In the previous lesson, we read of Jesus' appearance to the ten disciples, gathered in "the upper room" in fear for their lives, following the resurrection of Jesus; but in vs. 24, we note that Thomas was absent. Now we're not sure why, but from what he has told the others here, and what Jesus said to him when He appeared in the flesh before them, it was because of Thomas' unbelief...Thomas was a doubter!
Now Thomas is specifically mentioned in three different passages in this Gospel record...the first, of course, the account of his having joined up with Jesus' band of disciples. We can discern from what John has recorded, that he was kind of a "gloomy Gus"; a bit of a pessimist maybe, but not short on loyalty and devotion to His Teacher, as we especialy see from chapt. 11.16. By the time he finally appears in chapt. 21, we can't quite tell what's on His mind, other than the fact that he believes their Master was dead and buried for good, leaving he and the eleven to go back to their former occupations, like it or not.
As we well know, some of us handle death and loss a lot differently than others of us do. And it's not simply a matter of faith, either, although faith is certainly a consideration...it must be. But the fact is, that the thought of his Master on that cross had burned an image into his mind and upon his soul that he simply could not shake! All he could think of were the spikes driven into the Lord's hands and feet, and the spear being driven into His side, and the blood and the water, and the very life flowing out of Him! And he couldn't bear seeing his friends grieving, or being obliged to "talk it out", or to question their calling, or their glum plans for their future; and that, was that!
"But Thomas..."...regardless of what the others were going through, Thomas was missing, and apparently for his own self-centered reasons. That's what depression does, doesn't it...it causes you to focus sharply and unreasonably on your own being and doing. It may have its seeds in grief, or in anger, or in the unfairness of life, but whatever the cause, it controls you.
However, while Thomas was about his own business, the other disciples were gathered in the upper room, in the evening, on Sunday...the very day of resurrection. And although it appears that John had believed the reports of the "Jesus-sightings, there was still some skepticism by others. I'm sure that each of those men had some pretty strong feelings going on...suspense, excitement, and anticipation of what would happen next, all mingled with that lingering fear! What a pity that Thomas had been missing from that first time of fellowship with his resurrected Lord.
You know, it's no mystery why when one of the brethren is out of fellowship with Jesus, he's out of fellowship with the saints as well. And when Believers are in fellowship with Jesus, they crave the fellowhip of the church..."no foresaking the assembling of ourselve together", Hebrews 10.25. So Thomas missed out on that first, and probly, best blessing of the Lord, upon His friends (John 20.21-23).
But notice from vs. 25, how the other ten disciples responded to Thomas' absence...no scolding, no cold shoulder, none of the "pride of life" displayed here, just an earnest desire to bring Thomas up-to-speed with what had taken place. They had been truly blest by the presence of the Saviour, and they wanted to share that blessing with their much loved brother. They had a heart for an unsettled saint, and they were very much aware that he needed to be anchored fast in faith.
But delving deeper, we cannot help but consider the conditions for our own, and all faith. If you resolve to be a witness of the Truth that is Jesus, you need to be prepared to have your testimony rejected...and unbelief and dis-belief are all around us! That's why there is so little power demonstrated in the church today...because-of either a weak, or a non-existent faith; a care-less attitude toward the things of Christ; and a care-less attitude toward their Gospel calling. There are many who, having not seen, will not believe; but also many who profess belief, but have no wish to see!
Here we can almost hear Thomas rejecting the testimony of his ten trustworthy brothers, witnessing to the resurrection of their Lord...men who had over the past three years, proven their loyalty and their trustworthiness and their truthfulness. But he stubbornly declared the obvious. "I do not believe, and I will not believe", until he faced the Saviour, and pawed-at His wounds! Now remember that Thomas had witnessed the resurrection of Lazarus, and others as well. And he had heard the Lord's prophecy of His own resurrection on the third day; and here, he presumes to set his own standard for faith...to see and to touch!
Suppose we had demanded to set the standard for our own faith! You perhaps had never considered the behaviour of Thomas in that light before. He could have turned around and left that upper room at any time, without so much as a backward glance! But we know that God the Father had chosen him, and given him to Jesus the Son, as Jesus had stated a number of times throughout this record. And Thomas' security lay in the promise of Jesus to Father God, that He would not allow anyone to snatch them away, nor would anyone snatch them from the Father's hand (10.27-29)!
And I trust that, if you were called by God the Father into faith, you know today, that the very promise of your Lord applies to you as well! Perhaps, in the millenia to come, you will have an opportunity to thank Jesus face-to-face, for His sure faith in your security...with no interest whatsoever at that point, in the necessity to touch His wounded hands and side!
Whatever you do with the rest of your life in the Lord, do not keep secret, what God can do!
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