Doubting Thomas

May the words of my mouth and meditations of my heart be acceptable to you, my rock and my redeemer.

“Have you believed because you have seen me? Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have come to believe.” Doubting Thomas. On the surface, it seems like Jesus is rebuking Thomas - criticizing him for not believing in Jesus unless Thomas saw Jesus himself. And, to a certain extent, this is true. Thomas comes in and makes some really rather extraordinary demands - not only to SEE Jesus, but to put his hands in Jesus’ wounds. But before we judge him too quickly or harshly, let’s look back over the past few events in John’s Gospel.

Mary Magdalene goes to the tomb and finds it empty. She panics and runs to Simon Peter, who runs to the tomb to see for himself. The “other” disciple goes with Simon Peter and he, too, goes into the tomb, sees, and believes that Jesus is not there. The two men leave, but Mary stays at the tomb, weeping. Jesus appears to her, but she doesn’t recognize him until he calls her by name. Once she recognizes him, she believes and runs to tell the disciples. The disciples, however, do not understand or believe until Jesus appears to them, apparently walking through a locked door. Once they see his wounds, they believe and rejoice.

And then we have Thomas. But is he so very different? Mary sees the empty tomb but doesn’t believe that Jesus is raised - she thinks someone has stolen his body. Peter and the other disciple don’t believe that his body is gone until they see it for themselves, but they still do not understand what it all means. Mary has to hear Jesus call her name before she believes, and it’s only after Jesus appears to the men that they, too, understand and believe Jesus is raised from the dead. Able to eat and drink, but also able to walk through walls and locked doors. Pain free, but still bearing his wounds. They all first see and hear Jesus raised before they believe it.

So why is Thomas singled out? Because he demands not just to see but also to touch? Perhaps, but let’s look at the text - Jesus tells Thomas to put his hand in the wound, demonstrating that he knows what Thomas said in Jesus’ absence, but Thomas never actually does it. Once he sees and hears Jesus, just like the others, Thomas makes the ultimate Christological statement - stating unequivocally that JESUS IS GOD. Originally, John’s Gospel ended with our reading today - Chapter 21, which I’m preaching on next week, was likely a later addition. Which means that Thomas was given the final words of a disciple in John’s Gospel.

So what is with the apparent criticism? Clearly, those who have not seen but have come to believe wasn’t anyone in the room with Jesus in our passage. They ALL had to see and hear to know that Jesus Christ was raised and was, himself, God. So who was Jesus talking about? US. Jesus was talking about all of us here - and all of those who never, ever personally, physically saw Jesus but who believed in his message. We are the blessed ones Jesus is speaking about.

This passage isn’t the commentary on or criticism of doubt that we think it is. In fact, it isn’t about doubt at all. It’s about faith. Having doubt is normal. Jesus may have wished for more faith in his disciples, but He never pushed them away for their lack. Instead he comes to assuage Thomas’s doubts and offers up his body for Thomas to touch. He meets the needs of his followers, even as he looks to the future and blesses us, who have not had the same opportunity to taste, see, touch, and hear Jesus’s reality. This passage is always described as a criticism of Thomas’s doubt, but it’s not about that at all. It’s a celebration of faith - Thomas’s in his declaration of Christ’s deity and ours for believing in Christ in the first place.

Our adult education this weekend has been focused on the Nicene Creed, which is statement of beliefs that we make every Sunday in church. Many Christians do not understand all the pieces to this creed, and still others have their doubts about some of these statements. Some flat out don’t believe them all of them. And that’s ok - Jesus welcomes us to his table regardless of where we are on our faith journey. The important part is to keep showing up. To keep asking the questions.

My prayer for all of us is that we keep showing up with our questions and our doubts, keep asking and looking for answers, and that Jesus will continue to show up to answer them, and continue blessing us who come to believe without having seen his miracles first hand. Amen.