saw Jesus risen from the dead, what
could they say to him? What would he say
to them? They may have feared the Jews,
but they probably feared seeing Jesus, too.
“Jesus came, stood among them, and said
to them, ‘Peace be with you!’ After he
said this, he showed them his hands and side.
So the disciples rejoiced when they saw the Lord” (John 20:19-20). The risen Savior brought a peaceful
assurance. He did not come to express
disappointment or regret. He did not
bear a grudge. Yes, they all failed him,
but he had paid for that sin and for every other sin they had committed.
“Peace be with you!” he said. While our translation says that he showed
them his hands and side after he declared peace to them, it is also possible to
translate it this way: “As he said this, he showed them his
hands and side” (John 20:20, emphasis added). This gesture would have been more than just
an identifier, that is, Jesus showing himself as the crucified one. It would also have been the proof that God’s
peace was theirs. The marks on Jesus
showed that this is how their sins were paid for. Jesus’ risen body is the proof that the
payment was sufficient. The Lord was not
angry with them. He sought no vengeance
against them. The risen Savior brings a
peaceful assurance. Sins are
forgiven. The Lord blesses you. His face shines upon you. He gives you peace.
Unfortunately, peace eluded one of the
apostles. Thomas was not there. Thomas had just as much reason for fear and
guilt as the other apostles. Sadly, his
fear and his guilt still ruled over him.
He would not believe the testimony of the women. He would not believe the claims of his fellow
apostles. None of them had a reason to
lie to him. And certainly their joy and
enthusiasm should have convinced Thomas that they were telling him the
truth. But when someone is consumed by
fear and guilt, that is the only thing they believe. The prophet Isaiah declared, “There is no
peace, says the LORD, for the wicked” (Isaiah 48:22). If you are weighed
down by your sin, you have no peace.
That is when the devil will seize you with unbelief and despair.
Judas Iscariot is the chief example of
this. Judas had betrayed Jesus for
thirty pieces of silver. But St. Matthew
notes, “When Judas … saw that Jesus was condemned, he felt remorse. He brought back the thirty pieces of silver
to the chief priests and elders and said, ‘I have sinned by betraying innocent
blood.’ But they said, ‘What is that to
us? That’s your problem’” (Matthew
27:3-4). The priests did nothing to
atone for his sin. For Judas, there was
no pardon, no peace; therefore, there was no hope or comfort. Since Judas could not fix or reverse what he
had done, he chose to kill himself rather than to live with the burden of
guilt.
Judas’ suicide was tragic enough, but
dying in unbelief and despair meant that Judas perished eternally. Judas’ story is especially sad, because the
risen Savior had come to bring peaceful assurance to sinners. It is also sad that Judas’ story is repeated
by so many. Perhaps you know the
terrible burden of sin, the likes of which haunted Judas. Perhaps you are weighed down by guilt that
will not lighten up. People who are
hounded by such guilt often deal with it in destructive ways. Some medicate with drugs or alcohol. Some figure they are a lost cause and choose
to continue in their sin. If you’re
going to hell anyway, why not? Others,
like Judas, feel the only way to escape guilt and despair is by killing
themselves. But there is no forgiveness in
any of these. There is no peace. And, saddest of all, there is only hell that
awaits those who die in their sins.
No one should have to live with such a
burden of guilt. No one needs to wallow
in despair. You have a Savior whose
wounds testify that your sins have been paid for. The feet that took Jesus to Mt. Calvary were
nailed to the cross for you. The hands
that brought healing to the hurting were driven into the wood to bring healing
to your troubled conscience. Jesus’
heart—so filled with compassion for sinners—was pierced for you. It brought forth a flow of blood and water
which provide cleansing for all sin and guilt.
The Savior who died to rescue from sin, death, and hell now lives and
declares, “Peace be with you! You have
been acquitted of all guilt. You have
received a full pardon. The cloud of
guilt has been lifted. The sun of grace
shines upon you now!” The risen Savior
brings peaceful assurance to you.
To further assure you of that peace, Jesus
had commissioned his ministers to deliver it to you. “Jesus said to them again, ‘Peace be with
you! Just as the Father has sent me, I
am also sending you.’ After saying this,
he breathed on them and said, ‘Receive the Holy Spirit. Whenever you forgive people’s sins, they are
forgiven. Whenever you do not forgive
them, they are not forgiven’” (John 20:21-23). Jesus has given charge to his ministers not
merely to talk about the forgiveness of sins, but to administer it.
If you were a defendant in a court of law,
you could ponder the idea of being acquitted.
You could dream about it, pray for it, and hope for it. While such thoughts would be appealing, none
of them would acquit you. Nor would it
do you any good if the judge sat in his chamber and thought good thoughts about
you. Even if he sat at his desk and
muttered to himself, “That guy should go free,” how would that help you at
all? The only way you can be acquitted in
a court of law is to have a judge formally declare you “Not guilty.”
Likewise, you don’t find forgiveness in
your own private thoughts. And it would
not do you any good if God sat in his heavenly glory and thought good thoughts
about you. How would you know if he did
or didn’t? To know that your sins are
forgiven, the judge must formally declare you, “Not guilty.” All judgment has been entrusted to the
Son. Jesus will come again and sentence
people either to everlasting life or everlasting damnation. His verdict is the only one that matters. Jesus’ life, death, and resurrection have won
your pardon from all sin. But to know
that you are forgiven, it must be formally proclaimed to you. The Lord Jesus has commissioned his ministers
to do just that. You have forgiveness
delivered to you as the minister speaks in the stead and by the command of the
Lord Jesus Christ. The “I forgive
you” is the voice of your Savior, delivered through the mouth of his
minster. In this way, the risen Savior
brings peaceful assurance to you.
You know Jesus’ words and promises. They were applied to you in your baptism. So, day after day, you can be confident that
you stand forgiven before the Lord. However,
like the apostles, you may have a sin that haunts you and will not let you
go. For such times, the Lord summons you
to private confession and absolution. It
is private; you are the only one present.
So, there is no confusion about who is meant when the absolution is
proclaimed. Jesus, through his minister,
brings the peaceful assurance, “I forgive you.” Jesus sends you home justified; you get to
depart in peace.
The apostle Thomas was not present that
first week to hear Jesus proclaim peace.
On the next Sunday, Thomas was with them. Suddenly, Jesus stood in the midst of his
disciples again. And what did he say to
Thomas? “Tsk, tsk, tsk. You should have listened to these guys. I am so disappointed in you”? Rather than shame Thomas for his guilt, fear,
and doubting, Jesus declared, “‘Peace be with you,’ he said. Then 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’” (John 20:26-27).
Once again, the risen Savior showed the wounds that he received to take
away the guilt of sinners. Once again,
the risen Savior showed himself the victor over death and the one who has the
right to pardon all offenses. Once
again, the risen Savior brought peaceful assurance.
Now, if Jesus’ appearance to Thomas was
for his sole benefit, it would not have been recorded for yours. The Holy Spirit guided St. John to record
these things to give you further assurance and greater peace. John acknowledged that there is much more
that he could have written. No doubt, it
would have been fascinating. But the Holy
Spirit does not waste his breath with anecdotes and trivia. He is intentionally selective about what is
written and about what we need to know.
St. John acknowledged that. He
wrote: “Jesus, in the presence of his disciples, did many other miraculous
signs that are not written in this book.
But 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” (John
20:30-31).
The risen Savior brings peaceful
assurance. It was shown in the wounds he
sustained in making the payment for our sins.
It was shown in the immortal, resurrected body which proves the payment
is sufficient. Jesus’ risen body also
provides a glimpse of the immortality that awaits us at our resurrection. That peaceful assurance is proclaimed when
sinners are absolved by Christ’s ministers who speak and act in the stead and
by the command of Jesus Christ. And it
is bestowed on the pages of Scripture which are written for your hope and
comfort.
Jesus Christ is risen. He lives to bring peaceful assurance. You get to live in peace. You get to die in peace. And you will receive everlasting peace.
In the name of the Father and of the Son + and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.
