I Will Not Believe

Have you ever found it hard to believe something because it was too good to be true, or too bad to be true? Have you ever said, “There’s no way that could be true!” when you heard some story about something, and then later found that it was true after all? Years ago I got a call from one of the pastors in my church telling me that one of my best friends had been killed in an auto accident. I had just had lunch with him a couple of days before. For me, it was one of those things that was too horrible to be true. I had trouble believing it for a day or so. Initially I thought that surely someone had gotten the story wrong, that some mistake had been made, and that my friend must still be alive. Thomas was a man who heard something from his friends that was too good and too fantastic to be true. We read the story in John 20.

John 20:18-31

Mary Magdalene came, announcing to the disciples, "I have seen the Lord," and that He had said these things to her. 19 So when it was evening on that day, the first day of the week, and when the doors were shut where the disciples were, for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood in their midst and said to them, "Peace be with you." 20 And when He had said this, He showed them both His hands and His side. The disciples then rejoiced when they saw the Lord. 21 So Jesus said to them again, "Peace be with you; as the Father has sent Me, I also send you." 22 And when He had said this, He breathed on them and said to them, "Receive the Holy Spirit. 23 "If you forgive the sins of any, their sins have been forgiven them; if you retain the sins of any, they have been retained." 24 But Thomas, one of the twelve, called Didymus, was not with them when Jesus came. 25 So the other disciples were saying to him, "We have seen the Lord!" But he said to them, "Unless I see in His hands the imprint of the nails, and put my finger into the place of the nails, and put my hand into His side, I will not believe." 26 After eight days His disciples were again inside, and Thomas with them. Jesus came, the doors having been shut, and stood in their midst and said, "Peace be with you." 27 Then He said to Thomas, "Reach here with your finger, and see My hands; and reach here your hand and put it into My side; and do not be unbelieving, but believing." 28 Thomas answered and said to Him, "My Lord and my God!" 29 Jesus said to him, "Because you have seen Me, have you believed? Blessed are they who did not see, and yet believed." 30 Therefore many other signs Jesus also performed in the presence of the disciples, which are not written in this book; 31 but these have been written so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God; and that believing you may have life in His name.

Thomas is often called “Thomas the doubter,” but at this point he was not doubting, but rather was refusing to believe. Doubt is hesitating between belief and unbelief, but Thomas stubbornly refused to believe that Jesus had risen from the dead despite the testimony of his friends who all insisted that they had seen the Lord alive after His death. To be fair to Thomas, the other apostles also refused to believe the women who had been told by the angel that Jesus had risen from the dead. In Luke 24:10-11 we read, “Now they were Mary Magdalene and Joanna and Mary the mother of James; also the other women with them were telling these things to the apostles. But these words appeared to them as nonsense, and they would not believe them.” They were all skeptics and had not believed that Jesus would rise from the dead as He Himself had told them He would on many occasions.

When the other disciples told Thomas that they had seen the Lord, he refused to believe it unless certain conditions were met. He said he would not believe unless he could see in his hands the imprint of the nails and put his finger into them and put his hand into His side. It wasn’t that he could not believe what they had said, it was that he would not. He was capable of believing, but unwilling. Their word was not enough for Thomas. For Thomas the idea that Jesus had risen from the dead was literally too good to be true. He was filled with grief and bitter disappointment that the one he thought was the Messiah had been killed. He probably thought that the others had been taken in by some impostor or that they were delusional. If he saw this alleged risen Messiah, he would check him out thoroughly before he would believe!

When Jesus appeared to the other disciples when Thomas was absent, they were listening to the report of Cleopas and another disciple to whom Jesus had appeared as they were walking to Emmaus earlier in the day. They told them that after they had recognized Him and He had left them, they immediately got up and returned to the eleven apostles in Jerusalem. As they were telling them about how Jesus had appeared to them, Jesus appeared to all of them. In Luke 24:36-43 we read:

While they were telling these things, He Himself stood in their midst and said to them, "Peace be to you." 37 But they were startled and frightened and thought that they were seeing a spirit. 38 And He said to them, "Why are you troubled, and why do doubts arise in your hearts? 39 "See My hands and My feet, that it is I Myself; touch Me and see, for a spirit does not have flesh and bones as you see that I have." 40 And when He had said this, He showed them His hands and His feet. 41 While they still could not believe it because of their joy and amazement, He said to them, "Have you anything here to eat?" 42 They gave Him a piece of a broiled fish; 43 and He took it and ate it before them.

Jesus took pains to demonstrate to them that He was not a mere spirit or ghost. He was not an apparition. He was the same man who had been nailed to the cross and laid in the tomb. It was the same physical body of flesh and bones. He was not a disembodied spirit. Jesus had been raised, not just in spirit, but in body as well. The wounds were not healed, but were still clearly visible.

Thomas had to wait eight days for his conditions to be met. It is commendable that he did not leave, but continued to stay with the others. It looks like Jesus appeared on this occasion specifically to allow Thomas to see Him and to inspect His wounds. Jesus accommodated him and met his conditions. He did this for Thomas because He had chosen Thomas as one of the twelve apostles and had said that He would not lose one of them except the “son of perdition” (John 17:12 and John 18:9). He even invited Thomas to touch His wounds! He provided the undeniable proof that Thomas had demanded. He commanded, “do not be unbelieving, but believing.” It was time for Thomas to stop being a skeptic and to start being a believer.

Thomas exclaimed, “My Lord and my God!” He did as the Lord commanded. He immediately set aside his unbelief. It appears that he made this decision without fully carrying out his examination. We should note that even eight days after appearing to the other apostles the wounds on the body of Jesus were still there. They may still be there in glory as a testimony to the love of God for us!

Finally, Jesus said to him, “Because you have seen Me, have you believed? Blessed are they who do not see, and yet believed.” Most must believe without seeing. Very few had the privilege that Thomas had. Jesus will not appear bodily to the vast majority, and so they must believe on the basis of the testimony of those who had these incredible experiences with Him. Indeed this is what John says next in verses 30 and 31, “Therefore many other signs Jesus also performed in the presence of the disciples, which are not written in this book; but these have been written so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God; and that believing you may have life in His name.”

So what was the impediment to faith for Thomas? Thomas was a man who wanted objective, verifiable proof that Jesus had been raised from the dead before he would believe. He had decided the testimony of others was insufficient for him. He adopted the philosophy that “seeing is believing.” When you read the gospels you find that the Jews often asked Jesus to perform a “sign” in order to prove that He was the Messiah (John 2:18 and 6:30). Paul says, “Jews ask for signs” (1 Corinthians 1:22). Thomas wanted a personal miraculous “sign” that would prove to him that Jesus had risen.

Another related factor, as we’ve noted, was that Thomas was filled with grief and disappointment, and this bitter experience amplified his skepticism. The one in whom he had believed had been crucified by the Romans instead of overthrowing the Romans. Jesus had not done what Thomas had believed and expected He would do as Messiah. Bitter experiences of life can hinder our faith. When the Lord disappoints us by not doing what we think He should do, it can shake our faith and confidence in Him. When we pray for healing and healing does not come, when we lose loved ones, when we suffer pain and anguish that seems to be senseless, when evil people seem to be allowed to run rampant victimizing others, these things can shake our faith in the Lord. These are times when we must “believe without seeing.” The Lord has given us enough evidence through the testimony of His witnesses, recorded in the scriptures. We believe in Jesus because of the faithful, unified and consistent testimony of His witnesses (John 17:20). Thomas had heard enough that he could have believed without seeing, but he chose to disbelieve the word of his friends, and so was rebuked by the Lord. We have been given what we need to believe. Jesus says to us as He said to Thomas, “Do not be unbelieving, but believing.”

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