Receive Christ's Forgiveness, Peace, and the Holy Spirit

Today is the 4th Sunday we’re live streaming our worship service and we’ve just passed a full month without meeting together for anything. Our President has announced a plan – criteria, really – for the reopening of our country, step by step over time. That plan has phases based on the reduction of COVID-19 cases.  It isn’t clear at what point we will be able to hold public worship again, and that will need to phase-in as well. Our at-risk folks will likely need to wait longer and all of us will have to continue the various precautions to protect others.

I know what I want to do, and I bet you do, too. No matter how willing and agreeable we are to the restrictions we’ve had to observe, we want to get back at it – whatever “it” is. For some that means getting back to normal work, normal school, normal recreation and entertainment, normal church, normal family gatherings and other parties and social events. Meg and I don’t go to the movies very often, but it would be nice to know we could.

And we have to wonder at how long it will take our community to recover. This season is very hard on most businesses. It’s harder on employees who have had hours reduced, been furloughed, laid off or fired. Everything and everyone is stretched thin in every way.

My instincts are to look ahead, to brainstorm, to plan. But there are so many variables in play and uncertainties, especially on the timeline, that it’s frankly hard to do. That will hopefully improve as we go along, but we aren’t there yet. Everything is just kind of, “Argh!” right now.

Today’s readings, especially the Gospel, speak precisely into our lives right now.

The night of that first Easter the disciples had heard from Peter and John about the tomb being empty. They had heard from Mary Magdalene that she had seen Jesus, but they must be confused and doubtful about that. They knew that having killed Jesus the authorities could easily be looking for them to stamp out any remnant of Jesus’ followers.

They were a mess. They got together. It’s not like they had a plan.  They couldn’t. They were all “Argh!” too. John gives us a lot of information about Jesus’ instructions and prayers for them the night before he died.  He didn’t say, “Meet Sunday night at 6:00, lock the doors and wait for a big surprise!”

No, the things he said and prayed were confusing to them before he died, and more so after. They just needed to gather, but they did so in fear. All they planned to do was lock the doors. You can almost see the scene unfolding.  Everyone has arrived, someone says, “What should we do?” “I don’t know, what do you think?” Then someone else says, “Well, you could begin by locking those doors!” There’s an idea. There’s something. There’s danger out there and we sure don’t want it in here. Sound familiar?

In the midst of their fear and confusion, Jesus comes among them despite being locked out and says, “Peace be with you.” So there’s our first point for this beautiful spring morning. In the midst of our fear and confusion.  In the midst of our frustration and anger. In the midst of our mounting sorrow for the suffering that is all around us, of people we know and love, the risk assumed by the doctors and nurses caring for so many, the risk assumed by people working in our groceries and drug stores and doctors’ offices. In the midst of all of it, Jesus comes and says, “Peace be with you.”

Let that sink in. “Peace be with you.” Not diversions, not entertainment, not projects, not arguments about what the numbers mean or what should be done, but “Peace be with you.” When we get quiet and tight with Jesus, we’re far better able to think clearly and start following His lead.

Then he breathes on them and gives them the Holy Spirit. Now they’ve got all they’ll really need.

This carries us all the way back to Jesus’ conversation with Nicodemus in chapter three, “You must be born again.” We need that Holy Spirit to drive us forward in all we do. Before we get our minds busily working on plans and ideas, we’ve got to engage with him just as the disciples did that night.

And the irony is that it is when we ask for his guidance, then step out in faith to follow through with it, that we wind up actually seeing him.

And look, this is all they’ve got.  The Apostles don’t get to haul Jesus all around and say, “This guy was dead and now he’s alive!” They do wind up doing some of what Jesus did in terms of miracles, and we still see them today, but our faith is not built primarily on signs.

They have their testimony and the curious truth that when they gather, he is in the midst of them, and the Holy Spirit shows up. Before Paul started writing letters, before any of them started writing Gospels, they relied on their word and Christ’s presence and the Holy Spirit.

And, importantly, they have His forgiveness, his command to forgive, and His authority to forgive. All of them abandoned him. Each of them failed.  John made it to the foot of the cross, but only a stranger, Simon of Cyrene, helped Jesus carry it. His peace and the Holy Spirit washed all of that away. We all need a lot of forgiveness. We all have much to forgive. These stressful times produce hard feelings and harsh words. We make mistakes and take risks, and they carry costs.

We feel that Holy Spirit here. It’s why we long to gather in this special room. And yes, he is with you now. So pray. Let him comfort you. Let him calm your fears and frustrations. Let him fill the loneliness. Ask his forgiveness and grace to forgive.  And let the Holy Spirit bless and encourage you for the work ahead.

AMEN