I was a jumpy kid. I was one of those kids who if you came up behind me and said my name or touched me . . . I would jump a mile high. People were always scaring the bejabbers out of me pretty much until I was well into college. And I hated it. I hated it when people snuck up on me or they seemed to appear out of the blue. Were any of you like that?
Whenever I read this passage from the Gospel of John, I can’t help but to wonder how the disciples reacted when Jesus seems to appear out of thin air into their midst. Think about it . . . Jesus was crucified because he was seen as a troublemaker. They were his disciples. They were associated with him. Such associations could get one arrested, maybe even killed. So, it is natural that they were on edge . . . nervous . . . scared. The writer of the gospel points to this when describing how they were behind locked doors fearful of what could happen to them.
Then . . . out of the blue . . . Jesus appears. I don’t know about you, but I would have jumped right out of my pants! Jumped a mile high! And in my mind I think that the disciples did too, but the writer of the gospel skips over that and just tells us that the disciples were overjoyed. Of course, who wouldn’t be . . . Jesus is alive.
I guess Jesus liked to keep his disciples on their toes. Not only does he suddenly appear out of nowhere once, but he does it again . . . a week later. Again, they are in the same house. The doors are locked. They are still anxious, scared . . . jumpy. And . . . POOF! Jesus appears among them right out of thin air. I imagine that the reaction was quite the same . . . after all, the disciples are on edge.
Whenever I was caught off guard as a kid and my heart quit racing, I would look at the person who startled me and say, “Geez! I wish you wouldn’t do that!” Though no one in our story this morning says that I wonder if there weren’t a few among the disciples who were thinking that.
That is the way it seems to be with Jesus. When we least expect him . . . he shows up . . . especially when he wants something from us, or we have strayed away from his teachings and desires. Out of nowhere he confronts us in our faith . . . confronts us in our words and actions . . . confronts us when we have wandered away from his path and ways. Maybe some would say this is when we are in the midst of a moral dilemma, but deep down we know the root of the turmoil within ourselves. Poof! Jesus appears!
Think about the parable that Jesus shared over in the Gospel of Matthew, chapter 25, verses 31 through 46 . . . the “sheep and goats”. Remember that one? Everyone is gathered in heaven and being split up into two groups—the sheep and goats. The sheep are then invited to take their place in heaven while the goats are sent to hell. When both of these groups ask why they got what they got, the Son of Man tells them that it is because whenever they helped or did not help one of the least of them, they did it to him.
Poof! It’s Jesus!
Do you ever feel guilty whenever you pass by one of the homeless people on the side of the road asking for handouts? In all honesty, most of the time I don’t. But there are those times when I wonder . . . what if? What if that were Jesus standing by the side of the road asking for help? Out of nowhere there is Jesus asking me to believe . . . asking me to care . . . asking me to help . . . asking me to walk in his footsteps.
Geez! I wish he wouldn’t do that to me!
As we look around the world, we are living in with all of its divisiveness . . . with all of its separation and division . . . with its meanness, warring, injustice, and callousness . . . well, I imagine that Jesus is popping up all over the place. Popping up and confronting us . . . challenging us . . . asking us to put into action that which we proclaim to believe.
It is not easy following Jesus in our day and time . . . in this crazy world we exist in. We are pulled to the left and the right. We are constantly put on the nexus of choosing between right and wrong . . . good and bad . . . Jesus’ way and the way of the world. It is a struggle. And it is struggle because we believe in Jesus . . . we believe his words and what he did . . . and we have chosen to follow him. Thus, it is that he seems to be constantly popping out of thin air where we least expect him and asking us to truly believe and live in that belief.
I don’t think that Jesus is a jokester who delights in scaring the bejabbers out of anyone. No, Jesus understands us. In our story this morning we know that the disciples are anxious, scared, and on the edge. They are in turmoil and are struggling. Jesus knows this and when he appears out of nowhere to the disciples, he does not go . . . “Ta da!” No, he greets them with the phrase, “Peace be with you!”
That is Jesus’ wish for all of his followers . . . for you and me. Peace. It is a peace that comes from believing. In believing in Jesus. In believing in what he taught. In believing in what he did. As we have heard over and over again, it is about love. Loving God. Loving ourselves. Loving others. It is always about love. And whenever we drift away from love, Jesus appears to confront and challenge us to believe.
Jesus just showing up in our lives might feel a little intrusive. It might make us jump a little. Might be irritating. We might want to holler at him to quit doing that . . . but Jesus knows what we need. And he isn’t afraid to show up and confront and challenge us to do the “right thing” . . . to challenge us to love . . . love God and one another . . . all of God’s children near and far. That is the power of resurrection. It is a million little opportunities for new life . . . new beginnings . . . fresh starts.
Jesus is there to remind us. Yeah, we might not enjoy Jesus’ impromptu appearances in our lives and wish he wouldn’t do it. Yet, at the same time, we are thankful . . . thankful that he cares enough to remind us from time to time. To remind us to believe . . . love and live . . . and embrace the promise of resurrection and new life and beginnings. In Jesus we discover his promise of peace.
And Jesus said to them . . . and to us . . . “Peace be with you!” Amen!
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