“Peace be with you.” “Therefore, go . . .” John 20:21, Matthew 28:19
What did you do for Easter? I hope you were able to worship with other believers on that holiest of days, the day that celebrates the fact that our Lord conquered sin and death. What did you do besides that? Was there an Easter egg hunt? A meal with loved ones? It’s a wonderful day for celebrating, isn’t it? But what was Easter like for those followers of Jesus who had just watched Him die on the cross? Remember that they didn’t just watch the death of their beloved leader. They also watched the death of their dreams, maybe even of their beliefs. Now, just days later, they’re asked to believe something that had never happened before in the history of, well, of ever. Jesus was alive again. How could this be? I’m sure they were trying to wrap their brains around this incredible fact. And if He’s alive again, what does that mean for those dreams and beliefs that had died with Him? Are they resurrected, too? Jesus was resurrected in bodily form. In other words, He wasn’t a ghost. Does that mean the dreams and beliefs should be resurrected in the same form as before? Or does the fact that Jesus conquered death mean the dreams and beliefs need to change?
As I thought about all those questions they must have had, I decided to look at the words of Jesus that He spoke after the resurrection. As I read all four gospel accounts, I noticed a couple of themes running through His words. One was repeated often: Peace be with you. It makes sense that He would need to say that. The disciples were probably shocked and scared at seeing Him alive. Besides, they were living in fear of the Romans and the Jewish leaders. I’m sure they felt very little peace. What about us? We have something they didn’t yet have at that point – the Holy Spirit living within us. But do we always feel His peace? Or do we also fear those in the world, or what may happen in the future? In addition, I think of the women who had just completed a celebration, much like we just did. They had either traveled or had guests for Passover, prepared and served meals, and attended services at the Temple. So in addition to all these other feelings, they were just plain tired! Sound familiar? We need Jesus’ peace, too, don’t we?
But He didn’t just instill peace on them. He also told them to go. He said it in different ways, but the meaning was to go. Tell others. Care for others. Feed His sheep. Go into all the world. Granted, He did tell them to wait in Jerusalem until they had received the Holy Spirit. But they were being prepared for a life of serving others and telling others about Him. What about us? Where is God telling us to go? How is He wanting us to serve others? In what ways does He want us to share His peace with others? As we leave the Easter season behind, let’s not leave behind the words of the risen Savior. Rather, we can choose to be open to God’s leading and be willing to go.