John 20:19-20
On the evening of that day, the first day of the week, the doors being locked where the disciples were for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood among them and said to them, “Peace be with you.” When he has said this, he showed them his hands and his side. Then the disciples were glad when they saw the Lord.
A great multitude of Christians today live in fear of the authorities. In China, for instance, the state is quite hostile to the church and worshipping Jesus Christ could lead a person to persecution, arrest, torture, exile and even death. We wonder about this, even marvel at it from our tranquil perch in history here in America where, at least for the time being, we are free to worship God. We need to be vigilant, though, as the Enemy is never at rest and when he can’t entice true believers away with the lusts of the world – riches, vanity and sex – he will most assuredly post his watchmen over us. That watchmen, be sure, is the tyrannical state or the anarchic mob. We do well to remember that the Christian church was birthed in persecution and the state sanctioned murder of Jesus Christ. For this reason, Romans 8:36 reminds us that we appear as sheep to be slaughtered by the hungry wolves of the Enemy’s pack.
Well, thus it was on that first Sunday evening. The ten apostles (the twelve minus Judas and Thomas) and probably the women, Jesus’ mother and brothers and others (Acts 1:23) are all behind locked doors, their conversation most likely full of the intrigue of Mary’s report and the reality of the empty tomb. It’s easy to think that Mary went to them earlier in the day and told them of seeing Jesus and they were all suddenly elated, their troubles forgotten. Instead, we find them behind locked doors, full of fear.
The reason is simple. The tomb is empty. The Roman guards had been scattered and by now rumors had to be spreading. Oh…and where was Jesus? Mary’s audience with Him had been early in the morning and now all these hours had passed and He hadn’t turned up. Let’s evaluate this.
First, Jesus sent Mary with a message of triumph and hope and assuredly she delivered it. Nevertheless, the disciples are in hiding, in flat fear that the Jews and their guard will come busting in at any moment and, perhaps, deliver them over to Pilate. And why not? If Jesus could be murdered as He was, even though all of Jerusalem had been clamoring to make Him King just a week ago, what fate awaited them, lowly and poor as they were? Their fear, therefore, and the locked door, are quite rational given the circumstances. What else were they supposed to do anyway?
Second, they are together! A common mistake in the Christian life is to isolate oneself in times of spiritual trial. What greater despair and risk of imminent danger could one experience than what’s happening to them presently? Nevertheless, they are together and that should be the default setting of all of God’s saints – especially when there is bleakness, worry, and tumult all around. The Enemy would have you isolated from true believers, you should know, so it’s a thing of great wisdom to make a point of being sure you have real fellowship with other believers. And real fellowship is what you have with brothers and sisters in the Lord who are always talking about the Word of God and Jesus Christ, which leaves you praising God when you’re in their company. There are no lone wolf Christians in the Bible and it’s a colossal mistake to make the attempt to be one.
Third, when Jesus arrives it’s a simple and stunning presence. He’s suddenly in their midst. John doesn’t give us the details we’d like to know about how He got in the room. Did He pass through a wall? Did He just pop in out of nowhere? We aren’t told and, therefore, we can conclude that such details aren’t the main point. What is the main point? That when Jesus came He brought tidings of peace and peace was absolutely what the beleaguered disciples needed most in that hour. The tomb had been empty since morning and they’d spent many hours full of worry. Every noise must have set their nerves jumping. Could it be the Jews now come to arrest them? Was it Jesus at last? Where was He all this time? Why the delay?
Well, the thing for every Christian to remember is that the Lord has His own timeline, which He never shares with us. That said, He’s always right on time and our goal in life is to look for Him in all things at all times. The heart that’s set on Jesus Christ and finding Him in every circumstance is never disappointed in the end. To fear being disappointed in Jesus Christ is to not know Him.
Finally, Jesus comes and immediately shares the most intimate detail with them…He shows them His wounds. He’s not a ghost, but the resurrected Jesus Christ in the flesh! In this way, He authenticates the purpose for which He came, which was to come and be crucified for sin and then to rise again from the grave so that all who believe in Him would have eternal life. The wounds of death on the resurrected body of Christ are the proof that all the wounds you have now will one day rebound to the glory of God. If you live in Christ, for His glory, and put to death the deeds of the body, rejecting sin and turning to the righteousness of God through faith in Christ, your scars too – whatever they be – will be things to show off in the age to come. No Christian will suffer in this life so much as a paper cut in His name except that it will provide an opportunity to glorify God and rejoice in Jesus on that great and imminent day destined to come! The Christian life, because of that empty tomb, is a life of triumph and not defeat; In all things, Paul says, we are more than conquerors because of Jesus Christ, who is our Lord and hope.
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