The
disciples who were like scattered sheep have gathered together there once
more, though still trembling with fear. "Then came Jesus and stood in the
midst and said unto them, Peace be unto you." [Footnote: St. John xx. 19.]
It was the first time He had spoken to them since the night when He was
betrayed when they had forsaken Him and had run away. He might have met
them with a reproof, but He knows all about our poor hearts, so He meets
them with a smile and the sweet greeting, "Peace be unto you." And He says
it to them _all_, even to Peter who had denied his Lord, and to the others
who had forsaken Him. Yes, He has only one greeting for them one and all,
and that is "Peace."
Then a pause, and after the pause there came a revelation--"He showed them
His hands and His side." Why did He show them the nail prints in His hands
and the deep wound in His side? It was to reveal to them the wondrous
truth that He Himself is our Peace, and that the Peace which He gives is
the Peace which He has Himself made through the Blood of His
Cross. [Footnote: Col. i. 20.]
"Through Christ on the Cross peace was made,
My debt by His death was all paid;
No otter foundation is laid,
For peace the gift of God's love."
He showed them His hands and His side, because He wants them to understand
that these sacred scars tell us of His wondrous love and of the infinite
cost of Redemption. Let us lift up our hearts and say--
"Oh, make me understand it,
Help me to take it in,
"What it meant to Thee the Holy One
To bear away my sin.
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