“Do not be afraid. Go and tell my brothers to go to Galilee; there they will see me” (Matthew 28:10).
After everything they did, Jesus called them brothers.
Sit with that for a moment, dear Christian.
Think back to everything our Savior experienced on Holy Thursday and Good Friday. Think back on what his disciples—his closest friends and followers—did . . . and what they didn’t do.
One of them betrayed him for 30 pieces of silver, another vehemently denied him three times, and all twelve of them abandoned him in his hour of utmost need, fleeing for their lives instead of staying with him as they swore they would.
And yet, on Easter Sunday, when Jesus rose from the dead and appeared to the women who came to anoint his body with perfumes, oils, and spices, he said these words: “Do not be afraid. Go and tell my brothers to go to Galilee; there they will see me.”
How could Jesus call them his brothers?
How can he call you and me his brothers and sisters?
Because that is exactly what we are through faith in him. By his perfect life, innocent death on the cross, and triumphant resurrection from the grave, Jesus has brought us into God’s family. He’s made us children of God, heirs of God and coheirs with Christ.
Our sins have all been forgiven. We’re dearly loved by our heavenly Father. Heaven is our home.
Jesus knew exactly what his disciples—heartbroken, scared, confused, ashamed, sinful human beings that they were—needed to hear. They needed to hear that he forgave them, loved them, and still saw them as his brothers. Not because they earned or deserved to still be called such by him. No. Because Jesus loved them so much that he was willing to lay down his life for them and take it up again to give them eternal life, freely in his name.
The same is true for you and me, dear Christian. He knows what we need to hear too. Jesus calls us his brothers and sisters through faith in his name. We don’t deserve to be God’s children. But that is exactly what we are by God’s grace!
There are times when the devil and our sinful flesh try to accuse us to fall into despair over the sinful, shameful things we’ve done—and the good we’ve failed to do. These mortal enemies try to convince us that we can’t possibly still be God’s children—he can’t possibly still love us after what we’ve done. All we want to do is hide, huddling behind locked doors for fear that the devil’s lies are actually true.
Hear the words of our risen Savior.
His words are trustworthy and true. Hear his words of love and forgiveness in the Word and sacraments. Do not be afraid. You are my brother. You are my sister. Your sins are all forgiven. I love you. Heaven is yours.
How can I be sure God loves me? How can Jesus call me brother or sister? If those burning questions have ever been on your heart and mind, discover God’s deepest heart—his sure and certain love for you—inside Pastor Lynn Wiedmann’s Seeing God’s Heart: The Certainty of His Love for Me.
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Alex Brown is the marketing and content copywriter at Northwestern Publishing House. He has his Master of Divinity degree from Wisconsin Lutheran Seminary and enjoys reading, writing, and spending time in God’s creation.
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