The first Easter happened with 10 men huddled in a room with doors locked for fear of the Jewish authorities. Jesus’ 12 disciples, minus Judas, minus Thomas who was out doing something, were quarantined in a room just barely meeting today’s CDC guidelines for group gatherings. John tells us something important – they were afraid. 
“For fear of…” is a line that might resonate with us more or at least in a different way these days. We have our fears. Sure we have fears of the virus, we have fears of contamination, we have fears of being a danger to others ourselves, we have fears of death….but we have other fears. We have fears that life will never really come back to how it was before. We have fears that this will ruin so many things that we used to take for granted. We even have irrational fears. What are your fears?
Yesterday I even recognized the strangest fear I’ve had yet. I read an article about how New York had, for the first time, a day in which new cases of COVID-19 were lower than before. And this strange fear popped up. I checked my thinking and my emotions, doing a sort of reflective double-take, but there it was: I was afraid that this might mean that things were returning to normal. And while I want that, I have to be honest that there is even some fear there. Non-sensical, irrational fear…but fear nonetheless.
It’s notable that in this year’s Easter Gospel reading, which is from Matthew, we hear the line “Don’t be afraid” spoken twice. Once it is spoken to the women from the angel who they meet when they expect to find Jesus’ body, the second time, from Jesus Himself. “Don’t be afraid.” This is the consummate example of “easier said than done.” Our emotions don’t respond perfectly to commands, even if those commands come from an angel and the Son of God.
It has been said that there are 365 “Fear Not” commands in the Bible (you have to be a little creative with your choice of translations to get there, but….close enough), one for every day. I’m hoping that this season doesn’t last 365 “fear nots,” but know that this is the command and the Good News of your Savior. That doesn’t mean being reckless, but it means taking courage knowing that His divine courage is yours because of His suffering, death, and Resurrection.
So let us recognize our fears, and let us hear the command of our Savior to “fear not,” for He has conquered sin, death, the devil, and disease. He has even conquered our inability to fear not.