“P EACE BE WITH YOU.” (“And also with you.”) Such a routine and rote call and response. Spoken without much thought or emotion. Often, we think of it as just another part of worship we plod through.
But here in our Luke reading, as well as our John reading last week, Jesus chooses these four words — “Peace be with you” — to greet the apostles. Maybe we’re missing something when we rush through this on Sundays. It’s easy to glide over this greeting.
But think: Of all the ways Jesus could have greeted the apostles, he chose “Peace be with you.”
† † †
WE WANT TO FOCUS on to more exciting things like ghosts, wounded hands, or eating fish. Remember, Jesus had just risen from the dead. You would think he’d say something far more important to mark this crucial moment. But he chose to offer this everyday greeting.
Let’s remember where we are. The disciples, the men anyway, are locked up in a room out of fear. The disciples are fearful that they are going to be next on the cross. They are also deeply grieving the loss — not only of their Rabbi, but of their fervent belief that he was the one — the Messiah.
In one horrible moment, they lost someone they loved, and they lost their faith. Their world is shattered. They are afraid and unsure of what to do or where to go.
† † †
DOES THAT RESONATE with any of you? I suspect that it does.
Anyone who has grieved the loss of someone they love, anyone who has felt isolated, anyone who has felt fearful, anyone filled with anxiety about what comes next, understands deeply what these followers of Jesus feel.
And if you do, then you know that one of the things these disciples need most is exactly what Jesus offers to them — peace.
† † †
FOR MULTIPLE REASONS, this week has been difficult for me. Personal things going on. Lots of happenings at church that draw my attention, pastoral care issues that greatly concern me, rain and rain and rain that is depressing.
I’ve just been out of whack all week. I’ve had trouble concentrating on any one thing because all manner of concerns are living in my head.
I need these words. I need to focus on these words. I need to hear these words:
“Peace be with you.”
† † †
“LONG AGO, a man sought the perfect picture of peace. Not finding one that satisfied, he announced a contest to produce this masterpiece. The challenge stirred the imagination of artists everywhere, and paintings arrived from far and wide.
“Finally, the great day of revelation arrived. The judges uncovered one peaceful scene after another, while the viewers clapped and cheered.
“One painting was uncovered and a hush fell over the crowd. A mirror-smooth lake reflected lacy, green birches under the soft blush of the evening sky. Along the grassy shore, a flock of sheep grazed undisturbed. Surely this was an image of peace. Surely this painting was the winner.
“The final painting was uncovered, and the crowd gasped in surprise. Could this be peace? A rumbling waterfall cascaded down a rocky cliff; the crowd could almost feel its cold, penetrating, spray. Storm clouds threatened to explode with lightning, wind and rain.
“But there, amidst the thundering noises, the bitter chill, the threatening sky, a spindly tree clung to the rocks at the edge of the waterfall. One branch reached out in front of the torrential waters.
“And there, in the elbow of that branch, was a bird’s nest. Content and undisturbed in her stormy surroundings, she rested on her eggs. With her eyes closed and her wings ready to cover her little ones, she manifests peace that transcends all earthly turmoil.”
† † †
THE PEACE that Jesus bestows on his disciples isn’t an end to conflict, turmoil, or fear in the world. Perhaps that is why it is important to note what Jesus looked like to them.
His resurrected body was not a restored body — all cleaned up without a blemish. No, it still bore the scars from his earthly life — the wounds of betrayal and pain were still there.
The gift Jesus is giving them is the gift of the bird in the tree — an inner peace that will be their rock in times of turmoil, their nest in the storms of the chaos in the world, not some sort of erasure of all of that has been, or might be, for them as they live out their call.
† † †
AND WE NEED that gift, too, don’t we, for we live in a world that is far from peaceful?
■ Jesus comes to us in our fear.
■ Jesus breathes love into our hearts
■ Jesus is the Word that brings us peace.
† † †
BEING A FOLLOWER of Jesus doesn’t mean we won’t have fear. It doesn’t mean we won’t grieve. It doesn’t mean our lives will be without pain, or the world without tumult.
It means that these things, when they happen, will not destroy us — not because we have some sort of rock-hard faith that defies doubt, but because by his resurrection we know that light overcomes darkness, life is stronger than death, and love always defeats hate.
And through that knowledge, we become like that bird in the nest above the rocky precipice — aware of it, understanding the danger, but not shaken by it.
Jesus said to them, and now to us:
“Peace be with you.”
