These are a few mini-commentaries I wrote for Union Gospel Press, and they were published last year. This assignment included 13 of these short commentaries on key verses for Sunday School lessons.

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"Be not affrightened: ye seek Jesus of Nazareth, which was crucified: he is risen; he is not here; behold the place where they laid him" (Mark 16:6).

The early disciples had every reason to be frightened after Jesus had been crucified. Their leader had been killed, and his enemies would surely come after them. They did not expect him to be crucified and they were not expecting a resurrection.

But the angel of the Lord comforted them with the most wonderful news. He is risen. It must have seemed unbelievable to them, yet his body was gone. Soon they and the other disciples would be filled with joy at knowing the Lord had risen.

He had died to atone for the sins of the world, and he was raised from the dead to defeat the power of sin in our lives forever (I Cor. 15)

Soon they were filled with the joy of Christ living in them, and they quickly spread the news.

Just as they had the wonderful news, we now have the greatest news the world has ever heard. Jesus is not here physically, because he rose from the dead and has ascended to the father.

We can now tell the world the news that Christ has risen just as they did then.

The world has many problems, and many people are filled with fear, grief and many other anxious emotions.

We as Christians have the answer to most people's fears, which is ultimately that Jesus lives.

To be sure, believing in Jesus does not make one's problems disappear, but if one is in Christ, those problems take on a new context and meaning.

To paraphrase a famous song, "because He lives I have reason to face tomorrow."

As Christians, we can also take great comfort in knowing that Jesus rose from the grave to defeat sin, and to give us His life.

We also have the hope that "death is swallowed up in victory" (I Cor. 15:54b).

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"Thomas, because thou hast seen me, thou hast believed: blessed are they that have not seen, and yet have believed" (John 20:29).

Throughout the scriptures Jesus always met people at their point of need. After the crucifixion of the Lord, the disciples needed to be comforted and to be assured that Jesus had in fact risen.

Thomas had not been with the others when Jesus appeared to them, and there was a shade of doubt in Thomas' mind.

It is interesting that Jesus did not criticize Thomas for doubting. Instead Jesus told him "reach hither thy finger, and behold my hands: and reach hither thy hand and thrust it into my side; and be not faithless, but believing" (John 20:27).

It is in sharp contrast to Jesus' response to the Pharisees who sought a sign. He refused to give them a sign because their doubt did not include a sincere desire for the truth.

Thomas seems to be willing to believe if he can just get over his doubts. Jesus makes that possible by appearing to him.

Of course Jesus realized that later we would all have to believe without seeing, so he says there is a blessing for those who have not seen and yet believe.

Jesus still meets us at our point of need, whether our doubts are physical, intellectual or emotional. In this passage, it seems that doubt coupled with a willing and open heart is not condemned at all.

Jesus answered Thomas' deepest need, and he offers to do the same for us. While he cannot give us his hands to touch, he can give us his word and his spirit will guide us into all truth (John 16:13).

If we allow our doubts to spur us to study, to seek the Lord through the scriptures and prayer, then those doubts will be building blocks and stepping stones to deeper levels of knowledge and truth.

Instead of feeling guilty about doubts perhaps we should rejoice at the opportunity to grow in the Lord.

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"Jesus said unto them, I am the bread of life: he that cometh to me shall never hunger; and he that believeth on me shall never thirst" (John 6:35).

Early on in his ministry some may have followed Jesus because he fed thousands with just a few pieces of fish and bread. It was a great miracle that attracted attention, but Jesus never let an opportunity to teach pass.

He explained that people hunger and thirst again after eating and drinking on a physical level. He was calling them to a higher level of eating and drinking.

Just as bread was the staff of life, and water was the source of life in Biblical times, Jesus himself was and is the source of eternal life.

Jesus also called them, and us, to come to him to have our deepest longings met. He was saying that if we come to Jesus, we will not hunger or thirst again on a deeper and spiritual level.

In life, we all seek significance, or at least a sense of purpose. The search for this has led some to create great empires, and some to sink to incredible depths of evil in an effort to soothe that deep itch in the soul.

There are countless examples of very rich people who are miserable because they have gained the world and still have emptiness in their soul. However, whether rich or poor, those who have met Christ are filled with Him and have their deepest longings met.

Christ was saying here that he is the bread that can sate the deep longings in our soul.

Jesus offered himself as the true bread. "For the bread of God is he which cometh down from heaven, and giveth life to the world" (John 6:33).

It is in believing in Christ that we become who we were created to be and find our deepest purpose.

If we are in that relationship with the Lord, our deepest longings for significance and purpose will be met in Christ.

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"If ye continue in my word, then are ye my disciples indeed; and ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free" (John 8:31-32).

The people in Jesus day were under great bondage. They were under the economic and military thumb of Rome. They were also under bondage to a system of incredible legalism imposed by the Jewish religious leaders, and they were in bondage to their sins.

In this week's passage, the Jews resented Jesus' remarks about freedom, saying they were not in bondage. Yet Jesus told them "whosoever committeth sin is the servant of sin" (John 8:34).

Jesus offers them freedom in the deepest sense. "If the Son therefore shall make you free ye shall be free indeed" (John 8:36).

The problem was the religious leaders of the day did not even recognize the bondage they were in, just as people today fail to see their bondage. Many prefer their bondage to the freedom Christ offers.

The idea of continuing in His word means a state of belief in Christ as Lord and Messiah. It was a state of deep relationship, not based on law but based on love.

As we believe in Him he sets us free from from legalism and from the power of sin.

Much of the New Testament concerns this freedom, which allows us to live freely in a meaningful relationship with Christ.

The difficult thing is that many find grace alone hard to accept and want to add something that man can do to justify himself before God.

As Christians, we should be on our guard against anything that would add to or take from what Christ has done for us. Paul wrote to the Galatians that they were in grave danger because they were wanting to slip back into the Jewish legalism after having come to Christ.

For those who fall back into legalism for their justification "Christ is become of no effect unto you" (Galatians 5:4}.