Alleluia! Christ is risen!
So… now what?
The truth is, the disciples themselves weren’t sure what to do after they had received the news that Christ was alive again. Mary Magdalene, after seeing Jesus alive in the garden in John’s gospel, goes to the disciples and tells them, “I have seen the Lord!”, and next thing we know, the disciples are all hiding in a room together in Jerusalem. The good news of Christ’s resurrection doesn’t lead to immediate action on their part. It’s not like they heard the good news, and suddenly they were out on the streets proclaiming it to all whom they encountered. True, we have the account from the book of Acts we heard today where Peter and some other disciples were brought before the religious courts because they were proclaiming Jesus crucified and risen, but this occurred months after Jesus rose from the grave. Their instant reaction to hearing this amazing news isn’t quite as amazing as the news itself.
And yet, even though the disciples aren’t sure what to be doing on that first Easter day, the good news comes to them – first in Mary’s report from the garden, and then in Jesus himself coming to be among the disciples. Even though they’ve locked the room they’re in, Jesus comes to be among them. And Jesus breathes on them and bestows on them all the Holy Spirit. And even though Thomas is not among them, I’m sure if we’d heard this text for the first time this morning, we probably would be thinking to ourselves, “Okay, Jesus said it’s ‘go time,’ so time for the disciples to get to work!” But that isn’t quite how things go down. The disciples have answered the question of “now what?” with a resounding shrug. Apparently “now what?” means wait a little longer. And it may be because Thomas isn’t with them that they delay on any action. Perhaps it’s because their community isn’t complete until they are of one mind, and Thomas wasn’t convinced yet.
Maybe their lack of movement is partially because besides Peter, Thomas was one of the disciples who had the most willingness to be in the thick of things in John’s gospel. Maybe Thomas was in fact the one who pushed the disciples forward from time to time.
And so even though this Sunday we often think of Thomas as the “doubting disciple,” I wonder whether Thomas may have also been the “decisive disciple.” He is the one who – when Jesus is going to Bethany to raise Lazarus from the dead, despite threats of assassination at the hands of religious elites – challenges the fellow disciples, “Let us also go and die with him.” Thomas is the one whose proclamation after witnessing the resurrected Jesus is most well remembered, outside of perhaps Mary Magdalene, when he exclaims, “my Lord and my God!” And I believe this confession of Jesus’ presence among the disciples is in fact the beginning of the “now what?” that we’ve asked ourselves about today.
Because in the midst of uncertainty, we now know. In the midst of fear, we now have assurance. In the midst of confusion, we now have the Holy Spirit to guide our words and actions. And when we have these things, we know we can respond with boldness to Christ’s risen presence in the world. So now what? Now we tell the story. Now what? Now we proclaim the good news – alleluia! Christ is risen!
But simply shouting it in a worship service and a livestream isn’t quite what the Holy Spirit asks of us, is it? Now – much like the disciples – there is a call to get out of our locked room and out into the world proclaiming the miracle of grace found in the resurrection. And the way we go out in the world to proclaim God’s grace really doesn’t look that different than it did two thousand years ago. Because those first apostles who proclaimed Jesus’ resurrection? They used their words to proclaim the good news, yes, but they also built up their communities. They practiced the grace and generosity of God manifest in acts of love and service. And I think our mandate to love one another is a prime way we can respond with obedience to proclaim God’s love for all of us.
So what is the “now what?” for today? I think the now what is proclaim Christ’s love through how we serve one another and act with love and care for all God’s children. The
“now what?” that we proclaim? It’s the Holy Spirit guiding us in mission for the sake of a world in need. The “now what?” it sometimes looks like the proclamation of Thomas that leads to action in our world that has forgotten that true, self-sacrificing love looks like a wounded side and nail scarred hands. We proclaim Christ crucified and risen this day not just in words but also in our deeds of love and grace. When we feed the hungry through I-Help or Feed My Starving Children or pancakes at Grace, we proclaim our trust in a risen Christ who has already promised us victory over the grave. When we build homes with Habitat for Humanity, we tell the world that the Holy Spirit has made Christ’s home in our hearts. When we raise funds for water to be distributed among the thirsty poor of Phoenix this Summer, we point to the wellspring of life. And when we offer encouraging words to youth at a local elementary school, we reveal to them that God values and loves them, even if they are in the midst of uncertainty in their own ways.
So this day, as we proclaim the Lord’s resurrection, I ask you, where do you feel the Spirit calling you to live into the obedience of God’s love in this world? Where are you being called to use God’s calling to proclaim with shouts of alleluia that – alleluia! Christ is risen!
May the Holy Spirit so stir in you this amazing news, so that your response may be to live into acts of obedience and love, through which we all find and celebrate the risen Christ once again, who comes and dwells among us until the end of the age.