The gospel of John records Mary Magdalene’s encounter with the risen Christ (John 20:11-18)—the only gospel to do so. The gospel then records three appearances of the risen Christ to his disciples: to the disciples in the upper room on the evening of that first Easter Sunday (John 20:19-25), to the disciples and Thomas a week later (John 20:26-29), and to seven of the disciples in Galilee (John 21:1-23). What was the gospel writer telling us about the resurrection in these three stories?
The message of the first story is often overlooked because of the absence of Thomas—–which sets up the second story. The first story tells us the resurrection makes peace possible, even in the midst of fear: “the doors of the house where the disciples had met were locked for fear of the Jews” (John 20:19). Two different times, Jesus spoke peace to them. In addition, the resurrection means we are sent to do what Jesus did: “as the Father has sent me, so I send you” (John 20:21). We are sent to reveal the true nature of God—a primary emphasis in the gospel (John 1:14, 18)—by living God’s ways of grace (John 14:16). The heart of this mission is extending God’s forgiveness to others: “if you forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven them; if you retain the sins of any, they are retained” (John 20:23). This statement does not mean we choose who is forgiven and who is not. Forgiveness is God’s to give. It is given freely and lavishly to any and all. It is a gift from God. The statement means we have the power to determine if others know and experience that forgiveness. If we are faithful to live out of grace and forgiveness with others, they can know God’s forgiveness for themselves. If we fail to forgive and offer grace, we prevent them from knowing and experiencing God’s grace and forgiveness. The good news is we do not undertake this assignment in our own strength. We are given the Spirit who empowers us to live out of grace, including forgiving the one who has failed.
It seems to me the Church has a reputation for pointing out sins (judging) and condemning them rather than for forgiving sins. Too often we are known by what we are against rather than for how we reveal the grace-filled, forgiving nature of God.
The second story is the reason Thomas gets labeled as Doubting Thomas. Thomas wanted physical proof of Jesus’s resurrection: “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” (John 20:25). A mentor and friend described Thomas was a realist, not a doubter. (Compare John 11:7—8, 16 and John 14:5.)
The story about Thomas underscores the gospel’s emphasis on believing. (Compare John 20:31.) In the gospel, believing is more than an intellectual exercise. To believe is to embrace spiritual truth and build our life on it. In particular, believing is to embrace who Jesus revealed God to be—a God of grace and forgiveness. To believe is to integrate God’s ways of grace and forgiveness into the fabric of our lives so that our lives are shaped by who God is. Thomas’s story calls us to see beyond the physical dimension of life to a deeper reality—the spiritual realm. There, in the spiritual realm, is where we experience God’s kind of life—what John’s gospel calls eternal life.
We live in a Christian era that emphasizes belief. But this belief is not the belief of John’s gospel. The current emphasis upon belief is about affirming certain facts as true: the Bible is the inerrant word of God; Jesus had to die before God would forgive our sins (substitutionary atonement); homosexuality is a sin. I chose these three “beliefs” because they underlie the current division in The UMC. They illustrate how we use a position on an issue to determine how we view and treat another believer. If the other takes the “right” position, i.e., our position, we accept them. If they take the “wrong” position, we condemn, reject, and exclude them. I have had church members attack me because what I proclaimed did not match what they believed while others left the church to find a church more in line with what they believed. A conservative faction in The UMC is in process of withdrawing in order to create a new denomination that reflects their beliefs. My question: do these actions reflect the grace-filled nature of God? Do they proclaim forgiveness? Or are they a way of “retaining sins?”
The second post-resurrection story validates the grace-filled nature of God revealed in Jesus. It validates the reality of the spiritual realm. It calls us to build our lives around who Jesus revealed God to be and around the grace-based ways of God. It invites us to find life in his name by believing (John 20:31).
The third and last post-resurrection story focuses on Peter. It details the restoration of Peter after his three-fold denial of Jesus while Jesus was on trial before the Jewish Sanhedrin (John 18:12—18, 25—27). Three times—corresponding to his three denials—Jesus asked Peter “do you love me?” The English does not capture the nuance of the Greek. The first time, Jesus asked Peter “Do you love me with the God-kind of love that is willing to die for me? Do you love me more than these other disciples love me?” (John 21:15). This, after all, was what Peter had adamantly said to Jesus before Jesus was arrested (Matthew 26:33—35). Peter answered Jesus by saying, “Yes, I love you like a friend” (John 21:15). Note the different words for love that each used: loving with a God-kind of love that is willing to die for another versus loving like a friend. A second time Jesus asked, “Do you love me with the God-kind of love that is willing to die for me?” (John 21:16). Again, Peter answered Jesus by saying, “Yes, I love you like a friend” (John 21:16). The third time, Jesus changed his question: “Do you love me like a friend?” (John 21:17). Again Peter responded, “Yes, Lord, I love you like a friend.”
This story about Peter proclaims a great truth: God goes beyond forgiving our failures; God redeems them. As we deal honestly with our failures, God transforms them. God used Peter’s experience of failure to mature him spiritually. His experience of failure brought him face-to-face with his self-assured, self-reliant, ego-centric nature. His responses to Jesus’s questions reflect the self-awareness and honesty that are marks of humility. Even more, God used Peter’s experience of failure to equip him to deal compassionately and gently with others. After each interchange, Jesus commanded Peter: “feed my lambs” (John 21:15); “tend my sheep” (John 21:16); “feed my sheep” (John 21:17). Rather than disqualifying him for leadership, Peter’s experience of failure positioned him to guide others on their journey. God did more than forgive Peter’s failure. God redeemed and transformed it.
The resurrection proclaims the transforming, redeeming power of God’s grace and forgiveness.
As the followers of Jesus, we are sent—in the power of the Spirit—to proclaim the transforming, redeeming power of God’s grace and forgiveness. We are to do what Jesus did: invite others to embrace God’s grace and forgiveness for themselves so that grace and forgiveness shape their lives—including their failures.
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