John 20,19-31. The 1. Sunday after Easter

+ Jesus Christ, the Son of God +

John 20,19-31

Quasimodogeniti (1. Sonntag nach Ostern)  036  weiß
Philip and James, Apostles, Martyrs in Hierapolis, Turkey 80 and in Jerusalem 66
Walburgis, Virgin, Abbess, † 779
1. May 2011

            1. O Lord Jesus Christ, eight days after Your resurrection, You had to give Thomas convincing proof that You were indeed alive and well. In our day, we have many unbelievers who refuse to believe the testimony of Your holy people. Many unbelievers focus only on their senses or their experiences, all of which do not know of resurrection from the dead. Indeed, Your resurrection is a miraculous in-breaking of Divine power into this natural world and its Divinely ordered ways of operation. To convince us of the reality of Your resurrection, You have given us the twenty-seven books of the New Testament Scriptures that testify to Your resurrection, and in addition to that testimony You have preserved other secular historical accounts that likewise affirm the witness of Holy Scripture. Help us, O Holy Spirit, to use convincing words when we speak to other people about Christ and His resurrection, so that they may hear the gospel and believe unto salvation.  Amen.
            2. Our sermon text for this morning, dear brothers and sisters, is from the Gospel according to John where the holy evangelist and apostle writes: ¹⁹On the evening of that day, the first day of the week, the doors being locked where the disciples were for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood among them and said to them, „Peace be with you.“ ²⁰When He had said this, He showed them His hands and His side. Then the disciples were glad when they saw the Lord. ²¹Jesus said to them again, „Peace be with you. As the Father has sent Me, even so I am sending you.“ ²²And when He had said this, He breathed on them and said to them, „Receive the Holy Spirit. ²³If you forgive the sins of anyone, they are forgiven; if you withhold forgiveness from anyone, it is withheld.“ ²⁴Now Thomas, one of the Twelve, called the Twin, was not with them when Jesus arrived. ²⁵So the other disciples told him, „We have seen the Lord.“ But he said to them, „Unless I see in His hands the mark of the nails, and place my finger into the mark of the nails, and place my hand into His side, I will never believe.“ ²⁶Eight days later, His disciples were inside again, and Thomas was with them. Although the doors were locked, Jesus arrived and stood among them and said, „Peace be with you.“ ²⁷Then He said to Thomas, „Put your finger here, and see My hands; and put out your hand, and place it in My side. Do not disbelieve, 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 believed.“ ³⁰Now Jesus did many other signs in the presence of the disciples, which are not written in this book; ³¹but these are written so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in His Name.  This is our text.
            3. As we are twenty centuries removed from Christ’s resurrection, we tend to take for granted the historical evidence that attests to the empty tomb. Faith in Jesus’ resurrection is based on Holy Scripture. Historical evidence, furthermore, supports the biblical and apostolic claims of Jesus’ resurrection. More information has survived about Jesus Christ than almost any other person who has lived.
            4. The secondary evidence comes from other, non-Biblical letters and historical writings.  The earliest Jewish arguments against Christianity admit the empty tomb. The Toledoth Jesus, a 5. century compilation of early Jewish writings, acknowledges this historical fact. The tomb was discovered empty by women. The testimony of women in 1. century Jewish culture was considered worthless. If the empty tomb story were a legend, then it is most likely that the male disciples would have been made the first to discover the empty tomb. Cornelius Tacitus, a Roman historian in the early 2. century A.D., writes, „Christus, from whom the name had its origin, suffered the extreme penalty during the reign of Tiberius at the hands of one of our procurators, Pontius Pilatus, and a most mischievous superstition, thus checked for the moment, again broke out not only in Judaea, the first source of the evil, but even in Rome, where all things hideous and shameful from every part of the world find their centre and become popular“ (Annals 15.44).
            6. Flavius Josephus (A.D. 37-97), court historian for Emperor Vespasian wrote: „Now there was about this time Jesus, a wise man, if it be lawful to call Him a man, for he was a doer of wonderful works – a teacher of such men as receive the truth with pleasure. He drew over to him both many of the Jews, and many of the Gentiles. He was [the] Christ; and when Pilate, at the suggestion of the principal men among us, had condemned him to the cross, those that loved him at the first did not forsake him, for he appeared to them alive again the third day, as the divine prophets had foretold these and ten thousand other wonderful things concerning him; and the tribe of Christians, so named from him, are not extinct at this day“ (Josephus 480 §63-64).
            7. Over thirty-nine extra-biblical sources attest to more than one hundred facts regarding the life and teachings of Jesus (reclaimingthemind.org). There are numerous first and second-century extra-biblical writings that witness to the fact that Christians believed that Christ did extraordinary things, died on a cross, and rose from the grave, including: Josephus, Clement, Papias, the Didache, Barnabas, Justin Martyr, Ignatius, Irenaeus, Hermas, Tatian, Theophilus, Athenagoras, Clement of Alexandria, (reclaimingthemind.org) the Talmud, Plinius Secoundus, Gaius Seutonius Tranquillas, and Lucian. The Jewish and Roman sources admit that Jesus’ tomb was empty.
            8. The primary evidence is listed by the Holy Gospels and the Apostle Paul. The Gospels proclaim that Mary Magdalene, the women, and even Peter and John saw the empty tomb. Furthermore, Mary Magdalene saw and held the risen Jesus. The Apostle Paul later wrote: »For I delivered to you as of first importance what I also received: that Christ died for our sins in accordance with the Scriptures, that He was buried, that He was raised on the third day in accordance with the Scriptures, and that He appeared to Peter, then to the apostles. Then He  appeared to more than five hundred Christians at one time. Then he appeared to James, the brother of Jesus, then to all the apostles. Last of all, as to one untimely born, he appeared also to me, Paul« (1 Corinthians 15,3-8).
            9. The Apostle John says that he wrote his Gospel on account of the signs Jesus performed so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in His Name (20,30-31). The greatest sign Jesus performed was rising from the dead. The evidence for this great sign of the resurrection is Jesus’ many appearances to His disciples and also unbelievers during a forty-day period of time.
            10. Our Lord’s resurrection created faith in James the brother of Jesus and Paul of Tarsus, both enemies of Jesus and the gospel before Jesus appeared to them. James became the first Bishop of Jerusalem, wrote the New Testament epistle that bears his name, and he was later martyred at Jerusalem in A.D. 62. Paul became the apostle to the Gentiles, was an evangelical missionary who traversed the Roman Empire four times, was a prolific writer who penned 13 of the 27 New Testament books of the Bible, and his traveling companion Luke wrote the Gospel that bears his name and the Book of Acts. In A.D. 68 Paul was beheaded at Rome under Emperor Nero’s order.
            11. Our Lord’s resurrection strengthened faith in His apostles and emboldened them to preach Christ crucified and risen for the forgiveness of sins. Peter was an apostle to the Jews, the author of two New Testament epistles, and eventually preached in Rome; Mark wrote the Gospel that bears his name based on Peter’s sermons. In A.D. 68 Peter was crucified under Emperor Nero’s order. Andrew was severely whipped and tied by ropes on an x-shaped cross where he hung 2 days to expire in Edessa or Patras, Greece, in the mid to late first century. James bar-Zebedee was the first apostle to be martyred when King Herod ordered him beheaded with a sword at Jerusalem in A.D. 44 (Acts 12,1-2). Philip was crucified at Hierapolis, Turkey in A.D. 80. Nathanael/Bartholomew was beaten, flayed, and crucified head down in Albania, Armenia, India, or Persia in the 1^st century. Thomas, who first did not believe but a week later did believe that Jesus rose from the tomb, preached the gospel in southern India. Indian Christians from the west coast Kerala area claim they were evangelized by Thomas. Later he was speared to death near Madras, India on the east coast in A.D. 72. Matthew wrote the Gospel that bears his name; he was axed to death with a halberd in Nadabah, Ethiopia in A.D. 60. James Alphaeus was thrown down from the temple and clubbed to death with a fullers club at age 94 at Jerusalem in A.D. 66. Jude/Thaddaeus was crucified in Edessa, Greece or Persia in A.D. 72. Simon the Cananaean was crucified in Brittainnia, Europe. Matthias was stoned and then beheaded at Jerusalem in A.D. 80.
            9. John bar-Zebedee wrote the Gospel that bears his name, the book of Revelation, and three New Testament epistles. He miraculously survived being boiled with oil before the Latin Gate at Rome in A.D. 95 and was summarily exiled to the Turkish island of Patmos for a couple of years. He died of natural causes in Ephesus, Turkey in 98 or 100; he was the last of the original apostles to enter Paradise. Important Early Church disciples of John the Apostle were Ignatius, Bishop of Antioch, Turkey (Martyr 108), Polycarp, Bishop of Smyrna, Turkey (Martyr 155), and Irenaeus, Bishop of Lyon, France (Martyr 202) who was a disciple of Polycarp. 
            10. The resurrection of Jesus nurtured and fueled faith that Jesus indeed is the crucified and risen Christ. A week after the resurrection, „In Jesus, God had connected Thomas to Himself. That connection we call faith“ (Nagel 123). Jesus did many signs which were written in the Gospels so that you may come to believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that through believing you may have life in His name (20,30-31). The Gospels were written so that we may have faith. The apostles went forth throughout the world proclaiming the empty tomb of Easter Sunday so that people may have faith. This faith is faith in Jesus Christ who was crucified for us and our sins and risen on the third day in victory over hell, death, and the grave. The 27 books of the New Testament bear eyewitness testimony to the risen Jesus. He was not a ghost or a spirit, but a real flesh and blood body risen from the dead. The historical records admit that the tomb was empty on Easter morning. We believe what the apostles taught and passed down: that Jesus rose from the dead. In turn, we pass this gospel on to the succeeding generation of Christians. Christ is risen! He is risen indeed. Faith believes it, and the historical records attest to its truth. „With everything—work, play, sleep, food, family, tears, laughter—with everything connected to Christ, not seen yet believed, you live solidly, happily, with that indestructible peace that the risen Lord gave His disciples, a peace that held through pain and persecution, gave courage to live and die for Christ, and put a song in their hearts and on their lips even when in prison. Easter declares that it works, that that is the way life and victory lie, for that is the way connected with the living and victorious Lord. That is the life of faith“ (Nagel 125).
            11. You may have doubts – Ihr dürft zweifeln (Martens) – like Thomas once did. Thomas saw the risen Jesus in all His physical glory, and He believed! You may touch – Ihr dürft berühren (Martens). Today, in the Sacrament of the Lord’s Supper you will receive the real and present body and blood of Jesus Christ in the bread and the wine. Like Thomas, you will touch the body of Jesus, and in receiving this Holy Sacrament the Holy Spirit will strengthen your faith in the risen Jesus. Yes, you shall believe – Ihr dürft glauben (Martens)! Jesus has appeased God the Father through His sacrifice on the cross; Jesus has atoned for our sins by sacrificing Himself on our behalf. This crucified Jesus is risen from the dead, and He is Lord. Believe as Thomas believes. Christ is our eternal life and our salvation from sin, doubt, and unbelief. And thus, we confess along with Thomas, »My Lord and my God!«   Amen.
            12. Let us pray. O Lord Jesus Christ, You have done great things for us, and we are glad. You are risen, You are risen indeed. We have heard the gospel of Your resurrection, and we believe, even though we have not seen You with our very eyes. Keep us grounded in this saving faith when the world and our sinful flesh seek to draw us back to the darkness and misery of unbelief, so that we may soar high in the heavens certain and overjoyed at Your resurrection and its power in our lives, namely, that as You are risen and live forever, so too will we.  Amen.

Christus ist auferstanden! Er ist wahrhaftig auferstanden.

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                All Scriptural quotations are translations done by The Rev. Peter A. Bauernfeind using the Biblia Hebraica Stuttgartensia, 4^th Edition © 1990 by the Deutsche Bibelgesellschaft, Stuttgart, the Novum Testamentum Graece, Nestle-Aland 27^th Edition © 1993 by Deutsch Bibelgesellschaft, Stuttgart, and the New Testament Greek Manuscripts, John © 1995 by Reuben Joseph Swanson. 
                http://issuesetcarchive.org/issues_site/resource/archives/maier4.htm
                http://www.mtio.com/articles/bissar24.htm (maier re. Josephus)
                http://en.wikisource.org/wiki/The_Annals_(Tacitus)/Book_15#44. Translation based on Alfred John Church and William Jackson Brodribb (1876).
                http://www.reclaimingthemind.org/blog/2010/04/evidence-for-the-resurrection-part-2-external-evidence/
                Josephus, Flavius. The Works of Josephus. William Whiston, Tr. Copyright © 1987 Hendrickson Publishers, Inc.       
                Martens, Gottfried. A sermon preached on 23. April 2006 (Quasimodogeniti Sunday) on John 20,24-29. Copyright © 2006 The Rev. Dr. Gottfried Martens. Translation © 2009 The Rev. Peter A. Bauernfeind.
                Nagel, Norman. Selected Sermons of Norman Nagel: From Valparaiso to St. Louis. Frederick W. Baue, Ed. Copyright © 2004 Concordia Publishing House.