Scripture: Matthew 14:25-32; John 20:24-29; James 1:4-8
All too often, we hear people of faith express their
fears of doubt. Throughout the Gospels,
we see Jesus either being enabled by the faith of others, or limited in his
abilities through limited faith. How
often do we read in the Gospels those words of Jesus - “Oh you of little
faith!”? And in every case, it was either
fear, worry or doubt that had raised their ugly heads because faith had yet to
grow strong enough to meet the person’s needs.
In today’s sighting of the Risen and Living LORD
Jesus, we will consider how Thomas came to set his doubt aside through Christ’s
offer for him to actually touch the wounds in his hand and side. But in truth, it was the touch of Jesus
that Thomas really needed – not his own touch. The touch on others wasn’t always a physical
process either – sometimes is was a touch of love, or compassion, or
understanding, or encouragement that Jesus gave to those in need.
In the case of the Canaanite woman, her “great
faith” enabled Jesus to heal her daughter of the demon, even though the girl
wasn’t even present. (Matthew 15:21-28) In the case of Zechariah and Elizabeth, who
had been praying that God would bless them with a child, even in their advanced
age. It would seem that Zechariah’s
faith was tested on that day in the Holy of Holies, when an angel came to him
to announce that their prayers were to be answered, and that they would have a
son. God had a purpose, even though
Zechariah didn’t understand that yet. (Luke 1:5-25)
One of the most recognized events of doubt erasing
the power of faith was in Peter’s stepping out of the boat to walk toward Jesus
in the storm.
Read Matthew 14:25-32
Jesus has chosen to come to
His band of believers later instead of joining them when the boat left the
shore. It is a dark and stormy night,
and in the fear that the men experience, Jesus calms them with a few words of
hope. And in that, Peter’s faith is
renewed and strengthened, and he asks his LORD to give him permission to
join him on the waves, which Jesus does.
Peter gets out of the boat, takes a few steps on the water, and then it
happens – the storm catches his attention, he takes his eyes off of Jesus, and
he sinks into the stormy mass.
It wasn’t that Peter didn’t
believe in Jesus – it was just that the world distracted him, and his focus
turned from faith in Christ, to fear over the world’s buffeting. But before we start questioning Peter’s
faith, we need to think about those times when our faith got sidetracked by an
attack of anxiety over the effect that the things of earth have on us! If Peter - and we - could just stay focused on
the fact that Jesus has power over everything, including the storms of life,
none of us would ever have to fear sinking in the waves of doubt!
But did Jesus leave Peter to
his own fate in the water? Not on your
life! He reached out to the man, caught
him up, and only then asked him where his faith had gone! But even as Jesus rescues Peter, the storm
continued to rage until they both were in the boat, and it was only then that
the winds were calmed.
The one issue, though, that
we have no answer for, is what was the tone of Jesus’ voice as He told Peter
“You of little faith, why did you doubt?”
Personally, I don’t think it was a voice of scolding or
chastisement. I believe it was as
personal and loving as Peter needed in that moment, and that it was meant to be
a means for personal reflection on all that had happened in those last few
minutes. Peter didn’t need a word of
condemnation to realize that when he lost focus on his LORD,
his eyes were left to only gaze upon the trial that the world was presenting to
him.
By faith, Jesus had conveyed
upon Peter the power and authority to actually walk on those wild storm-driven
waves, until, that is, when Peter averted his attention from the glory of God
to the violence of worldly fear. And so
it may be for each of us, if we don’t stay focused on the truth of
Jesus.
Read John 20:24-29
For years, I have thought
that Thomas got a bad rap by being labeled as “Doubting Thomas”. If I could have my way, he should be known as
“Honest Thomas” – after all, he merely said what the others had been thinking,
but didn’t actually say! In the previous
few verses, Jesus appears to an unnamed group of disciples in that locked upper
room. He offers His peace to them twice,
and then shows them His hands and side as evidence, and breaths the Holy Spirit
onto them. (John 20:19-23) He
gave them what they needed, without the need for them to ask.
But Thomas, who hadn’t been
present for that first appearing, actually confesses his need to see
proof that Jesus had truly cheated death.
Peter and John didn’t believe Mary’s report, and even when they went
running to the tomb to see for themselves, they still weren’t absolutely
certain that the empty tomb meant that Jesus had risen from death and into
life!
The LORD
gave what they all needed to fully believe that He lived, and would live
throughout eternity. Thomas was given
the opportunity to not only see, but to touch the wounds, but apparently, the
seeing was enough for him, and he strongly proclaims “My LORD and
my God!” It turns out that Thomas didn’t
need to touch, even though he said he did, because the power and presence of
Jesus had touched him.
Our LORD
wants us all to fully believe without the need to have proof! But He knows that from time to time, we do
need to have His reassurance that what He is asking us to do is truly His will
for our lives. Remember those words – “You
may ask me for anything in my name, and I will do it.” (John 14:12-14) That’s not a hollow promise – when we believe
in Jesus, even though we may have some uncertainty as to what He is asking of
us, even though we may be hesitant to take that step in faith, even though we
may not fully understand what He is asking of us, we can always ask for
clarification or assurance or even for evidence for certainty, and Jesus will
give whatever it may take to relieve our concerns. Faith in Him is the beginning – this is what
“asking in His name” implies – and when we do, the LORD
will never let anything stand in the way of our following wherever He may be
leading.
Read James 1:4-8
When James writes that we
should let “perseverance finish its work within us”, he is telling us
that growth in faith is a continuing process, and one that will never be finished
in this lifetime! Whatever we feel is
lacking in our lives, we can petition God to provide and complete for us. But again, we read that when we ask, we must
first believe. You may ask, though,
believe what? After all, if we believe,
shouldn’t we already have whatever we need?
Whether we read this in
James’ epistle, or in Christ’s teaching in the gospels, “believing” is based in
who Jesus is and in the faith that He has already blessed us with, and not in
the certainty, maturity and fullness of faith that comes through the process of
sanctification. This is a lifelong
endeavor that grows us in wisdom and understanding every time we take those
steps in faith that move us out of our comfort zone and into the glory that God
has prepared for those who will follow and learn and give and trust through
Him. If this wasn’t the case, then why
should we need perseverance?
In Paul’s letter to the
Romans, he wrote “We rejoice in the hope of the glory of God. Not only so but we also rejoice in our
sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance,
character; and character, hope. And hope
does not disappoint us, because God has poured out His love into our hearts by
the Holy Spirit, whom He has given us.” (Romans 5:3-5)
It's all about the many steps
that it takes for our faith to strengthen and mature in Christ. Doubt?
Uncertainty? Hesitation? Absolutely!
It will all be ours at some time or other – Satan’s world doesn’t want
us to become stronger in the LORD, so they are constantly throwing challenges
(“struggles”) into our path. But what
they don’t seem to realize is that Jesus is always there to give us a hand up
out of those raging and storm-tossed waters of life, and will always be there,
prepared and willing to give us that precious “touch” that holds us close to the
path that leads us ever onward to life eternal in Him.
Remember all the times when
you were afraid, or when doubts were flooding your soul, or when the
uncertainty of life was so oppressive that you cried out to God for help? In the moment when you knew that all would be
OK, it was then that He Touched you!
Marvelous, wasn’t it!
