John 20:19-31
19When 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."
20After he said this, he showed them his hands and his side. Then the disciples rejoiced when they saw the Lord. 21Jesus said to them again, "Peace be with you. As the Father has sent me, so I send you." 22When he had said this, he breathed on them and said to them, "Receive the Holy Spirit. 23If you forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven them; if you retain the sins of any, they are retained."
24But Thomas (who was called the Twin), one of the twelve, was not with them when Jesus came. 25So 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." 26A 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."
27Then 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." 28Thomas answered him, "My Lord and my God!" 29Jesus said to him, "Have you believed because you have seen me? Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have come to believe."
30Now Jesus did many other signs in the presence of his disciples, which are not written in this book. 31But 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.
This is the Word of the LORD
Thanks be to God
Acts 5:27-32
27When they had brought them, they had them stand before the council. The high priest questioned them, 28saying, “We gave you strict orders not to teach in this name, yet here you have filled Jerusalem with your teaching and you are determined to bring this man’s blood on us.” 29But Peter and the apostles answered, “We must obey God rather than any human authority. 30The God of our ancestors raised up Jesus, whom you had killed by hanging him on a tree.
31God exalted him at his right hand as Leader and savior that he might give repentance to Israel and forgiveness of sins. 32And we are witnesses to these things, and so is the Holy Spirit whom God had given to those who obey him.”
This is the Word of the LORD
Thanks be to God.
Last week, in our lives, we celebrated the Resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ. We kicked off our 50-day season of Easter with a packed worship service. Joy and praise and “Alleluia’s” perfumed the air like the lilies that adorned the chancel steps.
The day of resurrection for the disciples went a little differently. “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.’”
The disciples gathered together, just like we did. They gathered to worship, just like we did. They celebrated the resurrection, just like we did. But they were still consumed by fear of their fellow Jews, and of the Romans who executed Jesus. On the day of Christ’s resurrection, his disciples locked themselves away in their worship space out of fear of the human authority around them.
A quick trip around any news source will show you the violence of which human authorities are capable. And a close recollection of the lead up to Easter Sunday will delve into the violence and suffering the disciples witnessed up close. It’s no wonder that these followers gathered timidly behind locked doors. They had witnessed the Human Authorities execute the author of salvation, “whom” [they] had killed by hanging him on a tree.”
And yet, only a short time later, the author of Luke’s gospel reports the disciples teaching publicly and with a boldness that amazed the Lunch Bunch when we discussed it last Tuesday. How did we get from “the doors of the house where the disciples had met were locked for fear...” to “We must obey God rather than any human authority?“
Any time we read scripture, we’re stepping into a larger story. We are taught through God’s Word that we are part of God’s ongoing story, and that we may contribute a verse. Here in Acts 5, just a couple of months after locking themselves in because of their fear, the immediate story stretches beyond what we’ve read together. The apostles, no longer just followers but those who are sent out, are teaching in the name of Jesus. This causes some unrest. They are imprisoned by the human authorities, but an angel opens up the jail, lets them out, then closes the door behind them. They immediately start teaching again, and are hauled back in front of the temple officials. Which is where we meet them.
This is the same council that tried Jesus for blasphemy. These are the same officials who gave Jesus to the Roman empire to be executed for sedition. This scene of arrest for proclaiming the good news is familiar. “The same fearful, inept, conniving officialdom who conspired with the Romans to send Jesus to the cross is up to its own tricks again.” They are threatened by this new teaching, and are eager to silence it. “We gave you strict orders not to teach in this name, yet here you have filled Jerusalem with your teaching…” If you cannot keep silent on your own, Peter and company, we know how to silence you.
I get it, the priests just want to keep the peace. They are occupied, and haven’t forgotten how put down they are. They rightly foresee that their culture is at a boiling point, and anything could tip the balance towards rebellion against Rome, which can only end in disaster.
So for the sake of keeping the peace, for the sake of the nation, these apostles must be silent. There is also a hint of protection of their position in their statement as well. Temple worship thrived under Roman occupation. The apostles teachings about a Risen Lord who wasn’t stuck inside a temple challenge their privileged position, hence the charge against them, “and you are determined to bring this man’s blood on us.” They’re taking things personally, even as they try and play the political games. They’re managing the human authorities to protect the balance of society.
But Peter and the other apostles aren’t buying it. The big threat that was so scary on the day of the resurrection doesn’t have power over them anymore. They’ve seen their Risen Savior, and have received the Holy Spirit. What are they going to do? Kill them? They did that to Jesus and it still didn’t stop his ministry. So the council of the priests ordered us not to teach in this name? Guess what, we don’t work for you!
“Peter and the apostles answered, ‘We must obey God rather than any human authority.’”
“We must obey God rather than any human authority.”
There’s a statement of principle for you: If you have to choose between obeying God or obeying a human authority, obey God. “How does it sound in the ears of these religious officials to be reminded by this commoner that they are supposed to be obeying God also, rather than collaborating to keep a lid on the status quo in Jerusalem?” The priests have mistaken their service of God with their service of the temple, a building constructed on human authority. The disciples take a principled stand on obedience to God alone, even though it will mean consequences at the hands of the human authorities.
But ignoring God’s will to obey human authority isn’t limited to asking permission from the Emperor before constructing a temple. Any time God shakes things up, trying to maintain the “way we’ve always done things” is obeying human authority. Any time God moves forward, trying to get back to “the good old days” is obeying human authority. Any time God commands unearned generosity and love to others, trying to close ourselves off for self-protection is obeying human authority. Any time God shows special consideration for the poor and the oppressed, trying to defer to the wealthy and powerful is obeying human authority. Any time God is for us, trying to identify ourselves by what we’re against is obeying human authority. Any time God crosses boundaries, trying to identify one political party as God’s chosen is obeying human authority.
Look, I’m not indifferent to the importance of human authority. There are plenty of passages of scripture that teach us that there isn’t any authority unless it comes from God, and the authorities that are there have been put in place by God. God has worked through governments and other human authorities for the whole of human history. WE even have a symbol of human authority decorating our worship space. Obeying God usually means respecting human authorities, but not always. Humans can be tempted away from God’s commands. When the human authorities tell us to be silent and the Holy Spirit tells us to teach in Christ’s name, “Peter and the apostles answered, ‘We must obey God rather than any human authority.’”
It takes an especially bold faith to preach the gospel at your trial for teaching in Christ’s name. “The God of our ancestors raised up Jesus, whom you had killed by hanging him on a tree. God exalted him at his right hand as Leader and savior that he might give repentance to Israel and forgiveness of sins. And we are witnesses to these things, and so is the Holy Spirit whom God had given to those who obey him.” They’re so committed to obedience to God that they disobey the human authorities to their face.
And they’re flogged for it.
That’s the rest of the ongoing story. Each apostle received 39 lashes for their obedience to God. There’s no parade, no opinion piece in the newspaper talking about how faithful they were. They are beaten, almost to death, and then released.
And yet, they rejoice in their suffering, because it more closely follows the pattern of Christ’s life, death, and resurrection. Obeying God rather than human authorities doesn’t protect us from harm, remember Jesus was executed in the most horrific way imagined at the time. Instead, obeying God rather than human authorities brings us closer to Jesus.
Jesus identified himself to his disciples by his wounds, and then immediately sent them out to proclaim the good news of his resurrection. “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.”
And we are witnesses to these things, and so is the Holy Spirit whom God had given to those who obey him.”
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