Deo Gloria
Sermon for April 7, 2024
Pastor Martin Bentz
Text: John 20:19-31
Theme: Jesus’ Resurrection is Real—No Doubt About It!
- It is the ultimate sign of who he really is.
- It gives us real blessings.
- It gives us an important mission.
In 1957 Lieutenant David Steeves walked out of the California Sierra Mountains 54 days after his Air Force trainer jet had disappeared. He related an incredible tale of survival after parachuting from his disabled plane. He said that for almost two months he had eaten berries and dug snow tunnels to sleep in, and that he hadn’t seen a single person the entire time he was gone. By the time he showed up, he had already been declared officially dead, and many viewed his story with skepticism. You see, during the time that he was missing, his squadron was deployed to Korea, to fly missions in the Korean War. When a further search failed to turn up the wreckage of his plane, people became even more suspicious. Some accused him of being a deserter. Others even accused him of spying. Finally he was forced to resign from the military in disgrace; and in 1965 David Steeves died.
There are many people today who view the story of Jesus and his resurrection the same way. They view it with skepticism–an incredible story that never actually happened. Some offer this explanation: They say that what really happened is that the disciples snuck into the garden under the cover of darkness, entered the tomb and removed Jesus’ body. Then the next morning they began telling people that Jesus had risen from the dead. Others would even go so far as to say that Jesus never actually died. He just “played” dead, or became unconscious. Then, after resting a couple of days, he regained consciousness and came out of the tomb.
Our story this morning from the Gospel of John reassures us that Jesus’ resurrection from the grave was not a hoax. It was real. And this story leaves no doubt about it.
Our story begins on Easter Sunday. It’s evening, and we find ten of the eleven remaining disciples gathered together in a home in the city of Jerusalem. The doors of the home are locked. The disciples are afraid, afraid that the Jewish authorities might be looking for them, afraid that if they found them, they might do to them the same thing they did to Jesus.
In addition to being afraid, the disciples were also confused. You see, earlier in the day they had heard rumors that Jesus was alive again. Some of them had even ventured out to check out those stories. They had seen the empty tomb, but they hadn’t seen Jesus. At this point most of them still did not believe that Jesus had actually risen. After all, they had seen Jesus die. They had seen him gasp his last breath and his body fall limp. They had seen the soldier thrust the spear into Jesus’ side. Some had even helped bury Jesus. How could he possibly be alive again?
But then, all at once, from out of nowhere, there stood Jesus. They can’t believe their eyes. “What? How? But the doors are still…” Jesus speaks to them to calm their fears. “Peace be with you,” he says. They still can’t believe it, so he shows them his hands and his side. Their skepticism and doubt melt away into faith. Their hearts well up with joy. Jesus stays and talks with them for a while. Then, as quickly as he appeared, Jesus left.
As I mentioned, ten of the eleven remaining disciples saw the risen Christ that night. One did not. His name was Thomas. When Thomas heard that Jesus had appeared to the other disciples, he didn’t believe it. He thought they all were imagining things. The other disciples tried their best to convince him it was true, but Thomas remained unconvinced. “Unless I see the nail marks in his hands and put my finger where the nails were, and put my hand into his side, I will not believe it,” he declared.
One week later the disciples were together again—same time, same place. This time, however, Thomas was with them. Again the doors were locked. And again, out of nowhere, Jesus suddenly appears. Startled, Thomas falls out of his chair. “Peace be with you,” Jesus says to all of them. Then he turns toward Thomas. “Thomas, come here. I heard you didn’t believe the others when they told you that I was alive. I heard you weren’t going to believe either, unless—now let me get this straight—unless you saw the nail wounds in my hands and put your finger in them, and unless you put your hand into my side. Well, all right, Thomas, here I am. Reach out your finger. Put your hand right here.”
Thomas was too embarrassed even to try. He knew who it was, without a doubt. This was no ghost, nor was it one of the other disciples dressed up to look like Jesus. This was Jesus, his Lord. “My Lord and my God!” Thomas said to Jesus. No more doubts for Thomas.
No more doubts for us either. Jesus’ resurrection is the ultimate sign of who he really is. Actually, all of Jesus’ miracles were signs. A sign tells you something. A stop sign tells you something. A railroad crossing sign tells you something. Jesus’ miracles tell us something too.
When Jesus changed water into wine, it told his disciples something. When Jesus healed the man born blind, it told the people something. When Jesus raised Lazarus from the dead, it told Mary and Martha and all the people in Bethany something. These miracles told them something about the one who performed them. They indicated he was no ordinary human being.
Jesus’ resurrection from the dead serves as the ultimate sign in this regard. It serves to confirm beyond the shadow of a doubt that Jesus was who he claimed to be: the Son of God and Savior of the world. After all, Jesus said it himself, that he would rise from the dead. “Destroy this temple,” he declared, “and in three days I will raise it again”(2:19). If Jesus hadn’t risen, we would always wonder: “Was Jesus really the promised Messiah? Is he really my Savior? He said he would rise, but he didn’t.” Our minds would be filled with doubts, sort of like Thomas.
But that isn’t the case. Jesus did rise, just as he said. Through the eyes of Thomas and the other disciples we see our risen Savior. We hear his voice. We feel his warm hands and see the nail wounds already healed. With Thomas we can say, “My Lord and my God,” for Jesus’ resurrection is real.
The fact that Jesus rose from the dead gives us a number of blessings as well. First of all, it gives us peace. Did you catch the first thing Jesus said to his disciples when he appeared to them? What were the very first words out of his mouth? “Peace be with you”(v. 19). In fact, he said it twice, didn’t he? Jesus’ resurrection gives us peace, because it assures us that our sins are forgiven.
In his letter to the Christians in Rome Paul states that Jesus was delivered over to death because of our sins, and was raised to life because of our justification (4:25), because we have been justified. The God of heaven, the Judge of all mankind, has declared us to be “not guilty.” Jesus’ resurrection assures us of that. It’s sort of like God’s stamp of approval on all that Jesus did. “Paid in full”—that’s what’s stamped on the bill of your sins and mine. Our debt has been paid in full. Our sins have been forgiven. And we can be at peace. You and I can go to bed at night and know for sure that if something happened to us during the night or the next day, we’d be in heaven with Jesus. We can live each day with confidence, knowing that God and his love are with us, and that one day we will be with him as well.
Yes, eternal life is also ours through our risen Savior Jesus. In fact, this is the very reason John wrote his Gospel, why he recorded Jesus’ miracles, why he recorded Jesus’ resurrection and his appearance to the disciples and to Thomas. He didn’t do it simply to record those things for posterity. He wrote them down so that we might have life. Look again at v. 31: “These are written,” says John, “that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing, you may have life in his name.” The story of Easter is not just an inspiring story about Jesus’ victory over death. It’s the story of our victory over death. Because Jesus lives, we also will live. Eternal life is ours through faith in Jesus.
In addition to peace and life, Jesus’ resurrection also gives us joy. Notice how the disciples responded when they realized it was Jesus. “[They] were overjoyed,” John tells us.(v. 20) And why not? Their Lord and Savior was alive. Even death could not hold him. “He lives, he lives, who once was dead. He lives, my ever-living Head!”(CW 441:1)
Is that the way you respond to the good news of Jesus’ resurrection too, with overwhelming joy? Or has the joy of Easter already faded away into the doldrums of every day life? Has your joy been battered by the demands and frustrations of work? Has your joy been squashed perhaps, squashed by the problems you’ve experienced or the difficulties you’ve had to deal with? Tomorrow you go to see the doctor again for more tests. You hope for the best, but you fear the worst. Remember: Jesus, your Lord and Savior, lives. Or maybe it’s sadness that has sapped your Easter joy—sadness because a loved one has been taken away, sadness because your relationship with your spouse is not what you hoped it would be, sadness because your daughter has drifted away from the Lord and hasn’t come around yet. You try to talk to her, but she only seems to listen to her friends. Remember: Jesus, your Lord and Savior, lives. His resurrection gives us joy, even in the midst of our sorrows and our setbacks.
And it gives us a mission too, a very important mission. Notice again what Jesus said to his disciples that first Easter evening: “As the Father has sent me, I am sending you”(v. 21). Well, what was Jesus sent to do? The Son of Man was sent to seek and to save the lost. He was sent to preach good news to the poor, to bind up the broken-hearted, to proclaim freedom for the captives and release for the prisoners, to comfort those who mourn. (Isaiah 61:1+2)
Jesus sent his disciples to do the same, including his disciples today. Jesus sends us just as the Father sent him. He sends us to seek and to save the lost. He sends us to preach good news to the poor in spirit, to bind up the broken-hearted, to proclaim freedom to those held captive by sin and Satan, to comfort those who mourn. The fact that Jesus rose from the dead gives us all a vitally important job to do, that of reaching out to others with the good news of Jesus Christ.
Indeed, you and I have good news to share, wonderful news: the good news of forgiveness for people’s sins, the good news of peace with God, the good news of eternal life in heaven. Many people are looking for God these days, but they don’t know where to look. In their desperate search some have even resorted to looking inside themselves. We have the answer to their quest. We can lead them to a real and personal relationship with God through his Son, Jesus Christ. Many people today are looking for something solid, something sure, something reliable on which to base their lives and their futures. We can lead them to the rock, solid foundation of our Savior and his Word. Many people’s lives are so messed up today. We know the one who can help them. And it isn’t a psychologist or someone like Dr. Phil. His name is Jesus. Many people are carrying around a load of sin and guilt. They don’t have the inner peace that you and I enjoy. They don’t know there is forgiveness for their sins. They don’t know what would happen to them if they were to die. They don’t know where they stand with God or where they’ll spend eternity. Oh, yes, they may have heard a few things about Jesus. They may even have heard about his death and resurrection. But like Thomas they have their doubts and reservations. We have the answer: Jesus’ resurrection is real. We can share that message with them. I mean, after all, if it was only a rumor, don’t you think it would have died out a long time ago? Or if Jesus’ resurrection was only a hoax, do you think the disciples would have risked their lives to defend it and proclaim it? Legend tells us that the apostle Thomas died as a martyr in India, as he tried to bring the good news of Jesus and his resurrection to the people of that country. Jesus’ resurrection is not a hoax. It is real—no doubt about it.
So, would you like to hear the rest of the story? In 1977 a troop of Boy Scouts, hiking through Kings Canyon National Park in California, discovered the wreckage of an Air Force jet, the jet that had been flown by Lt. David Steeves. It turns out his story was true after all. In the following months, his family was issued a formal apology from the military and Lieutenant David Steeves’ name was reinstated with honor.
The story of Jesus’ resurrection is no hoax either. It’s real. Thomas saw and he believed. “Blessed are those,” said Jesus, “who have not seen and yet have believed”(v. 29). Amen.