Friends,
While flipping through the channels on the television one
time, I happened upon a rerun of Everybody Loves Raymond. I have not watched this show all that many
times, but I stopped for a moment because I heard one of the characters mention
God and the Bible. Knowing that most
sitcoms disparage God, Christianity and the Bible, I was, nonetheless, stuck
with curiosity as to what would be said.
There was some predictable poking of fun at matters concerning the
Faith, but I had to take pause concerning a serious question that was
raised. The question – “what is the
meaning of life?” They were looking
half-heartedly at the Bible for answers, (with the irony being…the Bible really
does have the answer to this question). One
of the characters came up with the agreed upon answer that – “the meaning is in
the pursuit itself.” This is rather
vague…although, it is true in a sense.
But what is that pursuit? Glorify
God and keep His commands. Yet, this is
only half of it, because there is not only the pursuit, there is also the
discovery! Jesus Christ, the Son of God
is Savior and Lord! This is where
purpose and discovery meet with eternal destination. Pretty important stuff they were talking
about…and they didn’t realize the half of it.
And this is why I am here to tell all of it…the whole story. This is really part two of John’s
resurrection story, following Mary Magdalene, Peter and John at the empty tomb.
Following Jesus’ resurrection, the news that Jesus is
alive begins to spread among His followers…at first with hesitation, but then
with enthusiasm. (John 20:19-29) Even the disciples do
not believe the first reports, but whenever people are confronted with the
reality of the resurrection, their lives are transformed. The Lord turns the fear of the disciples into
courage. How so? First…He comes to them. We do not know where these men were, but
Jesus finds them…and it is amazing how it happens. In His resurrection body, Jesus is able to
just appear among them without ever opening a door. Yet, He has a solid body
which can be touched, as we will see. What
we realize is that Jesus’ spiritual body is not limited. And it causes us to
realize -- you could never really play “hide and seek” with Jesus. :-)
It is somewhat amazing that these men are actually
afraid. The women reported to them that
Jesus was alive and the two Emmaus disciples likely added to their
witness. Jesus’ first word to them is
the traditional greeting – shalom, (peace).
He could rebuke them for their unfaithfulness and cowardice, but He
doesn’t. He reassures them – He shows
them His wounded hands and side, giving them the opportunity to discover that
He is indeed their Master and not some sort of phantom. The wounds mean more than identification –
they are also evidence that the price of salvation has been paid and that man
truly can have peace with God. When
Jesus sees that the disciples’ fear has now turned to joy, He commissions them
(v.21)…this being His dedication of His disciples to the task of world evangelism
(Matthew 28). It must have given these
men great joy to realize that, despite their many failures, Jesus still
entrusts them with His words and His work.
Finally, Jesus enables them through His Holy Spirit, giving them a
portion of power (v.22) in order that they should continue to grow in wisdom to
be able to witness with power.
Now we come to the big question? Why is Thomas (called Didymus – twin) not
with the other disciples when they are together? What we know is that Thomas is a man of
courage (John 11:16), and is spiritually-minded, asking questions of Jesus
(14:5). Still, there seems to be this
underlying “pessimism” to Thomas. Many
call him “doubting Thomas.” Perhaps,
this is too harsh of a designation…since he is looking for assurances. Jesus does rebuke him, but it is not for doubt, as we call it, but unbelief. Doubt is often an intellectual problem – we
want to believe, but faith is overwhelmed by problems and questions. Unbelief is a moral problem of the will – we
simply refuse to believe. So, it is important to separate the two. And this raises another question…what is it
that Thomas does not believe?
Apparently, the reports of the other Christians that Jesus is alive. And
this may be why Thomas had not been with the other disciples. He reasons like a man – “seeing is
believing.” On the one hand we can
admire Thomas for wanting personal experience.
On the other hand, we must fault him for laying conditions for the Lord
to meet! The other ten disciples had
told Thomas that they had seen the Lord’s hands and side (v.20), so Thomas
makes this his test. Thomas’ own words
help us to understand the difference between doubt and unbelief. Doubt says, “I cannot believe”…there are too
many problems. Unbelief says “I will not
believe unless you give me evidence.” After
one week, Jesus deals with Thomas and his unbelief. The grace of our Lord is amazing, if you
consider – he stoops to our level of experience to lift us up! He grants Thomas’ request. There is no record that Thomas accepts the
Lord’s invite to touch Him, but his response seems to indicate such. When the time comes to prove his faith,
Thomas steps up. Jesus’ next words are,
literally, “stop becoming faithless, but become a believer.” Jesus has seen a dangerous process at work in
Thomas’ heart and He wants to put a stop to it.
One day, a group of agnostics asked a Christian scientist
this question: "As a person rooted in science, how can you believe that
God will raise the dead from the dust?"
Working quickly, the scientist mixed a few handfuls of sand with the
smallest of iron shavings. Then he challenged the unbelievers, saying, "Before
I answer your question, let me ask one of my own: Which of you can take this
pile and separate the particles into two groups?" Taken off guard, the unbelievers didn't
really think their answer through. This
is what the Christian scientist did -- he took a high-powered magnet and held
it over the mixed pile. In a second, the filings "jumped" from the
desktop onto the magnet. Turning to the
unbelievers he then challenged them with this thought: "If the Creator
establishes the laws which give such powers to a magnet, how can you believe He
does not have greater powers Himself? I believe if the unseen power of the
magnet can pull iron shavings out of the dirt; my God can use His almighty
power to call forth bodies which have turned to dust."
How many disciples were in the room when Jesus first
arrived? That is right, ten. Judas did not make it. Number eleven, Thomas,
nearly did not make it. I am thankful
that he did not choose to continue on in his unbelief and have the same fate as
Judas…and as so many others who live in this world choose. We have every spiritual opportunity in
Christ, just as did Thomas, to make the right decision about Jesus. This is why Jesus says at the conclusion –
“blessed are those who have believed without seeing.” The Lord has a personal interest in each and
every one of us. In every way, He wants
to strengthen our faith and include us in the blessings He has for us! Thomas’ unbelief represents the “scientific
approach” to life – I need proof. It may
be where some are today, but as with Thomas…it doesn’t work. Only faith works…belief and assurance
concerning what our Lord Jesus Christ has done for us. We must understand that we are saved by the
grace of Jesus Christ, God’s Son, and our obedient faith response to Him. He is the basis for all peace; He died for
all people – rich and poor, black and white, male and female, old and young,
Jew and Gentile. He rose from the dead
victorious over Satan, sin and death for all time – and now He lives for us…and
in us through His Spirit. God has given
us a most precious gift – our souls. How
can we not trust Him who made us, saves us, and knows us better that we know
ourselves…with or souls? In this we
fulfill the pursuit…we have the discovery, and our lives have meaning!
Blessings, Don