8am and 10 am – 23rd April, 2017
“STOP DOUBTING AND BELIEVE” John. 20:19-31
Let us pray: “Heavenly Father, we bow in Your Presence, may Your Word be our rule, Your Spirit our teacher, and Your greater glory our supreme concern, through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen!” (John Stott)
INTRODUCTION
We’ve probably all said those words at sometime in our lives. We may have learnt them from our parents or teachers, our relatives or siblings, or from just about anyone. They may perhaps be a cliché, which we have fashioned out of our cynicism or our doubts, even, perhaps sometimes by our bravado. Sometimes we use these words as part of our stubborn exterior. The phrase may have evolved out of the bitter experience of the pains and the hurts of life. Almost without doubt, somewhere, somehow, for some reason and to someone……………….we have uttered the words:
”I’ll believe it when I see it!”
Using these words as, perhaps, a familiar part of our repertoire of personal sayings, perhaps our thoughts, reactions and attitudes, and some of life’s experiences, have not been so very different from Thomas, the disciple, who features in the Gospel reading appointed for today.
WHO WAS THOMAS?
What do we know about the man named Thomas, a disciple called by our Lord Jesus Christ, to follow Jesus and to live his life in the footsteps of Jesus? The only mention of the disciple, Thomas in the Synoptic Gospels, i.e., Matthew, Mark, and Luke, is in the lists of the twelve disciples called by our Lord to follow Him. Thomas and Matthew’s names appear together in each of these accounts. Since the names Thomas and Didymus both mean “twin”, you can imagine there has been speculation as to who is Thomas’ twin!
In the Gospel according to St. John, there are several instances where Thomas’ words are recorded; they give us some insight into the sort of person Thomas was.
In the Gospel of John chapter eleven, Jesus makes an interesting comment to the disciples, when He says: “Lazarus is dead, and for your sake I am glad I was not there, so that you may believe. But let us go to him.” (John 11:14-15) Jesus states that through the raising of Lazarus from the dead, the disciples will believe! (i.e., in Him, i.e., that Jesus is the Son of God!)
When Jesus was last in that region, the Jews had tried to stone Him, so the disciples are concerned for His safety. Thomas’ response is: “Let us all go with Him, (i.e., Jesus) that we may die with Him.” (Jn.11:16)
Thomas’ faith at this point, is so great, that he is willing to die with Jesus! So here, Thomas displays, great emotion, great loyalty, great willingness to sacrifice his life, and great faith in Jesus.
This disciple was not always a doubting Thomas!
THOMAS DOESN’T UNDERSTAND
We are given a further insight into Thomas the disciple, in chapter fourteen of John’s Gospel. Jesus had just told the disciples that He is going to leave and prepare a place for them. (Jn.14:2)
Thomas must have been hanging on Jesus’ every word, his reply was, “Lord, we don’t know where you are going, so how can we know the way?” Jesus answered, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No-one comes to the Father except through me.” (Jn.14:1-6)
How do we find this “way”, to which Jesus is referring? Jesus gives us the answer to our question, when He says, “I am the way.” He says, there is no other way to the Father – to God. Jesus calls us to follow Him and live our lives according to how He has taught us from the example of His life and in the Scriptures. As we repent and come to faith in Jesus, our lives will be transformed and we will grow to be more and more like Jesus. We will become new creations in Christ.
HOW DO WE COME TO FAITH?
“I’ll believe it when I see it!”….. we sometimes say! But Jesus stands before us, as He did Thomas, with all the evidence we need to convince us to come to faith, to believe, as the Holy Spirit convicts us of the truth.
How do we come to faith in Christ? Jesus assures us that it is the Holy Spirit, the Counsellor, who will teach and lead and guide us into all truth about Jesus the Son of God. The life, death and resurrection of Jesus are absolute facts, recorded, not only in Christian literature, but in secular history. The events of Jesus’ life have been prophesied by a number of prophets in the Old Testament – all of which have been fulfilled! God has revealed Himself to the world, through creation, through His Word (the Scriptures), and in the Person of His Son. In addition, we have the witness of: firstly, the twelve disciples, then the one hundred and twenty present at Pentecost, then the three thousand who came to believe that same day. The subsequent witness of millions (if not billions) of Christians throughout history, are surely sufficient evidence to convict us, that Jesus Christ was no ordinary man, but that He was, indeed, the very Son of God, who died for our salvation which we remembered just over a week ago on Good Friday. Jesus proved His power over all things when He rose from death, was resurrected to life, which the Christian world celebrated last Sunday on Easter day and we celebrate every Sunday of the year.
CONCLUSION
The writer of the Gospel, John, tells us his purpose in writing the Gospel which bears his name when he says: “But this is written that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in His Name.” (John 20:31)
Jesus said to the disciple, Thomas, “Put your finger here, see my hands. Reach out your hand and put it into my side. Stop doubting and believe!” (Jn.20:27) Thomas was confronted with the reality of Jesus’ Presence right in front of his eyes, and Thomas was confronted with the reality of the suffering Jesus endured for Thomas’ salvation, and yours, and mine……………and Thomas believed!
Perhaps we have heard Jesus’ words and not really fully understood what they meant at the time,…………………….. just like Thomas!
Perhaps we have run away from what we believe about Jesus, in some measure, when, instead, we should have stood up for what we believe and been counted for our faith in Jesus…………..just like Thomas!
Perhaps we have bargained and tried to sort out what we really do believe about Jesus, and put conditions on our faith, saying: “If only this or that would happen, then I would truly believe and commit my whole life to God” – in the same way that Thomas said…. “Unless I see the mark of the nails in His hands,,,,,,,,,,,,and put my hand in His side, I will not believe”……………..just like Thomas!
Has our faith “see-sawed”, one moment seeming to be quite strong, the next, being unsure, and perhaps doubting……..just like Thomas?
Have we sought with all our beings to come into the Presence of Jesus, for He has assured us, He will be with us always.
With the events of the Cross so vividly in our minds, let us reach out willingly and gladly to Jesus, as in the same way Thomas reached out to touch the wounds of Jesus. Jesus said to Thomas, and He says to us today: “Stop doubting and believe!”
Additionally, Jesus greatly encourages us with the specific statement, “Blessed are those who have not seen and have believed!” (Jn.20:29)
The Prophet Jeremiah assures us, and this was like a piece of driftwood to hold onto for me personally in my own seeking to find God: “If you seek me with all your hearts, you will surely find me!” (Jer.29:13f)
As the risen Jesus stands before us, with outstretched hands, to forgive, to free, to enfold, to welcome us, the Holy Spirit moves our hearts, our minds, our wills and our voices, to reply fully, and freely, as did Thomas, “My Lord and My God!!”
May this be the conviction and the cry from each of our hearts today.
The Lord be with you!