David Bahn – Reflections

As they were talking about these things, Jesus himself stood among them, and said to them, “Peace to you!” ³⁷ But they were startled and frightened and thought they saw a spirit. ³⁸ And he said to them, “Why are you troubled, and why do doubts arise in your hearts? ³⁹ See my hands and my feet, that it is I myself. Touch me, and see. For a spirit does not have flesh and bones as you see that I have.” ⁴⁰ And when he had said this, he showed them his hands and his feet. ⁴¹ And while they still disbelieved for joy and were marveling, he said to them, “Have you anything here to eat?” ⁴² They gave him a piece of broiled fish, ⁴³ and he took it and ate before them.

⁴⁴ Then he said to them, “These are my words that I spoke to you while I was still with you, that everything written about me in the Law of Moses and the Prophets and the Psalms must be fulfilled.” ⁴⁵ Then he opened their minds to understand the Scriptures, ⁴⁶ and said to them, “Thus it is written, that the Christ should suffer and on the third day rise from the dead, ⁴⁷ and that repentance for the forgiveness of sins should be proclaimed in his name to all nations, beginning from Jerusalem. ⁴⁸ You are witnesses of these things. ⁴⁹ And behold, I am sending the promise of my Father upon you. But stay in the city until you are clothed with power from on high.”

⁵⁰ And he led them out as far as Bethany, and lifting up his hands he blessed them. ⁵¹ While he blessed them, he parted from them and was carried up into heaven. ⁵² And they worshiped him and returned to Jerusalem with great joy, ⁵³ and were continually in the temple blessing God.

Peace,…dvs. That is often the closing of Pastor David Schultz’ messages to me. It’s a great closing. If it has been a challenging message, it’s a reminder that we are still at peace (though there have been very few challenging messages I’ve received from him). If it’s a message of encouragement or request for information, it’s a reminder of Christ’s gift to us of a peace the world cannot give. And the “dvs” are his initials, “David V. Schultz.” I don’t know what the V stands for. The tone is quiet and unassuming.

Jesus greets his disciples with the word peace. And it’s “peace to you.” He means that there is a gift from God to you that he wishes you to receive. John records this greeting of peace in his gospel account of Jesus’ appearance, noting that Jesus offered this greeting three times. Two on the first day of the week, and once again a week later.

Properly understood this is not just a greeting, however. This is God’s gift. It’s not just a wish. It is a bequest of Jesus’ grace. It is a bit surprising: Jesus offers peace to those who had forsaken, disbelieved, and denied him. He gives the gift of peace to those whose hearts deserved to be troubled since they hadn’t believed in the fullness of Jesus faithfulness and trustworthiness. But he gives it. He bestows it. He speaks peace. And when God speaks, things happen. (Cf. Yesterday’s post).

For years I’ve started my sermons directly. I don’t use the traditional Lutheran “Grace and peace to you…”  salutation. But I’m reconsidering that practice. In a sense, if it’s good enough for Jesus, it ought to be good enough for me. On the other hand the gift of peace comes through faith in the words and promises of Jesus. The greeting is good news in and of itself, true. But Jesus had a lifetime of grace, truth, and insight – not to mention his suffering, death, and resurrection(!) to give even greater weight to his greeting and gift of peace.

One of my professors at seminary used to translate Philippians 4:7, “the peace of God that goes beyond all that your human mind can do.” This is God’s gift – a peace beyond understanding, a peace unlike the world gives. A peace that is not just a greeting, salutation or closing. “Peace to you,” he says. Believe it. Receive it!

Peace,
dlb