Read, Believe, Live

Focus: We didn’t see Jesus like Thomas did—but we can read what’s written and still believe.

Key Verse (on last slide & takeaway): John 20:31

Welcome

John 20:26–29 NIV 2011

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 told him, ‘Because you have seen me, you have believed; blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.’

Christ is Risen - He is Risen Indeed, Hallelujah

Song - 1 - Thine Be the Glory

1. What did they see? (John 20:1–10)

YOu should have an inspector card!

Read the passage and emphasises the ‘saw’, looked’ etc

John 20:1–10 NIV 2011

Early on the first day of the week, while it was still dark, Mary Magdalene went to the tomb and saw that the stone had been removed from the entrance. So she came running to Simon Peter and the other disciple, the one Jesus loved, and said, ‘They have taken the Lord out of the tomb, and we don’t know where they have put him!’ So Peter and the other disciple started for the tomb. Both were running, but the other disciple outran Peter and reached the tomb first. He bent over and looked in at the strips of linen lying there but did not go in. Then Simon Peter came along behind him and went straight into the tomb. He saw the strips of linen lying there, as well as the cloth that had been wrapped round Jesus’ head. The cloth was still lying in its place, separate from the linen. Finally the other disciple, who had reached the tomb first, also went inside. He saw and believed. (They still did not understand from Scripture that Jesus had to rise from the dead.) Then the disciples went back to where they were staying.

Darkness

Empty tomb

strips of linen

cloth from Jesus’ head

Stone rolled away

Mary found the empty tomb, and ran to tell some of the disciples, but they didn’t really believe her.

So what did they do?

They investigated for themselves!

How did looking in the tomb help them believe?

Yes - if we see something - we normally believe it.

so we read in v8…

John 20:8 NIV 2011

Finally the other disciple, who had reached the tomb first, also went inside. He saw and believed.

But so far, all they believe is that the tomb is empty - they don’t yet believe that Jesus has risen from the dead.

That why it says:

John 20:9 NIVUK

9 (They still did not understand from Scripture that Jesus had to rise from the dead.)

What do they think might of happened?

ANSWERS

Good, but that’s not what actually happened, and JEsus is going to make sure they know the truth,

And how will he convince them do you think?

ANSWERS

Yes - he will let them ‘see’ him!

But first: Just like Mary ran around telling everyone the tomb is empty,

We, when we discover that Jesus has risen from the dead - we can run around telling everyone the good news…

Song - 2 - Good News Family

2. Jesus knows your name (John 20:11–18)

LET’S SEE WHAT HAPPENS NEXT;

John 20:11–13 NIV 2011

Now Mary stood outside the tomb crying. As she wept, she bent over to look into the tomb and saw two angels in white, seated where Jesus’ body had been, one at the head and the other at the foot. They asked her, ‘Woman, why are you crying?’ ‘They have taken my Lord away,’ she said, ‘and I don’t know where they have put him.’

Find your heart - Mary’s heart is broken - she’s very sad. Why would someone take Jesus’ body away!

In fact - this is the normal experience of all people - we simply will, if left to ourselves, doubt that Jesus is the son of God,

We doubt that he on the cross, took the punishment we deserve from God for our sin.

We doubt that we will face an eternity in hell If we don’t repent and believe.

We doubt Jesus came to save us,

and that he could and did rise form the dead to offer us eternal life with him!

And so in a minute, we will say a prayer of confession to God,

Saying sorry to God, for our doubts, and for the ways we have not believed the promises and instructions of God - just like Mary.

But before we confess,

we need to remember we can confess, becasue even though we don’t alwasy love Jesus with our hearts,

He does love us!

Look what he did for Mary,

even though she hadn’t trusted his promises that he would rise from the dead:

John 20:14–18 NIV 2011

At this, she turned round and saw Jesus standing there, but she did not realise that it was Jesus. He asked her, ‘Woman, why are you crying? Who is it you are looking for?’ Thinking he was the gardener, she said, ‘Sir, if you have carried him away, tell me where you have put him, and I will get him.’ Jesus said to her, ‘Mary.’ She turned towards him and cried out in Aramaic, ‘Rabboni!’ (which means ‘Teacher’). Jesus said, ‘Do not hold on to me, for I have not yet ascended to the Father. Go instead to my brothers and tell them, “I am ascending to my Father and your Father, to my God and your God.” ’ Mary Magdalene went to the disciples with the news: ‘I have seen the Lord!’ And she told them that he had said these things to her.

Jesus has risen. and just as he appeared physically to Mary,

he has appeared to us in our hearts, by the work of the HS, showing us that the Word of the Bible is believable and true.

And what’s amazing is that despite Mary’s doubt and confusion - Jesus, loves her and knows her name! He has died and risen again for her!

So when we confess our sin and doubts - Jesus, Knows our name and loves us.

He forgives us, dies for us, rises again for us,

Jesus knows our name:

Confession

Merciful God, we confess that we have sinned against you in thought, word, and deed, by what we have done, and by what we have left undone. We have not loved you with our whole heart and mind and strength. We have not loved our neighbours as ourselves. In your mercy forgive what we have been, help us amend what we are, and direct what we shall be, so that we may delight in your will and walk in your ways, to the glory of your holy name. Through Christ, our Lord. Amen

The wonderful news of Easter, is that, as John writes in another one of his books:

if we confess our sins, God is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.

SO that,

we can have life in Jesus Name. (john 20 31)

So instead of being dead to God, we are alive,

In fact - JEsus says something amazing to Mary and us:

John 20:17 NIVUK

17 Jesus said, ‘Do not hold on to me, for I have not yet ascended to the Father. Go instead to my brothers and tell them, “I am ascending to my Father and your Father, to my God and your God.” ’

Jesus knows our name, he is like a brother to us.

His father in heaven , is now our father in Heaven!

God is no longer going to judge us for the things we have done wrong -

he now loves us as His children.

So, on your hearts - you can write your name,

becasue and if we repent and believe in Jesus,

Jesus knows you, and loves you - and makes you a child of God.

Use the heart with their name: “‘NAME” is a child of God.”

Song - 3 - In Christ alone

3. Believe and Be Blessed (John 20:19–29)

Next, Jesus appears alive to most of the disciplines:

John 20:19–23 NIV 2011

On the evening of that first day of the week, when the disciples were together, with the doors locked for fear of the Jewish leaders, Jesus came and stood among them and said, ‘Peace be with you!’ After he said this, he showed them his hands and side. The disciples were overjoyed when they saw the Lord. 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.’

Wow - Jesus is really alive,

and his fearful disciples are reassured that Jesus can bring them peace with God their Heavenly Father.

He turns up, from the dead, he appears so they can see him

But one of the disciplines, Thomas - wasn’t there at that time…

That would be annoying wouldn’t it!

John 20:24–29 NIV 2011

Now Thomas (also known as Didymus), one of the Twelve, was not with the disciples when Jesus came. 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 told him, ‘Because you have seen me, you have believed; blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.’

Have a look in the bible, or ask your parents to help: to answer these questions…

“What did Thomas say?” second half of v25

‘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.’

IN short - ‘unless I see, I will not believe’

We’ve been investigationg what people saw - and what they saw they believed.

And Thomas is the same!

So maybe - maybe we shouldn’t believe that Jesus rose from the dead - becasue we haven’t ‘seen’!

But what does Jesus say to Thomas after he has seen - v29

‘blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.’

“We don’t see Jesus with our eyes, but we believe because we read what’s written about Him by people who have seen”

And just like the disciples are give t he HS so they can believe in v22,

We also receive the HS so we can believe.

So Jesus says - we will be blessed by God when we believe without seeing!.

Being blessed means to have God’s favour,

or God has been kind to us.

How amazing, that even though we haven't seen with our eyes,

we can believe - it’s why most of us are hear today!

We are blessed by God - God has been good to us in giving us belief in the resurectuion Jesus - even though we havent’ seen it!

And so we can celeberate - and say

Christ is Risen - he is risen indeed - Hallelujiah

Song - 4 - Mighty Mighty Saviour

4. “Read, Believe, Live” (John 20:30–31)

POST CARD:

So let’s tie it all together - as our passage ends with this summary:

John 20:30–31 NIV 2011

Jesus performed many other signs in the presence of his disciples, which are not recorded in this book. But these are written that you may believe that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name.

We don’t need to see the empty tomb, we can read all about it in God’s word.

In fact people specifically wrote all these things down so that we might Read, believe and live.

See the highlighted words on the postcard

We read,

We can believe that Jesus is the one who saves us,

And so

we can live - we can have eternal life with God our Father,

with Jesus the Son of God,

with God the Holy Spirt who allows us to believe.

Now and forever:

If you want to be more convinced of Jesus’ resurection,

his forgiveness of your sins,

the pormises of Heaven,

the faith he gives you and blesses you with now -

Read the bible!!

It is a wonderful gift from God so that we might believe, we might be blessed, we might have life with Jesus.

So we can be certain, that Just as he rose from the dead, so will we.

We have a wonderful saviour:

John 20:31 NIV 2011

But these are written that you may believe that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name.

READ, BELIEVE, LIVE

PRAY

Troubled world - Help them to read, believe and live

Troubled Lives

Help us in great joy to celebrate your love for us, for you defeated death and rose to new life for us.

AMEN

Song - 5 - Christ our hope in life and death

Numbers 6:24–26 NIVUK

24 ‘ “ ‘The Lord bless you and keep you; 25 the Lord make his face shine on you and be gracious to you; 26 the Lord turn his face towards you and give you peace.’ ”

Christ is risen - He is risen indeed, Hallelujah