Blessings of Forgiveness and Faith in Peace and Love

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So Imagine, the disciples had given up so Much to follow the man they believed to be the Messiah. Their Families, Homes, Jobs, the Safety and Security.

As they followed Jesus, they saw many wonders, and learned from his Teachings. They thought they had it all. They thought,  no they Knew,  this was the messiah.   

Then came Good Friday. 

Everything Changed, Jesus was arrested, and sent before the Court.

Likely, at first the Disciples thought he would be successful at obtaining release.

But it got worse and worse. Jesus was convicted, and was crucified, died, and was Buried.

So now,  fear of the Jews got hold of them, their thoughts were that they would be next. It Seems that though Jesus had for warned them of what was happening, they had forgot his Teaching. They Hid

not knowing weather to run or stay.

Today's reading, from the Gospel of John, is proclaimed on the second Sunday of Easter in all three Sunday Lectionary cycles. This should alert us to the significance of the encounters with the resurrected Jesus described in this reading.

This Gospel combines two scenes:   Jesus' appearance to his disciples after his Resurrection and Jesus' dialogue with Thomas, the disciple who doubted.

Part of the mystery of Jesus Resurrection is that he appeared to his disciples, not as a spirit but in bodily form. We don’t know exactly what this form was like.

But earlier in John’s Gospel, when Mary first encountered the risen Jesus, she did not recognize the figure standing before her until Jesus spoke her.

In Luke’s Gospel, the disciples walking on the road to Emmaus did not recognize Jesus until he broke bread with them.

We know from readings such as today's, that in his resurrected body, Jesus was no longer bound by space or mass.

He appeared to the disciples in spite of the locked door. And yet, on this resurrected body, the disciples could still observe the marks of his Crucifixion.

In today's Gospel, Jesus greets his disciples with the gift of peace and the gift of the Holy Spirit. Jesus also commissions his disciples to continue the work that he had begun. As Jesus was sent by God, so too, does Jesus send his disciples. This continuity with Jesus's own mission is an essential element of the Church.

Jesus grants the means to accomplish this mission when he gives his disciples the gift of the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit binds us together as a community of faith and strengthens us to bear witness to Jesus' Resurrection.

Jesus' words to his disciples also highlight the integral connection between the forgiveness of sins and the gift of the Holy Spirit. Forgiveness and reconciliation are gifts to us from Jesus. With the grace of the Holy Spirit, we can share these with others. This is another essential aspect of what it means to be Christ's Church. The Church continues Jesus ministry of forgiveness and reconciliation.

Thomas, the disciple who doubts, represents the reality of the Church that comes after the first disciples. All but the first disciples of Jesus must believe without seeing.

Like Thomas, People may doubt the news that Jesus, who was crucified and buried, appeared to his disciples. It is part of our human nature to seek hard evidence that the Jesus who appeared to the disciples after his death is, indeed, the same Jesus who was crucified. 

Thomas is given the opportunity to be our representative, who receives this evidence. He gives witness to us, that the Jesus who was raised, is the same Jesus who had died. Through the gift of the Holy Spirit,we are among those who are blessed for we have not seen and yet have believed. Our Blessings are Believing without seeing by Faith alone.

FORGIVENESS: The first blessing.

After Easter Sunday morning, Jesus, the risen Lord, comes to the disciples. But from the beginning Jesus comes to them not with anger, but with forgiveness. He comes with his blessed presence to bring his loving mercy.

If we look at the rolls in which Jesus and the disciples played in the preceding days , it would be justifiable if Jesus had struck the eleven with anger and damnation. They left the Master in the hands of Thomas is given the opportunity to be our representative, who receives this evidence. He gives witness to us, that the Jesus who was raised, is the same Jesus who had died. Through the gift of the Holy Spirit,we are among those who are blessed for we have not seen and yet have believed. Our Blessings are Believing without seeing by Faith alone.

So the first sentence of Jesus is a sweet sentence for them:

"Peace be with you". He forgives them. And in our fallen world we to received, and need to share that forgiveness.

The forgiveness that we have received from Christ can be shared with our neighbours. It works with anger and with uncertainty. When we bring good words with peace and God's love we will see many beautiful and special things happen around us.   

The Second  Blessing we received is …….

FAITH

After Easter, we can see hope, peace, and  faith.

_Rediscovered faith;

_Revived faith;

_Tested Faith, like that of Thomas.

We know Thomas as doubting Thomas, and that, has a reason. He had his fellow disciples telling him of  The Resurrection and appearance of Jesus , but still he doubted. There are a couple of other aspects though that are worthwhile to note here as well:

*All the disciples had to see and then believe, just like Thomas. The difference was that Thomas had already Heard the witness of the other 10, just like we have Heard the witness of the risen Christ today in John’s Gospel.

*Did he touch Jesus’s crucifixion marks? We don’t know.  Did he believe again? That we surely know. Thomas, the confessor, Our Witness.

*if anyone ever doubts Christ is risen, we can point them to Thomas’s Confession in the Gospel   -  My Lord, My God.

Restored faith, strengthened faith. Sometimes our faith seems to many, a naïve belief, for it is placed in things we cannot see – even though that’s the very nature of faith. 

This is not a problem. There are many situations where people believe in things they cannot see. The sounds of  music would be something like that; or the wind. We cannot see them, but I don’t think anyone would dispute these things exist.

But none of us can prove it, or see it with the human eye. Jesus taught the disciple Thomas and us that if human reason "would see in order to believe", we Christians have the privilege of believing in order to see. 

 If we believe in him, we will see him, and understand the Scriptures.

And here is the thing: We believe without seeing; but we don’t believe without reading. This is the very purpose of John’s Gospel – and he latches on to that verse after Thomas’s confession. When you read the Gospel, when you go to communion, you see what the disciples saw: The Very Risen Lord.. This is a gift that Jesus Christ gave us so we can believe in and remain with him as our eternal Savior, Today, tomorrow and after tomorrow; always and

forever.

After Good Friday, there are hands and feet pierced with nails. 

Remember, after Easter, we are on the day of the peace of Christ. Christ's faith, Christ's life.

When we, go on a vacation we bring a souvenir from there. So Jesus came to a special place – here on Earth. And He has brought a souvenir, from His work of love, a souvenir to heaven, the signs that He carries in his hands and his feet. Jesus took humanity into Divinity.

After the cross and the resurrection of Christ, we have many signs that remind us of His peace and love. So after your losses, your hopeless days, betrayals, temptations, sorrows, pain… remember that Peace that surpasses all understanding. 

He is there through all of it and after all of it. He is with us in all our present here and now, And after, And forever.

Amen

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