What gives us unshakeable hope and confidence
in the face of defeat and even our inevitable death?
The apostles abandoned Jesus in His hour of
trial and lost hope when Jesus was handed over to the Romans for execution.
They saw the cross as defeat rather than victory. They were slow to believe the
reports of the resurrection until the Risen Lord appeared to them and reassured
them of His presence and love. The last apostle to meet the resurrected Lord
was the first to go with Him to Jerusalem
at the Passover time. Thomas was a natural pessimist.
Poor Thomas!
He made one remark and has been branded as "Doubting Thomas"
ever since. But if he doubted, he also believed. He made what is certainly the
most explicit statement of faith in the New Testament: "My Lord and My
God!" In so expressing his faith, Thomas gave Christians a prayer that
will be said until the end of time. He also occasioned a compliment from Jesus
to all later Christians: "Have you come to believe because you have seen
me? Blessed are those who have not seen and have believed" (Jn 20:28,29).
Thomas should be equally well known for his
courage. Perhaps what he said was impetuous since he ran, like the rest, at the
showdown, but he can scarcely have been insincere when he expressed his
willingness to die with Jesus. The occasion when he expressed this willingness
was when Jesus proposed to go to Bethany
after Lazarus had died. Since Bethany was near Jerusalem, this meant
walking into the very midst of His enemies and to almost certain death.
Realizing this, Thomas said to the other apostles, "Let us also go to die
with him."
Thomas shares the lot of Peter the impetuous
one, James and John, Philip, with his foolish request to see the Father, and
indeed all the apostles in their weakness and lack of understanding. We must
remember that Jesus did not pick worthless men, but their human weakness again
points out the fact that holiness is a gift of God, not a human creation. It is
given to ordinary men and women with weaknesses. It is God who gradually
transforms weaknesses into the image of Christ Jesus, the courageous, trusting
and loving One.
Thomas truly wanted to see the living Lord. It
did strengthen his faith. Thomas was moved from deep doubt to deeper faith.
Doubt is not a symptom of faith that is weak and dying. Doubt is a sign that
faith is alive, longing for the good news of Jesus to be a part of our life. We
as Christians long to believe that Jesus Christ is alive and active in our
world. We want to believe what the reading from Ephesians declares, that we are
indeed fellow citizens with the saints in the household of God. And we are!
(Eph 2:19).
When Thomas recognized his Master, he believed
and exclaimed that Jesus was truly Lord and God! Through the gift of faith, we
too proclaim that Jesus is our personal Lord and our God. He died and rose that
we too might have new life in Him. The Lord offers each of us new life in His
Holy Spirit that we may know Him personally and walk in this new way of life
through the power of the resurrection.