GRAPEVINE
A weekly spiritual insight, sharing a Bible verse paired with a thoughtful reflection to deepen your connection with God and illuminate His path for your life.
On the evening of that first Easter day, when the disciples were together, with the doors locked for fear of the Jewish authorities, Jesus came and stood among them and said, “Peace be with you!” After he said this, he showed them his hands and side.
On the evening of that first Easter day, when the disciples were together, with the doors locked for fear of the Jewish authorities, Jesus came and stood among them and said, “Peace be with you!” After he said this, he showed them his hands and side.
Again, Jesus said, “Peace be with you! As the Father has sent me, I am sending you.” And with that he breathed on them and said, “Receive the Holy Spirit. If you forgive anyone’s sins, their sins are forgiven; if you do not forgive them, they are not forgiven.”
Now Thomas, one of the Twelve, was not with the disciples, so the other disciples told him, “We have seen the Lord!”
But he said to them, “Unless I see the nail marks in his hands and put my finger where the nails were, and put my hand into his side, I will not believe.”
A week later his disciples were in the house again, and Thomas was with them. Though the doors were locked, Jesus came and stood among them and said, “Peace be with you!” Then he said to Thomas, “Put your finger here; see my hands. Reach out your hand and put it into my side. Stop doubting and believe.” Thomas said to him, “My Lord and my God!”
Then Jesus said, “Because you have seen me, you have believed. Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.”
On that first Easter day when Jesus was raised from the dead, he appeared to the women at his tomb, to two disciples on the road to Emmaus, and to a large group gathered in a house. We aren’t told why Thomas wasn’t present, but we are told how he responds - he responds with doubt and demands.
It’s a natural reaction. There is nothing wrong with doubt. Honest doubt, (which is not the same as scepticism, cynicism or denial) is the questioning of a person earnestly searching for answers to the ultimate questions of life, or who has been so battered by the circumstances of their life that they are trying to find God in the midst of all they are going through. Being honest and open about our doubts is healthy.
Thomas had been a whole hearted follower of Jesus for 3 years, but because he hadn’t had the same experience of the risen Jesus that the others had had, poor Thomas got the nickname by which he has been known for 2,000 years. Thomas was ‘doubting’ Thomas for just one week, but then he encountered the risen Lord and became ‘believing’ Thomas again. He remained ‘Believing Thomas’ for the rest of his life. Tradition says that he then took the Gospel further than any other apostle - to South India - where he was martyred on a hillside outside of Chennai (Madras). And yet we still label him as ‘doubting’.
We have a tendency to label others don’t we, because of one mistake, and though they may change, we make them retain the label we once gave them. But Jesus doesn’t. He is in the business of change. Jesus takes our failings, the names people have given us, the names we have given ourselves and he changes them forever, adopted into God’s family as beloved daughters and sons, with a totally clean slate.
Jesus blessed Thomas by meeting his demands to prove that he was risen. It would be wonderful if, like Thomas, we could all have proof, but if there was proof, there would be no need for faith or trust in God. God asks us to trust him and encourages us with the words of Jesus, ‘Blessed are those who have not seen, and yet believe.’ May God bless you as you believe in him.
Associate Minister, Steve Turville
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