John 20: 19-31

I wonder what Thomas’ expectations were on that Easter evening, expectations regarding his life and his hopes after Jesus died and hopes were dashed. A guest in a seaside hotel restaurant called over the head waiter. He said, “I want two boiled eggs: one undercooked, the other over cooked. Cold bacon, burnt toast that crumbles, frozen butter, a pot of weak, lukewarm coffee. The waiter responded, “This is a complicated order.” The customer replied, “Why so complicated. That’s exactly what you gave me yesterday.”

Where was Thomas when his friends were together behind locked doors? They were behind locked doors out of fear, fear of those who never came. BUT JESUS CAME. He came to bring peace – “Peace be with you.” He showed his hands and side. He breathed on them the Holy Spirit to forgive the sins of any. IN FORGIVENESS, THERE IS PEACE FOR ALL. Peace, in Hebrew, is shalom meaning wholeness, nothing missing, nothing broken. Francois Du Toit, a Biblical scholar and author, wrote, “In the broken, bleeding body of Jesus, the incarnate Engineer of the universe, willingly dies humanity’s death at the hands of his own creation in order to redeem our minds from the plague of a sin-consciousness that left us distanced and indifferent for ages and generations, stuck in the wilderness of our self-help religious and survival programs.” Humanity needed peace. Jesus died humanity’s death at the hands of humanity to give us peace. To share the peace, we’re blessed with the Spirit to convey, share, dispense forgiveness.  Thomas arrived late to this and missed Jesus’ appearance.

In John 11: 16, Thomas is courageously devoted to Jesus – “Let us also go that we may die with him.” John 14: 5 shows Thomas to be theologically alert – “‘Lord, we do not know where you are going. How can we know the way?’ Jesus then said profoundly, ‘I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father but by me.'” Even though a non-canonical gospel bears his name and tradition associates him with a mission to India where he was martyred, Thomas has been, because of this text, tagged “Doubting Thomas.” John, the disciple, apostle, and author of this gospel, BELIEVED with no evidence but an empty tomb. Mary Magdalene BELIEVED because of a word. Ten disciples BELIEVED because they saw the Lord in verse 20. Thomas refused to BELIEVE when they gave testimony of encountering the risen Christ after he came to them from behind locked doors. Thomas would only be certain after physical contact.

I said in last week’s sermon, “From such testimonies we hear or suddenly have in our possession, we then take steps of faith and share what we know or what we’ve seen.  This is what we’re meant to do, and not keep our stories, our encounters with the risen Jesus to ourselves.” This morning the testimonies of many are shared with Thomas, and he wouldn’t believe. Fred Craddock, seminary professor and author, wrote years ago, “For some, faith is as gentle as a child on grandmother’s lap, but for others, it is continual wrestling with doubt.”

Thomas didn’t believe because he was overwhelmed with grief and sorrow. The news of Jesus being raised from the dead after witnessing his betrayal, his arrest, his horrendous public execution was too much a swing of a pendulum from one reality to another. Stages of Grief from Psychiatrist Dr. Elisabeth Kubler-Ross, author of On Death and Dying, composed the stages of grief to offer a degree of understanding of what goes on within the survivors of those who suffered loss. First, there’s denial; next, anger; third, bargaining; fourth, depression, and, fifth, acceptance. I believe Thomas was firmly ensconced in anger. Maybe he was away from his friends when Jesus appeared because he was looking for evidence to prove his denial was accurate – it couldn’t have happened. He couldn’t find any so anger kicked in. “He appeared? I won’t believe until I can put my hands in his wounds.”  Dr. Kubler-Ross wrote, “Grieving is as individual as we are and is not a linear process.”

A week later, Jesus came among all of them again. He entered the room and said again, “Peace be with you.” He then went to Thomas and told him to touch his wounds and to believe. THERE IS NO ACCOUNT OF THOMAS ACTUALLY TOUCHING JESUS. He simply said, “My Lord, and my God.” That which follows, I believe, is the punch line of the lesson this morning. You could also call it the climax of the story today. It’s in the form of our risen Savior coming to Thomas particularly to show him his body, and then saying, “Have you believed because you have seen me? Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have come to believe.”

What brings us to believe when we haven’t seen? I believe it is forgiveness. There is no chastisement on Jesus’ part toward Thomas. There’s forgiveness. He shows him his body and invites him to investigate the wounds for himself. He does tell him to stop doubting and believe, but there is no fractured relationship between Thomas and Jesus because Thomas doubted. Forgiveness. In the gospel of Mark’s account of the disciples doubting what Mary Magdalene told them of seeing Jesus, he came to them and told them all to stop doubting and believe. Forgiveness. When he breathes the Spirit on the disciples here in John he conveys to them the task and mission to forgive. It’s wonderful that their primary task after the resurrection and receiving the Spirit was to forgive. I believe we come to faith in Christ without seeing him by experiencing the love of God through the forgiveness of God.

Like for the disciples, he comes to where we hide behind the doors we lock out of fear, or denial, or anger, or depression AND JESUS COMES TO US. And he tells us with his coming to us we have peace, we are forgiven, we are his and he is ours. He is risen. We are forgiven. We have nothing to fear. 

(Preached at St Mark United Methodist Church in Anniston, AL, 4-7-24)