“Can’t Be True!”

Scripture: John 14:1-7; John 20:24-29; John 21:1-6

Who hasn’t, at some point in their life, doubted that the Lord was really on their side? When life has taken a turn for the worse, we assume that it must be because God has either washed his hands of us and our wayward ways, or he decided that we need some “alone time”, to try to work life out in our own, inadequate way.

The world has a way of doing that to us – making us doubt that the Lord of all creation still loves us, even after we have turned our backs on him! The truth of the matter is though, that God’s love is not only eternal and infinite, but it is an integral part of our life, that it lives and grows and thrives within our heart, regardless of whether we are worthy of it or not. The problem, unfortunately, is that we aren’t always ready to experience it.

Life has a way of blinding us to the glory that the Lord is raining down all around us. That is what Mary Magdalene, and Peter, and John, and the Disciples as a whole were struggling with over those days since Jesus’ arrest, trial, condemnation, and execution. This wasn’t supposed to happen! Jesus Messiah was supposed to usher in an entirely new day – one that would free them from oppression, and renew them in faith. And even though the Lord had told them over and over again, that a time of struggle would not pass from them, they never actually accepted the reality of this day - Jesus been ushered out of their lives, so what do they do now?

Many believers had fled from Jerusalem, fearing for their lives and fearing for the ministry that had now been destroyed. And we are led to ask – where was their faith?

Read John 14:1-7

Jesus was preparing the faithful for the day when he would no longer be with them. This passage takes place in John’s recounting of the teaching that they received following the Last Supper. Feet had been washed, the Passover liturgy that had existed for over 1,000 years had been drastically changed, Judas has left the room, and now the final time of teaching had begun.

God needed to reassure these men, and probably a number of women, that even though he would soon be leaving them – a truth that they still struggled with – their faith would see them through. And I have read that the words that Jesus used – “I’m leaving to prepare a place for you; but I’ll be back, when all is ready, to bring you to our new home, to live with you, together, forever” – is based in the traditional Jewish proposal of marriage. Jesus was telling them that the relationship that they had with him would never be broken, regardless of what the world would have them believe. “So don’t worry about my absence – it’s going to be OK, it’s going to be glorious! Just trust that I know what I’m talking about, and that I will always love you.”

William Barkley, in his commentary on John’s Gospel, writes “There comes a time when we have to believe where we cannot prove and to accept where we cannot understand.” That’s what faith is, that’s what trusting in the word of God is – believing in that which goes far beyond proof and understanding, but which resides in the truth and eternal life of Jesus Christ. Jesus is the only proof and the only understanding that we will ever need, but we have to trust in that, and never be swayed by the contrived evidence that the world presents to us. So the question before us is this – will we trust in what Jesus has told us, or not?

And he says that they now know where he is going, and how to get there, but Thomas is already not so sure of where that place may be, and how that way can be traveled! And the disciple is told that the Way is by faith and trust in him. All too many, from that day until this day and even beyond, believe that “seeing is believing”, and that faith is a marginal thing without the “seeing”. But Jesus was preparing Thomas, and the others, and us, to go beyond the “seeing”, and to simply believe that Jesus is, indeed, the only Truth that will ever exist.

Read John 20:24-29

Thomas had been with Jesus throughout the years of ministry, and this week had been especially difficult for him. Not that it hadn’t been just as trying for the others, but Thomas had always been a “what you see is what you get” kind of guy. But for several days, presumably, he had been absent from the group. Whether it was out of fear for his life, or in the need for privacy during his time of mourning, he wasn’t seen at all, but to his credit, he returned to join his friends. There are any number of possible reasons for his return, but I believe that he was still in search of an understanding of the Way that Jesus had told him about.

He was still skeptical about the reports that Jesus was alive, and even though he expressed his concerns and has been saddled with the title Doubting Thomas, he said no more than the others had been thinking. But now, they had seen with their own eyes, that Jesus had cheated the tomb, and the burden of doubt had been lifted from their hearts. Thomas had yet to see, and his heart was still heavy. And he simply told his friends that he wanted the same, or a little more proof, than they had received. He wanted to be sure, he wanted to erase all the doubt and misunderstanding that had plagued him for far too long.

And Jesus, never one to leave anyone in doubt who has the capacity to believe, offers his friend Thomas exactly what he had asked for. “You want proof that I’m real? Then touch me! You want to identify me through the wounds in my hands and side? Then put your fingers in as far as you need to! Do whatever you have to do, but when you do, believe.”

And Thomas believes. What is it that we need in order to believe? To see a vision, to dream a dream, to hear a word, to feel a presence? Thomas thought that he needed physical contact with the resurrected Lord, but scripture never tells us that he actually reached out to take Jesus up on his offer – when Jesus told him that he could receive anything that he needed to believe, those words and the look of compassion in the Master’s eyes were enough. Thomas, and Peter, and John, and Mary, and all of the others, had received the proof that they needed to not only believe, but to begin taking those steps in ministry that would be founded in a faith that transcended all of their doubts and fears.

As Jesus pronounces those final words in this passage, he is telling them that there will only be a few who receive physical assurance of the power of salvation that is now theirs, but that faith for the unseeing will be just as powerful an experience as theirs has been. Blessings will be poured out on all who seek him and receive him.

Read John 21:1-6

So why is this passage important in our consideration of Thomas and his faith? I believe that the Lord was showing them that they still needed him in their lives. They couldn’t see the fish they were seeking – possibly because of the angle of their sight, perhaps because of the refractive nature of the lake water – we don’t know. But the lesson that Jesus was teaching, just as he did with his parables, was based in a reality that these men all knew so well. And the lesson? That we all need Jesus if we want to be successful in ministry and mission and life.

In Acts 16:8-10, we read that the apostle Paul had intentions to continue to minister to the people of Asia, but God had other plans. He sent a vision to Paul that he was needed in Macedonia, and without hesitating, the missionary did as he was commanded. In his personal wisdom, he had made plans for where he was to go next, but just as with the fishermen, his mission would not have been very successful if he hadn’t accepted the vision and guidance that came to him by the Holy Spirit.

Do we look to the Lord for guidance on a daily basis? To learn of where he would have us go and who we are to go to? I have personally been led to several places that I had no intention whatsoever of going to on my own – usually because of my own narrow vision and limited expectations. If ministry and mission are to accomplish all that the Lord desires, we need to be where he is prepared to work through us, and not where we want him to be.

Over and over in the book of Acts, we read of God’s guidance and God’s blessing on those who follow in his will. Ananias who was called to witness to Paul immediately after his conversion (Acts 9:1-19), Peter who would receive the vision of the sheet filled with both clean and unclean animals (Acts 10:9-23), Paul and Silas in prison (Acts 16:25-34), and many other times of Spiritual guidance for the faithful.

Ananias was frightened of Saul the persecutor, but he went to him, and blessed him, and baptized him for the new ministry that Paul was to lead. Peter detested the Gentiles, because the law said that they were unclean sinners, but he would discover that God didn’t see them as unworthy, but rather as the very ones he was waiting to bless. Paul and Silas were in prison, and yet, they would be used in powerful ways, right where they were.

Where might the Lord be calling each one of us, and possibly as an entire body of believers, to go in his name? We will never know until he tells us in no uncertain terms. So to quote the prophet Habakkuk, 2:1, “I will stand at my watch and station myself on the ramparts, I will look to see what he will say to me, and what answer I am to give to this complaint.”

Wait expectantly, be open to God’s direction, regardless of what it may be, and do exactly what he wants us to do – nothing more and nothing less.

Patience and trust is what Thomas needed in his life, and the Lord granted it. And we will receive everything that we need, too, if we wait for him to give and reveal his will. Receive, and doubt no more.