BELIEVE NOW, AVOID THE WAIT
John 20:24-29 NKJV
24 Now Thomas, called the Twin, one of the twelve, was not with them when Jesus came. 25 The other disciples therefore said to him, "We have seen the Lord."
So he said to them, "Unless I see in His hands the print of the nails, and put my finger into the print of the nails, and put my hand into His side, I will not believe."
26 And after eight days His disciples were again inside, and Thomas with them. Jesus came, the doors being shut, and stood in the midst, and said, "Peace to you!" 27 Then He said to Thomas, "Reach your finger here, and look at My hands; and reach your hand here, and put it into My side. Do not be unbelieving, but believing."
28 And Thomas answered and said to Him, "My Lord and my God!"
29 Jesus said to him, "Thomas, because you have seen Me, you have believed. Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed."
Our verses for today are the account of Thomas and his choice to not believe that Jesus was alive. Thomas was not with the other disciples when Jesus appeared to them after the resurrection. The disciples were excited, but Thomas was not buying in.
The interesting thing about Thomas was that he chose not to believe. He said that unless he could see the print of the nails and put his hand into Jesus' side, he would not believe. At least Thomas was honest. He did not say he could not believe. He stated that he would not.
What makes Thomas' unbelief so egregious was the amount of evidence he had for believing. He had Jesus' word on the resurrection. Many times, Jesus had spoken to the twelve and told them He would rise from the dead. The disciples may not have understood at first, but when eyewitnesses started declaring that they had seen Jesus, then they should have been able to connect the dots. And not only did Thomas have Jesus' word, but he also had the eyewitness accounts of the other disciples. These were not the words of strangers but the words of men he was close to. These were the men Thomas had shared life with for the past three-plus years. Men he had eaten with, worshipped with, and observed miracles with. These were men that Thomas had worked with and had done miracles in Jesus' name. And yet, he would not believe. Thomas made the very common mistake of thinking he had to see and feel in order to believe. Seeing is believing is a common phrase, but not a scriptural one.
Thomas had to wait eight days to believe that Jesus was alive. Eight days in the dark. Eight days with all the other disciples being excited, but not Thomas. Thomas missed out on a lot of joy that he could have had. He could have spoken with his close friends among the disciples and chosen to believe and rejoice that Jesus, who he loved, was alive. Thomas could have spent eight days excited instead of eight days in the uncertainty of unbelief.
And when Jesus showed up again, He did not give Thomas a pass. Jesus never excused Thomas for his lack of faith. Jesus did not condemn Thomas, but He did share a truth that we still live by today: "Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed."
APPLICATION
It's best that we are not too hard on Thomas. It's fair to say all of us have succumbed to the very human tendency to walk by what we see and feel instead of choosing to believe. But we, like Thomas, can adjust. Historians tell us Thomas would travel into India and do a great work spreading the gospel. Remember, it's not how you start; it's how you finish.
Make the choice to believe. One thing that has helped me is to affirm to the Lord that I believe Him and, I believe His word, and I believe His Holy Spirit. Another helpful aid in believing is to thank God for what you believe before you see it. The choice to believe is a good choice; no need to wait to see and feel. Blessed are those who believe without any help from the senses.
PRAYER
Lord, I believe You and Your word. I don't have to see and feel to believe!