Becoming What We Believe (post-Easter)

John 20: 19-29

Roger Lynn

April 28, 2019

(click here for the audio for this sermon)
(there were technical difficulties with the video this week)

Hiding behind closed doors out of fear! From the opening words of this story in John’s Gospel, the disciples have our sympathy and understanding. We know about being afraid. The world in which we live can be a scary place. Whether it’s our personal safety, or concern for the direction of our country, or worries about our global community, it can all be overwhelming. There are occasions when hiding behind closed doors seems like a pretty good idea.

The great news which is contained in this story is that God is persistent and won’t let us just stay stuck in our fear. God’s presence meets us where we are: behind closed doors, in the midst of our fear. And the first order of business is always to call us out of our fear and back into our lives in the world. “Peace be with you!” It’s the same basic message which angels always seem to say whenever they show up in scripture. “Be not afraid.” We are invited to allow the loving, compassionate, protective presence of God to dispel the darkness of our fear! Be at peace.

And, if that was the only message contained in this Easter story from John, it would be enough. Relief from our fears is a big deal. But, of course, there is more. Beyond the comfort, there is also challenge. We are called to do more than merely set aside our fear. We are called to take up the mantle of our faith. We are literally challenged to become what we believe – to take on the qualities of God and share those qualities with the world. “As the Father has sent me, so I send you.” (John 20: 21) I hope you will be able to hear beyond the first-century, male-oriented God language which Jesus uses, to discover the truly remarkable message underneath. We are called to be God’s personal representatives for all the world to see, and experience. The God who is as intimately connected to us as a loving parent is inviting us to share that reality with everyone we come into contact with – not merely by what we say, but by who we are. This is big! This is really big! What this means is that ours is not a passive faith, where we just sit back and receive something from God. Ours is an active, and, indeed, interactive faith, in which we become co-participants with God in the ongoing process of loving the world into wholeness.

And, we are not left to our own devices. We have nothing less than the indwelling presence of God’s Spirit to empower us for this awesome responsibility. “Jesus breathed on them and said ‘receive the Holy Spirit.’ ” (John 20:22) Of course they already had the Holy Spirit. God is always and everywhere present, both in our lives and in our world. There is no where we can go and be without God. There is nothing we can do to cut ourselves off from God. But we do forget to notice. No doubt there were occasions during the time the disciples had spent with Jesus when they actually remembered to notice that God’s Spirit was present with them. But, like the rest of us, they also needed frequent reminders. So Jesus gives them a little physical reminder. He breathes on them and invites them to receive the Holy Spirit. Of course to fully appreciate this little play on words requires that we be familiar with either Hebrew or Greek. In both languages, the word for breath and wind is the same word for spirit. Remember, Jesus tells them, God’s Spirit is as close to you as your breathing. And it is this intimate, ever-present Spirit of God that is sending you into the world to share God’s love.

Which brings us squarely to the heart of this story. I confess that I used to have a really hard time with this story, until I had a shift of understanding regarding it’s intent. “If you forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven them; if you retain the sins of any, they are retained.” (John 20:23) For a long time I was really uncomfortable with this verse, because I saw it as a license for judging. I am now convinced that it is exactly the opposite. It is a warning. We are being sent into the world as representatives of the God of love. If people don’t hear about forgiveness from us, who will they hear it from? If people’s understanding of God comes from watching us, and they see us judging and holding on to people’s shortcomings, how will they know the truth? In the practical, here-and-now reality of this world in which we live, when we “retain the sins of any, they are retained.” The transforming reality of God’s love is not experienced. We perpetuate death instead of proclaiming life in the world. It’s a warning! Take seriously what it means to be sent into the world on God’s behalf. It is an awesome responsibility and how we live it out matters. 

When we believe, not because we’ve got some concrete, physical proof, but because our hearts declare the truth of our experience, then we can become instruments of truly amazing transformation. When we begin to really trust God to work through us, then the world around us can change because we will be changed. Peace be with you! Be not afraid! Become what you believe. Go into the world and let people see God in your life!