A WORD FOR TODAY, April 20, 2022
Peggy Hoppes
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Blessings. Peg
A WORD FOR TODAY, April 20, 2022
Lectionary Scriptures for April 24, 2022, Second Sunday of Easter: Acts 5:12-20 (21-32); Psalm 148; Revelation 1:4-18; John 20:19-31
“Jesus said to him, ‘Because you have seen me, you have believed. Blessed are those who have not seen, and have believed.’” John 20:29, WEB
Fifteen years ago (Easter was on April 8th that year) I wrote, “Most of the country saw some unusual, even extraordinary, weather for this Easter weekend. Snow covered the ground as far south as Waco Texas, with bitter temperatures and damp air at our house. Farther north the situation was even more extreme, with feet rather than inches of snow covering the ground. It is hard to imagine an Easter without spring flowers and Easter egg hunts, yet in many places the flowers have yet to bloom and the Easter egg hunts were cancelled. Even brand new Easter dresses were left hanging in closets because it was simply too cold to wear them.”
I could have written that this week for many of my readers who dealt with snow again this year. The cold didn’t make it quite so far south this year, but we are also having an unusual spring. The wildflowers are few and far between, much later than normal. It is almost too hard to see the joy of Easter through the mist of winter, and that is what so many had to do this year. We’ve had to look beyond the unspring like weather to rejoice in the great thing He has done. Unfortunately, very few people have eyes that see the joy when things look bleak. They can’t see the sun shining behind the clouds.
There are times when God grants us a vision of what heaven will look like. Sometimes it appears in a dream, but often He simply uses the beauty of His created world to give us a foretaste of the world to come. I’ve seen heaven in the giggle of a baby; from the top of a mountain overlooking a hidden valley; in a meadow filled with flowers; in a rainbow after a storm. I can’t see these things and ignore the majesty of my Creator. We can see God’s hand even in unexpected weather.
When we were living in England I saw the most incredible sight in the sky as I was standing at the sink washing the dishes. In an otherwise cloudless sky, there was a large, dark mushroom shaped cloud. The waning sun was behind this cloud and the rays showed from behind, creating a halo around the cloud. It was as if God was behind a curtain, and His light was trying to break through to the world. As I continued with my work, the bottom ‘stem’ of the cloud began to split, like the curtains on a great stage. The sun’s rays broke through, and the stage behind was breathtakingly beautiful. This foretaste made me long for the day when I will stand in God’s presence and worship Him at His throne.
I saw a much different vision of heaven that weekend fifteen years ago. As clouds covered the earth and rain fell from the sky, I saw one of the first hummingbirds of the season. He took a moment at our feeders, but the wind was bitter and the rain was cold, so he took refuge under the bush that is near my window. He sat there for a long time, and though he seemed to be shivering, he was also safe and dry. I could almost see God’s hands surrounding him, protecting him from the cold.
God reveals Himself in His creation so that we will have a vision in our hearts and our minds of the heavenly realms. He gives us a glimmer, to draw us ever closer to Him and to keep us on His path. We just have to take the time to see Him, to witness the beauty of His creation and His constant presence in His world. That glimmer is not necessarily going to be something as grand as the sun bursting forth from beneath a cloud. It might just be in the ordinary ways that God reveals Himself to those He loves. It might be a spectacular view of the sky, or it just might be someone in need, someone who needs to know God’s loving presence in their life.
This coming Sunday, has been historically known as “Low Sunday.” Though the meaning of this is uncertain, to our modern ears it makes perfect sense. The Sunday following Easter is often very poorly attended. Perhaps that day seems unimportant compared to the significance of Holy Week and Easter. Perhaps it is a letdown after the celebrations of the week before. Perhaps everyone is exhausted, so they take a break for a week. It is a day when many pastors choose to take vacation, to rest and recover from the draining experience of Holy Week; many parishioners take the same Sundays “off” when the pastor is away.
It doesn’t help that we hear the same story every year on the Second Sunday of Easter. We hear over and over again the story of Doubting Thomas. It is an uncomfortable story to hear because we think so negatively about doubt, and yet we all experience some level of doubt when it comes to the stories about Jesus Christ. Nearly every year there is some story in the news that can cause us doubt: tombs are located, historical writings surface, books are popular that cast a shadow on the things we have learned in Sunday School. We wonder how Jesus could have risen from the dead if that bone box they found really held Jesus’ bones. The reports give us reason to question everything we believe to be true.
However, doubt is not the opposite of faith. Indifference or apathy is the opposite of faith. Doubt makes us question, makes us seek, makes us study to know and understand. Doubt makes us grow, and it often makes our faith deeper and more real than it was before we had those questions. Thomas doubted. He refused to believe the disciples when they said, “We have seen the Lord.” He needed to see Jesus for himself. Don’t we all? Perhaps we can hear the stories of Jesus and believe them to be true, but we also doubt. We need a very real experience of God’s revelation to us for us to truly believe. That revelation comes at baptism, when the Holy Spirit comes upon us and grants us the faith by which we will live. We can’t do it on our own. Without God’s help, we would be indifferent because we would not have the faith to believe. Doubt can lead us to faith because it makes us seek to know and understand that which God has given to us.
Another name for this Sunday is Quasimodo Sunday. I know you are asking, “Why would we name the first Sunday after Easter after a character from the Victor Hugo story?” The character was actually named Quasimodo because he was left on the church steps on the Sunday after Easter. The words “quasi modo” in Latin mean “in the manner of newborn babes.” In the story “The Hunchback of Notre Dame,” Quasimodo fought to protect the beautiful Esmeralda. His faith was innocent, his hope was child-like. His name was appropriate; he lived in the manner of newborn babes.
Jesus told Thomas and the other disciples that those who believe without seeing are blessed. They are those who have a child-like, innocent faith. That faith is true; it is real because it is not based on human effort but on the work of God by the power of the Holy Spirit. Yet, we all grow up. We all lose our innocence. We face difficulties. We experience unexpected circumstances. We face persecution. We are attacked by the devil and the world as they try to break our faith. We might doubt but that is a part of our maturity because we gain knowledge and wisdom as we ask questions. It good to have child-like faith, but it is also necessary for us to seek for ourselves the meaning of our faith, especially when it is questioned by the world. Our doubt, and overcoming our doubt, becomes a witness just like Thomas’s faith has become a witness to us. He doubted, but he continued to seek the Lord and in the end he made the greatest confession of all, “My Lord and my God.”
It wasn’t easy to be a Christian in the beginning. Faith in Jesus went against everything in both their secular and religious worlds. The Romans doubted the truth of the resurrection and the Jews rejected the claims that Jesus was the Messiah. The leaders in Jerusalem looked for ways to put a halt to the cult growing around Jesus. No matter what the enemies of the Gospel did, it seemed as though more and more people heard the words of the evangelists and were coming to faith. It didn’t help that the miraculous signs and wonders of Jesus continued with the apostles.
The Christians were a curiosity, but questions and doubts followed them. Today’s lesson from Acts follows the incredible story of Ananias and Sapphira (Acts 5:1-11) who were struck dead by their unfaithfulness to God. On the one hand, the disciples of Jesus were healing the sick and casting out demons. It was said that even the shadow of Peter could make a man well. On the other hand, there was something frightening about the power they seemed to have. Can you imagine if the people in your neighborhood found out that someone keeled over and died as Ananias and Saphira? The story was surely reported to people outside the church; a great fear came upon them all. “What if my faith isn’t good enough?” is a question any of us might ask. Only those with true faith dared become part of the group because pretenders and those with half-hearted belief risked the same fate as Ananias and Saphira. Despite the fear, the Gospel was doing its work in the hearts of many because more and more began to believe in the Lord.
Faith in Jesus was risky. The Romans who were carefully watching this growing cult, and the Jewish leaders were concerned. Solomon’s Colonnade was a public marketplace. It was also a gathering place where people went to talk to the teachers of the day, to learn about God’s Law and to ask questions. Jesus often taught there, so the disciples continued to use this space to preach and teach about Him. He changed their lives and they wanted to share His lifechanging message with others.
Perhaps the Jewish leaders were jealous. The disciples were doing things they could not do, impacting lives in physical as well as spiritual ways. The priests were upset that the disciples were intruding on their ministry. The priests had the disciples arrested and imprisoned, but during the night an angel of the Lord set them free. They were back in the Temple before the leaders even knew they were gone. The authorities took the disciples again, but they did so quietly because they feared the crowds.
I read a lot of historical fiction, particularly from the Middle Ages in Europe. It was a violent and bloody time. A true victory was only won when the enemy was utterly destroyed. Many of the wars are described as bloody massacres, with fields filled with hacked flesh and mud made with the blood of the injured and dead. We see these battles in our imaginations as involving huge armies, but there were likely only a few thousand on the battlefields, including the women who followed their men in the baggage train. But hand to hand combat is violent and destructive. Swords against swords leave the fields bloody and covered with bodies.
They victory was often not won by strength or the upper hand, but with power over the mind. The armies fought psychological warfare to break the courage of their enemies. Courage is vital when facing someone determined to kill you, and it is the warrior’s job to make the enemy afraid. The armies shouted insults and obscenities, banged on their shields with their swords to make thunderous noise. They put on displays of strength and power so that the enemy knew they were up against people determined to win.
One of the most disgusting practices of that day was to put the severed heads of dead enemies on poles above the gates to their fortresses. This was a display of dishonor because it meant the body was not properly buried, and an improper burial made it impossible for a warrior to go into the afterlife of some religions. There was also humiliation in the way the head was picked clean by the birds, leaving only the skull and some hair flowing in the wind. The equivalent of this dishonor in ancient days was to “hang someone on a tree.” When someone was put to death for a crime, they were hung on a tree and left for the birds. They were not only punished for their crime, but they were dishonored as well.
Peter, in his speech to defend himself before the Sanhedrin, acknowledged that they not only killed Jesus, but they dishonored Him by hanging Him on a tree. He told them that Jesus was not to a deranged man who wanted to be king; He was the One whom God Himself had sent to be Savior. They dishonored the One who came to redeem Israel. The disciples were witnesses to these things and they were compelled by the faith they have by God’s grace to preach the Word that God had given to them. Jesus was dishonored to bring fear into the hearts of His followers, but the disciples were not afraid, so they continued to preach and teach despite the danger. They knew their strength was not in human power and authority, but in God’s grace and they could do nothing but obey.
Peter stood before his accusers and told them that he could not be silent. “We must obey God.”
This type of defense sounds almost arrogant, and we struggle with it because people have used it to do things that were clearly not God’s Will. Women have claimed that God told them to kill their children. Leaders have claimed that they were following God’s will by starting wars. Religious fanatics have claimed that they were doing what is right because God spoke to them personally. There are many examples of people who abused God’s name for their own benefit. Yet, there was something about the disciples; there was proof in the signs and wonders that followed them. God was truly working through the early church, doing amazing things, and people believed in great numbers.
The leaders of both the Romans and the Jews may have thought they could stop the Christian cult from growing, but it was not by human power any of it was happening. Peter and the others didn’t escape the prison, they were set free. It wasn’t human power that healed or cast out demons: it was the power of God given to them through the Holy Spirit. The world can try to stop God from doing what He will, but they won’t succeed. God has the power to overcome even death and sin, how much more will He do with life?
I like the story of Thomas because he is shown not only as a doubter, but also a believer. Jesus offered His hands and side for Thomas to touch when He appeared on the eighth day, but Thomas did not need to physically feel the wounds. When the disciples saw the wounds, they rejoiced, but Thomas responded with a confession of faith that went beyond the joy of the others. He worshipped Jesus and confessed that Jesus is truly who He said He was.
We, too, are called to confess our faith that He is our Lord and our God. He is the answer to our prayers. He is the fulfillment of God’s promises. Jesus is the Messiah, the Alpha and Omega, the One who is and who was and who is to come. He is the Almighty Incarnate.
At the beginning of the book of Revelation, John’s introduction tells us why the book was written: to reveal that Jesus Christ is God and that He invites us to live in His grace and His peace. John tells us that Jesus is many things: the faithful witness, the firstborn of the dead, ruler of the kings of the earth. He also tells us what Jesus does: loves us, frees us, and makes us a kingdom. Times might be tough today, but John foretells the time when Jesus will be the focus of the entire world, not just our hearts. The imagery in the Revelation is frightening, but Jesus says, “Do not be afraid. I AM who I AM and I WILL BE who I WILL BE.” He is God’s promises come to life in flesh and His life gives us ours.
We pick on Thomas for his attitude in today’s Gospel lesson. He said, “Unless I see in his hands the print of the nails, and put my hand into his side, I will not believe.” Why wouldn’t he believe based on the word of his friends? Shouldn’t he have accepted what they had to say, based on their reports? After all, the disciples were not the first to proclaim this good news; even Jesus told them it would happen before He was crucified. The women reported the missing body; Mary said that she had seen the Lord. How many witnesses would it take for Thomas to believe?
We shouldn’t be so hard on poor Thomas! None of the others believed until they saw Jesus for themselves. They didn’t believe the women; they thought they were mumbling nonsense. Even when Jesus appeared, they were glad only after they saw the physical evidence of Jesus’ crucifixion, knowing that indeed the one who appeared before them was their Lord and not a ghost.
Jesus is speaking to all of us when He addressed Thomas’s faith after having seen the evidence because we all think we need some proof to believe. We are reminded, though, that we believe not because we have seen and not because we by our own power can believe. We believe because we have been given the power of the Holy Spirit and by that power we can believe. Thomas was not present when Jesus breathed on the disciples; he did not yet have the Spirit that gives the faith that comes from God, the faith on which our assurance is built.
None of the disciples believed without His help. For Thomas and the other disciples, the help came in the appearance of Jesus before them and from the breath of the Spirit He breathed upon them. He appeared from outside the locked door, almost like a ghost. Yet, He was not a ghost, He was living and real. He let them touch Him, to see His wounds. They reported His presence with joy to Thomas, who did not believe them. He’s not alone. Many people have seen our joy, especially at Easter, and yet they still do not believe in the resurrection of our living Lord Jesus. They will not have the opportunity to see Him in the flesh like Peter and the others or Thomas. It is no wonder that they do not believe.
Yet, many people do believe. We believe not because we have any sort of proof, but because we have been breathed upon by God and anointed with the Holy Spirit. We believe not based on the physical presence of Jesus, but on the word of the witnesses. We believe by the mercy of God, for it is only by His grace can we have faith. We have the Word, given to us in the scriptures, to speak the testimony of the witnesses into our lives. As John wrote, “Therefore Jesus did many other signs in the presence of his disciples, which are not written in this book; 31 but these are written, that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that believing you may have life in his name.” We are the blessed ones because we believe by God’s power, not because we have any sort of proof.
It isn’t any easier to be a Christian today than it was for those first Christians. I’ve often written about the persecution of Christians around the world, and while we don’t face beheadings in the United States, the danger is becoming more real for all of us. Could you imagine going before the most powerful authorities in our day and saying, “We must obey God rather than any human authority”? If we were to do that today, we’d be counted as insane, or at least ridiculous.
How often have we heard the distain, even from other Christians, when people talk as if they are doing God’s Will? “She talks to God? And God talks back?” We might just find ourselves in the position when we have to say that we cannot obey human authority over that of God. Will we have the courage to be obedient, even when it seems dangerous? Jesus promised them peace in the Gospel story, but they were in the midst of the most difficult turmoil they had ever known. So, when Jesus appeared to them, He reminded them of His promise. Peace would not be found in giving up, in running, or even in hiding. Peace is found in Jesus. That’s where we will find peace, too.
It is a tough job to be a witness. We will face those who hate us because of our faith in Jesus Christ. There are many like Thomas who need more than words to make a confession of faith. There are those like the Jewish and Roman leaders who will try to halt the work of God. There are those who think that any name will do, any path is right. There are many, too many, who believe that they do not need a Savior at all. But we are called to take forgiveness to them anyway, because God has assured us that He will bless the work we do in His name. He has given us His Spirit to teach and guide us on our way.
How will He reveal Himself to you today? Perhaps it will be the kind words of a friend or the awesome power of the weather. Perhaps it will be in a magnificent sunset or someone who needs to get out of the cold. Go about with your work today but be ever mindful of His presence because you just might catch a glimpse of heaven.
And so, let us go forth singing with the psalmist the praise and thanksgiving in our hearts. Let us not be afraid to share the Gospel message with the world. Let us all be witnesses to the amazing things God has done through Christ Jesus our Lord. The world needs His grace and love and peace. The world needs us to be obedient to God so that they, too, will experience the risen Christ and believe.
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