Thoughts on the Divine Service
24. The Pax Domini
Dear friends,
Although we’ve a bit of Lent left to go, we’re going to take a minute to leap ahead to the first Easter evening:
“On the evening of that day, the first day of the week, the doors being locked where the disciples were for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood among them and said to them, ‘Peace be with you.’ When he had said this, he showed them his hands and his side. Then the disciples were glad when they saw the Lord.” (John 20:19-20)
Note the sequence for these disciples who are hiding in a locked room out of fear.
First, Jesus stands in their midst. How He gets in is a miracle: the doors are locked and He hasn’t broken through a wall; but as both God and man (and Creator of the laws of physics), He can do things with His body that you and I cannot.
Second, He says, “Peace be with you.” This is more than a greeting. This is an absolution. He is saying, “I, the Son of God, am at peace with you because I have died to take away your sins, and now I am risen again to give you forgiveness.”
Third, Jesus shows them His hands and His side. By displaying the wounds on His body from His crucifixion, Jesus proves that He is no pretender. Their Lord, who died, is risen again.
And He is risen again to give peace!
We remember this moment each week just before the Lord’s Supper. The pastor proclaims the Words of Our Lord to consecrate the bread and wine, announcing the presence of the Lord’s body and blood within. Many deny that this is possible; but as both God and man (and Creator of the laws of physics), Jesus can do things with His body and blood that you and I cannot.
Once the bread and wine are consecrated, the pastor turns to the congregation and says, “The peace of the Lord be with you always!” This is a word of absolution, that the Holy Communion is for the forgiveness of sins, so that you might be at peace with God.
As the pastor says these words (called the Pax Domini), he normally elevates a host and the chalice for all to see. Why? As Jesus showed the disciples His hands and His side, the pastor now shows you Jesus’ body and blood. The risen Lord is just as present with you as He was with the disciples in the locked room.
What is your response? “Amen!” In this case, it’s a shortened version of “We are glad, for we have seen the Lord.” Soon after, you will do more than see, for He gives you His body and blood to eat and to drink—for forgiveness, life and salvation. What joy!