Friday, March 31, 2023

The Season of Easter: So I Send You

 Again Jesus said to them “Peace be with you. As the Father has sent me so I send you. Then Jesus breathed on them and said “Receive the Holy Spirit”. Jhn: 20:21-22.



The First Sunday after Easter is called by many Christians Thomas Sunday, for on that Easter day when Jesus showed himself alive to his astonished Disciples, St. Thomas was not present. This is not a condemnation of St. Thomas, rather is symbolic showing us the great Commission which the Lord Jesus has placed upon all Christians in every and in all ages.  

After that glorious Resurrection of our Lord Jesus and the showing of himself alive to his Disciples on that first Easter evening. After our Lord, through the showing of his hands, feet and wounded side, demonstrated unquestionably to be that very same Jesus who they had known for so long, who taught them and showed them the glories of the Kingdom of God, after he was witnessed by the Disciples to be his very self and declared peace upon and to them. Jesus came again, to the assembled Disciples , this time, to reveal the very mission of theirs lives and the lives of all the followers of our Lord individually and collectively.

St. John records the words of our Lord at his first post-Resurrection manifestation on that First Easter to the assembled Disciples there in that Upper Room.

and Jesus came and stood among them and said “Peace be to you” Jhn: 20:19c

Our Lord Jesus then makes an important and highly symbolic gesture toward those amazed Disciples, and accompanies it with his intent and reassurance to them, and all his followers, the Church, throughout the ages, and then reveals his purpose for coming and giving them the conformation of his Resurrection, which confirms his words, and verifies Jesus’ divine identity.    

So I Send You

 St. John’s narrative  tells us of this moment, a moment which in truth transcends itself and speaks to us all in whatever every age in which we live. This moment is for us all who come to see and to believe in Jesus. That is, Jesus has revealed himself to us as having come from the grip of death and now lives in glory. That, very same Jesus has through the Holy scriptures stood before us and declared his peace to us and showed us his wounds of the Crucifixion and death.

We have come to believe and to have experienced the reality of his risen life, we have seen that Jesus who was dead is alive now for evermore.

After our Lord conclusively proved that it was, he, himself. Jesus then again spoke his peace to Disciples and reveals his purpose for them and his gives sure affirmation of his divine assistance and presence in the fulfillment of their heavenly appoint commission.

Again Jesus said to them “Peace be with you. As the Father has sent me so I send you. Then Jesus breathed on them and said “Receive the Holy Spirit”. (21-22)

Jesus gives the Disciples his purpose in the revealing of himself alive from the grip of death.

as the Father has sent me so I send you(21b)

 Jesus has revealed himself so that they, and disciples throughout the ages, the Church, might have the godly confidence that Jesus is alive, as they, and we, enter into his divine undertaking of continuing his ministry upon the Earth.

“Peace be with you” (21a)

  Through the agency of the Holy Spirit Jesus was with them, and  he is with us, and will empower his disciples to accomplish his work which is entrusted to them, in the very same manner as he was in his time upon the Earth, that they might deeply know that words, the Gospel message about Jesus, which they proclaim to the yet unbelieving world is true.

receive you the Holy Spirit” (22b)

Jesus’ peace abides with them, and we all when we face opposition, and that the disciples of the Lord can know that the ultimate outcome will be for their good, and that the yet unbelieving world can experience the salvation wrought by Jesus for us all and that our Lord and God will be glorified. 

We, like they, who have touched the wounds in his hands feet and side and have seen Jesus alive from the dead so-to-speak, are to go forth without fear and witness the truth that we have seen Jesus alive from the dead even as those Disciples did so long ago.

St. Thomas Not There

Now, it had been, when our Lord Jesus came and stood among them there in the Upper Room, even as they hid in fear behind closed doors on that first Easter evening. One of their company, St. Thomas, was not present and did not witness that glorious revealing of our Lord Jesus’ Holy self to his beloved followers.

‘But Thomas (called the twin) one of the twelve, was not with them when Jesus came” (24)

When St. Thomas rejoins the group in the Upper Room, the other Disciples were unable to contain their joy at now knowing that their Lord and friend Jesus was now come again from the cold darkness of the grave and death and that he has come among them.

“the other Disciples told Thomas, “we have seen the Lord” (25a)

Unless I See the Wounds

When the joyful Disciples relay to St. Thomas the message that they have “seen the Lord”, that is, they have first had witnessed the truth of his glorious Resurrection, that Jesus is risen from the dead, that Jesus lives.

When St. Thomas first hears this glorious report of Jesus’ Resurrection, he is, at first, hesitant to believe it on face value of the Disciples word alone. St. Thomas has not yet experienced Jesus’ Resurrected life for himself, St. Thomas wants his own experience with the living Jesus.

“But Thomas said to them “Unless I see the wounds left by the nails in his hands, and put my finger into the wounds of the nails , and put my hand into the wound of his side, I will not believe”(25)

Jesus Among Them

The week  passed until once again as they gather together in that Upper Room, and all are now present, including St. Thomas and is still set on his hesitation to embrace the truth that his fellow Disciples have experienced.  

Then upon first day of the week, one week after that first Easter, in the midst of the gathering of the Disciples, our Lord manifest himself to them even as they were behind a closed door and stands among them. Again, joyfully startled by the sudden appearance of Jesus. Jesus then declares again his peace upon his Disciples to calm their fears and uncertainties.

“a week later his Disciples were again in the house and Thomas was with them. And although the doors were locked, Jesus came and stood among them and said to them “Peace be with you” (26)

Put Your Finger Here

Jesus then gently and graciously deals with his hesitant friend and Disciple St. Thomas who stood among them seeing now the divine truth of the Resurrected Jesus. Jesus does this by giving St. Thomas what he himself stated that he would require to believe the others Disciples report about Jesus.

St. Thomas wanted to see that the one whom the Disciples spoke about as alive was the very same one who had been crucified. The evidence would be the wounds inflicted by the cruel and bitter death by which St. Thomas knew Jesus had experienced. As St. Thomas had said “Unless I see the wounds left by the nails in his hands, and put my finger into the wounds of the nails, and put my hand into the wound of his side, I will not believe”.

Jesus accommodates his hesitant Disciple, not, to in any way, to shame, berate or humiliate St. Thomas or to dismiss him in anyway, but rather, Jesus is motivated only by the divine Holy love of God which he demonstrated, there upon the cross of Calvary for all humanity.

Jesus himself provides the evidence of which turns St. Thomas’ hesitation into glorious certainty and worship and confession of the Holy truth that Jesus is Resurrected and now lives glorified.

Jesus approaches St. Thomas and extends his wounded hands and offers his wounded side to show his Disciple that the ones who now lives is the very some who died there upon the bloody Cross that Good Friday.

“Then Jesus said to Thomas “Put your finger here and see my hands. Reach out and put it in my side. Believe and do not doubt.” (27)

When presented with the truth shown to him by Jesus himself, St. Thomas filled with the secure knowledge that his Lord and friend lives and is now found among them, he responds with his confession which echoes in all of time and eternity.

“And Thomas answered Jesus “My Lord and my God” (28)

We Have Seen the Lord

Recall, at the very onset of St. John’s account the risen Lord Jesus comes and stands among them and tells the assembled Disciples that he is come to them showing himself to be Resurrected and that he is placing upon them a Holy calling sending his empowered Disciples forth, and in so doing , he is calling them into participation into the calling which his Holy Father placed upon his divine Son, “as the Father has sent me so I send you”.

What is the very heart of message that we, like the Disciples, are sent forth to proclaim to all the world around us, for which our Lord has given to us? The answer is found in the report given to St. Thomas by the other Disciples.

What was the focus of the report to the absent St. Thomas when he rejoined the assembled Disciples at a later time? ....“We have seen the Lord”.

This is the very heart of the message, the good news, the Gospel which they shared with St. Thomas. This has been the message throughout the ages which the Disciples of Jesus are called to give to the hesitant world around us, that “we have seen the Lord”, maybe not with eyes of our sight but surely with the eyes of the Spirit and our hearts. This is the very same message which was given to St. Thomas and for which we are sent into the broader community of the world.

 Our risen Lord has “breathed on” us as he did the Disciples gathered in that Upper Room, giving us the Holy Spirit and Jesus then sends us forth into the ends of the Earth to tell others that Jesus is risen from the dead, “that we have seen the Lord” even if they, like St. Thomas initially is hesitant to believe it.

We, his Disciples, the followers of the Lord are each time we gather together or in our private times of worship and prayer, handling the risen Lord, touching his wounds. St. John was recalling the moments when our Lord had shown himself alive to his followers, when the aged Apostle wrote his fist General Epistle to Christians around 85 AD.

“What was from the beginning, what we have heard, what we have seen with our eyes, what we have looked at and touched with our hands concerning the Word of Life” 1Jhn:1:4

St. John then proceeds to tell us why and the other Apostles shared their experiences with the Resurrected Jesus through the Gospel message which they proclaimed over Earth and down through the centuries.

“and the life was manifested, and we have seen and testify and proclaim to you the eternal life, which was with the Father and was manifested to us-what we have seen, and heard we also proclaim to you also, so that you too may have fellowship with us; and indeed our fellowship is with the Father, and his Son Jesus Christ” (2-3)

 What St. John is telling all believers is, that he and the other Disciples “have seen the Lord” and they are telling us about it so that we might share in the experiences. That we will have fellowship, that is we like they, can look upon and handle the wounds and know that Jesus lives and is come from the dead.

That one who eternally stands before us is the one who laid within the tomb. That Jesus has “tasted death for all”, as Hebrews tells us.

My Lord and My God

We, the Disciples of the Lord, the Church are to continually come together where, our Lord is even now manifesting himself to us in the midst of the assembled Church. Jesus does this to give us ongoing confirmation that he is among us and that he lives.

This is so that when we assemble, we find our Lord always there among us declaring “Peace be with you”. We can be at peace because he lives, Jesus shows us his wounds which are the eternal evidence that Jesus is, as St. Paul would write.

Jesus “Is our Peace”. Eph: 2:14

And Jesus’ wounds which he holds forth for our inspection are that eternal evidences of this divine truth and reveal to us all for time and eternity that one very one who stands before us alive is the very same one who died and entered into death for us all.

It was his wounds offered to St. Thomas which proved to the hesitant Disciple that it was Jesus himself. St. Thomas wanted to believe, but he wanted his own experience with Jesus which our Lord graciously gave to him. This is an important lesson for all Disciples of the Lord, especially to those who are ordained to proclaim the Gospel to consider, that we, like  the Disciples who encountered Jesus among them and told absent St. Thomas about the encounter could not make St. Thomas believe the report, it would require Jesus himself to graciously show the hesitant in the world around us that he lives.

We can only speak about as St. John wrote: “what we have seen, and heard we also proclaim to you”, to the doubters in the world around us, but only the Lord Jesus can through the Holy Spirit show them his wounds and they believe and worship Jesus.

We are called and given the certainty that our Lord Jesus has been risen from the dead and sent forth into the world to proclaim to all the Holy truth that “we have seen the Lord” so that all might join in fellowship of the risen Lord and share is the confession of St. Thomas “My Lord and My God”.

This is a lesson of the Season of Easter that we are sent forth by our Lord to declare that he lives.

Benediction: May we each and all ever look upon the wounds of our Lord Jesus who shows himself alive risen from the dead, that we might forever declare that “we have seen the Lord” so that all around us might join in the confession of St. Thomas “My Lord and My God”, today, tomorrow and forevermore. Amen.



Rev. Todd Crouch, Pastor

Topinabee Community Church

Topinabee Michigan

If You Would Like to Know More About or to Support the Ministry of Topinabee Community Church You Can go to Our Web Site.

https://topinabeechurch.org/index.html

You Can Follow Topinabee Community Church on Face Book 

https://www.facebook.com/Topinabeecommunitychurch


                       “If Its Not About Jesus, Its Not About Anything!”  

Tuesday, March 28, 2023

John Chrysostom's Easter Sermon

 The Following is a Sermon Which had Been Written by John Chrysostom (347-407 AD), He had been the Archbishop of Constantinople. , was an important Early Church Leader. He is known for his preaching and public speaking.



Are there any who are devout lovers of God?

Let them enjoy this beautiful bright festival!

Are there any who are grateful servants?

Let them rejoice and enter into the joy of their Lord!

Are there any weary with fasting?

Let them now receive their wages!

If any have toiled from the first hour,

let them receive their due reward;

If any have come after the third hour,

let him with gratitude join in the Feast!

And he that arrived after the sixth hour,

let him not doubt; for he too shall sustain no loss.

And if any delayed until the ninth hour,

let him not hesitate; but let him come too.

And he who arrived only at the eleventh hour,

let him not be afraid by reason of his delay.

For the Lord is gracious and receives the last even as the first.

He gives rest to him that comes at the eleventh hour,

as well as to him that toiled from the first.

To this one He gives, and upon another He bestows.

He accepts the works as He greets the endeavor.

The deed He honors and the intention He commends.

Let us all enter into the joy of the Lord!

First and last alike receive your reward;

rich and poor, rejoice together!

Sober and slothful, celebrate the day!

You that have kept the fast, and you that have not,

rejoice today for the Table is richly laden!

Feast royally on it, the calf is a fatted one.

Let no one go away hungry. Partake, all, of the cup of faith.

Enjoy all the riches of His goodness!

Let no one grieve at his poverty,

for the universal kingdom has been revealed.

Let no one mourn that he has fallen again and again;

for forgiveness has risen from the grave.

Let no one fear death, for the Death of our Savior has set us free.

He has destroyed it by enduring it.

He destroyed Hell when He descended into it.

He put it into an uproar even as it tasted of His flesh.

Isaiah foretold this when he said,

“You, O Hell, have been troubled by encountering Him below.”

Hell was in an uproar because it was done away with.

It was in an uproar because it is mocked.

It was in an uproar, for it is destroyed.

It is in an uproar, for it is annihilated.

It is in an uproar, for it is now made captive.

Hell took a body, and discovered God.

It took earth, and encountered Heaven.

It took what it saw, and was overcome by what it did not see.

O death, where is thy sting?

O Hell, where is thy victory?

Christ is Risen, and you, o death, are annihilated!

Christ is Risen, and the evil ones are cast down!

Christ is Risen, and the angels rejoice!

Christ is Risen, and life is liberated!

Christ is Risen, and the tomb is emptied of its dead;

for Christ having risen from the dead,

is become the first-fruits of those who have fallen asleep.

To Him be Glory and Power forever and ever. Amen!



Rev. Todd Crouch, Pastor

Topinabee Community Church

Topinabee Michigan

If You Would Like to Know More About or to Support the Ministry of Topinabee Community Church You Can go to Our Web Site.

https://topinabeechurch.org/index.html

You Can Follow Topinabee Community Church on Face Book 

https://www.facebook.com/Topinabeecommunitychurch


                       “If Its Not About Jesus, Its Not About Anything!”  


Holy Week:The Triduum

  For Christians Holy Week is an important reminder of the work of salvation undertaken for each and all of us by and through our Lord Jesus...