JN 20:19 On the evening of that first day of the week, when the disciples were together, with the doors locked for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood among them and said, “Peace be with you!” 20After he said this, he showed them his hands and side. The disciples were overjoyed when they saw the Lord. 21Again Jesus said, “Peace be with you! As the Father has sent me, I am sending you.” 22And with that he breathed on them and said, “Receive the Holy Spirit.
After Jesus was arrested, tortured and finally crucified, a powerful spirit of fear gripped the disciples who were left behind. Most of them were in their early 30s just like Jesus. On one hand, these apostles have shown boldness, passion and fearlessness. But this time around, things were very different. These young men now feared for their lives. They feared that those who conspired to put Jesus to death would now quickly turn to them and execute them as well. And so about three days after the death of our Lord, the apostles were still behind locked doors for fear of their lives.
Fear is one of the most powerful human emotions we have ever known. Medically, fear is defined as an unpleasant emotional state caused by real or imagined external threat. The word fear comes from the Greek “phobos” where we derive the popular word phobia. Phobos literally means terror.
How terrorized were the apostles indeed. Most of them have left behind their families and professions to follow Jesus. They had hoped and prayed that he would lead the nation towards political freedom from Roman oppression. They had witnessed his awesome miracles. They had heard his powerful sermons. They had seen how Jesus literally drew crowds upon crowds to himself. But in a twinkling of an eye, things began to move away from their favor. Their future now looked very bad, and their very lives were at stake. We read from John’s account of the resurrection that in the midst of this very hopeless situation, the Lord’s light shines upon them.
JN 20:19 On the evening of that first day of the week, when the disciples were together, with the doors locked for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood among them and said, “Peace be with you!”. Every now and then, we are visited by events we cannot control and circumstances we simply cannot change. Earlier that day, the disciples had heard Mary Magdalene say to them, “I have seen the Lord.” But her testimony of faith, no matter how mighty it was, was still not enough to calm their spirits.
You see, there is a powerful lesson to learn here. There are extremely difficult situations in our lives that simply cannot be addressed even by the best of human efforts. No matter how true and sincere the witness of Mary Magdalene was, the disciples remained terrorized. No amount of human intervention was ever enough. They remained under the bondage of their fears. They needed a greater power to set them free.
But you see, it is in these same moments that a greater and more powerful visitation comes upon our lives. It is the visitation of the Jesus who alone is able to speak peace upon our fearful hearts.
In verse 19, we read that Jesus was able to supernaturally pass through the locked doors. This act was a symbol of his power but more importantly, it is a symbol of his compassion and mercy to his beloved disciples. It was a powerful moment.
Face to face with the men who had abandoned him at his moment of need, there were many things that Jesus could have said. Jesus could have rebuked all of them for being cowards. He could have lashed sharp and painful words upon them. He could have blamed them for their own miseries.
But instead of all that, Jesus says the most unexpected words. He says to them, “Peace be with you.” The presence of the Lord was all that they needed to see. The words of Jesus were all that they needed to hear. In that glorious moment of visitation, their terror turned to joy.
Like the disciples, many of us are still behind locked doors, not because we want to stay there, but simply because we do not know how to get out. The hardships of this life have robbed us of our self-confidence. Our many frustrations have driven us to shame and terror.
But Christ is merciful and compassionate. He seeks us out. He overlooks our mistakes. He makes ways to reach us. He speaks to us his peace.
21Again Jesus said, “Peace be with you! As the Father has sent me, I am sending you.” 22And with that he breathed on them and said, “Receive the Holy Spirit. The Lord’s glorious visitation upon his disciples paved way for greater victory. Victory is an interesting word. It means to triumph. It means to succeed. It also means to conquer.
Certainly, the disciples’ actions and behavior after the death of Jesus failed to demonstrate the spirit of the Lord’s victory upon their lives. They simply lost their bearings and composure.
After all that they had shown, it’s unthinkable how the Lord could even consider them for kingdom work all over again. They were simply not brave enough. They showed serious emotional instability. Their spiritual maturity was questionable. Their sense of loyalty was not quite impressive.
But despite all that, Jesus, for the second time, says something unexpected. After proclaiming his peace to them again, Jesus says, “As the Father has sent me, I am sending you.”
Let’s imagine for a while the scenario. The disciples may have looked at each other and said, “Is Jesus serious?” “Did we actually hear it right?” If Jesus were to build a kingdom that would never end, why would he entrust this kingdom to imperfect and fearful followers?
In the eyes of Jesus, victory has a different meaning. Victory is not just to triumph, to succeed or to conquer. Victory is our readiness and willingness to receive and to surrender to the Spirit of God. That’s why after declaring his prophetic invitation for them to be sent by the Father, Jesus immediately says, “Receive the Holy Spirit.”
As it turned out, Jesus was indeed serious. He knew and understood how it all worked, “Not by might, nor by power but by the Spirit of God.”
The world thinks that victory can only be in the hands of the excellent, the gifted and the brave. This is not the case with the Lord. By the power of the Holy Spirit, true victory is upon weak, the imperfect and even upon the fearful.
Today, we continue to thank the Lord for his visitations upon our lives for the many ways the Lord ushers his precious peace upon our weary and troubled hearts. We thank God these visitations do not leave us the same. They transform us to the very core of our being, empowering us and enabling us to confront the worst in us, but giving us the strength to embrace our glorious destiny in Jesus Christ, becoming the persons we never dreamed we would be and doing what we never thought we could do! Thank you, Jesus!
