“Doubting Thomas” and the Courage to Believe
Scripture Reading: John 20:24-29
Jesus saith unto him, Thomas, because thou hast seen me, thou hast believed. Blessed are they that have not seen and yet believe.” John 20:29 (Image: Unsplash)
A BRIEF HISTORY OF THOMAS:
Thomas, also known in the bible as Didymus, was one of the twelve active disciples chosen to walk with Jesus. Though only mentioned eight times in the bible, it’s believed that he was very close to the Lord, with some believers taking the Greek translation of Thomas’ name meaning “twin,” starting the rumor that Thomas was in fact Jesus’ twin brother - though there are no confirmed records of such a lineage.
THE SITUATION:
Beyond the infamous statement Thomas made in John 20:24, “Except I shall see in his hands the print of his nails and put my finger into the print of the nails, and thrust my hand into his side, I WILL NOT BELIEVE,” there is not very much noted about Thomas’ life. This leads us to assume that Thomas was one of the lesser disciples in the bible, not as important as say, Simon Peter or Judas Iscariot by comparison due to their sordid tales of woe.
But I’m about to reveal the things which separate Thomas from the eleven disciples who actually saw Jesus on the day of his resurrection. And when you see the importance of his statement, hopefully, you will see how his lack of faith sheds light on the barriers unbelievers face when given the task to believe in Jesus Christ.
Seeing vs Believing:
Thomas was not in the upper room with the other eleven disciples the day of Jesus’ resurrection. So, their news of Jesus raising from the dead was received with skepticism. Basically, Thomas thought that the disciples were lying. Why? Was Thomas not there with the disciples the day Jesus raised Lazarus from the dead? (John 11:16)
People who still live according to the natural (the ethos of the mind apart from GOD) often find it difficult to believe anything that they cannot see with their eyes and define with their mind or their mouth. Believing that a human can raise from the dead went against the natural laws of the afterlife that Thomas thought he knew.
Thus, Thomas like other lukewarm Christians needed physical proof before he would believe that such a miracle had occurred. And in fact, Jesus waited eight days (v.26) before revealing himself to his disciples a second time. So, for eight days, Thomas walked around with that unbelief, that doubt in Jesus’ ability to do The Impossible.
Why? I believe that just like with the resurrection of Lazarus, in which Jesus waited four days before raising him from the dead while Mary and Martha’s faith in Jesus drew on its last legs… Jesus gave Thomas just enough time for his doubt to build into near extinction of faith before he showed himself to Thomas. How long have we been walking around with old mindsets? Ideas that we picked up like souvenirs from past experiences that no longer serve us. How long will we let dead philosophies rule us?
Jesus Demands Faith Beyond Sight:
Jesus demands total loyalty from us, not selective devotion. Jesus knew that seven days prior to his second appearance, Thomas’ heart was divided between what he thought he knew and what he had seen with his eyes. But Jesus was smart enough to know that what Thomas saw with his eyes was not faith, according to Romans 8:24-25 which says, “For we are saved by hope: but hope that is seen is not hope: for what a man seeth, why doth he yet hope for? But if we hope for that we see not, then do we with patience wait for it.”
So, no matter what Thomas saw with his eyes, Jesus knew that Thomas would never believe it. It was these very words that Jesus repeated to Thomas the day that he revealed himself to the disciple, inviting him to place his hand in his side and his finger in the imprint of his hand. Jesus humanized himself for the sake of Thomas’ faith in him.
SELAH (Pause and let that marinate)!
I’ll ask you again: what old mindsets are you holding on to? What dead philosophies have you held on to? Those old mindsets are blocking you from receiving God’s best for your life. Faith is about so much more than what you can see or define by natural means. Like Jesus told Thomas in verse 29 of John 20:29, “Jesus saith unto him, Thomas, because thou hast seen me, thou hast believed: blessed are they that have not seen, and yet have believed.”
Unseen faith relies on the conviction of your spirit and flesh in exchange for total surrender of you beliefs to Jesus Christ. Taking Jesus at his word - despite your ability to understand or see the full picture - means aligning yourself with Jesus’ spirit in the complete sincerity of your heart, believing that Jesus - through the power of God and the holy spirit, IS ABLE to do what man says is impossible.
If you enjoyed this article, please leave a comment below. Also, share this word with those who you love and are praying for. Your investment in their spiritual health could save their lives.
