Sermon: Believing Beyond a Good Friday World

Believing Beyond a Good Friday World
Second Sunday of Easter
Psalm 150; John 20: 19-31by Rev. Carson Overstreet
Van Wyck Presbyterian Church
April 3, 2016


Praise the Lord!
Praise God in his sanctuary;
praise him in his mighty firmament!
Praise him for his mighty deeds;
praise him according to his surpassing greatness!

Praise him with trumpet sound;
praise him with lute and harp!
Praise him with tambourine and dance;
praise him with strings and pipe!
Praise him with clanging cymbals;
praise him with loud clashing cymbals!
Let everything that breathes praise the Lord!
Praise the Lord! - Psalm 150

When it was evening on that day, the first day of the week, and the doors of the house where the disciples had met were locked for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood among them and said, ‘Peace be with you.’ After he said this, he showed them his hands and his side. Then the disciples rejoiced when they saw the Lord. Jesus said to them again, ‘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. If you forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven them; if you retain the sins of any, they are retained.’

But Thomas (who was called the Twin), one of the twelve, was not with them when Jesus came. So the other disciples told him, ‘We have seen the Lord.’ But he said to them, ‘Unless I see the mark of the nails in his hands, and put my finger in the mark of the nails and my hand in his side, I will not believe.’

A week later his disciples were again in the house, and Thomas was with them. Although the doors were shut, Jesus came and stood among them and said, ‘Peace be with you.’ Then he said to Thomas, ‘Put your finger here and see my hands. Reach out your hand and put it in my side. Do not doubt but believe.’ Thomas answered him, ‘My Lord and my God!’ Jesus said to him, ‘Have you believed because you have seen me? Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have come to believe.’

Now Jesus did many other signs in the presence of his disciples, which are not written in this book. But these are written so that you may come to believe that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God, and that through believing you may have life in his name. - John 20: 19-31


They were living behind locked doors. It was the evening of Easter Sunday. They had heard the first sermon ever proclaimed, “I have seen the Lord!” And yet they were still living in a Good Friday world. Fear had taken hold of the disciples. If death is what happened to their Teacher and beloved Jesus, then persecution would certainly come for them too.

Many are hiding today behind locked doors just one week after the Easter message was proclaimed. My heart has been aching for our international sisters and brothers who have been living in fear cast by terrorist attacks during Holy Week and Easter. You and I left our service of Easter celebration last Sunday to enjoy time with our families and friends. Meanwhile on the other side of the world, Christians in Lahore, Pakistan were at a park celebrating the joy of Easter when suicide bombers took more than 70 lives and 29 were children. Hundreds were injured.

Fear and hatred live among us. While terror and religious persecution seem to be on the loose, we have our own hurts to hold here. Every day we read national and local news reporting of unthinkable ways that we inflict hurt and pain upon one another. It’s not just physical violence either. We slay each other with words that cripple one another’s spirits. Or worse – we do nothing and our apathy allows violence of any kind to continue. Our faith becomes disengaged.

We look out into the world and into our personal lives and Good News is not what we immediately see. We see the dismay and the despair that never really left once the Risen Christ left the tomb. We have our Thomas moments and ask ourselves did Jesus’ death and resurrection really happen? Did God’s sacrificial love change anything? We are still trying to believe the hope of resurrection beyond a Good Friday world.

Jesus Christ knew that the disciples would lock themselves behind fear. He knew they would have questions and doubts. He knew the disciples needed to be reassured of God’s faithfulness. So he walked through the barricaded doors and stood among them and said, “Peace be with you” (John 20:19).

And I cannot help but wonder if the disciples remembered Jesus’ words about peace back on that Thursday night of the Last Supper. Jesus tried to prepare them for the way fear would take hold of them after the crucifixion and resurrection saying:

The hour is coming, indeed it has come when you will be scattered each one to his home, and you will leave me alone. Yet I am not alone because the Father is with me. I have said this to you, so that in me you may have peace. In the world you face persecution. But take courage; I have conquered the world (John 16: 32-33).

It matters that the first words of the Risen Christ to the disciples are “Peace be with you.” It is not merely a greeting. Christ wants the disciples to sense God’s deep embrace in their time of need. He wants the disciples to know God’s shalom – or peace. God’s peace is not just the assurance of Christ’s salvation. As Easter people we do have peace that Christ has conquered sin and death in the gift of salvation and eternal life. This is our future hope.

But peace also comes to us in a Good Friday world as we trust God is working through all things - violence, terror, and tragedies. God alone is the author and promoter of peace. God’s unconditional love has been let loose into the world through Jesus Christ and the cross. God’s unconditional love is at work to bring about a sense of divine wholeness in humanity and creation. This is our present hope.

In a more pragmatic sense, the core of peace is not an absence of conflict. Peace gives us a different way to respond to conflict and the troubles of the world. God shows us the way.

As Christ breathed peace upon the disciples he also breathed the Holy Spirit upon them. Christ embraced the disciples in the peace of God to prepare them to open the doors and to be sent out into the world. The disciples are to go in the bold assurance that through this gift of faith God invites them and us as partners in the kingdom of God. God invites us as partners to bring peace.

We heard in our assurance of pardon this morning that “Christ comes with healing light into our locked places and shadowy hurts, resurrecting our spirits and breathing into us new life. Believe the Good News! As God’s own forgiven people, we are sent out into the community to bring peace, forgiveness, and new life to the world in the name of Jesus Christ.” [1] We are claimed in God’s love. We are forgiven in God’s love when we would rather hide in fear. We are sent in God’s love to live a story of hope.

We are an Easter people living in a Good Friday world. And now is a critical time for people of faith to live into Easter hope. We are to look into the darkness and see the light of Christ. The light shines in the darkness and the darkness will never overcome it (John 1:5). And we are called to be a light shining in the darkness for others to see.

We are a light of peace when we risk opening the doors of our hearts and our homes and our communities to love others as God loves us. Love others and not fear them. We are a light of peace when we seek unity among our diversity. We are a light of peace when we create genuine and safe places to learn about one another’s beliefs and cultures for the sake of mutual understanding and respect. We are a light of peace as we pray for the peace of Christ to guide us in efforts to bring about reconciliation.

A few months ago I had the opportunity to take a field trip to Rock Hill with clergy from various denominations. We visited a compound – a community of twenty families tethered together by the Muslim faith. The community named their compound Islamville.

It was a humbling experience to be there. And it was the very first time I had ever personally met someone of the Muslim faith.

The clergy and I caravanned over to the compound and it was so meaningful to be greeted by our American - Muslim neighbors with warm welcomes and handshakes. Saeed Shakir is the Imam (faith leader) and Mayor of Islamville. He gave us a tour of the shrine where worship is held for the community there. He shared about the Muslim faith. And then Saeed invited us into his home and we all shared table fellowship with other members of the community over a traditional meal.

That day all of us gathered and stood in solidarity with deep concerns about world affairs where terror and fear cast shadows over people of all faiths. We shared stories about our respective families. We shared our hopes to find the spiritual spaces that unite us as children of Abraham. We shared a time of prayer together. I am certain that I experienced the Spirit’s peace in that place. And I hope for more opportunities for each of us to shine the light of God’s peace and love that casts out fear of religious differences and race.

We have to believe that even as terror, violence, and fear seem to be on the loose, that God’s resurrection power is greater than any darkness because perfect love casts out fear. Martin Luther King, Jr. once said, “Hate cannot drive out hate; only love can do that.” We must have faith that every prayer we lift on behalf of our sisters and brothers who are oppressed by violence is heard by God. We have to trust with every prayer we lift for our neighborhoods that God is breathing the Holy Spirit there to mend wounds. We must grow in our conviction that Christ is asking us to go with the bold assurance to be God’s messengers of peace – and use words when it is necessary.

America’s longtime favorite neighbor was Fred Rogers. Many of us grew up watching Mister Roger’s Neighborhood on PBS. Did you know that Fred Rogers was also a Presbyterian minister? Beyond the television show Fred Rogers was a messenger of peace. He once shared sage wisdom for parents regarding how to talk about world news with young children. And his words are so pastoral to all of us in a Good Friday world:

"When I was a boy and I would see scary things in the news, my mother would say to me, "Look for the helpers. You will always find people who are helping." To this day, especially in times of "disaster," I remember my mother's words and I am always comforted by realizing that there are still so many helpers – so many caring people in this world."

Despite our questions and doubts about the world we live in, the Risen Christ is here. Christ is coming through the barricaded doors of our hearts, homes, and communities to breathe the Spirit’s peace upon us. We all need to be reassured of God’s faithfulness in times of fear. Let the peace of God embrace you in the power of resurrection. Christ said to the disciples and to us as well: “Peace be with you. As the Father has sent me, so I send you” (John 20:21).

In this Good Friday world we will have trouble but take heart Christ has conquered the world. And Christ empowers us to partner with God to be the helpers and to bear the message of peace. The peace of God guides us to respond to conflict and trouble in a different way than the world teaches. Let us pray for peace with boldness that we may live it out as Easter people. Let us believe beyond a Good Friday world.

In the name of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit. Amen.


Source Referenced
[1] Kimberly Bracken Long, "Feasting on the Word Worship Companion: Liturgies for Year C, Volume 1 Advent through Pentecost" (Louisville: Westminster John Knox Press, 2012), p. 148.