John Ch20v24-31 - Stop Doubting And Believe

And put my hand into his side.

I will not believe.

A week later his disciples were in the house again and Thomas was with them.

! Though the doors were locked, Jesus came and stood among them and said, Peace be with you.

Then he said to Thomas, Put your finger here.

See my hands.

Reach out your hand and put it into my side.

Stop doubting and believe.

Thomas said to Jesus, My Lord and my God.

Then Jesus told him, Because you have seen me, you have believed.

Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.

Jesus performed many other signs in the presence of his disciples, which are not recorded in this book.

But these are written that you may believe that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name.

Well, let's pray together and ask for the Lord's help as we look at his word.

Father God, these words have been written down for us.

That we may have life.

And we pray that we may encounter afresh the risen Lord Jesus, each and every one of us.

That we may see and know the life that the risen Jesus comes to give us.

We ask for your help.

We ask for your help.

That we may be changed.

As we see Jesus.

Amen.

So, do you believe in Jesus?

I don't mean do you believe that Jesus existed.

Most people believe that there was a man in history, a great teacher, a great leader called Jesus.

But do you believe in, do you trust in the resurrection of Jesus?

Most people don't believe.

Perhaps you're here this morning and you don't believe.

Or maybe you've got friends or family who don't believe.

What do you think it will take for a doubter to become a believer?

Well, in our text that we've just read, we meet a sceptic.

Someone who was a doubter.

Someone who does not believe.

His name is Thomas.

And Thomas has got questions.

He wants to know if the resurrection is true.

And if it is true,

what will that mean for our life?

Well, to help us understand and to get to the heart of this account,

we're going to listen to three voices.

We're going to listen to what the disciples say,

what Thomas says,

and what Jesus says.

So three voices that we're going to listen to this morning.

First, let's listen to what the disciples have to say.

We have seen and we believe.

Look at verse 24.

Now, Thomas, one of the twelve,

was not with the disciples when Jesus came.

So Jesus had already visited the other disciples.

So the other disciples told him,

Thomas, we have seen the Lord.

Of course, the disciples weren't the first ones to see the resurrected Jesus.

This was the privilege of Mary.

If you look back at verse 18.

This is just after the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus.

Verse 18.

Mary Magdalene went to the disciples with the news,

I have seen the Lord.

Mary was the first eyewitness of the risen Jesus.

And although she had seen and believed,

it seems the disciples were not so convinced.

They needed to see Jesus too.

So verse 19.

On the evening of the first day,

so a week after the resurrection,

when the disciples were together,

with the doors locked for fear of the Jewish leaders,

Jesus came and stood among them and said,

Peace be with you.

After he said this,

he showed them his hands and his side.

And the disciples were overjoyed when they saw the Lord.

They saw the risen Jesus with their own eyes.

And so they go to Thomas in verse 25.

Thomas, we have seen the Lord.

Jesus was alive.

He died.

He was buried.

And now he lives.

They believed in Jesus.

But you say,

that's easy for the disciples to believe.

I think if I was a sceptic,

and I saw the physical risen Jesus right here,

right now,

my goodness me,

I too would believe.

You see,

that's how so many unbelievers respond.

I will believe if.

I will believe if Jesus came and spoke to me audibly.

I will believe in Jesus if he would heal my sick son or daughter.

I will believe in Jesus if he would just end all the wars right now in the Middle East.

I will believe if Jesus appeared to me in Barry Collins.

Just bumped into him and there he was.

What would it take for you to believe?

What would convince the most hardened friend that you have to believe in and trust in the resurrection of Jesus?

I will believe in Jesus if you fill in the blank.

It's a reasonable way to think, isn't it?

You see,

if I said to you,

I could jump up right here from now and touch the roof up there.

I can.

What would you say?

Prove it, Johnny.

Well, I'm not going to prove it.

Because I can't.

You see,

in the same way,

if we say to our friends or to family,

Jesus died,

and Jesus was raised from the dead,

and he lives forever.

And they turn around and say to you,

well,

prove it to me.

What are you going to say to your friends to say Jesus was risen from the dead?

What proof have you got?

Well,

it comes back to our statement,

I will believe in Jesus if.

In other words,

people want proof.

They want evidence.

Which is exactly what Thomas wants.

So,

we've heard the disciples.

Now let's listen to Thomas.

Unless I see,

I will not believe.

Look at verse 25.

The disciples came to Thomas and said,

we have seen the Lord.

But Thomas said to them,

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.

So just as Christ was nailed to the cross,

and the Roman soldier pierced the side of Jesus with a sword,

Thomas saying,

unless I get to actually put my finger where those nail marks were,

and see the side,

and put my hand where he was cut with the sword,

I'm not going to believe.

I need to see.

I need to be able to touch.

I need evidence.

Well, it seems that the risen Jesus was very gracious to Thomas,

because evidence he asked for,

evidence he gets.

Verse 26.

A week later,

so this is now two weeks after the resurrection of Jesus,

a week later,

his disciples were in the house again,

and Thomas was with them this time.

But it's a similar account, isn't it?

Though the doors were locked,

Jesus came and stood among them and said,

peace be with you.

You see,

Jesus' resurrected body

was a transformed body.

He could walk through walls and doors.

But to dispel any thoughts of this being an apparition,

or a kind of a ghostly or spirity figure,

verse 27.

Jesus said to Thomas,

Thomas, put your finger here.

See my hands.

Reach out your hand and put it into my side.

Well, Thomas heard the voice of Jesus.

He could see Jesus.

And he could actually touch Jesus.

His request for proof has been met.

But with the evidence,

or the call for evidence,

comes a call on his life.

Verse 27.

The end of verse 27.

Thomas,

stop doubting

and believe.

The risen Jesus has come to Thomas

and demands a response.

It's as if Jesus were saying to him,

I've done what you've asked for.

Now believe in me.

Put your trust in me.

Place all your confidence in me.

You see,

believing is much more than just an intellectual acceptance.

It is a relational commitment.

Jesus is saying,

entrust your life to me.

Submit yourself to me.

depend upon me for your life.

In around 1840,

1850,

there was a man who was famous for his tightrope walking,

Blondin.

One of his most famous acts

was to walk along a tightrope across the Niagara Falls,

about a thousand feet in distance,

160 feet from the raging waters below.

And there he performed his act

in front of a crowd of about 25,000 people

back and forth,

up and down the rope he went.

And then he produced a wheelbarrow.

And he asked the crowd,

do you think I can walk across this tightrope

with a wheelbarrow?

The crowd roared,

yes,

yes.

And then he asked the crowd,

do you think

I could push someone

in the wheelbarrow

across?

Yes,

yes,

said the crowd.

And then came the question,

any volunteers?

Nobody answered.

You see,

it's one thing for you to say

or for me to say,

oh yes,

I believe,

but it's another thing to act on it

and to entrust yourself

to someone.

Well,

Jesus is coming before us this morning

as he did to Thomas.

and he is saying,

entrust your whole life

to me.

Commit yourself to me

and I will bring you through

not just a tightrope across a river,

but I will bring you

from death

through

to life.

I will take you

from darkness

into light,

from condemnation

into salvation.

Trust in me

and I will guarantee you

eternal life.

How is Thomas

going to respond?

He has the evidence

before him,

the call upon his life.

Well,

there is the confession.

Verse 28.

Thomas said

to Jesus,

my Lord

and my God.

Now,

this isn't an expletive

of one of fright

or confusion.

It's a confession

of understanding

and commitment.

My Lord

or

my Master.

But more than that,

my God.

Here,

the risen Jesus

stands before Thomas

and Jesus

has risen

from the dead

demonstrates

to Thomas

that because

he is alive,

he is God.

And Thomas

saw the evidence.

He heard the call

and now he confesses,

my Lord

and my God.

Thomas

entrusts

himself

to Jesus.

He commits

his life

to God.

He is the one

who actually

gets in the wheelbarrow.

he entrusts

himself

to Jesus.

Thomas

sees

and he

believes.

Now,

the risen Jesus

not only speaks

to Thomas,

Jesus

speaks

to us.

So,

we've heard

the voice

of the disciples,

the voice

of Thomas.

Now,

listen to

the voice

of Jesus.

Blessed

are those

who have

not

seen

and

believe.

Verse

29.

Then

Jesus

told

Thomas,

because

you have

seen

me,

you have

believed.

Blessed

are those

who have

not

seen

and yet

have

believed.

You see,

Jesus is

saying to

us and

to our

skeptic

friends,

even though

we cannot

physically

see the

risen

Jesus,

we can

still

believe.

And this

isn't just

a step

into the

dark.

This is

not blind

faith.

No,

this is a

sure

and certain

faith

which rests

on the

historical

fact of

the

resurrection.

Well,

how can

we believe?

How are we

to expect

any of our

family to

believe?

Or friends

to believe

if they

cannot see

Jesus?

Well,

three things

for us

to consider.

First,

it is

written.

Look at

verse 30.

Jesus

performed

many other

signs in

the presence

of his

disciples which

are not

recorded in

this book.

But these

are written

that you

may believe.

John,

the author

of the

gospel,

has recorded

at least

seven

miraculous

signs that

Jesus

performed.

He

changed

water

into

wine.

He

healed

the

royal

official's

son.

Then there

was the

lame man

by the

pool who

was made

to walk

again.

Then Jesus

went on

and he

fed a

crowd of

more than

5,000

people with

five bread

rolls and

a couple

of fish.

Then there

was the

blind man,

blind from

birth,

but Jesus

touched him

and he

was healed.

And then

there was

that resurrection

of Lazarus

from the

dead.

Jesus

raised a

dead man.

And all

of these

signs have

been recorded

and written

down for

us in

the gospel

of John.

It's like

it's a

book of

evidence.

And the

seventh and

final sign

is the

resurrection

of Jesus.

The

testimony of

those who

saw him

have recorded

it.

Mary saw

the

disciples

saw.

Thomas

saw.

These were

the first

eyewitnesses

and they

believed and

their stories

have been

written down

for you

and for

me today.

In other

words,

what this

is saying

to us

is that

what's

written

down

is

enough.

God's

word

is

sufficient.

We don't

need any

more

signs

or

wonders.

Can God

do miracles

today?

Yes,

he can.

But we

don't need

signs or

wonders to

believe.

No more

I will

believe if

Jesus

turned up

at Barry

Collins.

No,

it is

written

second

so that

we may

believe.

Look at

verse 31

again.

These are

written that

you may

believe that

Jesus is

the Messiah,

the Son of

God,

and that

by believing

you may

have life

in his

name.

You see,

all of these

signs performed

by Jesus

have a

purpose to

show us

that Jesus

is the

Messiah.

He is

God's

chosen

king.

And the

only right

response is

to believe

and to

confess like

Thomas,

my Lord

and my

God.

You see,

it's not

that there's

not enough

evidence.

It's that

some people

just don't

want to

believe

the evidence.

look back

to chapter

11 with

me,

to this

amazing

account

of

Lazarus

being

raised

from the

dead.

Chapter

11,

verse

43.

43.

So this

is the

sixth

miracle

or sign

that Jesus

performed.

We'll pick

it up in

verse 43.

So

Lazarus is

in the

tomb

and Jesus

comes along

and in a

loud voice,

Lazarus,

come out.

the dead

man came

out,

his hands

and feet

wrapped with

strips of

linen and

a cloth

round his

face.

And Jesus

said to

them,

take off

the grave

clothes and

let him

go.

Therefore,

many of the

Jews who

had come to

visit Mary,

Mary was

the sister

of Lazarus,

they had

come to

mourn for

him.

when they

had seen

what Jesus

did,

they believed

in him.

But not

everyone was

happy,

were they?

Look at

verse 48.

This is the

religious leaders.

If we let

him go on

like this,

if we let

Jesus keep

going on,

everyone will

believe in

him.

And then the

Romans will

come and

take away

both our

temple and

our nation.

Verse 53.

So from

that day

on,

they plotted

to take

his life.

Let's go

back to

chapter 20.

You see,

some saw

and believed

and looked

to Jesus

for life.

Others

saw

and would

not believe

and instead

of coming

to Jesus

for life,

they wanted

to take

his life.

You see,

it's not

that there

is no

evidence,

it's that

some just

don't want

to believe.

The reality

is Jesus

could do

anything and

everything you

asked for.

Heal my

child,

stop the

wars,

appear to

me,

talk to

me,

but still,

they would

not believe.

You see,

believing in

Jesus

demands that

we devote

ourselves fully

and completely

to Jesus.

True belief

means we

embrace Jesus

as my

Lord

and my

God.

and that's

the crux

of the

issue,

to entrust

yourself

completely

to him,

to get

into the

wheelbarrow,

to give

your life

to him.

well,

it is

written

that we

may

believe

and have

life.

You see,

as we

do believe,

as we

trust in

Jesus,

we experience

life in all

its fullness.

Look at

verse 31

back to

chapter 20.

But these

are written

that you

may believe

that Jesus

is the

Messiah,

the Son

of God,

and that

by believing

you may

have

life

in his

name.

That's

what is

promised,

life.

Well,

what is

this life?

Well,

listen to

what Jesus

said to

those who

encountered

him.

Here's a

taster

of what

John

promises.

Jesus

says,

whoever

drinks the

water I

give them

will never

thirst.

Indeed,

the water I

give them

will come

in them,

a spring

of water

welling up

to eternal

life.

I am

the bread

of life.

I am

the living

bread that

came down

from heaven.

Whoever

eats this

bread will

live

forever.

forever.

I have

come

that they

may have

life

and have

it

to the

full.

I am

the

resurrection

and the

life.

The one

who believes

in me

will live

even though

they die

and whoever

lives by

believing in

me will

never die.

I am

the way,

the truth

and the

life.

No one

comes to

the Father

except

through

me.

Here is

life

that will

quench

you

and satisfy

you

and

fulfill

you.

It is

life

now

and

life

to

come.

You

see,

this

gospel

has been

written

down

so that

we may

believe

and have

life

and so

we can

go and

proclaim

this

life

with

absolute

confidence

and assurance

to our

skeptic

friends.

We

don't have

to produce

miracles

or signs

and wonders.

we tell

them the

same

story

which is

exactly

what John

went on

to do.

Go with

me as we

finish

please

to

1 John

1 John 1 · chapter mention

chapter

1.

It's

just

before

Revelation.

1 John

1 John 1 · chapter mention

chapter

1.

Towards

the end

of your

Bible.

page

number

1225.

So the

same

author of

the gospel

writes a

letter

and tells

us that

the written

word about

Jesus is

sufficient,

it is

enough,

and it

leads to

life.

Let's

read from

verse 1.

This is

speaking about

Jesus.

That which

was from

the beginning,

which we

have heard,

which we

have seen

with our

eyes,

which we

have looked

at,

and our

hands have

touched,

this we

proclaim

concerning the

word of

life.

the life

appeared,

we have

seen it,

and testify

to it,

and we

proclaim to

you the

eternal life

which was

with the

Father and

has appeared

to us.

We

proclaim to

you what

we have

seen and

heard,

so that you

also may

have fellowship

with us,

and our

fellowship is

with the

Father and

with his

Son,

Jesus

Christ.

We write

this to

make our

joy

complete.

you see,

life is

experienced as

we hear the

written word

and believe.

No need

for I

will believe

if.

We have

the testimony

of those who

heard, who

saw, and

who touched.

And so we

can go with

confidence and

share the

same message

and show

that as we

believe,

verse 3,

we enter and

experience

fellowship with

the Father

and with

his Son.

We enter

into that

eternal,

loving,

joyful

relationship

of the

Father and

the Son.

A

relationship

that quenches

and satisfies

and fulfills

life in

all its

fullness

offered

freely

because of

what Christ

has done

for us.

Stop

doubting

and believe.

Let's

pray.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

As we

look afresh

at the

evidence,

as we

hear the

call

to believe,

we

confess

afresh,

my

Lord

and my

God.

We

thank you,

Jesus,

for your

death for

us,

for your

resurrection,

giving life

to all

who trust

in you.

Help us

to go

with confidence

and assurance

that we

too may

proclaim

the

written

word

that all

may come

and believe

and receive

life.

Father,

we pray

that for

everyone

gathered

here

today.

We

pray that

for every

child and

young person

who will

come to

rock,

to

rooted.

we pray

that for

our

friends.

We

pray it

for our

family.

Lord,

help us

to

proclaim

this

word,

this

word of

life.

Help us

now, we

ask in

Jesus'

name.

Amen.

Amen.