Divine Mercy Sunday
The Doubting Thomas
Fr. Nelson Lobo OFM Cap
Introduction: So here we are… One week … after Easter. How has this week been for you? How are you this day, exactly one week after Easter? Is the excitement of Easter still in the air or has it begun to fade? Or has it vanished all together? I ask these questions because we find the disciples gathered once again exactly one week after Easter. Let’s see how these disciples of the Christ are doing one week after Easter especially Thomas. There are four main characters in this episode: john, the “thinker”, Thomas, the “checker”, Peter, the “talker”, Mary Magdalene, the “seeker”. Today we focus on Thomas.
Understanding Thomas:
Jesus prayed all night before He selected His 12 disciples and Thomas made the cut. He’s a man who shows promise. He’s a man who has the ability to believe and act on his belief. In fact, all the other times Thomas shows up in the Gospels he looks pretty good. When Jesus is determined to go to Jerusalem in the midst of a dangerous situation, “Thomas said to the rest of the disciples, ‘Let us also go, that we may die with him.’” John 11:16. And later, when Jesus told His disciples that “In my Father’s house there are many rooms” and I’m going to prepare a place for you….” John 14:4-6 Thomas piped right up and said: “Lord, we don’t know where you are going, so how can we know the way?” And Jesus responded: “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.”
So, in Thomas we have the picture of a committed follower of Christ. He loves Jesus. He walks with Jesus. He’s willing to suffer and even die for Jesus. But then he shows up late to the party after Jesus rose from the grave. The other disciples try sharing their excitement with him but he’s having nothing to do with it. You can almost sense the anger in his voice: “Unless I see the nail marks in his hands and put my finger where the nails were, and put my hand into his side, I will NOT believe it.” John 20: 25
Understanding the word DOUBT: In Greek the word doubt has three meanings. There’s the word “diakrino”. It means to “hesitate.” That’s the word Jesus used when He said: “if anyone says to this mountain, ‘Go, throw yourself into the sea,’ and does not DOUBT (hesitate) in their heart but believes that what they say will happen, it will be done for them.” Then there’s the Greek word “distazo” which means “doubt.” That’s the word used when Peter walked on the water. And then the word used here in John 20 about Thomas’ doubt is “Apistos”. The Greek word “pistos” mean “faith”, and the “a” at the beginning of the word means “no”. Thus, apistos literally means “no faith”.
If Thomas was such a loyal follower of Jesus what happened to him? How did he go from follower to famous skeptic?
David Dewitt explains the downward spiral of Thomas.
- Thomas had deserted Jesus.
- The desertion led to a delay
- The delay led to a denial
- The denial led to a demand
Thomas was given a specific demonstration-Jesus finally appears.
Thomas gave a dynamic declaration-My Lord and my God
Understanding Jesus’ response to the reaction of Thomas?
Jesus appears in the room with all the disciples and he directly turns to Thomas, Thomas the one in need. Jesus knew that he had been excluded from the special revelation on the night he appeared to the others. Jesus knew what that last week must have been like for Thomas. Just ponder that for a moment the only one of the remaining 11 left out. The only one with nothing but the words of others to ponder that week. Thomas the one left out, spent that entire week wrestling with his doubts. Now, Jesus does not lecture him, Jesus does not chastise him, or discipline him for doubting. Instead, what happened? Jesus gives him peace and in his mercy. And now a marvellous event is about to happen. Throughout the book of John, Jesus is Lord to his disciples, to Mary Magdalene, to all his followers and now and only now, Thomas proclaims clearly, “My Lord and my God.” (John 20:28)
Conclusion: Picture yourself for a moment in the room with the other disciples. Where do you sit? Do you sit with Thomas, as one still seeking? Do you sit with the others still excited from the week before? Or perhaps you sit on your own, neither excited nor doubting. Now picture Jesus as he appears in the room and as he stands before you inviting you to see the nail prints in his hands. To place your hands in his side. Have you ever felt like you missed something big that everyone else seemed to know? Have you ever felt like you were not spiritual enough because of your past failures? Have you ever felt like you could really believe even more in Jesus if you could just catch a glimpse of Him? If you have ever felt this or anything like this you would be in good company with Thomas.
“Were there no room for doubt, there would be no room for faith, either.” Frederick Buechner
