Christ answers fear.
Easter 2
April 16, 2023
Fr. Tim Nunez
May my spoken word be true to God’s written word and bring us all closer to the living word, Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
Years ago I came across a program that was supposed to highlight the 100 scariest moments in film history. I already knew which movie was and is the scariest of all time. It was so scary that at one point the guy sitting behind me gently grabbed my shoulder and said, “It’s only a movie, son. Sit down,” because I was literally standing there screaming. (I was 13.)
I just had to see where my number one scariest movie was on the list. They agreed with me that the #1 scariest movie of all time was Jaws. And boy was it scary. After that movie I didn’t feel safe at the beach. I’d be walking around in the surf, looking. I didn’t even feel safe in a swimming pool. It’s probably when I started taking showers instead of baths.
What was so scary about that movie?
First, the possibility, however remote, is real.
Second is the total helplessness you’d have if you were in the water and that enormous shark was after you. You couldn’t swim away from it. There would no way to fight back there. That thing practically ate a boat.
Third is the suspense, because it could happen and would be impossible to fight - but you don’t know when. Then you hear that music.
Look at how the elements of fear are at work with the disciples. This is the night of Jesus’ resurrection. The disciples have heard some of the testimony of the women who saw Jesus outside his tomb, but that doesn’t make sense.
1. Their fear is based on more than a possibility. They face the probability of real danger. The authorities – Jewish or Roman – could round them up and put them on trial for following Jesus. (That will eventually happen to most of them.) Or, they could be seized by a mob and stoned. Tensions are running high.
2. If and when that course of events begins, they won’t have any control or protection. They will be caught in the gears of politics with little hope of escape or relief. They are helpless in that environment, and they don’t have their leader anymore.
3. And it could happen any time. All it will take is for someone to raise a charge, tell their location, and events will flow. The suspense, the stress of that uncertainty and helplessness, overwhelms. All they can do is lock the door and hope they don’t attract attention. Even a little attention could be deadly. Any moment now. Shut those doors. Lock us in.
That room is charged with fear, and remember that is overlaying their grief over losing Jesus and confusion as to what they should do.
Then he comes. The locked doors don’t stop him. He comes into the midst of them. He says “Peace be with you.” When you hear that from him, I think it’s pretty powerful. And then he breathes on them the gift of the Holy Spirit.
How does that address their fear?
The presence of Christ is a stirring boost to their confidence. If he’s really real, and he’s really there, then his claims and promises are true, then the relevance of that danger has just melted. The danger is still there, but compared to him whether it happens or not has just become a whole lot less scary. You heard what 1 Peter tells us this morning, “Even if now for a little while you have had to suffer various trials…your faith…is tested by fire.”
Our salvation being secure puts the whole prospect of our suffering, whether potential or actual in this moment, in godly perspective.
With him on their side, those Pharisees, Sadducees, Chief Priests, scribes and Romans aren’t quite as scary, are they? The worst they can do is cause pain and suffering, then death. That is still all very real to the disciples, they will all suffer in many ways and most will die for their faith, but all of that is temporary. With the Holy Spirit they are able to more clearly understand the implications of Christ’s resurrection. Understanding replaces the unknown.
This is the blessing of faith. It’s like a big heavy keel on a boat so that yes, the storms may rock your boat, but even if they flip you over, you’ll just pop right back up straight. Even if some 30-foot shark takes a bite out of it. Ha!
In some respects, I wish I could go back to the days when a movie could actually scare me that much. But life is much scarier. The challenges we face toss us about. We do feel helpless at times. Things are too big for us to manage. We don’t know when the next shoe is going to drop. Anxiety creeps in, often without us even realizing it.
This isn’t just about making us feel better. Fear can drive so many poor decisions, it can drive anger, depression and on and on. What do you fear? Pray on that.
What would the disciples have done if their lives were shaped by fear from this point forward? What did they do? This is a major turning point that has changed the world.
The answer that faith offers tends to come down to that simple truth. He is risen! He is with us. He has sent us the Holy Spirit, the comforter, as he promised he would.
There is a transformation in this passage that we must not let slip by. The “disciples” refers to people who had disciplined themselves to follow Jesus and absorb his teaching. (This is not just the 11, Luke tells us there were others with them that night, quite likely including the women.) That is what disciples do.
Jesus says, “As the father has sent me, so I send you.” The Greek word for “send” is apostellow, from which we get the word Apostles. They, those who witnessed the risen Christ, are the “sent ones.” Jesus has been sending his disciples ever since to share this Good News that we must not be driven by fear.
John tells us there are many other signs Jesus did after his Resurrection, but these are written down so that you may believe that he is the Christ, the Messiah, the Son of God and that believing in Him you may have life in his name. His name. Jesus Christ, our Lord who saved us on the cross and saves us today.
AMEN