“The Disciples
Were Overjoyed When They Saw the Lord”
In the Name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy
Spirit. Amen. Every year on the first Sunday after Easter, the Gospel Reading is the
story of doubting Thomas. From the preacher’s point of view, this is a
rich text with lots of possibilities for developing a sermon. You may have
heard many sermons on the different aspects of this text. First of all, there is doubting Thomas himself; how we, like doubting
Thomas, so often doubt the Lord. But, Jesus promises, “Blessed are those
who have not seen and yet have believed.” There are the wounds in Jesus’ hands and side, reminders of what he
endured for you, how he suffered and died to pay for your sins and earn your
salvation. There is Thomas’ confession of faith. When he stops doubting and
believes, he cries out: “My Lord and my God!” That is the most simple
Christian creed, the confession of faith Jesus desires from each one of us, to
acknowledge him as our Lord and our God. And, of course, there is Jesus giving to his followers the power to
actually forgive sins in his name: “He breathed on them and said, ‘Receive the
Holy Spirit. If you forgive anyone his sins, they are forgiven.’”
That is why the minister says in our worship services, “In the stead and by the
command of my Lord Jesus Christ I forgive you all your sins.” So many wonderful things to preach about! But, there is another
aspect of this text that is also very uplifting and very comforting, one
sentence in this text that we must not overlook: “The disciples were overjoyed
when they saw the Lord.” It had been only about 48 hours since their beloved Jesus had been
buried. You probably know from your own experience how it feels after the
death of a close loved one, especially those first few days. The Bible
records Jesus himself grieving over the death of a loved one. The shortest
verse in the Bible is just two words: “Jesus wept.” Jesus himself wept
with grief as he stood before the grave of his friend Lazarus. The
disciples were not only Jesus’ followers, they were also his friends, his loved
ones. Remember how it feels after the funeral? The disciples were
numb, numb with grief. “The disciples were overjoyed when they saw the Lord.” What a
precious sentence that is! Think of what a joy it was for the disciples:
seeing their Lord and Master, their dear friend Jesus, alive again! Think
of what a joy it will be for you when you see your loved ones again. Paul says in 1st Thessalonians, “We believe that Jesus died and rose
again and so we believe that God will bring with Jesus those who have fallen
asleep in him. . . And so we will be forever with the Lord. Therefore
comfort one another with these words.” I selected the words “Forever with
the Lord” to be engraved on my father’s tombstone. Your loved ones who
died in faith are asleep in Jesus. When you die, your spirit will depart
your body and you will immediately be with them, “Asleep in Jesus.” At the
Last Day, your body will be resurrected, restored, and reunited with your soul.
And so you shall be “Forever with the Lord.” What will heaven be like? The Bible describes heaven mostly in
terms of what it will not be like: no more pain, no more suffering, no more
sorrow of any kind. As the book of Revelation says, “He will wipe away
every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death, or mourning, or crying,
or pain, for the old order of things has passed away.” Death itself will
die; there will be no more mourning; never again will you have a loved one taken
from you. Will you know your loved ones in heaven? In 1st Corinthians, Paul
says that in heaven we shall “know fully, even as I am fully known.” Not
only will you know your loved ones, you will know everyone in heaven. When
Jesus was transfigured, the disciples recognized Moses and Elijah, though they
had never met them. In the same way, in heaven you will know and recognize
everyone, including your loved ones. Our resurrected bodies will be the same bodies we have now, but
glorified and transformed into perfect, heavenly bodies. As Paul says in
Philippians, “He will transform our lowly bodies so that they will be like his
glorious body.” We shall see the Lord face to face, and be filled with perfect
happiness, peace, joy, contentment. The heartaches and troubles of this
world will be completely forgotten. As Psalm 126 says, “Then will our
mouths be filled with laughter and our tongues with songs of joy.” And as
Isaiah says, “They will enter Zion with singing; everlasting joy will crown
their heads. Gladness and joy will overtake them, and sorrow and sighing
will flee away.” “The disciples were overjoyed when they saw the Lord.” Like the
disciples, who rejoiced to see their beloved Jesus alive again, you will know
the joy of being reunited in heaven with your loved ones who trusted in Jesus.
They are “Asleep in Jesus. . . Forever with the Lord.” Return to Top | Return to Sermons | Home | Email Church Office
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