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On the evening of that first day of the week, when the disciples were together, with the doors locked for fear of the Jewish leaders, Jesus came and stood among them and said, “Peace be with you!” After he said this, he showed them his hands and side. The disciples were overjoyed when they saw the Lord.

Again Jesus said, “Peace be with you! As the Father has sent me, I am sending you.” And with that he breathed on them and said, “Receive the Holy Spirit. If you forgive anyone’s sins, their sins are forgiven; if you do not forgive them, they are not forgiven.”

Now Thomas (also known as Didymus), one of the Twelve, was not with the disciples when Jesus came. So the other disciples told him, “We have seen the Lord!”

But he said to them, “Unless I see the nail marks in his hands and put my finger where the nails were, and put my hand into his side, I will not believe.”

A week later his disciples were in the house again, and Thomas was with them. Though the doors were locked, Jesus came and stood among them and said, “Peace be with you!” Then he said to Thomas, “Put your finger here; see my hands. Reach out your hand and put it into my side. Stop doubting and believe.”

Thomas said to him, “My Lord and my God!”

Then Jesus told him, “Because you have seen me, you have believed; blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.”

John 20:19-29

The church historian Jaroslav Pelikan once said: “If the resurrection of Jesus actually happened, then nothing else really matters. If the resurrection of Jesus did not actually happen, then nothing else really matters”.

Everybody wants to say that life and love and peace are stronger than death and oppression and hatred. On what basis could we think that is true? If Jesus walked out of the tomb, if he took the disciples' grief, fear and pain and exchanged them for joy and purpose, then we have a reason for hope. If it’s just made up, then Jesus is just another example of a good person being pulped because he dared to stand up to bad people with power.

That's all well and good, you might say - the disciples saw the risen Jesus face to face. They were there! 2000 years on, in our daily struggles, how do we sustain hope? As with Thomas, Jesus doesn't despise these questions - he knew we would ask them! There's a blessing for us too - blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.

So our griefs, fears and pains can be overcome too, exchanged for something else. What do we get in return?

1. The presence of Jesus, wherever and whenever two or three are gathered.

2. The peace of Jesus, given "not as the world gives", which is to say an unconditional peace regardless of our circumstances.

3. The pattern of Jesus, a call to sacrificial love and solidarity with the weak.

4. The purpose of Jesus, as Jesus was sent by the Father, so we are sent by Jesus, that whoever believes in Jesus might have life.

5. The power of Jesus, the Holy Spirit that came when Jesus breathed on his disciples.