Our reading this week is from the gospel of John:
When it was evening on that day, the first day of the week, and the doors of the house where the disciples had met were locked for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood among them and said, “Peace be with you.” After he said this, he showed them his hands and his side. Then the disciples rejoiced when they saw the Lord. Jesus said to them again, “Peace be with you. As the Father has sent me, so I send you.” When he had said this, he breathed on them and said to them, “Receive the Holy Spirit. If you forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven them; if you retain the sins of any, they are retained.”
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This is Part 1 of the series When Doubt Leads to a More Tangible Experience
But Thomas (who was called the Twin), one of the twelve, was not with them when Jesus came. So the other disciples told him, “We have seen the Lord.” But he said to them, “Unless I see the mark of the nails in his hands, and put my finger in the mark of the nails and my hand in his side, I will not believe.”
A week later his disciples were again in the house, and Thomas was with them. Although the doors were shut, Jesus came and stood among them and said, “Peace be with you.” Then he said to Thomas, “Put your finger here and see my hands. Reach out your hand and put it in my side. Do not doubt but believe.” Thomas answered him, “My Lord and my God!” Jesus said to him, “Have you believed because you have seen me? Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have come to believe.”
Now Jesus did many other signs in the presence of his disciples, which are not written in this book. But these are written so that you may come to believe that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God, and that through believing you may have life in his name. (John 20:19-31)
The post resurrection narratives in the Gospel of John are some of the most interesting in the four gospels. Let’s jump right in. In John 20, the risen Jesus appears to his disciples behind locked doors. This is a little group gripped by fear. They’ve just watched their teacher being crucified on a Roman cross. We find them now in the shadow of the empire and its violence. Into that space, Jesus appears and speaks peace, not as passive comfort but as a declaration that the forces they are afraid of have not prevailed. In John’s version of the stories, Jesus shows his wounds to them, revealing that resurrection does not erase crucifixion but overcomes and undoes it. The marks of injustice remain visible. And now they become reframed as a testimony against the powers that inflicted them.
In the beginning of our reading this week that we also encounter Jesus breathing on the disciples. As Jesus does so, he says, “Receive the Holy Spirit.” This act echoes the Jewish creation narratives in Genesis, where the Divine breath first imparts life to humanity. In John, however, that breath is not only for life but also for their assignment. The Spirit animates this little group that is called to embody the same peace, justice, and love that Jesus proclaims. It’s in them that Jesus’ teachings are now to live on, rooted in justice, restoration, and the healing of all in our world that is broken and harming the marginalized and vulnerable. Jesus’ breath is a commissioning: “As the Father has sent me, so I send you.” This passage harkens back to Jesus’ earlier words in John 3: the Father had not sent Jesus to condemn the world, but to heal it.
What too many miss in this scene is stunningly profound. We’ll begin with this first, in Part 2.
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