by Dr. Jo*

Why does Jesus’s resurrected body still have scars?

I could not remember if the Roman soldier drove the spear through or under Jesus’s rib cage to pierce his heart, verifying his death. A quick search of John’s gospel on my iPad revealed that “not one of his bones was broken” (John 18:36). The spearhead went under the rib cage. We live in a world where we can answer our gospel curiosity in minutes. Access to gospel information, however, is not gospel obedience, is it?

You see, I am rich. I do not mean the wealth of iPads or leisurely web searches on a quiet Good Friday morning, but the riches that come from being born into a community that knows Jesus. There has never been a day of my existence when I did not have complete and rapid access to the gospel. Three generations of my loved ones have explained it to me and lived it before my eyes. We cannot hoard this wealth, can we?

As I write these words, I have the extreme luxury of wondering why Jesus’s resurrected body still has scars (John 20:20). Why do all four gospels include details about the disciples recognising with joy their risen Lord because of the marks on his hands and side? From my iPad, I can access a global library of resources to help answer my questions. And yet, today, on this same connected planet, more than three billion people have never enjoyed the glorious thought that thanks to Jesus’s cross, our scars can also become a source of joy. The Faithful Witness initiative exists to share this good news with those who have never heard it.

Faithful witnesses accumulate scars

Faithful witnesses accumulate scars. Some we can see and others we cannot: the voluntary humiliation of language and culture learning, subjecting our children to unfamiliar educational systems, immigrant administrative status, cultural misunderstandings, great distances from loved ones, dark spiritual oppression, and opposition to our message … sometimes violent opposition, physical harm, imprisonment, and even death. In my experience, the betrayal of a friend leaves the deepest wound.  Faithful witnesses actively participate in Jesus’s suffering and death (Phil 3:10). It’s hard to die, but all faithful witnesses have wounds and scars.

These days, the Faithful Witness team in Central Asia is being put to the test. The regional director was finally diagnosed with coeliac disease.  His energy and ability to work had been diminished for months. We thank God for proper medical treatment and that he can begin to heal. The Team Tuz leader was in a life-threatening accident. We thank God she only suffered a concussion and some cuts and bruises. She too will heal. Recently, another worker shared publicly his faith in Jesus. He is now receiving overwhelmingly positive and negative attention that puts his family under extreme pressure. They are pressed down but not crushed.  We expect God will give them strength to stand firm with joy.

Our joyful scars

There is no web search you can do to understand a faithful witness’s joy in suffering. Gospel access is not gospel obedience. To understand a faithful witness’s joy, you can only follow Jesus in every circumstance. To understand this joy, you can only keep your eyes fixed on the risen Lord, who for the sake of the joy that was set before him endured the cross, disregarding its shame, and has taken his seat at the right hand of the throne of God (Heb. 12:2 NRSV).

Faithful witnesses are convinced that one day soon we too will stand together before the throne of God. Like the very first faithful witnesses, we too will recognise with joy our risen Lord by the marks on his hands and side. And we too will recognise each other by our joyful scars, delightedly telling each other about the wound stories with the intense rapture known only to the heightened senses of resurrected bodies … Our very own scarred and resurrected bodies!

Jesus is risen. And God will raise his faithful witnesses to life with him. Inexpressible joy!

Prayer

• Pray that our faithful witnesses would consider it pure joy whenever they face trials of many kinds.
• Pray that God would fill our workers with the same power that raised Jesus from the dead as they obediently share in Jesus’s sufferings.
• Pray that God would give you too the joy of a faithful witness’s obedience.
• Pray the Central Asian team would keep their eyes fixed on Jesus in every circumstance of life.

Send a financial gift to encourage the Faithful Witness team in Central Asia

*Pen name