Encounters with the Risen Savior: Peace Be with You

This is part of our Thursday series on the encounters that Risen Savior shared in the four gospels. Today’s encounter is shared with us by Mark, Luke and John.

It was Sunday evening. The women had discovered the empty tomb that morning. They had seen Jesus and told the disciples, but the disciples didn’t believe them. That afternoon Jesus had traveled with two disciples on the road to Emmaus, and they ran back and reported to the disciples when they had finally realized that they’d been talking to the Risen Savior.

But now, it was Sunday evening. John describes what was going on like this:

So when it was evening on that day, the first day of the week, and when the doors were shut where the disciples were, for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood in their midst and said to them, 'Peace be with you.' 

John 20:19

They’ve been told twice that Jesus has risen, but the disciples are still doubting, scared, and confused. They’ve shut themselves into a room, hiding out if you will, because they are scared the Jews will come after them next. And in the middle of this Jesus suddenly appears with the words “Peace be with you.”

Luke describes their reaction in chapter 24, verses 37-41:

But they were startled and frightened and thought that they were seeing a spirit. And He said to them, ‘Why are you troubled, and why do doubts arise in your hearts? See My hands and My feet, that it is I Myself; touch Me and see, for a spirit does not have flesh and bones as you see that I have.’ And when He had said this, He showed them His hands and His feet. While they still could not believe it because of their joy and amazement, He said to them, ‘Have you anything here to eat?’ They gave Him a piece of broiled fish; and He took it and ate it before them.

Although the disciples had been told two different times that Jesus was alive, and even when He stood in their midst, they doubted. They literally couldn’t believe their eyes. Even when He showed them His hands and His feet, Luke says that they “still could not believe it because of their joy and amazement.”

It’s easy to say that they had Jesus right in front of them and could see His hands and feet, so how in the world could they doubt. Let’s remember what the last week had been like for these disciples though. They walked alongside Jesus as He entered Jerusalem one week before to the praises of the crowd heralding Him as their Messiah, the one they believed God had sent to rescue them from Rome. Throughout the week they saw many things and heard many teachings which they did not fully understand. Then on Thursday night, one of their own had betrayed Jesus and turned Him over to religious leaders. He had been arrested, brought before numerous leaders, beaten, mocked, and eventually crucified. He had been dead and buried. They had been grieving for three days. Probably grieving the loss of the friend and teacher, and grieving because they thought He was the Messiah and didn’t know how all this could happen. And they were afraid that the same thing might happen to them. But now, in the midst of their fear and grief, this Messiah who they had been grieving over was standing in their midst saying, “Peace be with you.” If we’re honest, we’d be pretty confused and struggling to believe too.

I find it especially interesting when Luke says that they “still could not believe it BECAUSE of their joy and amazement.” Have you have been there? You are so amazed and overjoyed about something you’re almost afraid it can’t be true. Some people might even respond to a situation like that by saying “pinch me” because they’re afraid they must be dreaming. The disciples were seeing, hearing, and touching Jesus. Their senses were telling them that the Messiah was alive, but their brains just couldn’t fully comprehend or believe it yet. They’d never seen anything like this. It was incomprehensible, but it was obviously true.

While we might not have Jesus physically standing in our midst eating a broiled fish, much like the disciples there are times in our lives when we see God doing something that just doesn’t make sense to us. We see His work and we hear Him, but our brains just can’t comprehend or fully believe what is happening is real. Those are moments in life when faith is challenging. Our brains may eventually catch up like it seems happened with the disciples, but sometimes there are things about God and His work that we may never fully comprehend. In those moments, I think He would say to us just as He did to the disciples in that room, “Peace be with you.”

That is my prayer for you and I today that even in moments of confusion, fear, joy, amazement or doubt our hearts will no longer be troubled because we will hear the soft, still voice of God whispering in our ears “Peace be with you.”