Nancy E. Petty
Pullen Memorial Baptist Church
March 30, 2008 — Second Sunday of Easter
Text: John 20:19-31
Thomas, The Loyal Skeptic
Factoring in that we are sitting in church, if I said “the ark,” what would you say? Noah. If I said the burning bush, you would say? Moses. If I said the name Naomi, with what name would you respond? Ruth. Now, if I said the word “doubting,” what would you say? Thomas. The story of “doubting Thomas” is another of those “first” stories that we learned as children in Sunday school. As adults, we continued to hear about the story of doubting Thomas in sermons that chided us for questioning or doubting our faith. And it was Jesus’ response to Thomas that those crazy preachers really hammered us with, “Have you believed because you have seen me? Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have come to believe.” It is Thomas who has taken the bad rap for all of us who at some point in time in our religious experience have longed for and even dared to ask for a bit more information or evidence when it comes to matters of faith. But I’m wondering this morning if that’s really what this story is all about. Is the central message of this narrative really one of having blind faith? Was Thomas any different from the other disciples or for that matter any of us when it came to his belief and unbelief? Is there some good news in this story that we have not heard from Christian pulpits throughout the centuries?
Before I muse on those questions, it might be helpful to refresh our memories with what we know about the man we have come to know as doubting Thomas. From the biblical text, we know that he was considered one of the twelve disciples of Jesus. In some translations he is called Didymus and in others he is simply called the Twin. It is believed that he was the twin brother of Matthew. However, some texts have stated that he was the twin of James. One concordance even suggested that the identification of “the twin” was simply a reference to his relationship and ministry with Jesus. Thomas probably lived in Galilee, the origin of most of Jesus’ disciples, since that is where Jesus’ ministry was based. Church tradition tells us that he preached in ancient Babylon, near the Tigris and Euphrates Rivers, where Iraq is today. From there, he likely traveled to Persia, present-day Iran, where he continued to preach and teach about his faith. It is believed that from there he sailed south to Malabar on the west coast of India, around 52 AD, where he began to establish churches. Finally, church history tells us that he traveled to the east coast of India, preaching relentlessly, and that he was killed near Mylapore about 72 AD, near present-day Madras. As I have already stated, Thomas is most famous for how he is depicted in the Gospel of John. He first appears as a symbol of strength, encouraging others to follow Jesus to Judea where death awaits. Later he expresses doubts about following Jesus. Then, after Jesus’ resurrection, he becomes the “doubting Thomas” that we know—the one who refused to believe that Jesus really returned until he saw the scars and placed his fingers in Jesus’ side.
With that said, I want to point out something that I had never really thought about until I began studying this text for this sermon. The disciples’ announcement to Thomas in verse 25 is the same announcement that Mary Magdalene made to them in verse 18 when she announced, “I have seen the risen Lord.” Just as the other disciples did not seem to believe Mary’s earlier announcement, neither did Thomas believe them when they announced that they had seen the risen Lord. Only when Jesus appeared to the disciples and showed them his hands and his side did they recognize him and believe. In rejecting the verbal witness to the resurrection, Thomas is acting no differently from the other disciples. Thomas’s demands in verse 25 are worded graphically (“Unless I see the mark of the nails in his hands, and put my finger in the mark of the nails and my hand in his side, I will not believe.”), and the demand for concrete evidence is heightened by his insistence on touching Jesus’ hands and side, but in essence what he asks for as the conditions of his belief, tangible proof of the resurrection, is what Jesus himself gave to the other disciples.
This story says something important about our nature as human beings that I think we would do well to pay attention to. It highlights the truth that, for most of us, personal experience is how we learn—it is how we know what is real and authentic. When we experience something personally; when we have a chance to wrestle with our struggles up close and personal; when we have a chance to ask our questions and express our doubts; life becomes real and honest. The great writer and philosopher Tolstoy once suggested that certain questions are put to humanity not so much that we should answer them but that we should spend a lifetime wrestling with them. It is our nature as human beings to doubt, to wrestle with the questions; not so much so for the answers but to be able to say for ourselves what is real and authentic. If our questioning and doubting is sincere, it can give profound depth to our lives—especially our religious and spiritual lives; for it is in our questions and doubt that we wrestle with life’s most significant and important questions. If we simply and blindly believe what someone else tells us is true about life and faith we miss our opportunity to make our life and faith our own. I am grateful that Thomas has reminded me of this truth. That he didn’t just say, “Okay, I believe you.” I am glad that he had the courage to say, “This is so important to me that I need to experience it for myself.” After all, how many times have we heard and told our children: “Don’t believe everything you hear.”
We have heard and been taught this doubting Thomas story from the perspective of Thomas’ role. But the more important lesson in this story may not be what we learn from Thomas’ doubting or what we learn about ourselves through our questions and doubts but about what this story teaches us about Jesus. It is not touching Jesus that leads Thomas to his confession of faith, but rather it is Jesus’ gracious offer of himself. Although many commentators read Jesus’ words and gestures as slightly sarcastic and an attempt to shame Thomas, no exegetical evidence supports such an interpretation. Jesus is not attempting to shame Thomas, but is giving Thomas what he needs for faith, as he did so many times in the Gospel. He simply responds to Thomas with grace and compassion; meeting him where he is, with the questions and doubts he has. The good news that you might not ever have heard about this story is that it is a story of hope and promise, not judgment and reprimand. It stands as a pledge and promise to later generations that they, too, will experience the grace of God in Jesus. Jesus’ care for the faith of those who come after Thomas, who will not see, is equally without limit and measure. It is okay in your faith and spiritual journey to ask for what you need. You probably won’t ever get as clear a response as Thomas got but I believe that God still responds to our questions and doubts with the same compassion and grace that Jesus extended to Thomas.
It is okay to be a loyal skeptic like Thomas. Actually, it is more than just okay. When it comes to matters of faith—significant and profound matters of faith—I encourage you to be loyal skeptics; for so often it is through our unbelief that God, with compassion and grace, moves us toward belief. For after all, “…a religious faith despite doubts is far stronger than one without doubts.” (William Sloane Coffin)