Grace for the Doubter

Introduction

Doubt can be a dangerous thing. Doubt can lead us to missing out on what really matters. Doubt can fracture relationships. And what about our doubts about God?

Doubt can be a dangerous thing, so what does Jesus have in store for the doubter, Thomas? What hope is there for us doubters today?

Grace.

Because Jesus is alive, He meets us in our doubt and offers us grace—and new life in Him.

Prayer

Will you join me in a word of prayer?

Heavenly Father, we thank you that you have grace for us. Grace to save us from our sin through the death of Jesus, and grace to meet us where we are as you draw us closer to You. Lord, we pray this morning, that just like Thomas we come face to face with your grace and truth as we read your Word.

In Jesus name,

Amen

Background walkthrough of Sunday (various appearances)

We’ll be reading John 20:24-31 this morning.

This passage begins immediately following the passage we read last week which took place on Easter Sunday. So let’s think back to all that went on that day.

That first Easter morning started the same for all of Jesus’ disciples.

They had gone to bed on Friday night knowing that Jesus was dead. On Saturday, they faced that same dark reality. And on Sunday morning, they woke still carrying that same assumption—Jesus was gone.

But that assumption wouldn’t hold for long.

It started the same for all of them, but throughout the day they had various experiences that changed everything. Some of them saw the risen Jesus—but not Thomas. Here’s what happened that first Easter Sunday:

First, Mary Magdalene and other women went to the tomb and found it empty. These women encountered angels and the risen Jesus himself, and they were instructed to go tell the disciples.

Peter and John also raced to the tomb and found it empty, but did not see Jesus at that time.

At some point that day, Jesus appeared to Peter.

Later that day, Jesus appeared to two of His disciples on the road to Emmaus and explained the Old Testament Scriptures, showing how they pointed to Him.

That evening, Jesus appeared to the gathered disciples.

But Thomas was not there when it happened. So he returns and finds everyone excited that Jesus is alive—they are claiming to have seen Jesus.

How would you respond to this news if you were Thomas? Let’s turn to John 20:24 and see what Thomas said.

Sermon

Doubting Thomas?

John 20:24–25 NKJV

24 Now Thomas, called the Twin, one of the twelve, was not with them when Jesus came. 25 The other disciples therefore said to him, “We have seen the Lord.” So he said to them, “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.”

a. Thomas doubting

Thomas’ reaction to this good news is what earned him his famous nickname: “Doubting Thomas.”

But that nickname is a bit misleading. There are only two passages in the Bible that mention Thomas specifically. This is one of them—but the other is John 11, where Thomas says, “Let us also go, that we may die with Him.”

I’m sure Thomas would prefer to be known for that moment—maybe “Brave Thomas”?

Because Thomas really did believe in Jesus. He believed in Him enough to be willing to die with Him. In that sense, Thomas is not a model of shallow faith, but of deep commitment.

Still, this man of great faith doubted.

Why would someone with such great faith still doubt?

Because he relied too heavily on what he could see and experience for himself. He trusted in his own understanding.

The most incredible thing in the world had happened—the very thing Thomas would have longed for more than anything. But he was so shaped by how he thought the world worked that he could not yet accept that it was true.

So he refused to believe.

b. Our doubting

That’s true for us too, isn’t it? The Bible teaches us is in Proverbs 3:5

Proverbs 3:5 NKJV

5 Trust in the Lord with all your heart, And lean not on your own understanding;

The challenge is we naturally do lean on our own understanding. We trust what we can see, and prove.

We can get so shaped by what we expect the world to be like that we struggle to believe anything that says otherwise.

We do this with shame.

We read the Bible and it says that if we confess our sin to God, He will forgive us. Yet we still hold on to guilt and shame. Why? Because we haven’t seen that kind of forgiveness with our own eyes, it doesn’t match our own understanding. So how could it really be true? So we rely on our own understanding and doubt the good news of God’s forgiveness.

We do this with our purpose.

The Bible says we have been made with purpose—that God has given believers spiritual gifts. So why do we doubt that? Why do we live shallow lives convinced we have little to contribute? Because we rely on our own understanding, and we doubt the good news of God’s purpose for our life and the spiritual gifts he has given us.

We do this with our dependence on God.

The Bible says God is our provider and that He will meet our needs. So why do we still chase security in our finances, our plans, our control? Because we rely on our own understanding and doubt the good news that God loves us and provides for us.

I could list many more examples. Many of us struggle with doubt in different ways. But what we all have in common is this: like Thomas, we find it difficult to believe without seeing.

We rely on our own understanding, and so we struggle with doubt.

But think how that doubt robbed Thomas of joy. He could be celebrating that Jesus was alive, but for a week while all the other disciples enjoyed that reality he relied on his own understanding and lingered in doubt. And this this doubt robbed him of the good news that Jesus was alive.

Is doubt robbing your joy today?

A Second Appearance & an Offer of Grace

John 20:26–27 NKJV

26 And after eight days His disciples were again inside, and Thomas with them. Jesus came, the doors being shut, and stood in the midst, and said, “Peace to you!” 27 Then He said to Thomas, “Reach your finger here, and look at My hands; and reach your hand here, and put it into My side. Do not be unbelieving, but believing.”

Think about all the things Jesus could have said to Thomas.

Judgement

Maybe the first thing we think about is judgement.

Thomas, how could you doubt me?

Why didn’t you listen, what you need proof?

Pitiful! I’ve got a new name for you: “Doubting Thomas.”

I think sometimes when we struggle with doubt we fear that if we voice those doubts this is the response God will have for us.

Illustration: God says “who did this?”

I was reading a Bible story book to a four-year-old one time and we came to a page that someone had drawn on.

The little boy made a very serious face, pointed at the defaced book, and yelled: “God says, WHO DID THIS?”

Jesus could have brought thundering judgement to Thomas. But he did not.

Ignore It

Or maybe Jesus could have handled this the way we often handle other people’s mistakes and shortcomings. Ignore it politely. Pretend it never happened.

Illustration: I’m sure you’ve done this before. You were talking to someone and they had something stuck in their teeth. But you didn’t want to be rude so you didn’t say anything.

We can ignore small problems, or we can ignore big problems and politely pretend that we don’t notice them.

Jesus could appear and start catching up: “Thomas, so good to see you, really sorry I missed you last time.”

He could have just pretended Thomas wasn’t struggling with doubt and moved on. But he didn’t.

Transition: But Jesus didn’t take either approach. In fact he does the opposite of both. He offers truth and grace.

Truth

Jesus certainly doesn’t ignore it. In fact, he draws attention to the exact words that Thomas used:

Thomas had said he would need to see Jesus’ hands and touch his side. Jesus offers him his hands and side.

Thomas had said “I will not believe”

So what does Jesus say? “Do not be unbelieving, but believing.”

Jesus didn’t hide from the reality of Thomas’ doubt. He knew that the truth mattered.

John 8:32 NKJV

32 And you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.”

Jesus models love that is honest, that speaks the hard truths that people need to hear.

If we are to be changed by Jesus, we will be faced with truths that are hard to hear. Truths about our own shortcomings and sin, about our need for forgiveness, grace, and transformation.

If we are to love like Christ it will at times require hard conversations. Telling other people things that they do not want to hear. Because Christlike love is grounded in truth.

So Jesus didn’t ignore Thomas’ unbelief, but spoke about it truthfully.

and Grace

But notice that Jesus didn’t give him harsh judgement either. What was Jesus tone here? What was Jesus approach and goal. Jesus was warm and loving. He wasn’t speaking the truth to lash out, but to help Thomas grow.

His first words to Thomas offered peace not condemnation.

And what does Jesus do next. He offers his hands and side as proof. Jesus wanted Thomas to grow in his faith so that he would believe without proof.

But He still offered Thomas proof. Not to make him feel bad, but because Jesus loved Thomas and met him where he was.

Jesus is truthful with what Thomas has done wrong, but his actions are all about helping call Thomas to take a step of faith. His goal isn’t for Thomas to feel bad about messing up last week. No, Jesus goal is to help Thomas believe today.

Jesus offers us grace as well. He meets us where we are. In fact, while we were still sinners Christ died for us!

If you relate to Thomas’ doubts, I hope you will relate just as much to Thomas’ experience of grace. That Jesus sees and knows your shortcomings but still loves you and calls you by name and invites you to believe.

A Response of Faith

John 20:28 NKJV

28 And Thomas answered and said to Him, “My Lord and my God!”

We don’t see Thomas actually taking advantage of the proof he demanding. We don’t read that he walked over and touched his hands, or examined the nail marks.

He thought he could never believe without that tangible evidence, but his attitude changed when he came into Jesus’ presence.

That’s often true for people today. They might think what they really need is proof, or a convincing argument, but it is an experience of conviction or a move of the Spirit, not overwhelming proof that finally moves them.

In any case, Looking at Jesus Thomas, did believe and proclaims “My Lord, and my God.”

The value of unseeing belief

John 20:29 NKJV

29 Jesus said to him, “Thomas, because you have seen Me, you have believed. Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.”

This passage so far has been all about a moment that happened 2,000 years ago between Jesus and one of his disciples.

But here Jesus pivots from Thomas to us.

He says “blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.

He’s talking about the people who will hear about Jesus from their families, from coworkers, from their friends, from churches, from their Bibles.

People who can’t see Jesus with their eyes, can’t touch Jesus with their hands. People like us.

And what does Jesus say.

That these people who haven’t seen Jesus but still believe will be blessed.

We are blessed, that is made happy by God because we receive life and a restored relationship with God. Because we receive purpose and meaning. Because leaning on our understanding gets us nowhere, but believing in Jesus, trusting in our Lord with all our heart leads to true and eternal joy.

Evidence for Faith

John 20:30–31 NKJV

30 And truly Jesus did many other signs in the presence of His disciples, which are not written in this book; 31 but these are written that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that believing you may have life in His name.

Jesus reminds us that there is a great blessing in store for those who believe without seeing.

But this isn’t the same thing as believing without evidence. John follows this passage about Thomas struggling with doubt by reminding us why he wrote this gospel: to provide evidence so that we might believe.

If you are struggling with doubt today I hope you have received a word of encouragement from Thomas’ example in knowing that you aren’t alone. That Jesus has grace for doubters and meets us where we are.

But I also hope you know that we have many reasons to believe. This book is full of them. The word of God is living and breathing and cuts to the heart convicting us our sin but also sharing evidence from eye witnesses of Jesus’ power resurrection.

And Christ is risen and active in the world. If you are struggling with doubt I encourage you to look for the evidence around you. We see God working in answered prayer, in changed lives, and in testimonies of how God has moved in peoples lives.

Conclusion

As we leave today, I hope you will be like Thomas—not just “Doubting Thomas,” but the whole, real Thomas, who was much more than his doubts. He was a man who was forgiven and loved by Jesus. And his belief was not empty words, spoken and soon forgotten, but a real trust in Christ—a relationship that shaped how he lived. That’s what happens when we truly believe in the risen Christ—we don’t just gain answers, we gain life in His name.

John Reading Plan

Week 16 (April 19–25, 2026)

John 20 – On the first day of the week, the tomb is found empty and the risen Jesus appears to Mary Magdalene and His disciples. Thomas confesses Him as “My Lord and my God.” This chapter proclaims the victory of resurrection and the gift of life in Christ’s name.

☐ Day 1– John 20:1–10 + Psalm 16:8–11

☐ Day 2– John 20:11–18 + Isaiah 25:8

☐ Day 3– John 20:19–23 + Genesis 2:4–7

☐ Day 4 – John 20:24–29 + 1 John 1:1–4

☐ Day 5– John 20:30–31 + 1 Peter 1:3–9

Sermon Notes & Further Study

1. Quotes & Illustrations

Life Application Bible Commentary

Sometimes people overemphasize the doubtful part of Thomas’s character. John 11:16 reveals Thomas as tough-minded and committed, even if he tended to be pessimistic. And Matthew points out (Matthew 28:17) that all the disciples shared Thomas’s skepticism. It was part of his character to put the group’s feeling into words. None of the other disciples believed until they saw Christ face-to-face.

Bruce B. Barton, John, Life Application Bible Commentary (Wheaton, IL: Tyndale House, 1993), 398.

YOU CAN TOUCH JESUS

Have you ever wished you could actually see Jesus, touch him, and hear his words? Are there times you want to sit down with him and get his advice? Thomas wanted Jesus’ physical presence. But God’s plan is wiser. He has not limited himself to one physical body; he wants to be present with you at all times. Even now he is with you in the form of the Holy Spirit. You can talk to him, and you can find his words to you in the pages of the Bible. He can be as real to you as he was to Thomas.

Bruce B. Barton, John, Life Application Bible Commentary (Wheaton, IL: Tyndale House, 1993), 399.

DOUBTING DOS AND DON’TS

Jesus wasn’t hard on Thomas for his doubts. Despite his skepticism, Thomas was still loyal to the believers and to Jesus himself. Some people need to doubt before they believe. If doubt leads to questions, questions lead to answers, and the answers are accepted, then doubt has done good work. It is when doubt becomes stubbornness and stubbornness becomes a life-style that doubt harms faith. When you doubt, don’t stop there. Let your doubt deepen your faith as you continue to search for the answer.

Bruce B. Barton, John, Life Application Bible Commentary (Wheaton, IL: Tyndale House, 1993), 399.

Pillar New Testament Commentary

20:24–25. Thomas (both his Aramaic and his Greek names are given: cf. notes on 11:16) appears only as a name in the Synoptics, but is fleshed out a little in John. In his previous appearances (11:16; 14:5) he has been less a doubter than a loyal but pessimistic and perhaps somewhat obtuse disciple. The rubric ‘doubting Thomas’ is not entirely fair: had he been present when the risen Christ first manifested himself to the disciples, doubtless he too would have believed. Why he was not present that first Easter day is not told us, but in the providence of God his absence and subsequent coming to faith have generated one of the great Christological confessions in the New Testament. That

D. A. Carson, The Gospel according to John, The Pillar New Testament Commentary (Leicester, England; Grand Rapids, MI: Inter-Varsity Press; W.B. Eerdmans, 1991), 656.

2. Additional Scriptures

Scriptures Refenced in the Sermon

John 11:16 NKJV

16 Then Thomas, who is called the Twin, said to his fellow disciples, “Let us also go, that we may die with Him.”

Proverbs 3:5 NKJV

5 Trust in the Lord with all your heart, And lean not on your own understanding;

Romans 5:8 NKJV

8 But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.

Hebrews 4:12 NKJV

12 For the word of God is living and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the division of soul and spirit, and of joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.

3. Additional Questions (Using Logos Study Assistant✨)

On what day of the week did Jesus appear to Thomas?

Jesus appeared to Thomas on Sunday[1]. The initial appearance to the disciples occurred on the evening of the first day of the week[2], but Thomas was absent at that time[2]. Eight days later, his disciples were inside again, and Thomas was with them[2], and since in all such counts the final day is included, the time is again Sunday[1].

This timing creates an interesting narrative arc: the disciples encountered the risen Jesus on Easter Sunday evening without Thomas present, and then the present meeting of the disciples is the exact counterpart of the meeting on Easter evening, save that now Thomas is present and that Jesus deals with him[1]. Jesus came and stood among them and said, “Peace be with you,” then 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.”[2] Thomas’s response—“My Lord and my God!”[2]—marked his transformation from skepticism to faith through direct encounter with the risen Christ.

[1] R. C. H. Lenski, The Interpretation of St. John’s Gospel (Minneapolis, MN: Augsburg Publishing House, 1961), 1382–1383. [2] James M. Hamilton Jr. and Brian J. Vickers, John–Acts, ed. Iain M. Duguid, James M. Hamilton Jr., and Jay Sklar, ESV Expository Commentary (Wheaton, IL: Crossway, 2019), 9:297.

4. Bible Translation

I’m choosing the NKJV for preaching because I believe it offers the strongest balance of faithfulness to the historic text of Scripture, clarity for modern readers, and continuity with the church’s worshiping tradition.

At the same time, I deeply value other faithful translations—such as the NASB, ESV, CSB, and NIV—which also serve the church well and can enrich our understanding of God’s Word.

5. Commentary Recommendation's

I have found the following commentaries helpful in my study of John.

Introductory

Explore the book in greater depth. Ideal for curious church members, Bible study leaders, and Sunday School teachers who want a clearer understanding of the text without being overwhelmed by technical detail.

1. Holman New Testament Commentary: John by Kenneth O. Gangel

2. Christ-Centered Exposition: Exalting Jesus in John by Matt Chandler and Josh Wredberg

3. Be Alive (John 1-12) and Be Transformed (John 13-21) by Warren Wiresbe

4. The Life Application Bible Commentary: John Editor: Grant Osborne

Intermediate

More advanced, with increased attention to historical context, theological nuances, and interpretive questions. Best for teachers or small group leaders seeking a scholarly yet accessible examination of passages.

1. Signs of the Messiah: An Introduction to John’s Gospel by Andreas J. Köstenberger

2. Cornerstone Biblical Commentary: The Gospel of John by Grant Osborne

3. ESV Expository Commentary: John by James M. Hamilton Jr.

In-Depth Study

These are a bit more advanced than the previous recommendations and go into more depth. These resources are ideal for those preparing lessons or sermons and looking to engage more deeply with the biblical text.

1. New American Commentary: John 1-11 and John 12-21 by Gerald L. Borchert

2. Pillar New Testament Commentary: The Gospel According to John by D.A. Carson

3. New International Commentary on the New Testament: The Gospel According to John by Leon Morris