The Gospel of John 20:19-31
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.
Let us Pray: Today let our faith guide us and not let the doubts creep in. Guide us to follow in the way of your risen Son. To care for others not with just words but with acts of love, seeking to be more like your son Jesus. We offer you our prayers in the Name of Jesus our Savior. Amen.
Let us place ourselves with the disciples in the Upper Room. Let us reflect with the eyes and ears of faith. Let us not be like Saint Thomas but believe. The disciples are gathered in that locked Upper room for fear of the jews. Then Jesus comes and enters through the locked door, even though they were afraid the disciples rejoiced when they saw the Lord. Jesus said to them, “Peace be with you.” Thomas was not among them and when he returned, 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.” Thomas represents all of us who know the story but need evidence to fully believe. Also, we suspect all the disciples had reservations, it was not only Thomas, so how are we supposed to fully believe and understand when we did not have the privilege to be with Jesus. The belief comes from our faith, our faith that we can believe in God, and His Son Jesus and we can find our way through scripture. This Sunday is also known as Doubting Thomas Sunday or can be Faith Sunday so let our Faith give us HOPE.
Because of Thomas, we have these inspiring words of Jesus: “Thomas, because you have seen Me, you have believed. Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed” (John 20:29, NKJV). Thomas’ lack of faith has served to encourage all future Christians who have not seen Jesus and yet have believed in him and his resurrection.
Thomas can teach us a lot about the importance of faith and the gracious and compassionate love Jesus has for us all. We can always go to Him with our doubts, our anger, our worries. And we can rest assured that He will handle it all. When we have doubts today, we can ask the Holy Spirit to fill us with the Truth, and it will be done. We can accept that what John and the other Gospel writers recorded is a gift for us so we can understand what happened then which gives us hope for today and tomorrow and the years to come. In response to Thomas’ doubts, Jesus said that those who believe in Christ as Savior without seeing him are blessed.
Let us Pray: Holy God, You have called us to follow in the way of your risen Son, and to care for those who are our companions, not only with words of comfort, but with acts of love. Seeking to be true friends of all, we offer our prayers on behalf of the church and the world, And in the name of your Son Jesus Christ. Amen
Reflections by Bob 