St. John 20:19-31
Dearly beloved,
Everything in life is a part of a bigger plan. Things
happen in your life today that will ultimately affect the big picture of
your life somewhere down the road. You are who and where you are today
because of countless things that have happened in the past. This is very
important to highlight because when things happen today or tomorrow, we need
to at least understand that God is using that variable to take us somewhere
next week, next year, or maybe twenty years.
The issue that people seem to struggle with the most is when
unpleasant things happen. Someone dies, you are diagnosed with an illness,
or the family fragments into pieces. “Why is this happening,” you ask. “Why
is God doing this?” I am sure the disciples asked these questions to
themselves. There they sit, on the day of Christ’s resurrection, locked
away in a room filled with fear. The disciples thought the Jewish temple
authorities would be arresting them next.
Jesus told them that He would die, be buried, and rise from
the dead. Likewise, Jesus, the apostles and the prophets teach us that we
will suffer setbacks in life, but we are told not to lose heart or courage.
So, why do we lose courage in this life? Jesus knows that He has to go to
the disciples in order to give them strength. There is something else that
He is going to give them, as well. In fact, what Jesus is about to give
them is to bear fruit for ages to come.
It is for your benefit. First, Jesus comes through the
locked door while in the resurrected flesh. He is no phantom. Jesus says
to them, “Peace be with you.” This is not a conditional statement or even
one to receive without thought. Jesus is literally giving them peace when
He says, “Peace be with you.” This gladdens the hearts of the
disciples. Jesus
says it, again. “Peace be with you. As the Father has sent Me, even so I
send you.”
Well, what was the purpose of Jesus being sent by the
Father? This will give some indication for the reason that Jesus sends the
apostles. Jesus came to bring forgiveness, hope, love, and forgiveness. The
apostles were to be sent out to bring the same things. The difference being
that Jesus effected all of this through His life, suffering, death and
resurrection. The apostles would need something in order to bring these
gifts because they were not Jesus.
First, when Jesus tells them that He is sending them out,
this is not a general statement meant for everyone. Jesus is establishing
the apostolic ministry. Then, Jesus does something that is very important
and a little unusual to the casual observer: Jesus breathes on them and
says, “Receive the Holy Spirit. If you forgive the sins of any, they are
forgiven; if you retain the sins of any, they are retained.” Jesus has just
established the apostolic office of the ministry.
With Christ’s statement comes authority and substance. Again,
what Jesus says is no empty statement. His words convey something very
powerful. In fact, this is another one of those beautiful examples where
the Old Testament conveys an image or a shadow and the New Testament
provides the real thing and the counterpart to what took place in the Old
Testament. In the creation account of Genesis 2, Moses recorded that God
formed man out of the dust of the earth. We are then told that God breathed
into Adam’s nostrils the “breath of life.”
It was at that point that life came into Adam. He was alive
and in the image of God. Jesus breathing on the disciples and establishing
the apostolic ministry is basically bringing man back to the state of Adam
in His relationship with God. It is significant that along with breathing
on them, Jesus tells them that whoever they forgive it is forgiven. In
other words, the apostolic ministry passes on this Christian life and
wonderful relationship with God.
How will they do it? Through preaching the gospel; through
the baptism of people, through giving the Lord’s Supper, and through
forgiving sins. What took place in that locked room on the first day of the
week is the continuation of the Easter narrative. This is very important
for the church. This is precisely what I am talking about when I remind you
that things happen and they have a whole host of consequences down the road.
In fact, try getting two thousand years down the road.
You gather in a room. In a group this size, you are not all
thinking the same thing. Some are worried about an illness. Others are
worried about family. Still some of you aren’t thinking about anything at
all. But all of you have something in common. You have sins. You have
broken God’s commandments and you have two things at play. First, sin is a
wedge between you and God. Left untreated, it will become spiritually
disastrous for you.
Second, you need to be strengthened spiritually. Your soul
needs nourishment so that your life will glorify God. Without spiritual
food, you are doomed. This is why the apostolic ministry continues in your
midst. I wear these vestments and the stole and the chasuble to remind the
people in this room of a few things. Jesus instituted the Office of the
Keys in that locked room of disciples. My vestments are a visual statement
that I stand in your midst as one who can forgive sins with the authority of
Jesus.
I can bind unrepentant sinners in their sins, as well. Jesus
tells the disciples elsewhere, “whatever you bind on earth will be bound in
heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven”(St.
Matthew 18:18). This is a serious responsibility for the pastor, but it is
meant to be a great comfort to God’s people. What this means for you is
that when you gather in this room and I stand before you and forgive you of
your sins, it is done.
I don’t give you an empty word which I speak. Because Jesus
has placed me here as your pastor, my forgiveness is God’s forgiveness. If
I refuse an unrepentant sinner from coming to the Lord’s table, then that is
God’s judgment upon the sinner. So, in the liturgy when I turn to you and
say “The Lord be with you,” I am not just saying this to you. I am giving
you a blessing from the Lord. Likewise, after I consecrate the communion
elements, I turn to you and say, “The peace of the Lord be with you always.”
Again, I am not just saying something just because. It is a bestowal of a
peace blessing upon you. This is why it is appropriate to cross yourself at
that point as a reminder that you are loved by Jesus.
All of these blessings are really Christ’s blessing upon
you, not mine. I am only the called and ordained messenger. Jesus is the
bringer of all good gifts. This is one of the reasons the Office of the
Holy Ministry is critical for the church. Where there is church, there will
be an ordained pastor. This strongly emphasizes the need for you to come to
the Divine Service to participate in the liturgy and receive God’s gifts in
Word and Sacrament. There are blessings and forgiveness all throughout our
liturgy, not just at the beginning.
The Office of the Keys are at work throughout the church’s
life as it breathes in and out through the liturgy. You are to be given
these gifts for the rest of your life on this earth. So, much can happen
and much fruit is to be borne from the death and resurrection of Christ. Much
fruit is to be borne from the ministry of the apostles.
Much fruit is to come forth here at Trinity Church in Lowell, Indiana. So,
we continue to gather around the altar of Christ. No matter what your
concerns are on any given day, you can at least know this: gathering around
this altar to hear preaching and receive the sacrament, Christ is sure to
bless you abundantly through blessings and forgiveness bestowed through
Christ’s authority.In this all the church rejoices. You are forgiven, you
are loved by God. Peace be with you. Amen.
--
Rev. Chad Kendall
www.frchadius.blogspot.com
Trinity Lutheran Church
Lowell, Indiana
www.trinitylowell.org
