From Fear to Courage (20:19-25) - Part 2 of 2

From Fear to Courage (20:19-25)

Jesus, seeing that the disciples’ fear had changed to joy, commissioned them: “As My Father hath sent Me, even so send I you” (John 20:21). Now remember, not only the original disciples were in the room; others were there too, including the Emmaus disciples. This commission was not the "formal ordination" of a church order but the dedication of His followers to the task of world evangelism. We are to fill His place in the world (John 17:18). What a tremendous privilege and what a profound responsibility! It is humbling to know that Jesus loves us as the Father loves him (John 15:9; 17:26) and that we are in the Father as He is (John 17:21–22). It is just as humbling to know that He has sent us into the world as the Father sent Him. As He was about to ascend to heaven, He again reminded them of their commission to take the message to the whole world (Matt. 28:18–20).

It must have been a joy for the men to know their Lord was entrusting them with His Word and His work, despite their many failures. They had forsaken Him and fled, but now He was sending them out to represent Him. Peter had denied Him three times, and yet in a few days, Peter would preach the Word (and accuse the Jews of denying Him—Acts 3:13-14!), and thousands would be saved.

Jesus approached them and comforted them, but He also enabled them through the Holy Spirit. John 20:22 brings to mind Genesis 2:7, when God breathed life into the first man. The Hebrew and Greek words for “breath” are also words for "spirit." The breath of God in the first creation represented physical life, and the breath of Jesus Christ in the new creation represented spiritual life. The believers were to receive the Spirit’s baptism at Pentecost and be empowered for ministry (Acts 1:4-5; 2:1-4). Without the filling of the Spirit, they could not go out to testify with effectiveness. The Spirit had been with them in Christ but now would be in them (John 14:17).

John 20:23 is not to be understood as meaning that Jesus gave a select group of people the right to forgive sins and admit people into heaven. Jesus had said similar things before (Matt. 16:19), but He wasn’t dismissing the disciples (and their successors) as a “spiritual elite” to handle the sins of the world. Remember, the disciples weren’t alone in the room, and Thomas wasn’t there. The disciples did not offer forgiveness; they announced forgiveness on the basis of the gospel message. 
​
The early believers went out into the world preaching the good news of salvation. If sinners would repent and believe in Jesus Christ, their sins would be forgiven them! ‘Who can forgive sins but God?’ (Mark 2:7). The Christian can only proclaim the message of forgiveness; God performs the miracle of forgiveness. If sinners believe in Jesus Christ, we can tell them their sins are forgiven, but only God forgives sins.

Now they were not afraid any longer. They were confident that the Lord was alive and that He was looking after them. They had “peace with God” and “peace of God” (Phil. 4:6–7). They had a high and holy commission and the power given them to accomplish it. They had been given the high privilege of carrying the good news of forgiveness to the whole world. Now all they had to do was wait in Jerusalem until the Holy Spirit was given.