The recent spate of mass shootings, of people of all ages, from children to grandparents, from the young to the elderly, has rightfully jarred us—into sadness and tears, and into anger. And Jesus has two pieces of advice for us in this passage we’ll look at on Sunday from John 20—one seemingly more connected to the sadness and tears, and the other seemingly more connected to the anger. But they are interconnected, it seems to me.
This passage is set in the evening of the day when word has been spreading that the one that they SAW dead on Friday may in fact be alive. It seems too much to hope for, and yet that hope hovers on the edges of their imaginations. And then Jesus indeed appears to them, with two distinct—and yet related—directions for them. I would submit that they are directions for us too.
First, he says to them, “Peace be with you.” (John 20:19b, 21a, 26b) Before he shows them his hands and his side, so that they can see that yes, this is Jesus, he says “Peace be with you.” In the midst of a shocking experience—shocking in a very different way than his arrest, mock train, and execution were, but shocking nonetheless—he says “Peace be with you.” Yes, process what has happened, and is happening, in all of its unbelievableness, but do so with an assurance of Jesus’ love and care and sustaining presence to give perspective.
In light of the horrors of these shootings, may peace be with us. It is tragic and wrong and evil what has happened, and a continued devastation on the nation as a whole—and even moreso for those who have lost their lives, and those who loved those who lost their lives. As we react, it is important to remember that Jesus is with them, and with us, and therefore that “thoughts and prayers” for our nation and especially for those who are devastated by this are indeed appropriate, and an affirmation of Jesus’ presence and gift of peace that passes understanding in the midst of it all.
But that’s not the only thing Jesus says. He also says “As the Father has sent me, so I send you.” (John 20:21b) Yes, be reassured of my presence, my love, my care, my LIFE in your midst—but that’s not where it ends. He sends them, as God has sent him—to teach others about love as the foundation of the Kingdom of God, to model what that looks like, to care for the widow and the orphan and the prisoner, to clothe the naked and feed the hungry and welcome the outcast. And to make a difference for those who are hurting.
For us, in light of the tragedies of these mass shootings, “thoughts and prayers” are important, but they are not enough. The peace of Christ for those hurting matters, but we are sent from God by Jesus to care for those hurting. Some of that is modeling what love looks like. Some of that is affirming that loving your neighbor obviously means not shooting and killing your neighbor. And I would submit that some of that means to do what we can so that others don’t also end up hurting from more mass shootings. There are certainly debates about how that ought to be done. But let’s have the debates. Just as God has sent Jesus to transform human lives and human relationships, so Jesus sends his disciples to do that same thing. We go to do that sustained by the peace that Jesus gives us. But we don’t stay in a locked room, resting in that peace. We are sent by Jesus, just as God has sent him.
NEW TESTAMENT Acts 1:1-11
1 In the first book, Theophilus, I wrote about all that Jesus did and taught from the beginning 2 until the day when he was taken up to heaven, after giving instructions through the Holy Spirit to the apostles whom he had chosen. 3 After his suffering he presented himself alive to them by many convincing proofs, appearing to them over the course of forty days and speaking about the kingdom of God. 4 While staying with them, he ordered them not to leave Jerusalem, but to wait there for the promise of the Father. ‘This’, he said, ‘is what you have heard from me; 5 for John baptized with water, but you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit not many days from now.’
6 So when they had come together, they asked him, ‘Lord, is this the time when you will restore the kingdom to Israel?’ 7 He replied, ‘It is not for you to know the times or periods that the Father has set by his own authority. 8 But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.’ 9 When he had said this, as they were watching, he was lifted up, and a cloud took him out of their sight. 10 While he was going and they were gazing up towards heaven, suddenly two men in white robes stood by them. 11 They said, ‘Men of Galilee, why do you stand looking up towards heaven? This Jesus, who has been taken up from you into heaven, will come in the same way as you saw him go into heaven.’
GOSPEL John 20:19-31
19 When it was evening on that day, the first day of the week, and the doors of the house where the disciples had met were locked for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood among them and said, ‘Peace be with you.’ 20 After he said this, he showed them his hands and his side. Then the disciples rejoiced when they saw the Lord. 21 Jesus said to them again, ‘Peace be with you. As the Father has sent me, so I send you.’ 22 When he had said this, he breathed on them and said to them, ‘Receive the Holy Spirit. 23 If you forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven them; if you retain the sins of any, they are retained.’
24 But Thomas (who was called the Twin), one of the twelve, was not with them when Jesus came. 25 So the other disciples told him, ‘We have seen the Lord.’ But he said to them, ‘Unless I see the mark of the nails in his hands, and put my finger in the mark of the nails and my hand in his side, I will not believe.’
26 A week later his disciples were again in the house, and Thomas was with them. Although the doors were shut, Jesus came and stood among them and said, ‘Peace be with you.’ 27 Then he said to Thomas, ‘Put your finger here and see my hands. Reach out your hand and put it in my side. Do not doubt but believe.’ 28 Thomas answered him, ‘My Lord and my God!’ 29 Jesus said to him, ‘Have you believed because you have seen me? Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have come to believe.’
30 Now Jesus did many other signs in the presence of his disciples, which are not written in this book. 31 But these are written so that you may come to believe that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God, and that through believing you may have life in his name.