Our scripture reading for today, to which I invite you to turn with me at this time, is found in the Gospel according to John, the 20th chapter, beginning in the 19th verse. In the New Testament, Matthew, Mark, Luke, John, chapter 20. If you'll skim over this 20th chapter of the Gospel according to John, you see that it is one of the accounts of the resurrection of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. In verses 10 and following, we read the account of our risen Savior appearing to Mary Magdalene, one from whom the Bible says, Our Lord Jesus cast out seven demons. And now we begin our scripture reading in the 19th verse, and we read through the 23rd verse of that chapter, focusing in again on the keys of the kingdom, specifically on the key of the preaching of the gospel. John chapter 20, beginning in verse 19, of the Lord. On the evening of that first day of the week, when the disciples were together with the doors locked for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood among them and said, Peace be with you. After he said this, he showed them his hands and sighed. 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 his sins, they are forgiven. If you do not forgive them, they are not forgiven. Thus far, the reading of God's Holy Word. And as always, I ask and urge you to keep your Bibles open and handy as we look to God's Word together this morning. And later on in the message, I will also be making passing reference to question and answer 84 of the Heidelberg Catechism. Dear congregation of Jesus Christ, have you ever locked yourself out of your car, unable to retrieve your keys? Or have you ever lost or misplaced your keys, unable to get up and go where you were intending to go? If that ever happened to you, either of those things ever happened to you. Let me see your hands just for a moment. Oh, just about everyone. Well, if you have had one of those two things happen, you know. And if you have not had it happen, please know that it can be quite embarrassing, and also incredibly frustrating. And the reason, of course, is because you cannot start, you cannot properly operate a car without applying the keys into the ignition system. Friends, interestingly enough, as we turn to the words of our Scripture lesson for today, as recorded for us in John 20, verses 19 through 23, Jesus makes reference to that which in Matthew 16, verse 19, he refers to as the keys of the kingdom, the keys of the kingdom. And as we work our way through our scripture reading together, we find ourselves being both instructed and challenged by the Lord Jesus, along with the disciples of old concerning this fact. Jesus says in essence that just as a car, an automobile, cannot be properly functioning without the appropriate application of the keys into the ignition system, so too the church of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ cannot properly and powerfully function without the appropriate and proper application of the keys of the kingdom. The keys of the kingdom. Specifically, in this particular instance, the references to the key of the preaching of the gospel. The key of the preaching of the gospel. As we work our way through the words of our text in John chapter 20, and also as we make passing reference to Heidelberg Catechism, Lord's Day 31, please notice, first of all, that Jesus commissions the use of the key of the preaching of the gospel, first of all, with the reality of His resurrection. He begins, first of all, by highlighting the reality of His resurrection. For example, look at verse 19 of John 20 with me, if you would please. Here we read, of that first day of the week when the disciples were together. And friends, let us not neglect to notice the extreme importance of what we have just read. Just meditate silently on the first part of that text once again. On the evening of that first day of the week when the disciples were together. Seemingly, whenever we read about the believers in the early church in the gospel accounts, they were together. You read in the book of Acts, whenever you read about early believers, they were together. They were fellowshipping together. They were eating together. They were worshipping together. They were praying together. They were celebrating the Lord's Supper together. They were always together in each other's homes and in the temple courts and so on. In fact, the great reformer John Calvin has said, and I quote, It did not happen without the providence of God that all were assembled in one place that the event might be more certain and more manifest. Also, William Hendrickson points out, and again, I quote, The New Testament everywhere singles out the day of Christ's resurrection as chief among the days of the week." End of quote. And indeed it does. The incredibly significant importance of Sunday of the first day of the week. For example, You don't need to turn to it, but in Acts chapter 20 verses 7 and following, we find the Apostle Paul in Troas, and he is preaching the gospel. He is leading in a celebration of the Lord's Supper on the first day of the week. Similarly, in 1 Corinthians 16 verses 1 and 2, the Apostle Paul exhorts the Corinthian Christians to do what he had told all of the believers in the Galatian churches to do, namely, to set aside a sum of money in keeping with his income on the first day of every week. So too in Revelation 1 verse 10, the Apostle John speaks of being in the Spirit on the Lord's day, that is, on the first day of the week. And friends, notice as well here in verse 19 of our text that it says on the first day of the week the disciples were all together and that it was in the evening, and that it was in the evening. This is very significant. And it's significant because in that Acts 20 verses 7 and following passage that I just mentioned, when Paul was in Troas preaching the word and celebrating the sacrament, he did so in the evening. In fact, some of you that know the passage may recall that he preached so long into the night that the young man Eutychus fell asleep and he fell out a window and Paul seemingly had to raise him back to life. But they were together in the evening. And when you reflect upon that, it brings to mind, does it not, what we read, for example, in Exodus 29, verse 39, and Psalm 141, verse 2, where the scriptures make reference to the evening sacrifice, the evening sacrifice. And that is one of the primary reasons, by the way, that in the Reformed tradition, historically anyway, we have put such an emphasis on holding an evening worship service, even as many other Christian and evangelical traditions do not have an evening worship service. And friends, while we thank and praise God that if you come here on an evening, you know, by God's grace, you're going to generally find that this sanctuary is full. And we thank and praise God for that. But let me fraternally exhort you that if you do not make an evening worship service here or elsewhere part of your honoring the Sabbath day, remembering the Sabbath day by keeping it holy, let me sincerely invite you and strongly encourage you to do so. In fact, the great biblical commentator Matthew Henry has put it this way, commenting on the words of our text. He says, here is a Christian Sabbath observed by the disciples and acknowledged by our Lord Jesus. End of quote. Well, back in the words of our text, look again at verse 19 with me, please. On the evening of that first day of the week, when the disciples were together with the doors locked for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood among them and said, Peace be with you. Peace be with you. Why did he say that? No doubt he wanted to quiet their hearts and their minds and to assuage their anxious fears. He says, peace be with you. After he said this, he showed them his hands and sighed. Now, why do you suppose Jesus did that? Well, friends, I believe that part of the answer is found in Luke's account of this encounter as recorded for us in Luke chapter 24. In fact, in Luke chapter 24, Verses 37 through 39, we read that after Jesus said to his disciples, peace be with you, as he does here in the words of our text. Notice Luke 24, 37. They were startled and frightened, thinking they saw a ghost. Boys and girls, they were scared to death. They thought they were seeing a ghost because the last they had seen Jesus was dying on Calvary, where he was crucified for the sins of his people. He suddenly appears to them. He says, Peace be with you. And they were startled and frightened, thinking they saw a ghost. Verse 38. He said to them, Why are you troubled and why do doubts rise in your minds? Look at my hands and my feet. It is I myself. Touch me and see a ghost does not have flesh and bones. As you see, I have. In other words, Jesus wanted to give to his disciples irrefutable proof that he was alive. Jesus wanted to give to his disciples irrefutable proof that he had risen from the dead. And so after saying to them in the words of our text, peace be with you, we read that he showed them his hands and his side. He showed them his hands and his side, especially because of the key of the kingdom, which he was about to entrust to their care. He showed them his hands and side. Think about that. Question. You call yourself a Christian. You call yourself a Christian. Do you believe that our crucified Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, physically, literally, bodily, historically rose again from the dead? This is an extremely critical question. In fact, the Bible says that all of Christianity, the legitimacy of our faith is literally hinged upon, it literally rises and falls upon the reality of the resurrection of Jesus Christ. In fact, that is why if we are, by God's grace, a believer in our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, we ought to take good courage and find much confidence in reading and reflecting upon and realizing what the Apostle Paul declares in 1 Corinthians 15, verses 1 and following, under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit. In 1 Corinthians 15, 1 and following, Paul says, Now brothers, I want to remind you of the gospel I preached to you, which you received and on which you have taken your stand. Every person who ever lived, including every person here today, younger or older, male or female, married or single, does not matter, is standing on something. We believe something. We live by something. Paul says, it's the gospel on which I have taken my stand and notice upon which it is hinged. By this gospel you are saved. If you hold firmly to the word I preach to you, otherwise you have believed in vain. For what I received, I passed on to you as a first importance that Christ died for our sins, according to the scriptures, that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day, according to the scriptures, that he appeared to Peter and then to the 12. After that, he appeared to more than 500 of the brothers at the same time, most of whom are still living, though some have fallen asleep. Then He appeared to James, then to all the apostles, and last of all, He appeared to me also as to one abnormally born." Think of all of the eyewitnesses. Think of all of the eyewitnesses. Think of all of the eyewitnesses of the resurrection of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. That ought to give us as Christians good comfort and much courage. In fact, speaking of comfort, many of us, and some very recently, have lost loved ones who have died in the Lord. And as seemingly as the days and weeks and months and even years go by, the grief remains, does it not? The grief remains. But brothers and sisters, that is why you and I need to take great comfort in what the Apostle Paul writes, for example, in 1 Thessalonians 4, 13 and following, when he declares, brothers, we do not want you to be ignorant about those who fall asleep. Or to grieve like the rest of men who have no hope. Notice. And you lose a loved one, it doesn't say we do not grieve. Of course we grieve. But we do not grieve, the Bible says, as do those who have no hope, you see. We believe that Jesus died and rose again. And so we believe that God will bring with Jesus those who have fallen asleep in him. According to the Lord's own word, we tell you that we who are still alive and are left till the coming of the Lord will certainly not precede those who have fallen asleep. For the Lord Himself will come down from heaven with a loud command, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trumpet call of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first. And don't you long for the rejoicing and reunion of that day." Then in verse 17, Paul says, After that, we who are still alive and are left will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And so we will be with the Lord forever. Therefore, encourage, parakaleo, comfort each other. with these words, comfort each other with these words. You see, friends, that is why back in the words of our text, we read on the evening of that first day of the week, when the disciples were together with the doors locked for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood among them and said, Peace be with you. How could he say that? Because after this, he showed them his hands and his side. He showed them his hands. The faithful and effective exercise of the key of the kingdom known as the preaching of the gospel begins with the reality of Christ's resurrection. It begins with the reality of Christ's resurrection. Ah, but now notice, secondly, our text teaches us that the reality of Christ's resurrection gives to those who exercise the key of preaching reason for rejoicing. The reality of Christ's resurrection gives us reason for rejoicing. Verse 19 of John 20, once again. On the evening of that first day of the week, when the disciples were together with the doors locked for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood among them and said, Peace be with you. After he said this, he showed them his hands and sighed. Notice the disciples were overjoyed when they saw the Lord. They were overjoyed when they saw the Lord. Think about that. You know, after our Lord Jesus was betrayed by Judas. And after the chief priest sent the temple soldiers to arrest him. In Matthew, chapter 26, verse 56, we read, then all the disciples deserted him and fled. Think about that. All the disciples deserted Him and fled. Indeed, on this very day of resurrection, as two of the disciples were walking along the road to Emmaus, Jesus suddenly appeared and was walking along with them, even though the Bible says they were kept from recognizing Him. But in Luke 24, verse 21, we read that with faces downcast, they said concerning the crucified Christ, We had hoped that he was the one who was going to redeem Israel. We had hoped that he was the one who was going to redeem Israel. And then here in the words of our text, we read on the evening of that first day of the week, the disciples were together with the doors locked. For fear of the Jews. Defeated. Discouraged. With their spirits downcast. Is that you today? Is that you today? Defeated? Discouraged? With your spirit downcast? That's how the disciples felt. It says it right here. Ah. But then they saw Jesus. Then they saw that their Savior was alive. Then they saw that He had risen from the dead, conquering sin and death and hell and Satan. And then He showed them His hands and His side. Is there any reason that they were overjoyed when they saw the Lord? Just as Jesus had predicted they would be. In fact, turn back with me a few pages, if you would please, to John chapter 16. John chapter 16. In verses 20 through 22 of John 16, Jesus is speaking to his disciples shortly before he goes to the cross. And he says, I tell you the truth. You will weep and mourn while the world rejoices. You will grieve, but your grief will turn to joy. A woman giving birth to a child has pain because her time has come, but when her baby is born, she forgets the anguish because of her joy that a child is born into the world. So with you now is your time of grief, but I will see you again and you will rejoice and no one will take away your joy. Question. Has someone or something or some circumstance of life taken away your joy, my friend? Has someone or something or some circumstance of life taken away your joy? Well if so, if so, then by the grace and mercy of God, just as was true for the disciples of old, but through eyes of faith, my hurting friend, behold the risen Savior anew. Behold the risen Savior anew. And hear Him saying to you, peace. Be with you. Peace. Be with you. Peace. Be with you. Because you see, our text teaches us in no uncertain terms that as we seek to faithfully exercise the key of the kingdom of the preaching of the gospel, we must realize that the reality of His resurrection surely gives us a reason for rejoicing. a reason for rejoicing. Let's go back to John 21 last time together, where thirdly and finally, our text teaches us that this reason for rejoicing results in responsibility. This reason for rejoicing results in responsibility. How so? Well, look at verse 21 of John 20 with me, if you would please. Here we read again, Jesus said, Peace be with you. As the Father has sent me. Stay with me. Apo, stelo. Apo in the Greek means away. Stelo means to send. Apo, stelo. That's where we get our word apostle from. Apostle. An apostle is a sent one. Jesus says, as the Father has sent me, past tense, I am sending you, present tense. Sending you to do what? Well, the text goes on to teach us, verse 22, and with that, he breathed on them, emphusao, it's where we get our word emphysema from. It's the only place in the New Testament where that particular verb is used. And Calvin says it sort of refers to a sprinkling of the Spirit in anticipation of the full power of the Spirit, which they were about to receive at Pentecost. He breathed on them. And notice, by the way, It doesn't just say he breathed on Peter, it says he breathed on them, plural, all of the disciples, all of the apostles received the keys to the kingdom. Not just Peter, as some have misinterpreted Matthew 16, 18 through 19 to mean he breathed on them and said, receive the Holy Spirit. Receive the Holy Spirit. And you say, well, how did they already receive the spirit? Weren't they already saved? Yes, they were. And that tells us, dear friends, that when Jesus said receive the Holy Spirit, he did not mean receive the spirit in a saving way, but in a sanctifying, setting apart way. He said, receive the spirit. Not in the sense of conversion, but in the sense of consecration for service, receive the spirit. Not in the sense of effectual calling unto salvation, but in the sense of effectual empowerment for the preaching of the gospel unto the salvation of all who would believe. received the Holy Spirit. Now notice verse 23, Jesus said to them, if you forgive, if you could be translated, you release, you remit, you send away, if you forgive anyone his sins, his hamartia, his misses of the mark, the mark being the will of God is revealed in the word of God. If you forgive anyone his misses of the mark, his sins, they are forgiven. If you do not forgive them, they are not forgiven. Wow, what does that mean? Was Jesus entrusting to his disciples the power, the authority, the ability to grant complete absolution? That they were the ones who could forgive someone's sins? What do you think about that? You know, I have a great footnote here, a clarifying footnote in my Bible. It's an excellent help. It says, literally, This is what the Greek would literally be translated to read. Jesus said, those whose sins you forgive, listen carefully, have already been forgiven. That's the correct translation of the tense. Those whose sins you forgive have already been forgiven. Those whose sins you do not forgive have not been forgiven. And then the footnote goes on to read, God does not forgive people's sins because we do so, nor does he withhold forgiveness because we do. Rather, those who proclaim the gospel are in effect forgiving or not forgiving sins, depending on whether the hearer accepts or rejects Jesus Christ." End of quote. And that's true. That's true. In fact, John Calvin says essentially the same thing, and I quote, he says, while Christ enjoins the apostles to forgive sins, he does not convey to them what is peculiar to himself. It belongs to him to forgive sins. But he enjoins them in his name to proclaim the forgiveness of sins that through their agency, he may reconcile men to God. End of quote. And friends, is this not essentially what the apostle Paul is proclaiming in second Corinthians, chapter five, and I would invite you to turn there with me, please, after Acts, Romans, first and second Corinthians, second Corinthians five and drop down to verse 17. In 2 Corinthians 5, 17 and following, the Apostle Paul declares, therefore, if anyone. Doesn't matter who you are, doesn't matter what you may have ever done, if anyone is in Christ by grace alone, through faith alone, he is a new creation. The old is gone. The new has come. All this is from God who reconciled us to himself through Christ and notice and gave us the ministry of reconciliation. that God was reconciling the world to himself in Christ, not counting men's sins against them. And he has committed to us, notice, the message of reconciliation. We are, therefore, Christ's ambassadors. Don't lose your place. Do you know the difference? I learned this several years ago. Do you know the difference between an ambassador and a diplomat? A diplomat is someone who negotiates. They discuss, they reason, they negotiate. An ambassador brings the message of the King. An ambassador brings the message of the King. An ambassador says, thus saith the Lord. And brothers and sisters in the Lord, we are not diplomats. The Bible says we are ambassadors. We are ambassadors who are to bring the word of the Lord to a lost and dying, sin-cursed, hell-bent generation. Paul says right here, we are therefore Christ's ambassadors, as though God were making His appeal, you see, through us. We implore you, on Christ's behalf, be reconciled to God. God made Him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in Him we might become the righteousness of God. As God's fellow workers, we urge you not to receive God's grace in vain. For He says, in the time of My favor I heard you, and in the day of salvation I helped you. I tell you, now is the time of God's favor. Now is the day of salvation. And indeed, that is the gospel message that is so beautifully summarized in question and answer 84 of the catechism, is it not? When the question asks, how does the preaching of the gospel open and close the kingdom of heaven? And that answer, listen carefully once again, is according to the command of Christ, the kingdom of heaven is opened by proclaiming and publicly declaring to each and every believer that as often as he accepts the gospel promise in true faith, God, because of what Christ has done, truly forgives all his sins. The kingdom of heaven is closed, however, by proclaiming and publicly declaring to unbelievers and hypocrites, boys and girls, a hypocrite is a mask wearer. A hypocrite is somebody who pretends to be someone or something that he's not. The kingdom of heaven is closed, however, by proclaiming and publicly declaring to unbelievers and hypocrites that as long as they do not repent, they do not turn from their sin and turn to God. As long as they do not repent, the anger of God and eternal condemnation rest on them. God's judgment, both in this life and in the life to come, is based on this gospel testimony. It is based on this gospel testimony. And indeed it is. And all glory be to God and all glory be to God." You know, it's interesting. Some 50 days after Christ consecrated and commissioned the disciples with this particular key of the kingdom, we read in Acts chapter 2, and I would invite you to turn there with me as we close, Matthew, Mark, Luke, John, Acts. In Acts chapter 2, the first four verses, it's the day of Pentecost. And we read this, Acts 2 verse 1, When the day of Pentecost came, they were all together in one place. There they go again, always getting together in one place. Suddenly a sound like the blowing of a violent wind came from heaven and filled the whole house where they were sitting. They saw what seemed to be tongues of fire that separated and came to rest on each of them. All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues or languages as the Spirit enabled them. Now friends, if you'll skim over the next several verses, you find that by the grace and mercy of God, all of those apostles began to boldly and powerfully proclaim the gospel of Jesus Christ. In fact, verse 5 says, they proclaimed it to Jews from every nation under heaven. And they seemingly were so worked up and filled with the Spirit that verse 13 says, some, however, made fun of them and said they've had too much wine. They were so powerfully preaching the gospel, people thought they were drunk. They thought they were crazy, thought they were out of their minds. Then in verses 14 and following, if you'll skim that over again, you find that the apostle Peter specifically continues to apply this key of the kingdom by powerfully and courageously proclaiming the good news of the gospel of Jesus Christ. In fact, so much so that as we get toward the end of that chapter in verses 40 and 41, we read the following. With many other words, he warned them and pleaded with them, Save yourselves from this corrupt generation. Those who accepted his message were baptized and about 3000 were added to their number that day. Think of it. About 3000 were added to their number. That day. You know, friends, studies have shown. That. Generally speaking, A newer Christian, a more recent convert, still has between 10 and 12 unsaved friends or family members, on the average between 10 and 12. Studies have also shown that those who have been in the faith for many more years, generally speaking, have between four to six unsaved friends and family members. thereby making the average of all Christians being somewhere in the range of seven to nine souls. The average Christian will have, generally speaking, seven to nine unsaved friends and family members. Now think about this. I did this on my calculator. If we average on a Sunday morning between our two morning services, let's say about 360 of us, That means that between us, God has providentially placed across our pathway somewhere around 2,500 to 3,200 unsafe family members and friends who need to hear the good news of the gospel of Jesus Christ. And they need to hear it from us. They need to hear it from us. One commentator is so well said, and I quote, needless to say, every believer also has an important duty, namely, the duty of bearing witness joyfully and incessantly, end of quote. Brothers and sisters, is it not true that shortly before He ascended on high, in Acts chapter 1 verse 8, our Lord Jesus said to His disciples, but you will receive power, you will receive dunamis, you will receive dynamite when the Holy Spirit comes on you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and throughout all Judea and Samaria and to the ends of the earth. Think of it. Consequently, my dear friends in the Lord, As you and I go forth from this place, by God's grace, may the reality of Christ's resurrection serve as our reason for rejoicing and result in the assuming of our responsibility to apply this particular key of the kingdom wherever we go, namely, the preaching of the Holy Gospel. Amen. Let's bow our heads and our hearts together in prayer. O Lord our God, because the gospel testimony is oh so true, that whoever believes in the Son has eternal life. But whoever rejects the Son will not see life, for God's wrath remains on him. Enable and empower each and every one of us, we pray, today and every day, to be found faithful and, by Thy grace, fruitful in the preaching of the gospel to unsaved friends and family members, co-workers and classmates alike, unto the opening and closing of the kingdom of heaven. In Jesus' name we pray, amen.