“HIDE AND SEEK”

JOHN 20:19-30

19  When it was evening on that day, the first day of the week, and the doors of the house where the disciples had met were locked for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood among them and said, "Peace be with you."

20  After he said this, he showed them his hands and his side. Then the disciples rejoiced when they saw the Lord.

21  Jesus said to them again, "Peace be with you. As the Father has sent me, so I send you."

22  When he had said this, he breathed on them and said to them, "Receive the Holy Spirit.

23  If you forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven them; if you retain the sins of any, they are retained."

24  But Thomas (who was called the Twin), one of the twelve, was not with them when Jesus came.

25  So the other disciples told him, "We have seen the Lord." But he said to them, "Unless I see the mark of the nails in his hands, and put my finger in the mark of the nails and my hand in his side, I will not believe."

26  A week later his disciples were again in the house, and Thomas was with them. Although the doors were shut, Jesus came and stood among them and said, "Peace be with you."

27  Then he said to Thomas, "Put your finger here and see my hands. Reach out your hand and put it in my side. Do not doubt but believe."

28  Thomas answered him, "My Lord and my God!"

29  Jesus said to him, "Have you believed because you have seen me? Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have come to believe."

30  Now Jesus did many other signs in the presence of his disciples, which are not written in this book.

I think that it is safe to say that most, if not all of us, have played a game or two of hide and seek. I know that it was one of my favorite games to play as a kid and I don’t mind saying that I was really good at the hiding part. Growing up, there was, what at the times, seemed like a small forest next to our house where we used to play. Someone was made the seeker and the rest of us would scatter and hide as the person counted to ten. The fist person found would be the seeker for the next round. It is interesting to look back and remember that everyone wanted to hide and no one wanted to seek. I remember one time burying myself in leaves and brush so well that everyone gave up and left me behind! I used to love playing hide and seek in the house as well. My parents live in a ranch so the hiding places were limited but one day I found a great spot. It was located in a storage area under the stairs. It had a door to go into the storage area and then another small door that went into the crawl space. I loved that spot. Not only did I use it for hide and seek but I would go there and hide when I needed to get away from the world. When I was feeling overwhelmed I would crawl in there with my flashlight and shut the door, entering into my own little world.     

And that is exactly where we find the disciples this morning. Hiding, hiding behind a lock door with the real world outside. Why were they hiding? They were hiding because they were afraid. Jesus had just been arrested and crucified by the authorities and they were afraid that they were next. Now the biblical text does not tell us where they were hiding but it is probably safe to say that it was in the same room that they had celebrated the Last Supper with Jesus. This was the last place that they were together and would have been the most familiar to them. When the authorities came for Jesus they fled and returned to a place that they felt was safe, a place that was familiar. The place where Jesus had recently affirmed them and their ministry. The place where Jesus broke bread with them, washed their feet and called them his friends. They felt safe there, isolated from the world that was crumbling around them.

Sometimes we find ourselves wanting to hide don’t we?  Like when we were children, it is easier to hide than seek. Some of the players have changed but the game is the same. So what kind of things do we hide from? We may hide ourselves from other people, not letting them know who we truly are because we are afraid of being judged. We may be afraid to share of ourselves because we are afraid that if we do we may be hurt in some way. We hide and avoid reaching out to others in need because doing so will force us to face our own vulnerability. Or maybe there is an area in our life that we are unhappy with and that we want to change. Because we are afraid of change we build a wall of reasons why we can’t and hide behind them. No matter what it is, there are times that we find ourselves in the same situation the disciples were in, hiding behind locked doors.

The disciples thought they were safe. They couldn’t see the outside world and the world couldn’t see them. That is until Jesus showed up! I wonder what that must have been like? The only thing I can compare it to is this. Have you ever been in a situation where you were working or were focused on something, off in your own little world when bam, someone shows up out of no where. Now imagine that magnified a hundred fold because the person you are seeing is Jesus. Jesus who was just crucified and buried. That would be enough to stir anyone.

The disciples were afraid, and hiding but death and locked doors could not keep Jesus away. And how does Jesus greet his disciples who had abandoned him? He greets them by saying “Peace be with you.” Now the word peace in Hebrew means Shalom. Shalom means more than peace. What Jesus was doing was wishing them completeness, wholeness and well being. After greeting them twice Jesus turns the hiders into seekers. He says, “As the Father has sent me, so I send you.” Jesus did not condemn the disciples for hiding but he made it clear that he wanted them to stop hiding and be seekers.

Jesus was a seeker. And just as he was seeking the disciples that day he seeks us. He seeks to be in our hearts, and to greet us as he greeted the disciples, “Peace be with you.”  No matter how often we turn our back on God, how often we fail, or abandon God, God seeks us. What doors are you hiding behind in your life? And what would it feel like to recognize God in that place, accepting the greeting, “Peace be with you.” If you haven’t thought about it before, just imagine how powerful that would be and how it could transform your life.

But it clearly cannot end there, for Jesus also says, “As the Father has sent me, so I now send you.” Where are we being sent to? To seek out one another. To find our brothers and sisters that are hiding and are in need of being found. Those of us that are hiding in fear because they are oppressed, battered, hungry and poor. God wants us to seek our brothers and sisters out and to greet them in peace. Not only greet them in peace but to help bring them peace.

In her Book Broken Yet Beloved, Sharon Thornton tells a wonderful story about Reverend Glenda Hope who was a Pastor in San Francisco. She had established a group of small make shift churches around the city. They would be in hotels and other buildings and they would meet there weekly to read the bible and pray. One day, Reverend Hope was walking she walked past Mary who was standing on the street corner cursing and condemning the four corners of the world.  Mary was, quote “crazy”. While everyone else passed Mary by, Rev Hope stopped and asked if Mary would like to come to one of the church services she was having. Mary followed her, the whole time mumbling and cursing. They reached the hotel and sat at the table with the others. Then something incredible happened. When the words, “Let us pray” were said Mary stopped. She stopped her mumbling and her cursing. At the end of the meeting she led the group in a powerful and meaningful prayer. When the service was over she left and began her mumbling and ranting as soon as she hit the street corner. Mary would return to the prayer group and over time she would go on to lead a march at city hall which called for better care for the homeless. So what happened to Mary? What caused the change? Society wanted to hide Mary and to hide themselves from Mary. As a result Mary hid, until she was found. Being found by that one person changed Mary’s life which caused a chain reaction leading to her eventually seeking to help others who were homeless and hidden.

As we journey through life there are going to be times that we want to retreat and hide. There are going to be times that we build walls around us so that others cannot get in. That is all but one. For no matter where we hide God will seek us out. When we least expect it God will appear out of nowhere and greet us in Peace, Shalom. And when that happens, when you are startled and stirred, tag you’re it, you are now the seeker. Do not be afraid, as the Father sent Jesus so he sends us to seek and help others that are hidden.

Amen

Michael Gelsomini

March 30, 2008