John 20:19-31 (NRSV)
Devotion
Gathered together in peace
Peace be with you. Jesus said it to his gathered disciples—and to us—three times. The Holy Spirit came upon them and comes upon us. God’s promises have been fulfilled. The Messiah has come! Jesus is the light of the world and that light cannot be overcome.
Jesus, the divine Son of God, is the one in whom God and the Holy Spirit are present and active among us. The intended effect of the gospel’s witness is that people might believe and thereby receive life. Life in its fullest sense means life in relationship with God. We are truly alive when we are filled with the Holy Spirit and living in community with one another and witnessing to God who made us and Jesus who brings peace to us, as individuals and as a community. We are united and filled with the Spirit and now sent to be witnesses to the peace that passes all understanding.
Prayer
Let there be peace on earth, O holy one, and let us be transmitters of your peace to those in the world. Fill us with your spirit as we witness to the peace that passes all understanding. Amen.