John 20:19-31 & Acts 5:27-32
Christ is risen! He is risen indeed. Alleluia!
Last Sunday we were celebrating Jesus’ triumphant victory over sin and death as our risen Saviour. The first person Jesus reveals himself to is Mary, who was distraught to find the tomb empty and then mistook Jesus to be the gardener. But all that changed as he called her name. Mary, filled with joy and excitement, rushes back to the other disciples and tells them she has seen the Lord.
I wonder how they reacted to her. How would you have reacted to this news? Perhaps with shock; disbelief maybe; or even apprehension.
This morning we’re going to be thinking about Thomas’ response to the resurrection of Jesus and how that is a great source of comfort to us when we struggle to believe in Jesus.
Have you ever come across something that seems too good to be true? Like a product advert claiming to get rid of all wrinkles in a few days! Or the promise of sparkling teeth if you use a particular toothpaste for a week. ‘I’m not falling for that’, you might say.
In our Gospel reading we meet Jesus’ disciples, hiding behind closed doors. They are fearful; feeling hopeless; scared of what might happen to them. And understandably so. The events of the last few days have been very unsettling. Try and put yourself in their shoes and think what it must have been like for them in the lead up to Easter.
On Thursday evening Jesus had washed their feet and shared a last supper with them. Then there was his agony in the garden of Gethsemane where some of them fell asleep while Jesus prayed. This is followed by Judas’ betrayal and Jesus’s arrest. Soon the crowds are shouting for Jesus to be crucified and Peter denies even knowing him. This is swiftly followed by Jesus’ trial, his torture, his crucifixion and his burial in the tomb. And now, two days later, Mary has come back and told them she’s seen the risen Jesus - the tomb is empty!
Just imagine what a roller-coaster of emotions the disciples must have felt behind those closed doors when Jesus came and stood among them. Joy, fear, confusion, guilt even for abandoning him when he needed them most. And what does Jesus say to these joyful filled, fearful, confused and guilt-ridden disciples? He simply says: “Peace be with you.”
What Jesus did on that first Easter evening was to show those frightened disciples the same grace and mercy and forgiveness and love that he always showed. And then to remove any doubts from their hearts and minds, that it was really him, he shows them his hands and side. How did they respond? They rejoiced when they saw him. Wouldn’t you? I hope so!
But there’s one person who is missing from this group – Thomas. He’s not present when Jesus appears to the disciples. We’re not told why he was absent. Perhaps he needed some space to process the events of the lasts few days. Perhaps he’d ventured out to get some provisions for the band of disciples in hiding. We don’t know. And there is no point speculating.
On his return, he’s met by the most excited group of people he’s ever met and if that were not enough, they tell him the most incredible news of Jesus’ resurrection. But he’s not buying it. It’s simply too good to be true. You can just imagine the scene: his fellow disciples - and don’t forget the women - are full of excitement and joy. Thomas must have heard them chatting away as he approached the room. He knocks; someone opens the door. He steps in; the disciples are beaming. ‘We have seen the Lord’, they tell him. I can imagine them all shouting at once.
How does Thomas respond? ‘Unless I see the mark of the nails in his hands, and put my finger in the mark of the nails and my hand in his side, I will not believe.’ In other words, what you are saying to me is too good to be true. I will not believe it till I see the evidence. Gosh! I bet the disciples were stunned by his remarks. For Thomas, seeing is believing. And we can relate to that can’t we.
We often call him doubting Thomas. And you can see why. But a closer reading of the text shows us that Jesus did not rebuke Thomas for his doubts. Jesus rebuked him for his unbelief. ‘Do not doubt but believe’, Jesus says to him in verse 27. Why? Because Thomas simply would not believe the reports of the other disciples and indeed the women who had encountered the risen Jesus.
Commenting on this episode, Bible scholar Warren Wiersbe says doubt is often an intellectual problem: we want to believe but faith is overwhelmed by problems and questions. Unbelief on the other hand is a moral problem; we simply will not believe.
Thomas wanted proof of Jesus’ resurrection. He wanted to see for himself. And so, his words help us to understand the difference between doubt which basically says I can’t believe because there are too many problems; and unbelief which says I will not believe unless you give me the evidence I ask for.
And that is precisely what Thomas gets - evidence. Jesus already knows what he’s said to the other disciples. So, a week later when they are all gathered behind closed doors again, Jesus deals personally with Thomas. Just like he had done a week earlier, Jesus comes and stands among them, greeting them with peace.
And then he looks at Thomas and says,
‘Put your finger here and see my hands. Reach out your hand and put it in my side. Do not doubt but believe.’
In other words, its okay Thomas. I have heard your request for evidence. I know you are struggling to make sense of the last few days and what you have heard about me. I know the wrestle you feel inside. Come, come closer; touch and see for yourself. Do not doubt; just believe.
What a gracious thing to do! Jesus, our risen Saviour, Lord of all creation, stoops down to our level of experience to dispel unbelief. Jesus lovingly shows Thomas the proof he so desperately sought. But Thomas needed no more proof! When confronted by the risen Jesus, he simply answers
‘My Lord and my God!’.
Thomas’ response to the resurrection of Jesus and his subsequent encounter with the risen Lord is a great source of comfort to all who struggle to believe in Jesus. We can relate to him. And Jesus deals with us in the same loving and gracious manner.
In the end, through all the turmoil, fears, doubts and disappointments, Thomas’ faith in Jesus was strengthened not by seeing, but by believing in him. Today we have the written word of God – the Bible – which points to the living word of God, Jesus. In verses 30 & 31 John says this: Now Jesus did many other signs in the presence of his disciples, which are not written in this book. But these are written so that you may come to believe that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God, and that through believing you may have life in his name.
In this life our faith in Christ Jesus as our Saviour and Lord will be tried and tested in all sorts of ways - through trials, sufferings, sorrow and grief. Our prayers may go unanswered; we may not see Jesus like Thomas did. But that does not mean God has abandoned us. His promise is that he will never leave us or forsake us. We, you and me, are precious to him.
Don’t let trials push you away from Jesus. Instead, run towards him, keep coming back to him. We may not understand all that’s happening, but we can choose to trust in him. We can choose to believe his promises in Scripture and be assured of his love, grace, and mercy. Into our chaos and confusion, Jesus speak words of peace and reassurance. The way to hear Jesus speak is through the Scriptures. Cultivate a habit of reading or listening to God’s word regularly. Just as we need food to nourish and sustain us physically, let us also feed on God’s word to nourish and sustain us spiritually. Or as St. Paul says in Colossians 3:16, let the word of Christ dwell in you richly – memorise it, think about it, pray it.
Amen.