But....but....but

The most well known example of disciple Thomas doubting is in John 20:19-29  Now when it  was evening on that day, the first day of the week, and when the doors were shut where the disciples were together due to fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood in their midst, and said to them, “Peace be to you.”  And when He had said this, He showed them both his hands and His side.  The disciples then rejoiced when they saw the Lord.  So Jesus said them again, “Peace be to you; just as the Father sent Me, I also send you.”  And when He had said this, He breathed on them and said to them, “Receive the Holy Spirit.  If you forgive the sins of any, their sins have been forgiven them; if you retain the sins of any, they have been retained.”  But Thomas, one of the twelve, who was called Didymus, was not with them when Jesus came.  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.”  Eight days later His disciples were again inside, and Thomas was with them.  Jesus came though the doors having been shut, and stood in their midst and said “Peace  be to you.”  Then he said to Thomas, “Place your finger here, and see My hands; and take your hand and put it into My side; and do not continue in disbelief, but be a believer.”  Thomas answered and said to Him, “My Lord and My God!”  Jesus said to him, “Because you have seen Me, have you now belief?  Blessed are they who did not see and yet believed.”

Two things I wish I could ask clarifying questions on.

1.     When Jesus appeared on the first day of the week, He showed the ten disciples who were present (no Judas or Thomas) His hands and side right after greeting them.  These ten had their proof without needing to ask for it.  When they told Thomas that they had seen the Lord and he expressed his need to see the wounds, did they tell him that Jesus had shown his hands and side to them when he visited?

2.     Did the 10 received the Holy Spirit on this first visit (Jesus breathed on them and said “Receive the Holy Spirit”)?  If yes, when did Thomas get it? Eight days later after he believed?  Or not until Pentecost in Acts 2?  Or did all eleven not get the Holy Spirit until Pentecost in Acts 2?  John 7:39 makes it sound like Jesus needs to ascend into heaven before the Spirit is given, making a case for Pentecost.  But this He said in reference to the Spirit, whom those who believed in Him were to receive; for the Spirit was not yet given, because Jesus was not yet glorified.

But this was not the first time an unconvinced Thomas had a few more concerns.  John 11:7-8  Then after this He said to the disciples, “Let us go to Judea again.”  The disciples said to Him, “Rabbi, the Jews were just now going to stone You, and yet You are going there again?”  John 11:14-16  (Jesus)  “ Lazarus died, and I am glad for your sakes that I was not there, so that you may believe; but let’s go to him.”  Therefore Thomas, who was called Didymus), said to his fellow disciples, “Let’s also go so that we may die with Him.”  This was biblical sarcasm on Thomas’ part.  Jesus was stirring up a lot of anger among the Jewish leaders with His claim to be the Son of God and His miracles, putting them all in physical danger.  Jesus planned to raise Lazarus from the dead without even being near him so that the disciples would believe.  Thomas was more convinced he would die over this plan, than have his faith strengthened.

In John 14, again Thomas was a little too literal.  John 14:1-5  (Jesus) “Do not let your heart be troubled; believe in God, believe also in Me.  In My Father’s house are many rooms.  If it were not so, I would have told you, because I am going there to prepare a place for you.  And if I go and prepare a place for you, I am coming again and will take you to Myself, so that where I am, there you also will be.  And you know the way where I am going.”  Thomas said to Him, “Lord, we do not know where You are going; how do we know the way?”

Even with the New Testament and the Holy Spirit, we may still experience doubt like Thomas. It is often in this doubt that we lean more into God – praying (asking for answers), reading His word (looking for answers), and being still in the Holy Spirit.  As a doubter, Thomas did not throw up his hands in disbelief.  He sought additional information or direct answers that addressed his concerns so that his faith would be strengthened.

Jesus knew Thomas’ strengths and weaknesses, just like he knows ours.  And He uses both for His good.  In one of my Bible study classes, someone pointed out that Jesus spoke Thomas to Thomas. He knows when we are struggling with doubt and what we need to hear.  Peter was impulsive and jumped into the water on two different occasions to get to Jesus, once when human Jesus walked on water and again when he saw resurrected Jesus on shore.  Thomas loved Jesus just as much as Peter.  He just needed a few more words to ponder over before he took his leap in faith.