Catalyst Question
If you were living on a desert island for a year, with enough food and water to last indefinitely, what is one thing you would want to bring to make it the best life possible?
Peace with a Purpose
In John 20:19-31, a resurrected Jesus appears to his disciples twice. Often, when we read this passage, we focus on Thomas. He wasn’t present the first time Jesus showed up, and so was skeptical until Jesus appeared a second time. Some call him Doubting Thomas. Others emphasize Thomas’s devotion because he would only settle for the real Jesus and not any potential imposters.
Today, let’s instead focus on what Jesus says to the disciples during his appearances. Jesus sends the the disciples, just as God the Father sent him. Jesus equips the disciples to forgive sins. Jesus empowers the disciples, never alone, but with the Holy Spirit. As essential as each of these commissions are, they’re built upon something else.
Three times Jesus declares peace. In part this is because the disciples knew him to be dead just a few days before. Now he’s here, but with wounds still showing the evidence of his murder. How threatening would that feel!? Peace is needed. But more than this moment, peace is needed for the movement ahead. After a death wrought by violence, Jesus declares that the way of life is the way of peace.
Even so, violence still remains too present in our world. Another mass shooting, this time at Florida State University, reminded us of the violence so prevalent in the United States. This occurred after years of war in Gaza and Ukraine. In the face of such death, and at the absence of peace, we might despair.
Yet, that’s why Jesus resurrection reminder is so essential still for today. Peace is no less essential for life in our world than it is for the recently resurrected Lord. For life to continue, for life to thrive, peace is required. Easter reminds us that we live in the hope of resurrection, and therefore the hope of peace, even amidst the signs of death.
Small signs like that still show up. For instance, after three years of war in Ukraine, Russia recently indicated openness to substantive peace talks for the first time. This is no guarantee, but it is progress, especially since just a few weeks ago there seemed to be no end in sight. Now, we may see only a glimmer of possibility, but it is there.
The peace that Jesus sends us with is much more than this. It is a peace that passes all understanding. It is a peace that relies not only on the natural instincts of survival, but the supernatural experience of resurrection. It is a peace that promotes not only coexistence, but life abundant! That is the peace Jesus gives to us in the resurrection, and it is peace with a purpose: to bring abundant life to the very ends of the earth.
Ask Yourself
What does peace look like? What does peace sound like? What does peace feel like? Take time to reflect on these different senses of peace.
Ask a Friend
How can we work together to bring peace to places where we notice conflict? Strategize two different ways you can share peace in your daily lives.
