John 20

Chapter 20 Introduction

John is an amazing guy, a son of thunder who became this apostle, an instrument of the Holy Spirit to write several books of the Bible, and Father of our faith. John lived to be the last of the Apostles. He preached and taught many people in the faith. He trained Polycarp, who became the bishop of Smyrna.

I can imagine this old man John trying to get the young man Polycarp to sit down, sit still, and listen. Then, John began to talk about walking with Jesus and seeing Him perform miracles. Imagine how it must have been to hear John speak of this first-hand account of the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus.

What was his most vivid memory? Was it an emotional event, as we imagine? Emotional events are imprinted on our brains. Because of the significance of these emotional events, we tend to think about them more frequently. John must have thought of those few weeks constantly.

Our most vivid memories of events in our lives include the faces, settings, colors, smells, sounds, emotions, pain, and sorrows. We can't know completely what John is remembering, but we know that there is so much more than what is described. As Jesus was on the cross, the sight, sounds, and feel of the darkness were probably all very vivid in John's memories. That moment when Jesus said, "It is finished!" was not something John would ever forget.

We saw the crucifixion through the eyes of John. Jesus gave up His spirit. His life wasn't taken. It was surrendered as a propitiation, our substitute. As a substitute, we can look at what he did and see that we deserved to be scourged and beaten. We should have been carrying that cross.

There’s a song from Citizen Way that expressed this thought.

It should've been me
It should've been us
Should've been there hanging on a cross

All of this shame
All of these scars
Should've been stains that were never washed

Why do I hide?
Why do you try
Over and over and over again?

I guess it just leaves saying thank God
It leaves me saying thank God, thank God
For the should've been

Warren Wiersbe said:

We do not simply contemplate the cross; we carry it.

John 20:1-2

The first day of the week is Sunday. This sentence moved the Lord’s Day, the day of worship and Sabbath, from Saturday to Sunday for those who follow Christ. Debate rages on when the crucifixion happened. This debate starts around counting three days and the wording of “Preparation Day” and the actual Sabbath day. There is not enough information to solidly resolve the debate. Tradition says He was crucified on Friday. Regardless of all that debate, the timeline is reset, so there is no question that the resurrection of Jesus Christ took place on Sunday.

Note: It is interesting to note that the Feast of First Fruits began on the day after the Sabbath. Jesus was the first fruit of the dead.

The friends and family would normally have been in mourning for seven days. Mary, and possibly other women, went to the tomb to finish the preparation for burial.

Matthew – Mary Magdalene and the other Mary went to the tomb. The angel of the Lord came as an earthquake rolled away the stone. The angel declared, “He is risen.”

Mark – Mary Magdalene, Mary, the mother of James, and Salome went to the tomb. A young man dressed in white declared, “He is risen.”

Luke – Certain women came. The stone was rolled away. He said there were two men in shining garments and declared, “He is risen.” They ran and told the eleven who thought they were idle tales. But Peter ran to the tomb.

Not all tombs had stones that would roll into place – only the tombs of the rich were built that way. Joseph of Arimathea was a rich man. That’s why a stone is rolled in place to close the tomb after His death.

John tells us that Mary Magdalene went early to the tomb. It’s unusual and maybe unlikely that a woman would go out in the dark alone, especially in a place not her home. Given the circumstances, Mary may have done this, displaying her eager devotion to Jesus. It may have been the first trip to the tomb, followed by another where she went with the other women.

John notes that it was still dark. This could be to inform us how early it was in the morning, but it might have a secondary meaning – it was still spiritually dark because the world was now aware of the resurrection.

Imagine Mary’s shock when she saw the stone rolled away. Moving this stone was no small feat. Had Rome moved his body? Had someone stolen it? There can be no doubt that it was made secure by the Roman soldiers. Pilate's orders actually worked in favor of authenticating the resurrection.

Note: What went through Pilate’s mind when he heard the body of Jesus was gone?

Upon seeing the stone removed, she ran. The “other disciple” is thought to be John. He may have decided not to identify himself to downplay his part in the story. He removed himself to give a factual account of Jesus’ ministry, death, burial, and resurrection.

Mary told Peter and John that the tomb had been opened and Jesus wasn’t there. Culturally, the testimony of a woman wasn’t considered trustworthy or valuable. This would change within Christianity, and no doubt it had already started, but the disciples were probably still in the process of changing old attitudes.

The stone was not removed so Christ could be resurrected, but so Mary and the disciples could enter and see He had risen. Pilate had put his seal on the stone, so it was illegal to touch it. Pilate’s order was to make the tomb as sure as it could be.

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God declared war on Satan in Genesis 3:15. This was the first messianic prophecy – now we see it fulfilled in Christ. The resurrection is a core truth in Christianity that is constantly under attack in some way. The atonement for sin was made on the cross. The resurrection is evidence that the atonement was accepted by God. Death was defeated. The grave was conquered.

Christians can debate many things, but we can't waiver or waffle on the core belief of the resurrection. To do so is to dismiss Christianity. There are some who still use the name ‘Christian’ who don’t believe that Christ was a real man who died on a real cross, who was buried and then rose again on the third day. The resurrection is heralding of the good news! You are without a gospel message if you deny Jesus rose again.

Paul said to the Corinthians..........

And if Christ is not risen, your faith is futile; you are still in your sins! ¹⁸Then also those who have fallen asleep in Christ have perished. If in this life only we have hope in Christ, we are of all men the most pitiable. (1 Corinthians 15:17-19)

John 20:3-10

John outrunning Peter to the tomb was a normal part of writing and presenting characters in a narrative in that day. Peter was often elevated among the disciples. To show Peter as slower was to make him more human and others his equal in discipleship.

John saw the linens lying but didn’t go in. This may have been deference to the elder Peter or it could be the mindset of a Jew to stay away from the unclean tomb. Peter had no such hesitation. John viewed the scene from a distance, analyzing it. Peter rushed in with abandon.

The wrappings were likely to appear as a cocoon with nothing in them. The wrappings were linens with gum and spice that they wrapped the body in, and then there was a napkin-type clothe over His face. This cocoon was lying there with nothing in it and the napkin folded and lying by itself. No grave robber would have unwrapped the body. The clothes over His face were folded neatly. This shows there was no struggle of any kind. Jesus himself folded this clothe as His body was resurrected and glorified.

There three words used for seeing used in these verses. The display a progression.

“He saw” in verse five – was to see at a glance, to perceive.
“He saw” in verse six – was to behold, consider, study, scrutinize
“He saw” in verse eight – was to be sure, perception, and understanding.

John notes that it was at that moment they began to believe and understand. Up to that point, they didn’t know the scripture about rising again. This is a reference to Psalm 16:10 or Isaiah 53:10.

John 20:11-15

The disciples went home. Mary peeked into the tomb and saw two angels. They are seated at the head and foot of where He had been laid. It’s interesting to note that this is the only place in the bible where angels are seated. Dressed in white, these messengers are not mourning (black clothing was used for mourning). Mary explained her weeping that “My Lord” had been taken away. Notice that the Lord is personal to her. He is not “the Lord” but “my Lord.”

As Mary turned around, she saw Jesus but didn’t know it was him. She was very close to the Lord during his life but didn’t recognize him now. Mary thought He was the gardener. The last time she saw Jesus, he was a bloody mess, with his beard plucked out and marred beyond recognition. He now stood before Mary in His glorified state. We know he bears the scars of His crucifixion because He shows them to the disciples later. So, He may have appeared with a scarred face and no beard. We can’t be sure why she didn’t recognize Him other than she wasn’t expecting to see Him alive.

It’s interesting that Jesus chose Mary to first appear to. The testimony of a woman at that time wasn’t admissible in court.

“It is better that the words of the Law be burned,” said the rabbis, “than be delivered to a woman.”

Wiersbe, W. W. (1996).

The Bible exposition commentary (Vol. 1, p. 388).

Wheaton, IL: Victor Books.

The ministry of Jesus was counter to the culture. The discovery and presentation of His resurrection were no different. Mary was the first to see the stone rolled away. Mary was the first to see Jesus.

John 20:16-18

Jesus spoke Mary’s name. Imagine what it must have been like for Mary to hear the Lord speak her name again. Mary recognized His voice but didn’t recognize His face.

The sheep hear his voice; and he calls his own sheep by name. (John 10:3)

Mary responded by calling Jesus her teacher. She was His student. She was still learning.

Has Jesus spoken your name? He has spoken every believer's name and will speak it again in the end at the trumpet.

Why couldn’t she cling to him? There are several speculations. Jesus had repeatedly told them that He was going to the Father. But He had not ascended. There was no need for Mary to cling to Him as though she could prevent Him from disappearing. It was a time for joy. Mary was to go and bear witness to the disciples that Jesus would soon ascend. There may also be the idea that they would all need to cling to Jesus without physically seeing Him.

In her joy, Mary went and told the others she had seen Jesus and spoken to Him.

John 20:19-23

The Feast of Unleavened Bread was still going on. No one would have left to go home yet. At the same time, it was still a time of mourning. The disciples came together and locked the door in fear. It was at this time, and in that place, Jesus stood among them. John spoke about a physical Jesus, yet He came to them behind a locked door. He showed them his hands and side. Remember, we are reading the words of a man who was there. Jesus isn’t a ghost He is a man – they touched him.

The greeting of Peace is ironic. Rome saw itself as the purveyor of peace. They took peace personally. But there were the believers, without peace, hiding behind a locked door. Jesus brought them peace on a different level.

Jesus was sent by the Father to establish the good news. As He was sent, He now sends the disciples to share the good news of forgiveness of sins with the world. He breathed on them and told them to receive the Holy Spirit.

When He breathed on them, we can’t help but see the similarity of God breathing into Adam at creation (Genesis 2:7). This is re-creation and renewal.
The breath of the Holy Spirit is the breath that would be used to speak forth the good news of Jesus Christ to a dark and lost world.
This is the fulfillment of John 14:6 when Jesus said He was going away but the Father would send another like Him. The complete fulfillment of this would be at Pentecost.
There’s no reason to think that Jesus breathing the Holy Spirit into these followers in any way takes something away from Pentecost.
This equips and empowers these men who were characterized by fear. It accompanies the peace he brought them. By the Holy Spirit, they would be read for their mission.

The disciples would bring the message of Jesus and the forgiveness of sins. Filled with the Holy Spirit, they were agents of Jesus, delivering His word to others. When the word was received, they could pronounce forgiveness of sins as Jesus would have. If the word is rejected, they could pronounce to that person that their sins remain upon them.

These facts had already been established in heaven by the work of Jesus. The victory had been won, sin was overcome, death defeated. It was a matter of decision for individual people.

John 20:24-25

Thomas was not among the disciples when Jesus first appeared. Where was he? Was he having a faith crisis? Did fear keep him away? Had his belief been consumed by doubt?

John makes a point of telling us that they spoke to Thomas about seeing Jesus. Thomas doesn’t doubt that his friends saw something; as the quintessential skeptic, he just could not believe it. He would have to make physical contact with Jesus and see the nail-scarred hands and the scar of the Roman spear.

This requirement of Thomas contrasts with the “other” disciple's belief who entered the tomb with Peter. He saw the empty tomb, saw the grave clothes, and believed. In spite of all that had happened and been said, it was at that moment John (the other disciple) believed.

John 20:26-29

A week had passed. The Feast was over. People would be leaving Jerusalem. The followers of Jesus would be preparing to leave for Galilee. Once again, John ensures we know they were together behind closed doors. Jesus came and stood in their midst. This time, Thomas was there. Jesus knew what Thomas had said. He offered Himself for inspection: to see His hands, to touch His side. Jesus commanded Thomas to allow Himself to believe.

Thomas had been plagued by unbelief. All the burden of unbelief was washed away. Thomas declared Jesus his Lord and God. Now Thomas, and the others would be required to go forth and witness to many who would have to come to belief without seeing Jesus. Thomas’s previous unbelief is now part of his testimony to be used to bring others to Christ.

John 20:30-31

John tells us that he only scratched the surface of all that Jesus said and did. What he did write was to bring others to believe, that their testimony might stand in the place of touching the nail-scarred hands and inspecting the scar of the spear that confirmed Jesus’ death. John wants all people to have life in the name of Christ.

G. Campbell Morgan called the resurrection “faith’s anchorage” and said: “The living risen Christ is the Centre of the church’s creed, the Creator of her character, and the Inspiration of her conduct. His resurrection is the clearest note in her battle-song. It is the sweetest, strongest music amid all her sorrows. It speaks of personal salvation. It promises the life that has no ending, it declares to all bereaved souls that ‘them also that are fallen asleep in Jesus will God bring with him,’ and therefore the light of his resurrection falls in radiant beauty upon the graves where rest the dust of the holy dead”

Gangel, K. O. (2000).

John (Vol. 4, pp. 373–374).

Nashville, TN: Broadman & Holman Publishers.

John