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fear peace

John 20:19
"Then the same day at evening, being the first day of the week, when the doors were shut where the disciples were assembled for fear of the Jews, came Jesus and stood in the midst, and saith unto them, Peace be unto you."

Last week we studied the women who found the empty tomb. We made note of their FEAR, having encountered the angel from heaven. They kept quiet about their experience. Today we turn to the Gospel of John and see the situation developing as the Disciples are coming to grips with Jesus's death and learning about His resurrection!

In today's verse we read that the Disciples were also AFRAID. In fact, they are hiding behind locked doors, FEARFUL of what might happen next. They could NOT know what the future held, and they knew the religious leaders would persecute them next! They were disheartened. They had hoped Jesus would become a king, uniting the people and driving out the Romans, but His death brought an end to those hopes. They were also dismayed that they did not fully understand Jesus' promises. I'm not confident I can fully appreciate the full extent of their FEARS. We do know that Jesus miraculously showed up with them and said "PEACE be unto you."

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