Plot Twist Week 4

When all seems lost, Jesus is our hope.

[INTRODUCTION]

For the last few weeks, we've been following the stories of Jesus' last days here on Earth. Last time, we explored the biggest plot twist in Jesus' story and in the history of humanity — Jesus' death and resurrection.

Easter Sunday is a big day. It's the day we celebrate Jesus' victory over sin and death. It's a day of joy and celebration. It's the day all of Christianity is based on!

But the good news of Easter Sunday didn't erase the horrible things Jesus and his friends endured leading up to Jesus' resurrection.

Jesus' resurrection showed us that Jesus can make dead things alive again and can make broken things new again. But that doesn't erase what happened. It doesn't mean the death and brokenness never happened.

Jesus' friends had seen their friend brutally murdered. Some of them had betrayed Jesus and each other. They'd feared for their lives. They'd gone into hiding.

Jesus' friends had survived what was probably the most traumatizing experience of their lives. So when Mary, Peter, and John announced the tomb was empty and Jesus was alive . . . well, can you blame them if they were still a little fearful?

The disciples locked themselves away for safety, afraid they could be arrested and killed the same way Jesus had been.

With their lives on the line, they probably weren't ready to believe Jesus really was back — not until they'd seen it with their own eyes.

When you've been hurt or experienced a loss as big as what these people had experienced, it's not easy to figure out how to have hope again.

Read John 20:19-22

When it was evening on that first day of the week, the disciples were gathered together with the doors locked because they feared the Jews. Jesus came, stood among them, and said to them, “Peace be with you.”

Having said this, he showed them his hands and his side. So the disciples rejoiced when they saw the Lord.

Jesus said to them again, “Peace be with you. As the Father has sent me, I also send you.” After saying this, he breathed on them and said, “Receive the Holy Spirit.

Do you see what Jesus did?

When his friends were feeling lost and hopeless, he went straight to them. He didn't even wait for them to open the door. He simply appeared, right there in the midst of their fear and pain.

His first words were, "Peace be with you." This isn't just a cool way of saying "hello." It was reassurance that they really could have peace again — and he was there to help them find it.

Then Jesus showed them his pierced hands and scarred side. He didn't get angry with them for not believing or hit them with an, "I told you so." Instead, Jesus gently and patiently helped them believe that the good news they'd heard really was true after all.

And then for another plot twist, Jesus did something extraordinary. He offered them his Spirit — the Holy Spirit, who had been promising to send them. As we learn in other places in Scripture, the Holy Spirit is . . .

God's presence dwelling within us.

Our Helper.

Our Teacher.

Our Comforter.

And so much more.

Jesus wasn't just telling his disciples to "get over" all the horrible things that had happened to them, nor was he promising nothing bad would happen to them again. Instead, he promised them something that would help them withstand anything they'd ever face. Jesus promised to give them his Spirit, who would be with them always.

[TRANSITION]

Peter was one of the disciples who walked with Jesus through Jesus' ministry, death, resurrection, and beyond. He's one of the people who saw Jesus' empty tomb on the day he rose from the dead.

After Jesus' resurrection, Peter played a vital role in sharing the good news of Jesus in new places. He helped grow the Church by writing letters to the Jesus-followers in different cities to teach, encourage, and pastor them.

Some of the letters Peter wrote actually became part of the Bible we have today, including the "book" (or letter) we now call 1 Peter.

In this letter, Peter wrote to encourage a group of Jesus-followers who were facing harassment and religious persecution for following Jesus. They were experiencing real pain, fear, and distress.

When Peter wrote this letter, I wonder if he was remembering those days of hopelessness after Jesus' death. I wonder if he remembered how much he needed to hear that message of peace and hope Jesus shared with him and his fellow disciples.

Read 1 Peter 1:3-9

Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. Because of his great mercy he has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead and into an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading, kept in heaven for you. You are being guarded by God’s power through faith for a salvation that is ready to be revealed in the last time. You rejoice in this, even though now for a short time, if necessary, you suffer grief in various trials so that the proven character of your faith—more valuable than gold which, though perishable, is refined by fire—may result in praise, glory, and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ. Though you have not seen him, you love him; though not seeing him now, you believe in him, and you rejoice with inexpressible and glorious joy, because you are receiving the goal of your faith, the salvation of your souls.

Peter didn't promise an end to this community's pain and suffering. That's not something he could control or ensure. Instead, Peter pointed them to the same thing he needed and was given when he too felt like all was lost: "a living hope through resurrection."

With Jesus, this isn't a false hope — the kind that promises everything will be okay even when it probably won't.

With Jesus, it's not toxic positivity — the kind that says to just be happy even when everything is falling apart.

With Jesus, it's the kind of hope that acknowledges our pain is real — but we're not alone, and there's still something worth fighting for.

When Jesus was killed, his disciples feared all hope was lost. In the early days of the church, many of Jesus' followers had the same fears. But with Jesus, there's always one more plot twist in the works. Because when all seems lost, Jesus is our hope