pastorjohnb

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Peace Be with You

Reading: John 20: 19-31

Verse 19: “Jesus came and stood among them and said, ‘Peace be with you'”!

The disciples are gathered together, behind locked doors, mourning the loss of Jesus. When one of a close group dies, this is common behavior. There is comfort in grieving together, in knowing you are not alone. Others just outside the circle also come and visit, offering support and presence and love to the group. But the group of disciples are also afraid. They are hiding behind closed doors because they fear what the Jews might do to them. Mary Magdalene has seen the risen Christ and Peter has seen the empty tomb. What all this now means must still feel a bit unsettling to them. Life will not be the same for the disciples.

At times of loss we too experience some of these same emotions and thoughts. While we may not fear other people, we may have a desire to hunker down and shut out the world. Sometimes there is a desire to visit familiar haunts or the scene of the tragedy. After a tragic loss in college I wanted to spend time at her house with her family. Then, after the funeral, I spent lots of time at the grave site. In those places I could feel a palpable desire to remain close. Even though I knew she was gone and life would never be the same, the desire was there. Being near brought a sense of comfort to my inner turmoil and unease over the future and my ‘now what?’ questions.

The disciples must have been feeling and thinking at least all of this when the risen Jesus appears among them. Jesus begins with some simple words: “Peace be with you”. Peace – that is the feeling needed in this situation. Peace – a sense of normalcy and an absence of worry and fear and doubt. Peace is surely what the disciples and followers of Jesus needed.

Jesus offers us the same thing. Whether the loss of a loved one, the loss of a job or marriage, an unexpected move, a sudden illness, or many other possible scenarios, we can find ourselves driven to a place of sorrow or insecurity or discomfort. Into all that life can bring, Jesus desires to come and be present to us. There He will say, “Peace be with you”. When we need Jesus the most, He will be there most powerfully. In the hour of need, turn to Jesus and cry out to Him. He will bring you His peace.

Prayer: Lord, thank you for being my peace again and again. I can trust in you. Help me to be a vessel of your peace too – bringing your peace to those in need. Amen.


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Pleasing

Reading: 2 Corinthians 5: 6-10

Verses Nine and Ten: “We make it our goal to please Him… for we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ”.

Paul would definitely choose to be “away from the body” and to be with Christ. His life has been one of both fruitful ministry and of trials and sufferings for his faith. He has not quite written the “fought the good fight” passage, but his longing to be with the Lord is growing. Paul looks to the time when he will stand before Jesus and will enter His rest. Yet Paul also knows that he has a purpose to fulfill now.

In our passage today, Paul refers to the idea of living by faith and not by sight. God is not something or someone we can physically touch or see, yet we live within God’s presence. It is something we can feel. God touches and moves within our hearts and minds, assuring us of our faith. While faith cannot be proven or seen or otherwise quantified, our experiences with Jesus and the Holy Spirit are very real in the life of a believer. It is by faith that we live our daily lives. Paul writes, “We make it our goal to please Him”. While in this body, this too is our goal – to live a life worthy of the gospel, one that is holy and pleasing to the Lord.

Paul closes this thought with: “for we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ”. This is a reality for all people, believers and non-believers alike. One day we will all appear before the Lord. How we have lived while in the body does matter. Each day may we do what is pleasing to God, like Paul, looking forward to the day when we go to be with the Lord. Amen.