John 20:19–31
It was evening on that first day of the week, and the disciples were gathered behind locked doors. The world had turned upside down. Jesus, their teacher and friend, had been crucified. Rumours of resurrection were starting to swirl, but grief, fear, and confusion still held them tightly. So they stayed hidden. Closed in. Closed off.
And then he was there.
No knock. No key. Just Jesus, standing among them, speaking peace into the very heart of their fear:
“Peace be with you.”
There’s something deeply comforting about that moment. Jesus didn’t wait for the disciples to pull themselves together. He didn’t wait for them to unlock the door, or to have the right words, or the right faith. He met them exactly where they were: afraid, uncertain, in hiding.
I wonder if we don’t do the same thing sometimes.
We lock doors in our lives – physically, emotionally, spiritually – without even realizing it. We retreat from the parts of ourselves that feel broken or confused. We shut out others when we feel vulnerable. We close off even from God, not because we’ve stopped believing, but because we don’t know what to do with our doubt, our grief, or our fear.
That’s why this question stays with me:
Where am I still hiding behind locked doors in my own life – physically, emotionally, or spiritually?
It’s not always easy to answer.
Maybe it’s a place of pain you haven’t wanted to touch.
Maybe it’s an honest question you’ve never dared to ask.
Maybe it’s a part of yourself that’s been shut away for so long you’ve forgotten how to open it.
But here’s the good news: Jesus steps into those spaces anyway.
He doesn’t force the doors open. He simply appears – with scars of his own – and says, Peace be with you. No judgment. No pressure. Just peace. Just presence.
So take a moment. Breathe. Ask yourself honestly:
What’s the locked room in your life right now?
And can you imagine Jesus entering that room – not to fix everything instantly, but simply to be there, with you, speaking peace?
You don’t have to have all the answers. You don’t even have to open the door.
Christ comes through fear, through doubt, through walls of our own making.And he brings peace with him.
Let’s pray:
Risen Christ, you come to us even when we try to hide from the world and ourselves. You meet us in fear, in doubt, and in silence – not with judgment, but with peace. Step into the spaces we’ve closed off. Speak your peace where we need it most. And help us trust that your love reaches us, even when we’re not ready to reach for you. AMEN
