How Do We Change From Doubting To Believing?
Good Morning Friends,
Here we are after Easter…after the crucifixion…after the resurrection and I am wondering who is still excited from the week that was… This is clear, the impact on a person’s life needs to continue after the resurrected Jesus shows up in our lives. Faith here is really important. Seeking is really important. Believing is really important. Proclaiming is really important. When Jesus is in our midst we are to mature and examine who we are in relationship with God. Today, on April Fool’s Day we explore what was happening in the lives of the disciples after the experience of the cross and tomb and then examine ourselves in the light of a resurrected Christ. Today we ask an important process question that is particularly difficult given the day. A question that was particularly difficult for Thomas who had been left out of the firsthand experience. Like us he had only the words of others to go by. And that makes the question that more provoking. How Do We Change From Doubting To Believing?
Scripture: Immediately the father of the child cried out, “I believe; help my unbelief!”
Mark 9:24 (NRSV)
When it was evening on that day, the first day of the week, and the doors of the house where the disciples had met were locked for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood among them and said, “Peace be with you.” After he said this, he showed them his hands and his side. Then the disciples rejoiced when they saw the Lord. Jesus said to them again, “Peace be with you. As the Father has sent me, so I send you.” When he had said this, he breathed on them and said to them, “Receive the Holy Spirit. If you forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven them; if you retain the sins of any, they are retained.” But Thomas (who was called the Twin), one of the twelve, was not with them when Jesus came. So the other disciples told him, “We have seen the Lord.” But he said to them, “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.” A week later his disciples were again in the house, and Thomas was with them. Although the doors were shut, Jesus came and stood among them and said, “Peace be with you.” Then he said to Thomas, “Put your finger here and see my hands. Reach out your hand and put it in my side. Do not doubt but believe.” Thomas answered him, “My Lord and my God!” Jesus said to him, “Have you believed because you have seen me? Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have come to believe.” Now Jesus did many other signs in the presence of his disciples, which are not written in this book. But these are written so that you may come to believe that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God, and that through believing you may have life in his name.
John 20:19-31 (NRSV)
Message: I am sure that most of us would prefer to live on the mountaintops of spiritual and emotional highs…times when God is moving in powerful ways…times when we have a confidence, passion and excitement of the Spirit that overcomes our resistance to believe. I love those times of sunny days and crisp air but the rain too must have its time. If we keep moving we must walk through the valley to get to the next mountaintop. That is when we struggle. That is when we must fight the battles. But we are in the company of others. The disciples struggled as well and it was not just Thomas. They had been given training, authority and experience but doubt crept in extinguishing their faith. Unbelief cannot be victorious over evil. Unbelief cannot please God. So that is why Jesus the King comes to confront us in our unbelief and in His presence and testing we can become stronger and can rediscover the power of faith. The major theme here is that Jesus is God and that absolutely nothing will be accomplished without His powerful presence, whether on the mountaintop of in the valley. This is a key to great life, but there is more to it than the resurrected Jesus appearing to His disciples just before pointing out the holes in His hands to Thomas. For here in this dynamic we discover the happy fellowship of those who follow the way. We feel it in our hearts and it shines in our faces. Here we are empowered to witness to others that forgiveness is indeed attainable…that doubt is natural but can be overcome though acts of faith. For here when we gather together in His name, He is in our midst. Here our purpose becomes clear. We are to give in to the joy of this day…we are to embrace the surprise of Shalom….that when Christ is with us we can be whole. We can be fools for Christ and not be foolish at all. We can be at peace with our past, present and future. Here when Jesus is saying “peace be with you,” He is giving us the Holy Hope we so desperately need in our continuing journey with the living Christ. He is marking our lives with a purpose, meaning and direction. The results of faith are unmistakable. So let us continue to grow post Easter and let’s keep the surprises of the experience fresh and alive. Here we might just discover a Savior telling us that His Peace will be with us…that there is meaning in his scares as well as ours.
Pray that our deepest desire is that Jesus will be in our midst….the middle of our lives. Pray Jesus comes to us as we are where we are. Pray that Jesus make us peaceful…surpassing everything we can expect. Pray that Jesus make us joyful…rejoicing in the victory on the cross. Pray that Jesus make us useful…witnessing to others the good news in our lives. Pray that Jesus make us powerful…creating in us the very breath of our existence. Pray we never forget the message of peace. Pray we share with one another the healing and wholeness that God has shared with us through Jesus Christ His Son. Pray we believe. Pray we are justified. Pray we are changed by grace through faith. Pray that though we wrestle with our doubts we not be chastised for doubting. Pray we accept the peace and mercy of Christ so we might move beyond our doubt. Pray we get the message in a profound and meaningful way. Pray we like Thomas affirm Jesus as our Lord and God. Pray we be spiritually moved to believe. Pray that our scars make us real, believable and trustworthy. Pray that in the scars of life we discover peace. Pray that in the scars of life we discover a growing faith. Pray that in the scars of life we discover healing. Pray that in the scars of life we discover honor. Pray that in the scars of life we discover love. Pray that Jesus recognizes us through our scars and we recognize him through his. Pray we all are transformed.
Blessings,
John Lawson
Daily Devotionals 