Submitted by David Miller
One of the twelve
disciples, Thomas, was not with the others when Jesus came. They told him, “We
have seen the Lord!” But he replied, “I won’t believe it unless I see the nail
wounds in his hands, put my fingers into them, and place my hand into the wound
in his side” John 20-24-25 We live in a “show me” world. We have access to so much technology and
finding answers to our questions on the internet are only a matter of seconds
away. Google is our friend! We are inundated
with real time news feeds from all over the world 24 hours a day, 7 days a
week. With all this access to information at our finger tips, has faith become
an irrelevant and old fashioned concept?
Thomas was a devoted disciple of Jesus. The other disciples had already seen Jesus in
his resurrected body, but Thomas hadn’t been present at the time. So, when the
others told him about Jesus, he was skeptical and wanted to see for himself.
Thomas had his doubts and his doubting earned him the name “doubting Thomas,”
which has been handed down through the years.
I really think Thomas gets a bad rap. Yes, he has his doubts,
but Thomas is willing to speak up and voice his concerns. He has not checked
his brain at the door. He is thinking logically and he wants proof. In many
ways, Thomas is the disciple that a lot of us can relate to. He needs to see
the evidence. He does not want to follow blindly, but he wants to know that
what he says he believes is true. And then Jesus shows up. Have you ever had that happen? You know in your mind that He is always
there, but your circumstances and lack of faith keep you from truly embracing
and trusting Him? Can you imagine how Thomas must have felt when he saw Jesus
and saw for himself the holes in His hands and feet from the nails of the
cross? What a moment! To look up and
realize, Jesus, the Son of the Living God, is standing right in front of you!
We don’t know what Thomas was thinking. Was he scared? Did he feel completely inadequate? We don’t know but we do know how he responds:
“Thomas answered him, ‘My Lord and my God!’” There is a lot of meaning in those
words he spoke: asking for forgiveness, acknowledging that Jesus is Lord, and
gratitude that Jesus had done just what He said He would do. And even more,
Thomas knows if the resurrection is true, it changes everything!
Jesus responded to Thomas with, “…have you believed because you have seen me? Blessed are
those who have not seen and yet have believed.” Jesus understood his doubt, but He used this
interaction to reveal that it is by faith alone that anyone will be made right
with God and experience the gift of His forgiveness and grace. It allows us to
live with confidence that there is nothing that can separate us from the love
of God in Christ Jesus. Look at what
Paul reminds us of in Romans 8:38-39. For I am convinced that neither death, nor
life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor things present, nor things to come,
nor powers, nor height, nor depth, nor any other created thing, will be able to
separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord. (NASB)
You might be a bit skeptical, a bit unsure of your faith. You
may have a lot of questions. Deep down inside, you want to know God. You want
to know for yourself. He can turn your skepticism into belief. Just come to Him
with your questions. Come to Him with your doubts. Ask God to open your eyes to
the reality of His love and grace. You, too, will be able to say, “My Lord and
my God!”
