Re:Verse passage – John 20:19-23 (day three)
“Peace be with you.”
You might from time to time encounter a self-proclaimed “straight shooter” who will “tell it like it is.” That kind of bluster will ride roughshod over a person’s soul. Jesus, by contrast, used words not to establish a reputation, but to move in close to a person’s heart. Sometimes the person rejected that move. Other times, the person welcomed it. In either case, Jesus always spoke words that perfectly fit the circumstance. His words served people. This instance is no exception. A “straight shooter” would have shamed the disciples for their terror and scolded them for their confusion about resurrection. Jesus, deeply moved by their fear and pain, knew they needed peace, not a pep talk. Their courage to love the whole world arose from their experience of the one who spoke words of compassion into their weakness.
