John 20

Talk to me about the Resurrection. What is it? And why does it matter?






Jesus died for His Church/was killed by the Romans and Jews as clearly seen in the last chapter. No one could have survived what Jesus went through. The Resurrection is Jesus raising back to life in a new/eternal/spiritual body. This matters because


1) It proves Jesus as the Christ


2) It proves His divinity


3) It proves His teachings as legit/true.


Practically speaking, without the Resurrection there would be no Ascension/Him returning to The Father in His new/spiritual body.


In very short, this means that the Ascended Jesus


1) Intercedes for us, even this very second, to be made more like Him (sanctification) and that we endure all trials and suffering in this life and


2) for The Father to send out the Spirit to save/redeem others. Also, when we are downcast and opposed by our sin we have a friend to go to in our time of sorrow and need who understands what we’re going through more than even we do.






IE Jesus Christ accomplished His work on the cross by taking on the wrath of God for our sin; Jesus now aides in applying that accomplished work to our lives.






So let's dive into the text and see what effects (impact of the action) and effects (results) that the Resurrection had on the disciples.






20:1-10


20:1-2


What was Mary’s initial reaction to the empty tomb?


She thought that His body was “taken away”. By this, we can assume grave robbers were a not so uncommon occurrence in this time.






So Mary didn’t believe directly upon sight of the empty tomb?


Yes, correct.






If anything, this shows how utter reliant on God-man is for salvation and the importance of the risen Christ still working in and through us to save people. Apart from this, no one would believe.






20:2-10


20:2


Speculate for a moment: What do y’all think John (the disciple whom Jesus loved) and Peter were discussing?


I’ll bet y’all that they were consoling each other over the death of Christ. But I wonder, given 20:8, if they were debating if the Christ was to rise.






20:3-10


20:4


It interesting how many little jabs that John as thrown at Peter throughout his gospel. This seems to be one of them-that John outran Peter and got there first.






20:4-8


What do y’all think the significance of the “linen cloths lying there” and “the face cloth…folded up in a place by itself”?






No one is fully certain what the significance of these is. But, we can draw a few insights from this:


1) The clothes were still there meaning that grave robbers are unrealistically unlikely for the explanation of Jesus’ body disappearance


2) The facecloth was folded. Someone commentaries seem to think that folding a napkin at the dinner table was a sign of their intent to return to the table.


Thus, it's possible that Jesus here signals His intent to return to His followers. The folded cloth also shows that grave robbers are furthermore unrealistically likely (because why bother folding a cloth when stealing a body.






Moreover, John saw all this and believed. Whatever the fuller meaning to this the intention of it all is to cause believe within the person.






20:11-18


20:11-15


20:13


Why was Mary weeping?


Sorrow over her Lord’s body being taken, or so she thought.






Why do y’all think the angels were there anyhow?


I wish the text said which way there were facing but, assuming they were facing inward let me ask this question: what do y’all know about the Ark of the Covenant? Moreover, what was contained in it?






Ark of the Covenant is the gold-plated wooden chest in the OT times housed the 2 tablets of the Law that was given to Moses by God. The Art rested in the Holy of Holies inside the Tabernacle of the ancient Temple of Jerusalem and was seen only by the high priest of the Israelites on the Day of Atonement.






And the Ark contained the 10 commandments, Aaron’s budded Staff/Rod, and a Jar of Manna (bread from Heaven).






Heres why I say all of this: If the angels were facing both inward then we have a symbolic repeat of the Ark of the Covenant. Christ being the fulfillment of the Law, The true head of Israel that was chosen by God, and bread of eternal life.


Expect that all of these things are bound up in Christ and Christ is no longer in the tomb; therefore we can assume that this means that the Ark (which Hebrews tells us is a sign of what is to come) is fulfilled in Jesus Christ that He is the true of Ark of a new, superior covenant with His people if you will.






So, in very short, the Angels were there to be, in essence, Angels or Messengers of this great fulfillment of prophesy.






20:14-16


20:14


It’s unclear why she didn’t recognize Him; perhaps the tears in her eyes because of her extreme sorrow. We just don’t know.






20:15


For a second time by a spiritual being she’s asked the question, “why are you weeping?”. It is apparent to these spiritual beings that this is no time for weeping but joy.






20:16


At one word, at the utterance of her name by her Lord, all of her weeping immediately turned to joy. As the Psalmist writes, “Lord, you light my lamp; my God illuminates my darkness.” (18:28).






20:17


What do y’all think Jesus means here?


“Don’t cling” as in “Mary I’m not gone yet. You need not hold me tight. I’m still here and am not going just yet.”






2 quick rants for y’all:


Credit where credit is due to the Catholics actually has a “feast of the ascension” to celebrate the ascension of Christ. I would def encourage y’all to research and meditate further on the ascension.






Second rant: it is worth noting that some modern scholars, read Heretics, will use this passage and try to make the augment that Jesus and Mary had some kind of either romantic or sexual relations together. They are fools no doubt because no one is church history has come away with that interception because the text simply doesn’t mean that. Jesus is encouraging her in a loving manner in her grieve now joy over His resurrection.






I say this, simple to encourage y’all to take the word, the reading and study thereof here at bible study and within your personal lives with earnestness. There are snakes in the grass ready, willing, and able to strike at the weak. You, as a believer, are to viscerally hate their doctrine and their effects that it has on your weaker brethren because of your love for God and man and Church. You have been given, by God, the duty and the privilege to combat these snakes whenever they open their lips and blasphemy against your Lord. As the ancient Hebrew war cry goes, “be strong and of good courage” not because of your own power, intellect but because you go with and fight by the power of God. As 2 Peter 2 describes these snakes will not be around forever and their end of hellfire and damnation is indeed just.






So, while we’re on the topic, how do you private life go? Are you in the study of the word and prayer regularly?






I ask this, because of 20:18


“I have seen the Lord” upon an encounter with the Lord one is simply not the same. If we are to love the Lord and follow His commands we must be with Him and know Him daily; this is also our duty and privilege.






20:19-23


20:19


Why do y’all think the disciples were in “fear of the Jews”?






20:20


Why were the disciples “glad” at the Christ showing them His hand and side?


Glad for proof of life and redemption that they had all been waiting for.


And def notice the pattern here: “Peace” through His broken body produces gladness in the disciples.






20:21


“so I am sending you”


would y’all say that Christ was successful in His ministry?


Yes. He accomplished the work that was set out for Him.


Why was He successful?


Because He operated under God’s power through the word.


Here, Christ says that the success of our ministry is based upon His succession in His ministry.


Christ didn’t fail then. Therefore, you won’t fail now.






20:22-23


Here we have an interesting text. What is happening here?


So the disciples receive the Holy Spirit at Pentecost and not here. What we think is happening here is that Jesus is acting out as prophesy what is to come on the day of Pentecost.






and the meaning of 20:23 is that Jesus doesn’t transfer the right to forgive sins- this is His by right of His divinity. Rather, He gives Church leaders authority to discern the life of a professing believer and proclaim, insofar as they can see, that such a person is in a state of salvation. When they hear a credible profession of faith and see Christian fruit in a person’s life, they can with confidence confirm that the person has been forgiven by God.






So, in very short, unforgiveness does not exist within the forgiven.


20:24-29


20:24-26


Why do y’all think Thomas didn’t believe his friends’ testimony?






“eight days later”


What do y’all think the disciples discussed and debated those eight days?






20:27


Be encouraged at this. It is truly awesome at how far the Lord is willing to go to retrieve those who are His. He, likewise, will go to even greater lengths to get and keep you.






20:28


The highest statement by a man of Jesus in John’s gospel. Once more, it's awesome (literally) how such a deep doubter and be made into such a great believer.






20:29


Are you blessed according to this verse?


Yes.


So what's it mean to be blessed?


Literally, “oh how happy”. It is the expression of man when He is looked upon favorably by God.



20:30-31


20:30


What’s John referring to here?


The other 3 Gospels.






I asked this question when we first looked at the passage, but I’ll ask again: what's it mean to believe?


To trust and obey for sure. But to believe is to with all your being desire and treasure above all else. That's belief.






So how does belief, treasuring Christ, above all else grant us life?


To contrast, the unbeliever doesn’t believe and therefore doesn’t have life because they only have their sin (and slavery thereto).




Paul, as we’ll see here in a few weeks in Ephesians, says that the unbeliever is “dead” in his sin and Christ raises them up to life. Our belief is by God and, therefore, so is our life. We are alive to God and dead to sin (as Paul says in Romans). Man, in Eden, was alive but due to sin death overcame everything and we were cast out away from God (but I repeat myself) but now we have God in us once more and therefore, life.