Close Encounters

Early on the first day of the week, while it was still dark, Mary Magdalene went to the tomb and saw that the stone had been removed from the entrance. So she came running to Simon Peter and the other disciple, the 1 that Jesus loved and said, They've taken the lord out of the tomb. We don't know where they have put him. So Peter and the other disciples started for the tomb, Both were running, but the other, disciple outran Peter and reached the tomb first. He bent over and looked in at the strips of linen lying there.

But did not go in. Then Simon Peter came along behind him and went straight into the tomb. He saw the strips of linen lying there, as well as the cloth that had been wrapped around Jesus' head. The cloth was still lying in its place, separate from the linen. Finally, the other disciple who had reached the tomb first also went inside he saw and believed.

They still did not understand from the scripture that Jesus had to rise from the dead. Then the disciples went back to where they were staying. Now Mary stood outside the tomb crying. As she wept, she bent over to look into the tomb and saw 2 angels in white seated where Jesus' body had been, 1 at the head, and the other at the foot And they asked her, woman, why are you crying? They have taken my lord away, she said.

And I don't know where they've put him. At this, they turned around and saw jesus standing there. But she did not realize that it was Jesus. He asked her, woman, why are you crying? Who is it that you're looking for?

Thinking he was the gardener. She said, sir, if you've carried him away, Tell me where you've put him and I will get him. Jesus said to her, Mary, She turned towards him and cried out in aramaic. Raveni, which means teacher. Jesus said, don't hold on to me.

For I have not yet, ascended to the father, go instead to my brothers and tell them I am ascending to my father and your father to my god and your god. Mary Magdalene went to the disciples with the news. I have seen the lord, And she told them that he had that she told them that he had said these things to her. On the evening of that first day of the week, When the disciples were together, with the doors locked for fear of the Jewish leaders, Jesus came and stood among them and said, peace be with you. After he had said this, he showed them his hands and his side, the disciples overjoyed when they saw the lord.

Again, Jesus said, peace be with you. As the father has sent me, I am sending you. And with that, he breathed on them and said, receive the Holy Spirit. If you forgive anyone sins, their sins are forgiven. If you don't forgive them, they are not forgiven.

Of 3 sermons that we're doing in this particular chapter, and, we've called it close encounters. So Easter Sunday does feel like a long time ago now. And, as I said last week, we had a terrific sermon on Easter morning about the resurrection and the implications of the resurrection. But I also wanted us to spend some time looking at some of the individuals, by which I'm in the disciples and Mary Magdalen, who met Jesus after his resurrection from the dead and were transformed by that particular encounter. Now Last week, you remember we looked at Mary's mission to the apostles.

Do you remember that? She had she had seen the lord She had witnessed the resurrected Christ in his glory, and the Lord gave her this message. Go instead to my brothers and tell them I am ascending to my father and your father to my god and your God. And we reflected on the glory of that statement that Jesus makes to her, that disciples can relate to their god as father, just as the lord Jesus himself does. There is this kind of sweet intimacy that we can enjoy with Christ and with the father because of his, resurrection.

And so this week, we're gonna have a think about the disciples in verses 19 to, 23. And let's pray before we open that up together. Heavenly father, we do thank you for these, amazing encounters. We thank you that the lord Jesus is alive. We thank you that he is reigning now in heaven that he loves each 1 of us.

And we pray that you would speak to us and transform us in the same way that you transformed. These first disciples, and we ask that in Jesus name. Oh, man. Here's, here's an illustration I borrowed, but I think it serves quite well as an opening thought. I want you to imagine a, a newly qualified teacher goes for her first interview at a local school.

It's a good school. It's a really good school. It's performed well in recent inspections. Other teachers talk very highly about this school. They treat their staff well.

They get really good results. This is a big interview for her. And after it's finished, she sits there looking absolutely dumbfounded shock. They have just offered her a job, but it's not the 1 that she applied for. They actually want to make her the head of department.

She is going to be running the hire humanities department. She is gonna be managing quite a large budget. She's got a lot of staff to look after. It's a massive responsibility for her. And she looks back and she says, there is no way that I can do that.

It's too big a responsibility for me. And the committee look at her and they say you're right. It is a very big responsibility but we are giving you this job, and we want you to know that we're not gonna leave you alone. We are gonna give you the resources and the training that you need. You're gonna be part of a team.

You're gonna be accountable to the head. What do you say? More responsibility than you ever imagined but all the help that you could ever need. Now think about verse 23 of this passage. If you forgive anyone sins their sins are forgiven.

How do you feel about that responsibility? Are you up for that? What about the other half of verse 23? If you do not forgive them, they are not forgiven That's weighty, isn't it? That is that is that is a weighty responsibility.

In fact, doesn't open our mouths in in a kind of stunned amazement, we probably don't understand it. Now you might say, well, that's gotta be a wrong interpretation because only Jesus can forgive since. You know, we're not we're not priests who can walk around pronouncing thou art forgiven, thou art not, you know, you are, you're in, you're out, you're in, you're out. That's that's an ugly idea. And that would be that's right.

Jesus is the only 1 who can forgive sins. He's the only 1 with authority and all the universe to do that. But he does so through the proclamation of a gospel, and it's a gospel which he has put into jars of clay like us. Jesus said at the end of Matthew, all authority in heaven on earth has been given to me I'm the 1 with authority to forgive sins. Therefore, who's gonna go?

You go and make disciples of all nations. And so we're back at the start. It's it's a weighty responsibility, isn't it? With everlasting consequences, are we up for the job? This is John's version of the Great Commission, and before we before we get to it and really start to unpack it properly, together.

What I want us to do, just like we did last week, is to have a think about the events which lead up to these amazing words. And the first thing I want us to see is this. Peace for the fearful. I was having to think about, about peace this week because it's all over the place in this in this passage. And, around the world, I think lots of people would probably define peace as the absence of conflict.

So when there is no conflict and when that is absent from our life or our nation we're at peace, But in the relative comfort of, of leafy, sorry, I think we probably would define it as the absence of stress. It's probably right, isn't it? When my car is not breaking down, when I'm not over stretched at work and when I got a sufficient amount of me time, during the week and the kids are behaving. I'm at peace. That's that's peace, absence of stress.

And if you believe that definition, It actually opens the door to all kinds of businesses who can sell you products which will alleviate your stress and therefore bring you peace. So here's 1 that I found in our bathroom. This is a a lush sleepy peace body lotion. Now I don't consider ourselves to to be a particularly stressed household, and this is probably why. On the front, it says dip into a dream painted in brushed strokes of gentle oatmeal infusion and lavender flower.

It's just it's just words jumbled together, isn't it? It's not even really a sentence. Okay? So, this certainly is helpful to at least 1 member of our household. Not not me.

Mindfulness is becoming very popular in this part of the world. Mindfulness as a way of restoring inner peace, going on holiday, which is a lovely thing to do, is is just a, it's kind of way of removing ourselves from stress triggers isn't it? That's the idea, at least anyway, that's how we sort of imagine it in our minds. If I can just get away from some of the stress triggers I'm surrounded by then I'm gonna find peace. I think lots of us probably either consciously or subconsciously would define it as the absence of stress.

But according to John 20, I think that is a pretty limp definition. Now it is true that the disciples were probably feeling quite stressed. We can see that in verse 19. On the evening of that first day of the week, when the disciples were together with the doors locked for fear of the Jewish leaders. Now, you might argue that they shouldn't be locking the doors and hiding away.

Mary has said to them, I've seen the lord And so they should be out now sharing, sharing the gospel. But I think this is understandable. A few days ago, their master had just been butchered and murdered by the authorities, and it was no secret in this particular region that these men and women had been with him. And now that the tomb is empty, well, there was a rumor that the disciples would try to steal the body. And so an empty tomb would put them firmly in the spotlight.

It probably was quite a stressful time for them. That's not unimportant. But it's not the whole story. And so how wonderful to hear this in verse 19 from Jesus? On the evening of that first day of the week, when the disciples were together with the doors locked for fear of the Jewish leaders, Jesus came and stood among them and said peace be with you.

And again, if you were with us last week, you might notice that there is actually a pattern developing in these particular stories, nothing stops Jesus going where he wants to go. A locked tomb can't keep him in, and a locked door can't keep him out. He goes wherever he wants to go. We don't quite know how he got into this particular room, but he's in here. And what he says to them is just beautiful.

He doesn't rebuke them, which he may well have done because before not that long ago, they had left him and denied him and run away from him and they were scattered and whatever else they did. But instead, he says peace be with you. Again, I say verse 21, peace be with you. And as I say that is is is so much richer than just the absence of stress. In 1, in 1 book, a chap says, peace be with you.

The phrase was common, but the sense was now peculiar. Peace be with you All good be to you. All peace always by all means. Christ had left them his peace for their legacy. And we actually know this is something special because although the word for peace here is extremely common, and it's used all over the place, in the new testament, and is actually still a greeting in many parts of the world today.

In John's gospel, the way he uses it is quite special. He has a special sense of this word, and he uses it only for his disciples as he speaks to them. Have a look back to John 14 verse 27. These are all the references to this to this word in John. John 14 verse 27.

Peace I leave you, live leave with you, my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid. John 16 verse 33? I have told you these things so that in me, you may have peace.

In this world, you will have trouble, but take heart I have overcome the world twice in our passage and then chapter 20 verse 26 A week later, his disciples were in the house again, and Thomas was with them. Though the doors were locked, Jesus came in and stood among them and said peace be with you. Those are the usages of that word in this gospel. And so you can see that this is a unique rest which only Jesus can give. And what is it?

What does he mean by it? What does it what does it look like for us? Well, look at verse 20, I think there's a there's a really important connection here. Jesus came and stood among them and said, peace be with you. After this, he showed them his hands inside, the disciples were overjoyed when they saw the lord.

Again, Jesus said, peace be with you. Now in Luke's account of this particular story, the disciples were terrified because they thought he was a ghost. And they thought he was some kind of spirit. But Jesus says to him, no, no, look at my hands, look at my side. This is none other than your crucified risen lord.

But I think it's more than just physical proof. It's not the only reason Jesus does it. The only reason that he can say peace is because of his wounds. In other words, without the suffering of Christ on the cross in our place for our sin, there is no peace. There is no rest with God.

This is a blood bought peace that he can bring to them. And so the absence of stress is just hugely inadequate if we leave it there. Here we have a full reconciliation with the most high and holy god. Thanks to Jesus. Peace be with you means forgiveness for you.

Peace be with you means adoption for you into the family of God. Peace be with you means that you are now at 1 with God. And with that, the fear of a missing Jesus turns into overwhelming joy in the presence of Jesus. After he said this, he showed them his hands inside, the disciples were overjoyed when they saw the lord. If we if we are followers of Jesus, this is about the sweetest thing we can ever hear.

In the world, there are gonna be scary and frightening times all over the world, even today, our brothers and sisters meet, and they lock the doors for fear of the enemies. And the thing is nowhere does Jesus promise that he's gonna remove those potential threats. Doesn't promise that. But thanks to him, we have a rich peace with god. The sinful war of our hearts against his authority is over.

We have entered into this Sabbath rest, this eternal rest with god. Thanks to Jesus Christ. Every ounce of the blessings in that phrase was paid for by the blood of Jesus. That's the connection here. It's interesting, isn't it that even though Jesus appeared in his resurrection body, He still had his scars.

Why? Why did he still have his scars in his resurrection body? Isn't he supposed to be healed? Why has he still got wounds all over him? It's the same reason.

So that in heaven, as we gaze upon him, and we behold his hands and his side for all of our days, we are gonna know forever and ever that peace be with you and it is finished belong together. The only way that we can hear peace be with you is because Jesus said it is finished. That's why he keeps his wounds. So for the rest of our lives into heaven, we will know that this is a blood bought peace that Jesus brings to us. He appeared to them and he gave peace to the fearful ones but secondly, he also gave peace for the scent ones.

Have a look at Versa 17 and then verse 21 of of chapter 20. Jesus said do not hold on to me for I have not yet ascended to the father. Go instead to my brothers and tell them and then verse 21. Again, Jesus said, peace be with you. As the father has sent me, I am sending you.

And with that, he breathed on them and said, receive the Holy Spirit. So John wants us to see this this kind of simple pattern that if you've met the risen Jesus you share the news. If you've had an encounter with him, you've gotta go and tell someone. That's what we see with Mary, and it's what we see with the disciples. And that's actually because this idea of knowing and then going is is not just a job that we're given it's in the nature of god himself.

As my father sent me, I am sending you. You see how how central that is? The god of heaven, the lord of lords, the author of the universe, sent his son into the world. And that sun who right now is reigning on the throne of heaven over the whole universe sends us. The same holy spirit who was hovering over the waters at creation and who empowered Jesus for his ministry is the 1 who empowers us for our mission.

In other words, the triune god the trinity, the 1 god in 3 glorious persons, is a sending god. And that means that mission is actually essential to his character. It's not just something that he does on his day off. Or a or a kind of hobby when he's bored, he is a sending god. He's a sender.

That's essential to who he is. And therefore, and I think this is where it challenges challenges me, certainly. At our commitment to mission, is a measure of how godlike we are. It's gotta be, hasn't it? You see, often I think we measure godliness in terms of character is humility and patience and joy and all all of that is true and all of that is an essential part but but how often do we consider our commitment to sharing the peace of Christ as an indicator of our godliness or to state it the other way around, is it actually possible to be a godly person with with just a kind of low level interest in this task.

You see, if this connection holds good in this passage, this connection between Jesus' coming to earth and our going, then it tells us that mission has the same importance for the disciple as it had for Jesus. His coming into the world is as necessary as our going. It's an amazing thought, isn't it? He's coming into the world is as necessary as outgoing. He sent me, I send you.

He sent me, I send you. What a job What a privilege that is? And what does he send us to do? Well, we started with it, verse 23. And with that, he breathed on them and said, receive the Holy Spirit.

If you forgive anyone sins, their sins are forgiven, If you do not forgive them, they are not forgiven. And again, just to be clear, this is not some sort of ugly priestly role where we can go around deciding who we think should have forgiveness. It's not even saying that at any particular church, can go around in the world deciding who they think should have forgiveness. That is that's a horrible idea, with the potential for a huge amount of abuse. This is the description of the gospel's power.

The message that we have to proclaim declares that if you will trust in Christ to be your savior, you will lose your sins at the cross forever. But if you reject him, you will take them to your grave. That is the point of this. We are sent to preach peace with God in Jesus' name. And the way that people respond to the proclamation of that gospel will define whether they lose or retain their sins.

The authority is always with Jesus and with his message. Have a look at Matthew 16 where we see that connection again. In verse 15. Matthew 16 verse 15. But what about you Jesus asks, who do you say I am?

Simon Peter answered you are the Messiah, the son of the living god. Jesus replied blessed are you, Simon, son of Jonah, for this was not revealed to you by flesh and blood, but by my father in heaven. And I tell you that you are Peter, and on this rock, I will build my church, and the gates of Hades will not overcome it. I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven. Whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven.

You are the Christ, he says, the son of the living god, and that is the rock upon which the church is built. Apostleals, it's yours. That's the confession. That's the keys. That's what That's what defines whether people lose or retain their sins.

It's all in the in the gospel and in the confession about who Jesus is. So we as Christians don't decide we announce Jesus is the Christ Believe in him and be saved, reject him and be condemned. That is our commission that he gives us. And under that particular application, I think there's at least 6 other ways in which those words apply to us. 6 brief applications under that 1.

Firstly, I think I think it should be a humbling thing for us, shouldn't it? It should humble us that. We are entrusted with god's gospel. That's that's an amazing thing. In 2 Corinthians 5, Paul says, that god has committed to us the message of reconciliation.

We are therefore Christ's ambassadors as though god were making his appeal through us. So the the disciples in that locked room and we in this unlocked school are ambassadors of the risen lord Jesus. Us us. People like us. Jars of clay, who who was so ordinary in many ways and full of contradiction and sin and weakness We are the ones who have been sent from the throne room of Jesus to announce his good news to the world.

That's a humbling thought, isn't it? And you might read this passage and think, well, why does he use those guys? I mean they're locking the doors. How pathetic are they? How weak are they?

Haven't they got any strength? Aren't they gonna make a bit more of an impression on that? Why does he use people like that? Well, that that's the pattern of the whole the whole bible, isn't it? Jesus uses weak people for amazing things.

1 author puts it that god doesn't use the most dressed up people. He uses the most messed up people for his job of bringing the gospel to the world. It's a humbling thing. Secondly, this story clarifies what our message is to be Look at my wounds. He says, that is essential, isn't it?

As we proclaim the risen lord Jesus Christ. We proclaim him as a risen lord Jesus Christ who has suffered for people's sins who died on the cross. The crucifixion and the resurrection always go together in our gospel. And that's why, by the way, the early church didn't just go around, repeating what Jesus said. That's confusing, isn't it?

You know, if Jesus was such a good teacher, Why would they why would they say anything other than what he said? Why don't they just repeat it all? Now, of course, they did repeat things Jesus said, but actually that's not the commission. Because we're not just here to duplicate and repeat the things that Jesus said. We're here to proclaim his achievements.

Here's what he's done, he's died, he's risen, here's what it means for you, and here's what you must do. We proclaim his achievements. So secondly, it clarifies our message for us. Thirdly, I think it should spur us on. 2 Corinthians 5 again, Paul says, for Christ's love compels us because we are convinced that 1 died for all and therefore all died.

And he died for all that those who live should no longer live for themselves up for him who died for them and was raised again. The love that Jesus has shown us and the love that he has for the people all around us should be like super unleaded petrol in the tank. The love of Jesus is is so compelling The time we have left is so little and the need all around us is so great that we don't wanna live for ourselves no thanks world. We don't wanna live for ourselves. We wanna die to ourselves, and we wanna live for him who gave himself for us.

Thirdly, that love of Christ should compel us on. Fourthly, it should remind us that a relationship with the father, which isn't utterly committed to the apostle's gospel, is a figment of the imagination. Do you notice the connection in verse 20 between Jesus and his message? It tells us that you cannot ignore the Apostle's gospel and be okay with God. You can't say, look, sorry, I'm afraid I don't really have much time for the scriptures.

I don't wanna I don't really have much time to make an effort to hear the preaching of the gospel. Religion is a personal thing. I've got my relationship with god. You've got your relationship with god. I don't really need to be involved with the apostle's gospel.

That is an impossible position to be in to reject the preaching of the apostle's gospel is to reject Christ. There is a link there what god has joined together, let no man separate. Between him and his gospel. Fifthly, it teaches us that blessing comes through hearing and believing. I'm always struck by Jesus' words to that passerby who he's on his way somewhere and they cry out.

Jesus blessed is the blessed is the mother who gave you birth. And who nursed you. Blessed is the 1 who's seen you and touched you and spoken with you. And Jesus says no, blessed, rather, is he who hears the word of god? And who obeys.

And that is still true. 1 day, all of god's children are gonna see Jesus and in a twinkling of an eye, will be changed. But now is not the time for twinkling eyes and for seeing, but for hearing and believing. This reminds us that blessing comes through hearing and believing. And lastly, and I deliberately put this at the end of all of that.

It should cause us to realize that we can't do this alone, and thankfully we're not called to. Verse 22, As the father has sent me, I am sending you, and with that, he breathed on them and said, receive the Holy Spirit. So do you remember the teacher at the beginning? She was offered she was offered a job full of responsibility, responsibility that she didn't expect or imagine would be hers, but the head teacher promised that she would have all the resources that she needed to fulfill her task. And so it is here.

In Genesis 2, god takes the dust, and he formed a living being, and he breathed life into them. And here it's the same thing. What we have here is this kind of dramatic foretaste of pentecost. This picture of what is about to come in an even more special way. Jesus breathes the spirit, the resurrection life onto his people.

And why does he do that so that they might be equipped for this wonderful ministry. And with all these other points that is crucial to remember, isn't it? The Holy Spirit the spirit of Jesus Christ is the 1 who lives in all the children of God. He is the 1 who enables us to speak who brings conviction as we speak, who opens our eyes. This work is not possible without the ministry of the Holy Spirit.

So let's ask for his help. We needed help. 1 old writer, says Lord command what you will and grant what you command. Command what you will Tell us where to go, tell us what to say, command us to do whatever you would have us to do, but lord, we can't do it, so grant what you command. Command it, and then give us the power to do it.

And that's what we see here. Jesus commands but he also equips them for this job. Praise the Lord that he hasn't left us alone. With this task. He has empowered us for this great ministry that he has given the disciples.

So Can we can we agree in the power of the Holy Spirit to recommit ourselves to this task? The time is short. The stakes are so high, but we have all that we need to be about this peace mission to the world. And for those who who are here and would not call themselves Christians, is it is it not time for you to open up your hands and your life and receive the peace which god offers you in Jesus Christ. Is it not time to do that?

There there is no other way to have your sin forgiven. There is no other road which will lead you to god. There is no other strategy which will bring you peace in this life or the next. Only in Jesus, only by grace through faith in his sacrifice for you. So will you even this morning turn from sin and let him say to you, peace be with you.

Let's pray together. Heavenly father. We thank you for the peace, which you have given us in your son, the lord Jesus Christ. We thank you that it is a peace that he paid for with his blood. That on the cross, he in many ways went to war for us.

He suffered and was tortured and was brutally put to death as well as bearing the full weight of our sin upon his own shoulders. We thank you that even now though risen and in glory with you, He has wounds in his hand and his side so that we will know forever and ever that that peace came at such a great cost. We thank you that we can have this full rest with you. And lord, we thank you as well that you have breathed out your spirit upon all of your children that you have given us everything we need to go into the world in the power of the Holy Spirit and to preach peace and forgiveness of sins to a lost world. We pray that you would help us to keep being about that mission, to keep loving that mission.

We pray for our brothers and sisters all up and down this country who are laboring in all kinds of different ways to try to bring the gospel to our to our country. We pray for brothers and is all over the world who perhaps are actually behind locked doors at this moment because they're so afraid that enemies might come and take them away. We pray that you would comfort them with your peace and enable them even in their settings to share the forgiveness of Jesus Christ with those around and we asked this all in his name, amen.