It looks like someone forgot to tell the disciples it was Easter.
The tomb is empty, the women have encountered Christ, and the Angels have proclaimed Christ’s rising. It is a time of great joy and yet... the disciples aren’t celebrating at all. In fact, quite the opposite...they are hunkered down and locked in...scared and withdrawn.
They are probably traumatized by Christ’s crucifixion, and disappearance; worried that whatever happened to their rabbi may happen to them.
The week past has been so confusing they don’t know what to believe... the body of Jesus is gone...the soldiers guarding the tomb are gone...the women are acting hysterical and imagining things...and the question on everyone’ s mind...so what are we going to do now?
The fear and anxiety in that locked up room must have been pea soup thick!
And then, in their midst, is Jesus, ( now, if I were in that room I somehow think this would NOT lessen my anxiety). Poor disciples...their minds must have been reeling! and Jesus was keenly aware of how disconcerting his appearance would be... so much so that in Luke’s gospel Jesus even eats some fish to prove he isn’t a ghost.
I can just imagine Jesus in that room of frightened faces...smiling and gently shaking his head...his poor disciples still don’t get it ...this is such a triumphant occasion and there they are shaking in their boots.
Peace be with you, Jesus says. Jesus shows his wounds and convinces them he is risen... Peace be with you.
And again when he greets Thomas....Peace be with you.
In the fear....in the anxiety....in the scepticism and in faith...Peace be with you.
Peace in body, that you may be hail and well
Peace between people, that all might live in right relationship
Peace in the city, that justice and righteousness may prevail
Peace in mind, harmonious and tranquil
The Peace of God, who is the creator and Prince of Peace
“Peace be with you, as the Father has sent me, so I send you” When he had said this, he breathed on them and said to them, ‘Receive the Holy Spirit’.
And they received that Spirit and that peace; we soon see those same quaking disciples, empowered by the Spirit and full of God’s peace face those who they and in the process change the world. The book of Acts tells that story.
But what about our story? We too, have received the Holy Spirit, and we too know the joy of Easter. We believe in the resurrection of Christ, and we are blessed because we have believed and yet not seen...and yet we do not always have peace.
Most of the week our doors are locked for fear of vandals and thieves. Our global church is at odds with one another over women bishops and gay marriage. Our local churches are full of anxiety over parish closures and unknown futures. We are the body of the Prince of Peace and yet we have no peace ourselves.
And within ourselves there are an array of anxieties vying for top place, filling our daily lives with anxiety; and yet in the midst of it all Christ speaks to us…Peace be with you. Not simply a lack of open hostility, but a true abiding sense, as Julian of Norwich said... that all shall be well.
In the midst of the disciples worst fears, Jesus came and revealed himself to them. Jesus commissioned them to go as God had sent him, and he breathed on them; the breath that was blown into the nostrils of Adam in the story of creation...enabling the chaos of darkness to be enlightened. The breath that made Ezekial’s dry bones live. The breath of God which whispers in the silence.
Jesus brought the breath of peace to a time of intense fear, and empowered the disciples with the Holy Spirit. That same Spirit that has been bestowed on us and on the church in our time. We too have been given peace through the Spirit
Christ sends us as God sent him...to a world where peace is lacking.
To a mission where we aren’t asked to take the easy road...we are sent, like the disciples were, like sheep to wolves and on our journey we are called to be at peace and to bring that peace with us as we travel the Way.
Our mission is to be Christ’s hands and feet in the world. To live and be a church that reflects Christ to the world. We have been doing that in our parish…with our food bank, agape table, 1 just city, prayer shawls and much more. We have been a presence in this community of Woodhaven, a place of prayer and liturgy, a refuge for those in trouble and a place of welcome for those in need of solace. We have been growing, opening our eyes and our hearts to welcome Christ in all those who walk into Christ’s church here.
We have also been the disciples, feeling locked in. Our finances are not infinite and we run a substantial deficit each year. We feel the fear of a future unknown. We are looking at electing a new bishop and the structure of the Anglican Church means that this new bishop will have a major influence on the future of all our parishes in the diocese.
We are learning…learning to see opportunities where previously we saw only change. To see community and friend where we saw strangers and fear. We are learning to value risk takings, at the risk of stability. And we are learning to listen to God’s voice speaking to us in many and various ways.
We are realizing that we too have the Holy Spirit, we have that peace of God, which passes all understanding...we have the resurrected Christ with us ...whispering in our ears...Peace be with you.
Do not fear, do not be anxious or let your hearts be troubled...do not doubt but believe. We live in uncertain times and we face a corner in the life of the church...no one knows what is around that corner, except the one who has already been there...the one who has seen all darkness and knows all light and still insists...
Peace be with you.
That is our challenge and our goal, to move towards our future in the Peace of Christ...a peace that is beyond understanding or sometimes even beyond basic common sense. The disciples faced the fear of persecution in a pagan world, we face the fear of an unknown future.
But Christ continues to appear among us... showing his wounds, reassuring that the worst has happened and been overcome. Spreading his peace over the fears, and breathing life into our anxious lives.
Peace be with you...do not doubt but believe. As the Father sent me, so I send you...not into the safety of the power of years past, but into an uncertain future where you have opportunities to change the world again.
We are familiar with our fears and doubts, we know what this world is capable of ...and it usually isn’t peace. Which is why we bring the Peace of God with us, which is why Christ passed peace with the disciples not once or twice, but three times....the number that is circular...infinite...eternal. Christ appears to us again and again, bringing his peace and giving the Spirit...so that we can face our fears and overcome them.
So that we can walk around that frightening corner that is coming, ...filled with peace, alive with the Holy Spirit and as we come to the other side proclaim in perfect assurance as Thomas did the one who stands before us...My Lord and My God.
Amen.
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