I Am Thomas

John 20:24-29

Introduction.

  1. Thomas gets a bad rap for being the one who doubted.

    1. But in truth, all the disciples doubted to the point that Jesus “upbraided” them for it (Mark 16:14 KJV).

    2. They didn’t believe even when Jesus is standing right there in front of them, showing them His hands and feet! (Luke 24:40-41).

    3. They knew that their Lord had just been executed in a most brutal way, and yet they had the testimonies of Mary Magdalene and several other women, along with Cleopas and his friend, yet they all still did not believe.

    4. Even after the other ten Apostles had told him, however, Thomas still did not believe.

    5. Well, we’ll get more into Thomas in a moment.

  2. There are three instances that reveal who Thomas is in the Gospel of John.

    1. Thomas the Doomsayer (John 11:16).

    2. Thomas the Detail-oriented (John 14:5).

    3. Thomas the Doubter (John 20:24-29).

  3. In each one, we will consider a portion of his personality.

    1. But before we begin, I should note that among all the disciples, Thomas may be the one I identify with most.

    2. I have to fight the urge to be a doomsayer or a pessimist.

    3. I have been called very detail-oriented, almost to a fault (depending on what we’re talking about).

    4. And as a trained scientist, well, doubt is the name of the game in that field!

    5. So let us consider this Apostle, this Twin, this “Doubter” this morning.

Body.

  1. Thomas the Doomsayer (John 11:16).

    1. Context.

      1. Many of us are quite familiar with the events surrounding John 11 and the raising of Lazarus from the dead.

      2. Jesus gets word that His friend Lazarus is sick, but He waits where He is for two days—surely Jesus can heal him, but He waits (11:3-6).

      3. Finally Jesus says, “Let us go to Judea again,” but His disciples remind Him that the people there just tried to stone Him not too long ago (11:7-8; cf. 7:1; 8:59; 10:31; Mark 3:6).

      4. Jesus is determined to go, however, to reveal the glory of God through the Son that they might believe (11:4, 15).

      5. Then this oft-overlooked statement of Thomas which reveals so much … “Let us also go, that we may die with Him.”

      6. When I was reading through this a few years ago, well, it’s just one of those things that you overlook because of the greater narrative.

      7. And for good reason, but it’s still an interesting detail that John adds concerning Thomas and the other disciples.

    2. What does this mean?

      1. There are a couple different ways to look at this.

      2. When I read it anew a few years ago, it seemed rather sarcastic or snarky to me.

      3. Like, “Oh of course we are all going to march to our deaths.”

      4. But taking in all that’s happened to them and the character of Thomas later, he seems to be expressing more pessimism than sarcasm.

      5. After all, it was pretty obvious that many of the Jews wanted to kill Jesus, and were ready to do it, too, if it weren’t for His escaping.

      6. It would be like going into a bear cave after you’ve already angered the bear.

      7. It wouldn’t have been unreasonable to assume this was foolish and to think you were marching toward your death.

      8. Yet given all that we had seen of Jesus, was it that unreasonable?

      9. Well, countless prophets before them were very powerful, yet were killed by a people not willing to listen, so maybe—it was still up in the air as far as the disciples were concerned.

    3. Still, it shows Thomas’s resolve.

      1. While he was fully expecting to have been killed with Jesus and the others, he was still willing to go!

      2. While he may have been uncertain as to the outcome, he was willing to put his life on the line for his faith and for his Lord.

      3. Thomas catches a lot of flack, but this realization is quite something!

      4. This is a lesson we can take from Thomas, that no matter how dark things may seem, do it anyway.

      5. It probably won’t turn out as bad as you thought it would.

      6. Of course, Thomas would be killed, but according to tradition, it wouldn’t be for another 40 or so years later by being thrust through with a spear all the way in India.

      7. No, God still had more for him to do before that fateful day.

      8. And even if it is your “last stand” as it were, “to live is Christ, and to die is gain” (Phil. 1:21).

      9. Maybe Thomas realized that and went along with it knowing that the worst that could happen might just be the best outcome.

    4. Application.

      1. I’m not going to say, “Be less pessimistic” – we can’t always help how we think about things, especially at first.

      2. But I will say that even if you’re thinking of the worst possible outcome, be as bold as Thomas and obey God anyway.

      3. And just as with Thomas, at least on this occasion, it probably won’t end as badly as you think it will.

      4. And even if it does end poorly, you’ll know that a greater reward awaits!

  2. Thomas the Detail-oriented (John 14:5).

    1. We love John 14:1-4, and we love vs. 6.

      1. But let’s not overlook the one asking a question there in vs. 5.

      2. You see this is during the last bit of teaching that Jesus gives to His disciples before His crucifixion here in John 14–16.

      3. He had just informed them that He was going to leave, and they couldn’t follow Him.

      4. Peter declares that he would and he would die for Him, but Jesus reveals that he would instead deny Him three times.

      5. But Jesus assures them, saying, “Let not your heart be troubled …”

      6. Such beautiful words are there that we read them in our darkest hours, particularly when one has passed away.

      7. Jesus talks of a place that He is going to prepare for His followers, and that when He comes again, He’ll gather them up and they’ll go with Him there.

      8. He then definitively declares, “And where I go you know, and the way you know.”

      9. Thomas speaks up, basically saying, “No we don’t!”

      10. Then Jesus reveals the way, the only way is through Him!

    2. Really, Thomas should have known those things.

      1. He asked two questions: Where are you going? And how do we get there?

      2. First, Jesus just said where He was going, “In My Father’s house” (14:2).

      3. They had already confessed that He was the Christ, the Son of the living God (Matt. 16:18).

      4. He Himself confessed that He was the I AM (John 8:58) and that He and His Father are one (10:30), two instances where we mentioned earlier that the Jews were about to stone Him.

      5. Maybe Thomas wasn’t paying attention, or maybe he wanted the nitty-gritty details of where exactly He was going and how to get there.

      6. He wanted the GPS coordinates and Google Maps to help him get there.

      7. In any event, Jesus doesn’t directly answer his first question—perhaps Jesus thought he had enough information there.

      8. He states, instead, how to get there, and that the only way is through Him.

      9. Amazingly, Thomas leaves it here. Perhaps he was satisfied with the answer, or perhaps he thought the answers would be clearer later.

      10. Jesus does tell them later that He was about to send the Holy Spirit to teach them and help them to remember what He taught them (14:26).

    3. Application.

      1. It’s always good to ask questions! Jesus answers questions from several other disciples as well during this discourse.

      2. But there comes a point when you ask too many questions—anyone with kids knows what I’m talking about. “Why?”

      3. Sometimes we just have to be satisfied with an, “I don’t know.”

      4. For instance, what was Paul’s thorn in the flesh? I don’t know. There are some theories, some better than others, but bottom line is we simply don’t know.

      5. As some of you have noted, I tend to be detail-oriented. I often will not stop until I find some answer, best guess, or scholarly opinion that seems to fit, depending on what the topic is.

      6. But sometimes we can miss the forest for the trees, overlooking the big picture for the sake of a few minor details—particularly ones that the inspired record did not see fit to inform us of.

      7. Sometimes, sometimes, if we are confident in certain core truths, we must entrust the rest to God, putting our full faith in Him, not letting the minor details distract us from the greater message overall.

  3. Thomas the Doubter (John 20:24-29).

    1. Jesus had just risen from the dead after a brutal crucifixion.

      1. As we mentioned in the intro, none of the other disciples believed either, not at first.

      2. And for some reason Thomas was not among the others when Jesus appeared to them the first time.

      3. Yet when so many people close to him testified to Jesus’ resurrection, even the ten others who were closest to Jesus, he still was doubting.

      4. In fact, Thomas makes a grandiose claim, “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.”

      5. Thomas, don’t you think that standard of proof is a little high?

      6. That’s the equivalent of an atheist claiming he would believe in God if God Himself descended from heaven right in front of him and declared, “Behold, I am God! Believe in Me!”

      7. Isn’t it interesting that the same standard of proof Thomas had is the same that many atheists have today?

      8. But there’s a difference: Thomas was one of the Twelve! If Jesus were going to appear to any small group of people, He would appear to him. These atheists can hardly compare to the Apostle Thomas!

      9. Even then, Jesus basically tells him his standard of proof is too high.

    2. Jesus does appear before Thomas.

      1. This occurs a week later (or as John says “after eight days”) from when He initially appeared to the ten.

      2. The doors to the room were shut, Jesus appears to them, and He says, “Peace to you!”

      3. No doubt this was a shock to everyone there, but to none greater than Thomas.

      4. He had just spent the last week believing that his ten buddies were either liars or that they were seeing things.

      5. Jesus locks eyes with him and basically repeats back what Thomas had told the other ten, showing that He must have heard what his standard of proof was.

      6. Could you imagine what would happen if the atheist’s standard of proof was met?

      7. Most of them have such hard hearts, they would either think they saw a delusion or tell God off to His face (at least, that’s what they think they’d do).

      8. No, Thomas had a different reaction (John 20:28), an acknowledgment of who Jesus is, “My Lord and my God!”

      9. That’s the right reaction, but He should have made it sooner.

    3. Application.

      1. That’s not to say that it’s wrong to doubt things.

      2. As we have been talking about in Sam’s class, it’s healthy in today’s “Mis”-Information Age to be skeptical of most things you see or hear.

      3. But when evidence piles up that something is true, we shouldn’t be so hard-hearted.

      4. For Thomas, He had witnessed the many miracles of Jesus, made a confession with the rest as to the identity of Jesus, and heard Him say several times that He would be raised again.

      5. On top of that, he heard the witness of the women who went to the tomb, and that of Cleopas and his friend on the road to Emmaus.

      6. Last of all, he heard the witness of the other ten disciples who were with him for three years with Jesus.

      7. “But Stephen, extraordinary claims require extraordinary evidence,” you might say – and I agree!

      8. But we must not be dishonest in our standard of proof.

      9. There is, in fact, extraordinary proof for Jesus and who He is, especially by ancient standards, and even by our modern standards when considering ancient sources.

      10. Let’s not be like Thomas, who “because [he had] seen [Jesus], [he] believed.” Recall, Jesus said, “Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed” (20:29).

      11. No, we haven’t seen Jesus face to face, but we have seen the evidence, and it leads us to the inescapable conclusion that “Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, and that He was buried, and that He rose again the third day according to the Scriptures” (1 Cor. 15:3-4), and that He is my Lord and my God!

Conclusion.

  1. Thomas was an interesting disciple.

    1. We don’t know much about him, but from what little we see, we can draw some conclusions.

    2. While it’s probably not a good idea to draw conclusions about someone from three random moments in one’s life, the Holy Spirit chose these to show us for a reason, to help us get some idea of who this disciple was.

    3. He was a Doomsayer, Detail-oriented, and a Doubter.

    4. And I can see myself in each of those—perhaps you can, too.

    5. But let’s make sure we temper our tendencies with the Word of God and sound reasoning, not to mention our faith.

  2. And ultimately, isn’t that what is wrong with Thomas, a lack of faith?

    1. Such would lead him to be a bit pessimistic, to ask so many detailed questions, and to doubt His Word.

    2. Let us work to build our faith every day so that we can, in fact, go to the place the Lord has prepared for us in His Father’s house in heaven!

  3. I’m reminded of a song: “These Things Did Thomas Count as Real” (by Thomas H. Troeger, 1984; (C) 1984 by Oxford University Press).

    These things did Thomas count as real:
    The warmth of blood, the chill of steal,
    The grain of wood, the heft of stone,
    The last frail twitch of flesh and bone.

    The vision of his skeptic mind
    Was keen enough to make him blind
    To any unexpected act
    Too large for his small world of fact.

    His reasoned certainties denied
    That one could live when one had died,
    Until his fingers read like Braille
    The markings of the spear and nail.

    May we, O God, by grace believe
    And thus the risen Christ receive,
    Who raw, imprinted palms reached out
    And beckoned Thomas from his doubt.

      1. Will you receive the risen Christ this morning?

      2. After all, going through Christ is the only way to the Father in heaven.

      3. You can do that by obeying the gospel.

      4. Then you can secure your place in heaven with Christ and the Father above!