Trinity Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.)

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Sermons

April 2003 (click here to return to "April 2003 Sermons" page)

2nd Sunday of Easter (April 27, 2003)

“Is There a Thomas in You Somewhere?” Dr. Julie Adkins

Text: John 20:19-31

SERMON

I’m going to have to admit here at the very beginning

that I feel a little bit sorry for the apostle Thomas.

Not only have we labeled him “doubting Thomas,”

a nickname that has stuck to him for centuries

and will surely stay stuck for centuries more …

we have also taken his one moment in the spotlight,

his experience of insight and illumination,

and we’ve stuck it on the Sunday after Easter,

where lots of folks will simply never hear it.

And it’s too bad,

because today is a day when

Thomas has an important message for us.

The Sunday after Easter is a time

when our own doubts can start to loom large again.

Somehow on Easter,

it’s easy to believe.

We come to a full church,

and it’s much simpler to believe in something miraculous

when we’re surrounded by people who also believe.

We sing hymns that lift up our hearts.

And we know that all over the world,

other believers are also celebrating.

We’re able to set aside our doubts

and join in the spirit of joy and celebration

over God’s miraculous deeds.

But then comes Monday,

and a week filled with the usual routine,

plus a few unexpected crises,

as well as a few high points, thank goodness.

And life seems no different from how it was

the week before Easter, or the week before that,

or a typical week a few months ago.

And so we start to think like Thomas:

“You say he’s risen?

I’d like to believe that,

but I haven’t seen any evidence of it.

Show me, and then maybe I’ll be able to believe.”

But unlike Thomas,

we don’t have the opportunity

literally to see, or to feel, Jesus,

and assure ourselves that he’s real.

We may see him reflected in other people;

we may feel his presence in our lives;

a rare few people may have a vision of the Lord,

but it’s not quite the same as

having him nearby on a day-to-day basis,

where we could actually see him, walking along the road,

or reach over and touch him to reassure ourselves.

And so we do experience doubts.

We are people who must walk by faith and not by sight,

and that’s a scary proposition.

We often doubt that God is looking out for us

as diligently as we need to be looked out for.

And if nothing else,

we seriously doubt our own ability

to discover God’s will for our lives, and to follow it.

Even the most faithful people

have doubts which plague them.

In fact, I would venture to say

that anyone who claims

they never have any doubts at all about their faith

is either a saint, or a liar.

Probably a liar.

And, probably, lying to themselves as well,

because they are afraid of what might happen

if they allowed themselves to admit

that they have questions.

But nowhere does it say

that we must condemn ourselves for having doubts.

Jesus doesn’t condemn Thomas for being skeptical,

though he does tease him a little about it:

“Have you believed because you have seen me?

Blessed are those who have not seen, and yet believe.”

In a way, this is also a dig at the other disciples,

because, remember, they didn’t believe until they had seen him, either.

They were hiding in fear behind a locked door.

It’s just that they saw him a week before Thomas did!

But, have you ever thought of yourself

as being more blessed than the disciples,

because you are someone who has not seen,

and yet who believes?

Kind of interesting to think about, isn’t it?

On the other hand,

while Jesus doesn’t condemn Thomas for his doubts,

he doesn’t praise him, either!

Jesus does what he can

to help Thomas get past those doubts,

so that he can get on with the important task of being a disciple.

And that, too, is important for us.

Because even though it is normal, and perfectly all right,

to experience doubt sometimes,

it’s not something that we need to brag about!

Have you ever known people who were …

professional skeptics, almost …

who take great delight in questioning everything you say,

and expressing doubts about all kinds of things and all kinds of people?

That’s not how we are supposed to be!

We need to understand our doubts as

areas for further growth,

not as virtues in and of themselves.

For example,

most of us learn as children that

“God is good” and “God is powerful.”

But as we become adults,

and become more aware of the world around us,

we start to wonder.

I do the most questioning

of my faith and of God,

when I’m reading the news …

I’ve quit watching it on television altogether.

Because I wonder why

God lets us human creatures do the things we do

to other human creatures … and to non-human creatures.

If God really does love the world,

why does God let us get away with that stuff?

The world raises for us

questions that have no easy answers

and that challenge the simple understandings about God

that used to work just fine for us!

And so, in a sense, we have to reshape our faith

so that it can make sense of our experience.

You can’t simply say “God is good”

to a parent who has just lost a child.

You have to hear their doubts about God’s goodness,

and even about God’s existence at all …

and let God use those doubts to carry all of you

to an even deeper faith.

It is all right to have doubts …

a doubting faith is still faith!!

Perhaps we can take a lesson from

one of the many people who approached Jesus for help during his ministry …

a man who prayed,

“Lord, I believe – help thou my unbelief!”

For we do believe,

but we do have at least a degree of faith.

And the Lord will help our unbelief,

when we are ready to do something about it.

It’s also important for us to remember

that the first words Jesus said to his disciples

when he appeared to them after the resurrection were,

“Peace be with you.”

He knew they were troubled.

He knew they were fearful …

after all, he had to go through a locked door to get to them!

He knew their faith had been shaken

and they didn’t know what to believe.

And yet he tells them to be at peace.

He says the same thing again a week later,

this time with Thomas in the room.

And he tells us the same thing,

all us Thomases of the 21^st century.

“Peace be with you.

I know you have doubts.

I know that some days your faith doesn’t seem adequate

to get you through everything you have to face.

I know you are fearful of many things.

But be at peace.

I am with you always,

even though you cannot see me.”

We can have confidence

in the presence of Christ among us.

The risen Christ,

who has overcome the power of sin and death,

even though that’s sometimes hard for us to wrap our minds around.

Our doubts don’t hurt God,

they only hurt us;

and so it is to our benefit

to work through them, and past them.

It’s a lifelong journey,

one we may not complete till we make it to the life beyond this one,

and see for ourselves.

In the meantime, peace is with us.

Christ is with us, as we struggle.

Blessed are we

who have not seen,

and yet have come to believe.

Amen.