The arrest and the death of the
Lord were, for the disciples who had lived with Him for three
and a half years, a great discouragement. When Jesus was arrested, we see
that these men were very disappointed. In fact, they all fled, except
Peter and John. who came with him to the priesthood. And there, the Gospel tells us
that even Peter denied him. Then after, at the cross of the
Lord, we see that John was alone. The others, including Peter,
had fled. Then after, we see that two disciples,
very sad, went on the path that led from
Jerusalem to Emmaus. Further on, we see that ten disciples
met in a room where the doors and windows were well closed
because of the fear that they had of the Jews. But later, in
the Acts of the Apostles, we see these men completely transformed,
so that Peter and John, was not afraid to heal a man
in front of the door, called the Bell, of the Temple of Jerusalem. And he was not afraid to do it
in the name of Jesus of Nazareth. And yet, on the day of Pentecost,
Peter was not afraid to stand before this great, immense crowd
of thousands of people to preach that Jesus, whom they had crucified,
was in reality the Messiah. And then, in the Acts of the
Apostles, everywhere we see that these men were completely transformed. They were no longer fearful and
discouraged men. They were courageous men who
clearly and without equivocation announced that Jesus was the
Son of God, the Messiah. So, what was the reason for the
transformation of these men? I think it is found in the Gospel
of John, to chapter 20, starting from verse 19. The evening of
that day, which was the first of the week, we read, the doors
of the place where I found the disciples being closed, because
of the fear that they had of the Jews, Jesus came, presented
himself among them, and said to them, Peace be with you. And
when he said this to them, he showed them his hands and his
side. The disciples were in joy when they saw the Lord. Jesus
said to them again, Peace be with you, as the Father has sent
me, I also send you. After these words, he blew on
them and said to them, Receive the Holy Spirit. Those to whom
you will forgive sins, they will be forgiven, and those to whom
you will hold them, they will be held. Fearful men, became brave men because they
had met the living Christ. Note the transformation in the
disciples. In verse 19 of the passage that
we have read, we see that the sight of the risen Lord banishes
fear. We read that they were in this
room, well closed, because of the fear that they had of the
Jews. But this fear left afterwards. When Peter got up on the day
of Pentecost to preach before this crowd gathered in Jerusalem,
he had no more fear, he had no more fear. He announced without
fear, without fear, that Jesus was the Messiah, the Son of God.
What had changed him in this way? It was the certainty that
Christ had been resurrected from the dead, that he was alive. So, my friends, I think that
this same knowledge will transform us as well. The Lord Jesus is
not dead. The Lord Jesus is risen. He ascended to heaven. He is
seated at the right hand of God, the Almighty Father. And this knowledge must make
us men and women courageous in the world. It is true that we
can have reasons today to be fearful. But to know that Christ is risen,
to know that Christ reigns in the world, must banish our fear
and make us courageous men, as was the case for the first disciples. Do not forget that the Lord Jesus
reigns in this moment. It is true that the devil has
some power, but the power of the devil is limited. He can
only go as far as God allows him. He is like a chained animal. He can go to the limit of his
chain, but not more than that. And one day, God will manifest
Himself as a victor, once and for all, over the devil. The
knowledge that Jesus was indeed resurrected was a source of joy
for the disciples. We read this in verse 20. The disciples were in joy, by
seeing the Lord. We live in a world of sin, a
world where sadness and grief abound, and it is normal that
from time to time we are sad. This was the case for the Lord
himself. We read, for example, that before
the tomb of Lazarus he was crying. But the knowledge that Christ
is truly resurrected, that takes care of us, even in our sadness,
is for the children of God a source of joy in sadness. This does
not remove sadness, it does not remove our tears, but it still
gives us a certain joy in sadness. To know that God is sovereign
in everything, that nothing happens to us that God is not allowed
to do. This is why we can strengthen
ourselves by rereading Romans 8, verse 28, where it is said,
Everything concurs with the good of those who love God, of those
who are called according to His will. Everything concurs with
their good, the good with the bad. The vision of the risen
Lord is the beginning of great blessing. In verses 22 and 23
we read, After these words, he blew on
them and said to them, Receive the Holy Spirit. Those to whom
you will forgive sins, they will be forgiven, and those to whom
you will hold them, they will be held. These disciples were
sent as ambassadors of Christ in the world. Yes, it was indeed
the beginning of great blessings, of problems, yes! of suffering,
yes, but also of blessing. We will have problems and difficulties
in the world, but we will also have great blessings if we are
faithful servants of Jesus Christ. It is a privilege and a blessing. to be ambassadors, messengers
of Christ in the world. It is a privilege because of
the One we represent, God Himself. We are ambassadors of God. It is a privilege because of
the message we have brought, a message of liberation, a message
of forgiveness, a message of peace for a lost world. And it
is a privilege because of the need of men, because the men
to whom we address need this message. They are sinners on
the path to perdition, and we have the only message that can
lead them to Jesus Christ. So, today, I announce to you
this same message. You who are in sadness, in grief,
you who are trying to fight alone in this world, know that Jesus
is resurrected. Know that Jesus is the Son of
God, and that his death erases the sins of men. Know that if
you come to Him in repentance and faith, He will transform
you as He transformed His disciples. He will give you a new joy. He
will give you a new purpose in life. Oh, you may be troubled
and sad like the disciples, but once you have met the Lord, your
sadness will take on another dimension, for you will not be
alone, and you will be aware of it. We are always very happy
to receive letters from our listeners. If you have a problem, or if
you think that we can help you, write to us and we will be very
happy to answer you. Here is the address to which
you must write. Echo of Truth Postal Box 505
71322 Chalon sur Saône, ça s'écrit
C-H-A-L-O-N, France. Je vous répète cette adresse.
Echos de la vérité, boîte postale 505-71322, Chalon sur Saône,
France. O Canada, we stand on guard for
thee O Canada, we stand on guard for thee foreign