Scripture: John 20:19-29; John 14:12-29
We all know folks who believe that they have plenty
of time to get right with the Lord. And
yet, we also know that this is a false hope, since no one knows either the date
of Christ’s return or that of our own death, or the day and hour when He will
call us to service in His name, or what He has in store for our testimony to
the world.
The truth is that now is the time for each and every
person to give their life over to the Lord Jesus, and to begin following in His
footsteps wherever they may lead in preparation for what will be coming next. As we consider the second and third sightings
of the Risen Lord in today's message, we discover that there is one more issue that we must be
prepared for, and that is walking in the relationship that Jesus desires to
have with us.
Very few of the early “sighters” recognized Jesus
upon His appearing, and some needed additional evidence that this apparition
was, indeed, the risen Christ. But how
about us? What would we need if Jesus
appeared in our midst right here and now?
Read John 20:19-23
We read that the Lord appears
to His “disciples” who were hiding out for fear that they would be next to be
arrested, tried, and Lord only knows what else!
But who exactly were these followers of Jesus? Was it limited to the 11 who were remaining
after Judas deserted the Lord? Or could
it have included other believers who were just as frightened as the eleven
were.
We remember that Mary didn’t
recognize Jesus until He spoke her name, and that now He actually reveals the
wounds He received at Calvary as a way to reassure these frightened people. Interestingly, His flayed body from the
beating should have been sufficient, but that isn’t even mentioned! And why does He join these believers just
hours after Mary had brought them a message affirming the fact that He had
risen into new Life that morning.
She had carried out her
assignment to share the Good News with others, and now Jesus also gives this
group a task and gives them a gift to facilitate them in their efforts. He breathes the Holy Spirit into their being,
and calls them to stop hiding and to go out and begin to share His good gifts
with the people of the world.
Forgiveness of our sins comes through faith, and these faithful are
being given the authority to determine if each person is worthy of forgiveness
or not. Of course, they have the Holy
Spirit to help them, but this is the first time that these folks have been sent
for this purpose.
In Matthew 10:1-20, we
read that the 12 had been sent earlier for healing and to free the people from
demon possession. Later, in Luke10:1-24, He sends out 72 believers in pairs to prepare communities for the
arrival of the Lord Jesus. Throughout
His ministry, He was not only teaching, but also preparing the faithful to
carry on in ministry after He had left them.
This is the same call that
God places on all who come to Jesus in faith, and it isn’t specifically
directed toward church leaders – it is for all who believe. Are each of us prepared to step out to share
the name and way of Jesus with the lost and broken of this world? Jesus is calling us all, you know! And now is the time to become prepared!
Read John 20:24-29
Now
Thomas comes into the picture, and when he hears the news of Jesus’
resurrection, he doesn’t believe his ears either, and he is very specific as to
what it would take to allow him to believe.
He says that it won’t be enough to simply see or to hear, but that only
a touch in the wounds that Jesus showed to those who saw Him a week
previous would be enough.
Thomas
has become known as the Doubter, but this account of Christ’s gift to him has little
to do with doubt or skepticism. It’s actually
about the grace that Jesus shows to all who are having a difficult time in
faith! Notice that as soon as Jesus offers
Thomas the opportunity to actually do what he had said he needed to do, his
faith came alive! And in faith, Thomas
readily confesses that this is truly “my Lord and my God!”
At
Caesarea Philippi, when Jesus asked His followers who they believed that He
was, it was Peter who promptly replied “You are the Messiah, the Son of the
living God!” (Matthew 16:13-20)
The profession of faith that Thomas proclaimed was more exact and on the
mark, while Peter’s had been close, but not completely fulfilling – Lord and
God made the point that Jesus is truly God and Master of “all that is, seen
and unseen”! Is our faith that
exacting?
Read John 14:12-21
Jesus is not only our Lord
and our God, He is One in the greater significance of God. And in this teaching that the Lord Jesus
offers us, He offers us a relationship with the entirety of God. And He establishes the point of this
relationship and what it means for all who come to Jesus. It is established in the love that we have
for the Lord Jesus, and is proven to all through our obedience to all that our
Lord has taught us.
And God confirms the
relationship by creating a connection between us and them through the Third
Person of the Trinity – the Holy Spirit.
God has ensured that we never have to question the relationship that
exists between us and our Almighty God every again. By God’s grace, we see, we hear, we sense, we
know, we live, and we become part of God’s plan for the people of this
world.
We carry the message of hope
and salvation that many throughout this place have never heard, and unless we
share those words of divine promise with them, how will they every know?
Read John 14:23-29
And what will it take for them to know? We have the Holy Spirit within us, teaching
us, reminding us, encouraging us, and refreshing us with the renewing Peace
that Jesus offered to so many during His time among us. And it is still bringing blessing upon
blessing to all who welcome the words of hope that we must share with those who
are searching, and striving, and hoping to receive the gift of God for
themselves.
This is all about being ready to respond to the call
that the God of Eternity places on our lives.
It isn’t a preparation that we have any control over, or responsibility
in developing – we can only be ready to hear the voice of our Lord speak to us
with directions for becoming a servant of the Most High God and His ways. And it will certainly be the most glorious
gift that we will ever receive.
We must be ready to see and hear and recognize and
accept whatever may be coming our way.
And we can’t miss a single word or nudge or embrace that the Lord
sends to us through His divine and perfect love. Believers are called to be the Lord's "holy priesthood", God's representatives to the people of this barren world. (1 Peter 2:4-6) And when we are prepared, it will certainly be glorious beyond anything we have ever known before!
