Be Not Unbelieving, But Believe
John 20:19–21:2 – That You May Believe
First Sunday of Christmastide – December 29, 2024 (am)
I. Introduction: A really bad day, The story of Howard Rose
As one year draws to a close and another is about to begin, we look back with a mixture of regret and pride and astonishment. We also look forward to an uncertain and unpredictable but ever promising future. The New Year gives us an opportunity to pause for a moment and express thankfulness to a Heavenly Father who is the architect of both the good days and the difficult ones prepared for us. Our text this morning is from John 20 beginning in v. 19. We will read that text in a few minutes, but first I want to tell a true story that may help us to grasp how the apostle Thomas may have felt on a really, really bad day!
His name was Howard Rose. [I thought about changing the name, but as he died many years ago now, I do not think he will mind!] Howard was a friend from church back in the late 1980’s or so and he worked for me for a couple of days, like many young men before him.
Howard had a number of vague disabilities. He was unable to navigate life on his own. He could not drive. He could not really earn a living. But he could haul lumber, and he could load debris into a dumpster, and he could push a broom… and so, I asked if he would be willing to work for me? So, it was on a job in Lombard where we were building a 2nd floor on top of a ranch house that Howard was dropped off. It was a frigid, blustery day in mid-November if memory serves, and a misty rain was falling in an on again, off again fashion.
At lunch time I told the guys to grab their food, and we would go to burger King for lunch. I called out to Howard, “Hey Howard, grab your lunch and hop in the truck. We are going to Burger King for lunch.” His response? “No thank you Todd. I think I will stay here.” Now, because I was such a sensitive boss, I said, “Okay. Suit yourself!”
When we came back, maybe 45 minutes later, Howard was nowhere to be found. One of the workers did find him after a few minutes. He was kind of burrowed into a corner of the dumpster, where he was able to find some shelter from the wind and the intermittent drizzle. He was eating his lunch, which was a cold can of pork and beans which he had opened with a screw driver and a hammer. He was eating with his fingers which he had to dip in carefully in order to avoid the jagged edges of the can…
I really don’t remember how long Howard worked for us; it might have only been a few days. We lost track of Howard for a number of years. Probably a decade later Cath and I had the privilege of leading a bible study and hymn sing at Meadowbrook Manor nursing home on the corner of Raymond and River Rd in Naperville, and there at a table in the cafeteria waiting for our meeting to start was… Howard Rose! He had developed in addition to his other challenges acute kidney failure and in fact would die there within a year or two. But, when I thought I recognized him, I asked if he remembered me…
“Yes, Todd, I remember you.”
Okay, well it is good to see you. But I have told a story about you over the years and I am wondering if you remember? So, I described the scene I laid out for us a few minutes ago and when I finished, I cringed a bit because I had always felt like I could have done more to take care of him on that blustery day, so long ago. As I winced, he said this, [in these exact words]
Todd, I remember it very well and it was truly maybe the best day of my entire life!
You could have knocked me over with a feather. I had told my children and many others over the years that Howard’s circumstances on that day surely marked the bottom of the pile in terms of bad days. No day that we were ever likely to experience would come close to that.
But over time, and in the light of normal life experience, and even in the serving as an Elder in this body, I have come to see that Howard’s really bad day was nowhere close to the possibilities out there. In fact, many that I have known, and surely some of us in this room, would gladly be confined to a dumpster, eating cold pork and beans, in the rain, in the cold, eating with your fingers… If it meant that for that 45 minutes, they could be free from bitter regret over wasted days and lost opportunities. You see, a bad day like many other things, is in the eye of the beholder. This morning, we will be looking at the Apostle Thomas and hopefully experience through his eyes, what a really bad day looked like.
II. Walk through the text: John 20:19-31
We are jumping right into the middle of an extraordinary day. It is the first day of the week post-crucifixion. The disciples who had all scattered to their own homes now in the evening find themselves gathered together. They have heard the reports from Mary Magdalene that Jesus is alive, indeed is risen from the dead. Yet they are understandably afraid of many things. Let’s jump in:
A. Locked doors and a gentle greeting: John 20:19
19 On the evening of that day, the first day of the week, the doors being locked where the disciples were for fear of the Jews,[c] Jesus came and stood among them and said to them, “Peace be with you.”
I have wondered why we are told that the doors were locked. If the purpose is to highlight the supernatural appearance of Jesus, it feels a bit lame somehow. After all, on a scale of 1 to 10 it would seem a small thing indeed for this Jesus who calmed the storms to be stymied by a stubborn door! A better reason for the inclusion of this detail is to show that these disciples are frightened, perhaps of many things. They have to be wondering, “now what!”
And Jesus appears among them with this simple and familiar greeting, “Peace be with you.” This greeting occurs many times in scripture from the lips of many. We see it in Daniel 10:19 where an angelic being comforts Daniel with these words:
“And he said, “O man greatly loved, fear not, peace be with you; be strong and of good courage.”
It is not unlike the greeting of the angelic host in Luke 2 where they say to the shepherds, “fear not, for behold I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people.”
So, we see a pattern that will be repeated two more times in these scenes in John 20. Jesus brings with him the gift of peace, courage in the face of fear and comfort in the face of uncertainty. By saying these words, Jesus is letting them know that everything will be okay. He is giving them permission to relax, because what he is about to do and say next will change everything about their mission and their identity.
B. Battle scars. John 20:20-21
20 When he had said this, he showed them his hands and his side. Then the disciples were glad when they saw the Lord. 21 Jesus said to them again, “Peace be with you. As the Father has sent me, even so I am sending you.”
It is interesting that the wounds Jesus suffered on the cross are not somehow supernaturally erased by His resurrection. They become a mute but unassailable and potent witness of the cost of his resurrection. His first move in this scene after his comforting greeting is to show them all his wounds. It is a solace and an anchor to them for what is coming next.
What happens next is a commissioning. And the disciples have now been prepared to accept a deep and thought-provoking consequence of that assignment. “…As I have been sent”. That is a tough assignment because just now they have seen the cost of that ‘sending’ in the very wounds that now drill their belief into bed rock. We are left to wonder if they had a pre-sentiment that this ‘being sent’ would bring battle scars to each of them?
C. A strange and powerful gift: John 20:22-23
” 22 And when he had said this, he breathed on them and said to them, “Receive the Holy Spirit. 23 If you forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven them; if you withhold forgiveness from any, it is withheld.”
At first glance this seems somehow out of place here. Should this not find a more suitable moment in say, Acts 2? This marks perhaps the strangest thing in an already very strange day. His resurrected breath is the means of an extraordinary gift. The disciples certainly did not understand the depth of what this would mean to them…. And to the world. But they surely knew that it was an equipping in some way for the ‘sending’. Strange, yes, but perhaps not as strange as the next sentence. He is sending them out to do who knows what or why or wherefore… but the dispensation of forgiveness is embedded in it! Let’s break it down a bit:
1. They will carry authority with them, wherever they are sent.
2. They will bear in themselves the responsibility that always goes with great authority.
3. They will carry courage and the boldness to proclaim justice and peace and consequence in the world to which they are sent.
4. They must and will have the ability and grace to discern truth from falsehood.
5. They will and must have a clarity of focus and deep well of wisdom as well as insight into the many layers of the human heart.
6. Finally, they will and must have the tenderhearted capacity to extend the mercy of God to a world steeped in guilt and fear.
This begins to feel like an assembly of the fruits of the Spirit. The thought occurred to me that as a parent I could have no better desire or prayer for my children, and it surely is my prayer for us, right now, today!
D. Clinging by his fingernails to unbelief: John 20:24-25
24 Now Thomas, one of the twelve, called the Twin,[d] was not with them when Jesus came. 25 So the other disciples told him, “We have seen the Lord.” But he said to them, “Unless I see in his hands the mark of the nails and place my finger into the mark of the nails, and place my hand into his side, I will never believe.”
Here we have it, the first tell-tale of Thomas’ very bad day. [I have not figured out who his ‘twin’ [Didymus] was nor if that information would add any light, though I could spin out a couple of scenarios where that would indeed matter.] But the main thing was that Thomas was not there! He is singled out for skipping class on the day when it mattered most. Let’s remember an important thing about Thomas. We have met him twice before:
1. In John 11, Jesus and his band are near the Jordan river when word is brought to Jesus that his friend Lazarus is sick and perhaps dying. Jesus waits a day or two and then tells his disciples that he must go to him, in Bethany, near Jerusalem, deep in Judah. They all know that the Jews are waiting there to arrest Jesus and are reasonably hesitant to go with him. It is Thomas who says to the other disciples, “Let us also go, that we may die with him.”
2. We see one other interaction between Thomas and Jesus, in John 14: 2-6
In my Father's house are many rooms. If it were not so, would I have told you that I go to prepare a place for you?[b] 3 And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and will take you to myself, that where I am you may be also. 4 And you know the way to where I am going.”[c] 5 Thomas said to him, “Lord, we do not know where you are going. How can we know the way?” 6 Jesus said to him, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.
Might we begin to see a pattern in the priorities of Thomas. He is concerned always about where Jesus is going. He wants to be with him in Judea in the midst of very real and perceived danger. He hears Jesus talking about going away and he is the one who wants a road map. Where Jesus is, that is where Thomas wants to be. Yet here, today, on this first day of the week, Thomas discovers that he has missed the bus so to speak. Jesus has come and he, alone of all the disciples was not there to see it. A really bad day indeed!
[story of two high profile athletes and their really bad days:]
Pedro Delgado overslept and came to the starting gate of the tour de France in 1989, 2 minutes and 40 seconds late. He soldiered on, trying to make up for lost time, but ultimately lost by less than the amount of his tardiness.
Seigfried Esajes was the only rep from the country of Surinam in the 1960 Olympics. He did not hear his alarm go off for the time trials and never made it. Ouch!
I could bore you all day long with stories like these, and perversely we kind of revel in hearing them, yes? The reason is because we have all been there. But for a slow train crossing, or a failed alarm, we all know what it is like to miss something important! And in that light, let’s consider Thomas’ response for a moment:
E. Until and unless: John 20:26-27
26 Eight days later, his disciples were inside again, and Thomas was with them. Although the doors were locked, Jesus came and stood among them and said, “Peace be with you.” 27 Then he said to Thomas, “Put your finger here, and see my hands; and put out your hand, and place it in my side. Do not disbelieve, but believe.”
1. Notice first of all that Thomas has spent a week, probably wracked with guilt, uncertainty, longing for the fellowship of Jesus, and once again notice that the doors were locked. Also notice that Jesus once again greets them with the words, “Peace be with you.” This feels and sounds to our ears like a repeat of the memorable events of a week ago. Only this time Thomas is here.
2. Notice also that upon greeting the disciples, dispelling fear and doubt, the first thing Jesus does is to approach Thomas, to come near. And he speaks words that surely must strike Thomas like daggers! “Put your finger here and see my hands; and put out your hand and place it in my side….” It is as if Jesus is telling Thomas, “Thomas, you have made your eyes, your fingers, your hands the measure of all things. I will meet you where you are Thomas. Come. The wounds are real. This body is real. My presence with you is real. Thomas, you have fought valiantly for your unbelief. I am calling you to my rest.”
3. Jesus next words are so, so succinct and so penetrating. “Do not disbelieve but believe.” The NIV renders it, “stop doubting and believe.” The KJV has a slightly different take, “Then saith he to Thomas, reach hither thy finger, and behold my hands; and reach hither thy hand, and thrust it into my side: and be not faithless, but believing. The rendering that strikes home with me the most is this from the Amplified Bible, “Do not be unbelieving, but [stop doubting and] believe.” I like this rendering because it suggests that Jesus is imploring Thomas to not remain in a state of unbelief. Eight days is long enough, Thomas! You’re exhausted. It’s time to come home!
F. When words are barely enough! John 20:28-29
28 Thomas answered him, “My Lord and my God!” 29 Jesus said to him, “Have you believed because you have seen me? Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.”
1. Allow the power and the beauty of this scene sink in for a moment. There is no posturing here. There is no back door nuance in his words. Thomas does not lead with a “yeah… but”. He does not express his inner woundedness. He simply utters five single syllable words! He knows finally that he will not be left behind like a small child on bench at the Wheaton Public library! The door of fellowship and family fidelity has been opened wide by his Savior. His is a gentle but victorious surrender!
2. But, even here there is a teaching moment, not only for Thomas but for us as well. Thomas could not have known that generation would follow generation, men and women and boys and girls in perhaps the hundreds of millions would hear and read the words of Jesus and would surrender to Him in equal fervency yet never measuring with their own eyes, their own fingers, their own hands. [I don’t think Thomas would care even that everyone of those hundreds of millions would forever know this disciple as “Doubting Thomas.!” The respiration of the Holy Spirit would cause true faith to grow in power and beauty in the lives of many… because of the always reliable transmission of the word in the power and protection of the Spirit of God. Brothers and sisters, this we believe. And this is our story as well as Thomas’.
G. A postscript: John 20:30-John 21:2
Now Jesus did many other signs in the presence of the disciples, which are not written in this book; 31 but these are written so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name.
21 After this Jesus revealed himself again to the disciples by the Sea of Tiberias, and he revealed himself in this way. 2 Simon Peter, Thomas (called the Twin), Nathanael of Cana in Galilee, the sons of Zebedee, and two others of his disciples were together.
1. John is not the only gospel writer who states pretty clearly the purpose of his gospel. But his purpose stated here is quite clear. It is interesting I think to note that he does not state his intention quite as succinctly as Thomas’ confession. It is as if he wants the reader to savor this magnificent purpose, to soak it in and think about it. As Nick suggested two weeks ago, it is as if he has thought about this for a long, long time. He ties together the words belief, and life. He is tying back to his words in Ch. 1:4:
4 In him was life,[a] and the life was the light of men. “We are left with a couple of take aways from this story and we will walk through them as we conclude this morning, but first I cannot resist a quick comment about 21:1-2.
Seven disciples meet up with Jesus on the sea of Galilee. Jesus cooks them breakfast and he has a thoughtful conversation with Peter, but if look carefully, the text tells us who was present. The second person mentioned is… Thomas! We can surely imagine that Thomas would have been determined to never again miss the bus! Where Peter and James and John would go, Thomas would go also. We are I think, given this little nugget to get just a little window into the life of a disciple who had finally, in spite of a really bad day, found rest in a final surrender to his Lord and his God.
III. Takeaways:
1. Unbelief is not passive.
Thomas worked at his unbelief, and it percolated in his soul for eight days before Jesus gently but forcefully confronted him... When I was about ten years old the Nichols family moved in down the street. They lived in a cinderblock ranch house with a drive under garage. I believe it is still there on the corner of Daly and Summit. We were very interested of course as they had three boys who played baseball and were pretty good at it. Of course, they were not so good that we hated them, but they soon joined us in our dawn to dusk summertime baseball world. The parent’s names were Marvin and Rita and they were Catholic. I had heard of such creatures but had never encountered them in the wild. I remember overhearing a conversation among the adults at a neighborhood picnic where Mr. Nichols acknowledged that he did not attend church with his family… In his words, “God has not given me the ability to believe.”
I remember thinking, “Wow, that sounds like a get out of jail free card!... It troubled me but I did not have the words or life experience to name the disconnect. But I can name it now. Do you see it with me? Yes, it presumes that faith is passively apprehended, as if it falls from the sky on you if you’re lucky. This is a bit tricky because we rightly ascribe faith not to our work but Christ’s work. We proclaim the great solas, by grace alone, through faith alone, in Christ alone.
But we do not do well when we associate some kind of logical equivalency between the sovereignty of God and passivity in our carefully cultivated unbelief. Scripture does not allow us that luxury. 2 Thessalonians 2:9-12
The coming of the lawless one is by the activity of Satan with all power and false signs and wonders, 10 and with all wicked deception for those who are perishing, because they refused to love the truth and so be saved. 11 Therefore God sends them a strong delusion, so that they may believe what is false, 12 in order that all may be condemned who did not believe the truth but had pleasure in unrighteousness.
Brothers and sisters, there is nothing about the Christian life and faith that is passive. And when we reject this Savior, we will own it, as a willful, cultivated, and exhausting pursuit. And that leads me to a related take away that will serve as our conclusion this morning.
2. Faith is worth fighting for:
Thomas fought really hard for his unbelief. He clung to it like a life buoy. Why? Because his wounded pride was of more value to him than his faithful confession! The moral of the story? Faith is worth fighting for. Fight for your faith! How so? I began thinking about this when I was privileged to give the devo for men’s flag football for eight Saturday mornings this fall. They were mostly big, strong, fast athletic guys who were there to compete, to fight, and to win. If I had harbored any ideas that I could still compete with any of them… well, let’s just say that any delusions of grandeur were quickly laid aside! Most of these guys were not part of this body, and I invited them to come to church the next morning and join with us in our expression of faith. By about week five or six the thought occurred to me that the reason I was giving fell flat even on my ears. A better reason, maybe a more pointed reason is that we come to church to fight for our faith. Because faith is worth fighting for. And like soldiers we fight for the faith of one another. In these scenes from John 20, the disciples gather on the first day of the week because they needed one another in the exercise of fighting for faith. A nursery worker fights for the faith of a young Mom and Dad when he or she cares for your infant. A youth group team member fights for your faith when he dresses in a silly costume to send a small but important message to your teen. If you are say a middle school young lady here this morning you fight for the faith of your Mom when you treat your younger sibling with tenderness. Even more when you go up to Mom later today and say, “Mom, peace be unto you!” and say it like you mean it! Now, it might also cause her to take your temperature or set up an appt with the pediatrician! After all it is a risky business to fight for one another! Thirty plus persons fight for your faith when they gather each week to hold up you and your families, and your struggles, your always and ever even more dangerous triumphs… and yes, to lift even your worst days up in prayer.
And in that fight we willingly spend ourselves so that those in our circles will hear amidst the chatter of our lives, one single, solitary message from us in this coming year that is so filled with promise… “Be not unbelieving, but believe.”
NEXT SUNDAY: I Am the Bread of Life, John 6:35–59