Sermon for Zion, April 18, 2010

Scripture: John 20:19-31

Sermon Title: When the disciples were together

John 20:19-31 (NIV)

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!" After he said this, he showed them his hands and side. The disciples were 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 his sins, they are forgiven; if you do not forgive them, they are not forgiven."

Now Thomas (called Didymus), one of the Twelve, was not with the disciples when Jesus came. So the other disciples told him, "We have seen the Lord!"

But he said to them, "Unless I see the nail marks in his hands and put my finger where the nails were, and put my hand into his side, I will not believe it."

A week later his disciples were in the house again, and Thomas was with them. Though the doors were locked, Jesus came and stood among them and said, "Peace be with you!" Then he said to Thomas, "Put your finger here; see my hands. Reach out your hand and put it into my side. Stop doubting and believe."

Thomas said to him, "My Lord and my God!"

Then Jesus told him, "Because you have seen me, you have believed; blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed."

Jesus did many other miraculous signs in the presence of his disciples, which are not recorded in this book.

“On the evening of that first day of the week,” it says, “when the disciples were together, with the doors locked for fear of the Temple Authorities.”  Have you ever wondered what the Disciples were doing, that first Easter Sunday evening?  I’ll tell you what they were doing; they were hiding.  They were terrified that the Temple Authorities, having arranged for the death of Jesus, would next be after them.  Plan number one: hide. The disciples found their way back from wherever they had run, and gathered behind locked doors, wondering what comes next.  They’d already heard the hysterical women babbling on about angels and visions; Peter and John had even gone so far as to run to the tomb to see for themselves, but all they saw was that the body of Jesus wasn’t there anymore.  No angels, no earthquakes, just an empty tomb. 

Mary from Magdala had floated in, face shining, saying “I have seen the Lord,” but she was greeted with raised eyebrows, shaking heads, and pitying glances. The women among them seemed a little more receptive to the story; they had huddled around Mary, hearing her story with urgent whispers, holding her hand, getting her water and a cool cloth.  Throughout the afternoon, Mary would again rise to her feet, leave the cluster of women, and again try to look the men in eye:  “I saw him.  He said my name.”  But none of the disciples would meet her gaze.  They just gave each other those looks, the special ones, which said, “Mary’s always been a bit of a nut, and now she’s completely lost it.”  And as evening came, as the breeze cooled, as the shadows lengthened, it was women in one corner, lit by Mary`s blazing eyes, and the men in other, faces dark with worry and grief.  They were mourning.  They were scared.  They were hiding.  But they were together.

And it is together that Jesus meets them. On the evening of that first day of the week, when the disciples were together, with the doors locked for fear of the Temple Authorities, Jesus came and stood among them and said, "Peace be with you!" On the evening of that first day of the week – not just any day of any week, but that first day of the week, that first Sunday, that evening of the Resurrection – when the disciples were together, behind locked doors.  Doors locked for fear.  Doors that kept fear in, but couldn’t keep Jesus out.  “Jesus came and stood among them and said, ‘Peace be with you!’” He came and stood among them.  Among them, together.  “Peace be with you,” he says.  “Shalom Aleichem,” he says.  “Salaam  Aleikum.”  Same thing he, or anyone else would say, today, when coming among friends.  “Salaam  Aleikum. Shalom Aleichem. Peace be with you,” he says, to his gathered, astonished, unbelieving friends.

A couple of things.  He doesn’t come and stand among them because they were preparing a welcome.  The doors were locked tight!  He doesn’t come because of their great faith.  They were terrified about what was coming next!  He doesn’t come because of their unshakeable confidence in his resurrection.  They’d heard about it, but didn’t believe it; the men thought the women were hysterical.  Jesus doesn’t come and stand among them for any of these reasons.  So what is it about them?  They are together. Grieving; Scared; Hiding.  But together.

All but Thomas.  Thomas had missed it.  Thomas had struck out on his own.  “Now Thomas (called Didymus), one of the Twelve, was not with the disciples when Jesus came.”  Talk about missing out!  Where was he?  Out for a coffee? Out for a walk?  Out to buy milk, bread, some hummus, a few figs?  Had he had all he could take of being locked up in that room, with all that sorrow, all that tension, all that fear, and needed a break, maybe some fresh air, maybe watch the sun go down?  Had the old doubter wandered down side streets and back alleys and made his way surreptitiously to the Golgotha, to the Tomb, to see if in fact the stone had been rolled away, the tomb empty, nothing inside but the faint odour of the spices which lay scattered on the ground?  If you ask me, I’ll bet that’s just where he was, just where he had been.  I have no evidence other than my own cynical doubter’s heart.  But I wouldn’t be surprised if Thomas had gone to the tomb, at risk of accusation, at risk of arrest, but needing to see for himself.

We don’t know.  What we do know is he came back, back to the house of hiding, looking over his shoulder for anyone following, knocking the secret knock on the door, only to be let in to a room quite different than the one he had left.  The furniture was the same, but the people were changed.  Now they all had that same wild look of joy and amazement that Mary had worn, when she strolled in that morning, saying she had “seen the Lord.”  And now, undeterred by Thomas’ scowl, they all crowded around, pumping his hand, slapping his back, grinning their grins, telling him, “He was here, he was here, Jesus was here, alive, alive alive!” And then more laughing, more crying, more hugging and carrying on.  And Mary with an “I told you so” look.

"Unless I see the nail marks in his hands and put my finger where the nails were, and put my hand into his side, I will not believe it." That put a stop to it.  “But Thomas,” came the cry, “he was right here, right where you’re standing!”  But he was having none of it.  Dropping the groceries on the ground, he turned on his heel and left them to their madness, to their stories, to their cries of “Thomas, come back.” And it was down to the street, heart filled with anger and sorrow and doubt, to wander the streets alone.

“A week later,” it says.  A week.  Imagine, if you will, what that week was like for Thomas.  Imagine how hard a heart can grow in such a week.  The others were still like children at Hanukkah, all smiles and grins and hugs and wonder.  He couldn’t stand it.  But finally after seven long days of them begging him to come back, to be with them, to break bread together, like the old days, he thought, “Why not, it’s easier than saying no a thousand more times,” and he joins them for the evening meal. “The doors,” it tells us, “were locked,” which shows you that underneath all the excitement there was still a fair bit of fear.  But at least they were together.  When it happened.  Again.

“Jesus came and stood among them and said, ‘Peace be with you!’” He came and stood among them.  Among them, together.  “Peace be with you,” he says.  “Shalom Aleichem,” he says.  “Salaam  Aleikum,” he says, to his gathered, astonished, overjoyed friends. And Thomas.

You know the story.  Then he said to Thomas, "Put your finger here; see my hands. Reach out your hand and put it into my side. Stop doubting and believe."

Thomas said to him, "My Lord and my God!"

Then Jesus told him, "Because you have seen me, you have believed; blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed."

We could go on and talk about how the disciples go to Galilee, and how they decide to go fishing.  The Bible tells us, “It happened this way: Simon Peter, Thomas (called Didymus), Nathanael from Cana in Galilee, the sons of Zebedee, and two other disciples were together.”  What were they?  “Together.” 

          Note the pattern of the three stories we have told:  The disciples are together.  Jesus appears.  Thomas is not with them.  He misses it.  Then, the disciples are together.  Jesus appears.  Thomas is with them, and he sees too.  Then it is off to Galilee.  What is the word which occurs again?  “Together.”  And together, they see Jesus.  Same happens in Matthew, same in Mark, same in Luke.  When the Apostle Paul tells the story of the Resurrection of Jesus, he sings the same song. 

For what I received I passed on to you as of first importance: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures, and that he appeared to Peter and then to the Twelve. After that, he appeared to more than five hundred of the brothers at the same time, most of whom are still living, though some have fallen asleep.

          Appeared to more than five hundred of the brothers (and, we presume, sisters, although women, of course, don’t count).   Five hundred of the brothers AT THE SAME TIME. They were together, too.

Go to the Book of Acts: same thing.  When Jesus ascends to heaven, he tells them to not leave Jerusalem, but to stay together, and await the Holy Spirit.  And what do they do?  We’re told, “They all joined together constantly in prayer, along with the women and Mary the mother of Jesus, and with his brothers.”  And then comes the big day: Pentecost.  And what do we hear?  Listen (Acts 2:1-4):

 When the day of Pentecost came, they were all together in one place. Suddenly a sound like the blowing of a violent wind came from heaven and filled the whole house where they were sitting. They saw what seemed to be tongues of fire that separated and came to rest on each of them. All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit enabled them.

When?  Pentecost.  Where?  In one place.  How? Together. What happens?  They experience the astonishing, amazing, energising, transforming power of the presence of God.  Together.

          Do you see a pattern developing here?  It seems, as Thomas found out, that if we want to be a witness to the Resurrection, if we want to see Jesus, if we want to experience the astonishing, amazing, energising, transforming power of the presence of God, it is together that we’ll do it.  The presence of the people around us is as important, is more important, than the stained glass or the music or the sermon or the rest.  It doesn’t say, “when they went to the place with lovely stained glass, Jesus appeared among them.”  It doesn’t say, “when they sang the hymn they all loved the best, Jesus appeared among them.”  It doesn’t even say, I’m disappointed to discover, “when the minister concluded his brilliant sermon, Jesus appeared among them.”  What it does say is “when they were together, Jesus appeared among them.”  And Jesus tells us this will happen!  Remember when he said, “For where two or three come together in my name, there am I with them." (Matthew 18:20)?  Do you think maybe he meant it?  I do.  I think Jesus means a lot of what he says.  And over and over again, he says, “Love each other.  Forgive each other.  Support each other.  Share with each other.  Build one another up. And I’ll be right there with you.” 

          This means the person in the pew beside you, in front of you, behind you, is the most important thing here.  Because it is with them and through them, it is together, that the presence of God will be made known to you.  That makes each and every one of you a vital part of what is going on here.  That makes our welcome of one another such an important part of what we do.

          Try this out:  Turn to the person next to you, and frown.  Turn to someone sitting close, and tell them you would rather they weren’t here.  Turn to someone, and tell them their singing annoys you.  Turn to a mom or dad with a baby, and tell them you would be happier if they took that baby somewhere else.  Or try this – just ignore everyone around you, as though you couldn’t care less whether they were here or not.  Now get ready to experience the presence of God.  And as you do, get ready for a long wait.  A long wait. 

          Try this out now instead: Turn to the person next to you, and smile.  Turn to someone sitting close, and tell them you’re delighted to see them here.  Turn to someone, and tell them their singing warms your heart.  Turn to someone with a baby, and tell them how happier you are that there are young families here for worship.  Or try this – just be aware of everyone around you, and of how you might be a blessing to them this morning, and them to you.  Now get ready to experience the presence of God.  And as you do, hang on tight.  Because God will be here.  He said he would.  Nasty, cynical, doubting Thomas finally found that out too.  It took some time – the longest week of his life - but finally, together with the others, Thomas found himself in the presence of the Risen Lord.  And he was never the same again.

          One more thing.  Every one of you knows someone who is sitting alone at home right now.  A loved one, a relative, a neighbour, a friend.  They’re not here.  They haven’t been invited.  They don’t know what love and joy and wonder they’re missing.  We’ve decided to leave them alone.  To leave them.  Alone.  Think for a moment about what that means.  Alone.  Close your eyes for a moment and ask God to make a name, a face, a lonely person appear in your mind right now.  That’s the person who needs to be here.  That’s the person you need to invite, you need to bring.  That’s the person who needs to be with us.  Together.  If they are to experience the astonishing, amazing, energising, transforming power of the presence of God, it is together with them that we’ll do it.

          Don’t you wish you had been in that room of long ago?  The room where “Jesus came and stood among them and said, ‘Peace be with you!’ to his gathered, astonished, overjoyed friends? Don’t you wish you had been in that room? Well, you are.  You are.  But this time, let’s make sure to not lock the doors.  The time for locked doors is long over.  Let’s open them wide, and bring others to share the joy.

“For where two or three come together in my name, there am I with them." (Matthew 18:20).  Amen.