John 20:19,20 - Peace be with you

20:19

Having appeared to Mary Magdalene, Jesus now appears to the disciples. Mary had told the disciples that she had seen the Lord, and perhaps they were a little dismissive of her, or at least unsure what to make of her claim. Jesus now shows the disciples that He is indeed risen. There is a parallel here in our witnessing. The proclamation of the gospel involves us speaking, but that is not all. It is also a cooperative exercise with the Lord, and He will reveal Himself to those whom He chooses to do so. The disciples were living in fear, hence the locked door. The Jews had killed their leader and they would be fearful that they might now come for the disciples. The locked door also showed the miraculous nature of Jesus’ appearance. In the resurrection appearances there is no doubt as to the reality of His body, He is no mere apparition. But He is also different. The resurrection is not a resuscitation! We may ask how can this be? Paul talks about these matters in 1 Cor 15. It may also be helpful to think like this: why do we exist at all? Are we just a random occurrence? Or were we created purposefully by a creator? The latter is the truth, and the promise of the gospel is that our Creator will raise us from the dead. “Peace be with you.” The word for peace, shalom, means an all encompassing well-being. Death has been defeated, sin has been defeated, the devil has been defeated. 

20:20

The physical reality of the resurrection is now made clear to the disciples as Jesus shows them His hands and His side, where they would see the wounds that were the result of the crucifixion. Any talk of a “spiritual resurrection” is just so much nonsense. It is interesting that Jesus still bears the scars. One might have thought that they would have been healed in the process. So why weren’t they? One thing it does demonstrate is that this life and what we do in it matters. One of the comforts of the gospel is that one day all suffering will come to an end, but that does not mean that suffering has no purpose.