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John 3:16-17
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John 3:16-17
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12 friends have opened a study shared with them.
A friend once forwarded an email to me. In it, he explained how he felt about God before he met me. He wrote, "When I first talked with Carson, I was very skeptical of everything he was saying because I thought that religion was entirely man-made. I thought that simple logic would suffice to tear Christianity apart." And when it comes to the resurrection, it's a simple case: dead people stay dead.
John 20:24-31
But Thomas (called "Twin"), one of the Twelve, was not with them when Jesus came. So the other disciples were telling him, "We've seen the Lord!" But he said to them, "If I don't see the mark of the nails in his hands, put my finger into the mark of the nails, and put my hand into his side, I will never believe." A week later his disciples were indoors again, and Thomas was with them. Even 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 and look at my hands. Reach out your hand and put it into my side. Don't be faithless, but believe." Thomas responded to him, "My Lord and my God!" Jesus said, "Because you have seen me, you have believed. Blessed are those who have not seen and yet believe." Jesus performed many other signs in the presence of his disciples that are not written in this book. But these are written so that you may believe that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name.
Thomas speaks not just for the disciples, but all of us. He isn't shrugging his shoulders, saying, "I don't know and I don't care." He's grieving the death of his leader, confused about the empty tomb, and scared for his life. But the only friends he trusts are claiming impossible experiences. For a week, he's listened to the testimony of his ten closest friends and a handful of women. They're calling each other "brother" and "sister", and acting like Jesus made them into a new family. They seem brand-new, and he has nowhere else to go. As they gather again on "the first day of the week"—the day they found the tomb empty and Jesus first appeared to them—Thomas is with them. But after they barricade the doors, Jesus stands among them again. He met Mary's grief with his peace, the disciples' fear with his peace, and now he meets Thomas' doubt with his peace. When Jesus invites him to touch his scars, he is welcoming Thomas to bring the full force of his doubts. The nails went clean through his wrists, and the spear wound was so deep that his blood and water stained the ground under the cross. He wears the credentials of death. Thomas had claimed he'd need to place his hands in the scars, but instead his mouth drops open: "My Lord and my God!" By the time that John wrote his Gospel, the Emperor Domitian demanded he be called "lord and god." As arrogant as it sounds, at least he was ruler of Rome. Thomas freely says it to a man that Rome crucified. Jesus responds to doubt with blessing. He blessed Thomas with his presence, and he blesses us when we believe without seeing. Week after week, Jews and Gentiles are gathering with disciples who tell them, "We know the Lord!" Yet they wonder: how can someone rise from the dead? John wrote his Gospel so we could be in the room with Thomas. My friend went on to write, "I wanted something more out of life that I wasn't getting. In Carson and in the church friends that I had gotten connected with, I saw that this something more was possible." Jesus says, "Blessed are all those who have not seen, and yet believe."
Why do you think John doesn't tell us about all the other signs that Jesus did?
Have you ever seen evidence for the resurrection in how Christians live?
What made you start to believe in Jesus? (Or, what's keeping you from belief?)
Invite a friend who reminds you of Thomas to spend some time together.
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