Doubt Offering: John 20:19-31 - Second Sunday of Easter

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." (NRSV)

 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. (NRSV)

Out of all the household expenses, none is more frustrating than the cable bill.

Our TV, telephone, and internet package is one of our greatest household expenses—equal to more than the monthly gas, electric, water, and sewage bills combined.

Much of the frustration comes from the fact that cable television provides such high-quality programming as this: Animal Planet’s reality series Finding Bigfoot.

I personally have no interest in watching fools chase a fantasy.  That being said, Bigfoot is no fantasy to the cast members—and the members of the Bigfoot Field Researchers Organization, who are passionately convinced that there is a Bigfoot to find.  Though they have yet to capture the large, hairy human-like creature, they believe that the “evidence” they’ve found is sufficient enough to dedicate their lives to finally unraveling the mystery…

Personally, I will not believe until someone manages to capture a Bigfoot and prove that it’s not just some guy in a gorilla suit… 

I do believe, however, that God is real.  I believe that Jesus is alive.  But I have never seen him in the flesh—so my faith is never without struggle. 

I don’t find it the least bit outrageous that Thomas doesn’t believe the word of his fellow disciples that they have seen Jesus.  Thomas must see (and touch) for himself.

A week later, Jesus gives Thomas exactly what he demands—and Thomas believes. 

But none of us will ever have the luxury of proof, beyond a reasonable doubt, that Jesus is not only alive, but that he is everything the Gospel reveals him to be…

No matter what, there will always be the problem of doubt.  After all, we’re putting our faith in a Savior we can’t see, whose ways we don’t understand; whose actions we cannot control.  It’s only a matter of time before we’ll find ourselves experiencing doubt. 

Thomas had solid reasons to doubt that Jesus was alive: because Jesus was dead.  And how could people kill a Messiah?

That’s the thing about doubt—it’s born when human experience meets common sense.  Most of the time, doubt emerges in the aftermath of trauma and tragedy.  There’s loss; there’s suffering; there’s pain.  Bad things happen to good people.  Prayers go unanswered.  Things get worse instead of better. You commit an unpardonable sin.

Yet doubt can flourish even in the absence of tragedy.  All it takes is a lack of proof: God doesn’t do anything dazzling to warrant any further attention…

Add up all the evidence (or the lack thereof), and it can lead to some devastating conclusions: God isn’t real; God isn’t love; or God doesn’t love you.  Death is the ultimate reality. 

All too often in life, we’ll find ourselves in a Thomas moment—there’s no sign of God anywhere; just everything we fear closing in on us.

But Jesus doesn’t leave us to drown in fear and doubt.  Instead, he meets us in the places of doubt.  He comes straight into all the hurts and disappointments.  He does this because our faith is so very fragile—and it never takes much for it to be snuffed out.  But when faith dies, Jesus comes to raise it up again.  With doubt, we feel cut off from Jesus.  So Jesus comes to draw us back to himself. 

We won’t always get that miracle we hope for that would restore our faith—but Jesus always gives us himself.  He heals the wounds of doubt with a relationship.

We are therefore called to search our hearts, examine our lives, and name our doubts.  Confess before God all the reasons why you struggle to keep faith and trust Jesus.

None of us should feel ashamed for having doubt—because doubt is the burden of faith.  It’s always going to be there, no matter how much we grow.  The challenge will always be to reach out for Jesus within the darkness of fear and doubt.  The challenge will always be to live and act from the conviction that God is making all things new, even when we have no compelling evidence to believe it. 

This is the kind of faith Jesus commends today—that takes Jesus at his word, no matter what. 

So challenge yourself this week—name before Jesus everything that causes you doubt.  Present to him your doubts as an offering.  This is an offering that will please him. 

Then pray this prayer: “Jesus, open your arms to me in all my places of doubt.  Give me the faith to believe and see that you are near.”

Finally, make up your mind to do one thing differently every day, in bold defiance of your doubt.  Let your faith come alive in action.  Do something good for someone else.  Let it be your doubt offering.  It’s not enough to just believe.  For Jesus to be real, you must believe with all that you are and everything you do.

Do this—and you will see that Jesus’ resurrection isn’t merely something to celebrate, but a truth expressing itself in daily life.  Do this—and Jesus will indeed give you the peace of knowing that he is alive and that he is near.