Then, the same day at evening, being the first day of the week, when the doors were shut where the disciples were assembled, for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood in the midst, and said to them, “Peace be with you.”
When He had said this, He showed them His hands and His side. Then the disciples were glad when they saw the Lord.
So Jesus said to them again, “Peace to you! As the Father has 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, they are forgiven them; if you retain the sins of any, they are retained.”
Now Thomas, called the Twin, one of the twelve, was not with them when Jesus came.
The other disciples therefore said to him, “We have seen the Lord.” So he said to them, “Unless I see in His hands the print of the nails, and put my finger into the print of the nails, and put my hand into His side, I will not believe.”
And after eight days His disciples were again inside, and Thomas with them. Jesus came, the doors being shut, and stood in the midst, and said, “Peace to you!”
Then He said to Thomas, “Reach your finger here, and look at My hands; and reach your hand here, and put it into My side. Do not be unbelieving, but believing.”
And Thomas answered and said to Him, “My Lord and my God!”
Jesus said to him, “Thomas, because you have seen Me, you have believed. Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.” (John 20:19-29)
This is a time of year when debates about the resurrection explode on the Internet, and books about the resurrection, for and against, load the shelves of book stores. Evidence here, evidence there, thrown back and forth, to shed light on the most important event in human history. That’s understandable – if Jesus had not risen from the dead, then there is no Christianity, no gospel, no salvation.
However, some people seem to think that if we find just enough proof of the resurrection, then everyone will be convinced. If we can just show them scientific evidence, then they will stop rejecting and trust in Christ.
I believe something very different. I believe, if there could have been a camera installed at the tomb of Jesus, and that camera captured the resurrection, and if the risen Jesus had been photographed, recorded and filmed, it would still not convince everyone. As much as the resurrection is the central piece of evidence for the faith, people could have seen the resurrection and not believed.
Proof of this is seen in this incident with Thomas. Thomas is like many people, and perhaps he is like you. Perhaps you are a person who is unsure about God, Jesus, Christianity. Maybe you are a Christian, but filled with doubt, and you wish that you could just have some kind of vision, something to see or hear that would confirm your faith once and for all.
As we study the incident with Thomas, we are going to learn something very different. We are going to see three truths about signs: what a proof-seeker wants, what proof does, and what is better than proof.
What a Proof-Seeker Wants
Now Thomas, the Twin, one of the twelve, was not with them when Jesus came.
The other disciples therefore said to him, “We have seen the Lord.” So he said to them, “Unless I see in His hands the print of the nails, and put my finger into the print of the nails, and put my hand into His side, I will not believe.”
What did Thomas say? Unless I see physical evidence that my eyes can see and that my fingers can handle, I will not believe. In other words Thomas was saying: for me to believe, I will not trust anything except my own senses.
Thomas would fit in with modern man, who thinks that the only thing you can know for certain is what you have seen with your own eyes and heard with your own ears. People tell us that to know what is true we must be able to see it, hear it, record it, measure it, test it and scientifically confirm that it is true. So what’s wrong with that? Can we blame Thomas for wanting to see Jesus with his own eyes, after all, the other 10 apostles got to see Him?
Now let’s think about Thomas for a moment. How long had he walked with Jesus? For a minimum of two years. In that time, what had Thomas already seen? What had he been in the front row to see? Miracles and signs? How many had he seen? Numerous signs. So many that John suggests it would fill up books to record them all.
Also, during that time, had Thomas heard Jesus say anything about the resurrection? Yes. On several occasions, Jesus had told his disciples that he would be arrested, killed and would rise again on the third day.
Did Thomas have any opportunity to see if you could trust Jesus’ promises? Did Thomas know the kind of character behind Christ’s words? On this day, he hears his friends and compatriots, men whom Jesus had personally chosen, give an eyewitness account of having seen Jesus.
So what was Thomas doing? Was he just an innocent scientist looking for more proof? No, Thomas was doing a lot more than that. Thomas reveals what is really going on in the heart of the sceptic, in the heart of the doubter.
Thomas was calling his fellow ten apostles liars. He was not willing to trust these men he had practically lived with for two years. He was disbelieving the promises that Jesus had made. He was not willing to trust that the words of Jesus were trustworthy and reliable.
He was not willing to trust that the One who had performed all those miracles in front of His eyes, had now performed another one not seen by his eyes. He was committing himself to unbelief (“I Will not believe”), until his demands for evidence were met, which made him not neutral, but hostile. He was calling for Christ to submit to his test.
Do you see what Thomas was doing? Thomas was claiming that his own eyes and senses were the most reliable source of truth. He was saying that no one is more trustworthy than Thomas.
At the heart of it is – I don’t trust anyone, but I trust my own senses. No one can be trusted – not the apostles, not Jesus’ promises, not the biblical prophecies that Messiah would rise from the dead, therefore even God cannot be trusted. Who can you trust, Thomas? I trust myself. I am incapable of wrong judgement.
And here is the real heart of unbelief. This is the heart of a doubter. He claims to be on an honest quest for the truth, but when we look closely, we find out that he dishonestly rejects all kinds of evidence. We find out that very often the man who says, “I must see it”, actually means, I trust nobody except myself. No one is reliable. Everyone lies, including God. Only my eyes do not lie.
But is that true? If we see a sign, will we know the truth? If Jesus simply appeared to everyone, wouldn’t everyone then believe? Well, let’s ask Jesus Himself about what a sign will do?
What Proof Does
Matthew 12:38-39
Then some of the scribes and Pharisees answered, saying, “Teacher, we want to see a sign from You.”
But He answered and said to them, “An evil and adulterous generation seeks after a sign, and no sign will be given to it except the sign of the prophet Jonah.”
Matthew 16:1-4
Then the Pharisees and Sadducees came, and testing Him asked that He would show them a sign from heaven.
He answered and said to them, “When it is evening you say, ‘It will be fair weather, for the sky is red’;
“and in the morning, ‘It will be foul weather today, for the sky is red and threatening.’ Hypocrites! You know how to discern the face of the sky, but you cannot discern the signs of the times.
“A wicked and adulterous generation seeks after a sign, and no sign shall be given to it except the sign of the prophet Jonah.” And He left them and departed.
Here Jesus was asked by leaders to provide a sign that they could see, to prove His claims. How did Jesus respond? Did He give them a sign? No, the only sign he would give them would be His empty tomb.
Why not? Why didn’t He just give them a sign? The answer is found in what they did with this sign that he promised.
Matthew 28:2-4
And behold, there was a great earthquake; for an angel of the Lord descended from heaven, and came and rolled back the stone from the door, and sat on it.
His countenance was like lightning, and his clothing as white as snow.
And the guards shook for fear of him, and became like dead men.
Matthew 28:11-15
Now while they were going, behold, some of the guard came into the city and reported to the chief priests all that had happened.
And if this comes to the governor’s ears, we will appease him and make you secure.”
So they took the money and did as they were instructed; and this saying is commonly reported among the Jews until this day.
When they had assembled with the elders and consulted together, they gave a large sum of money to the soldiers,
saying, “Tell them, ‘His disciples came at night and stole Him away while we slept.’
What did they do with that sign? Did it change their rejection of Jesus? No. It actually furthered it.
And here’s the problem with signs. If the heart is evil, it will find what it is looking for in the sign. Signs and miracles are interpreted. Signs can be wrongly interpreted. Signs do not save people. They only confirm what is already in the heart.
Think about it. Did Pharaoh see signs? What does the Bible say happened to his heart every time he saw more signs? He hardened his heart. God allowed the signs to harden him and make him more committed to his rebellion. It confirmed what was already in his heart.
Didn’t Israel see the pillar of fire and of cloud, the Red Sea, and the manna? Didn’t they see the plagues on Egypt, and God’s judgement? Did that stop them from complaining, grumbling, rebelling against Moses, and wishing to return to Egypt? No. Signs cannot change the heart. Signs confirm what is already in the heart – acceptance or rejection.
Didn’t Ahaz and Jezebel see the signs of Elijah? Didn’t Judas see signs? Did those signs change his desire for money and wealth? No, they just confirmed what was already in his heart.
When the Pharisees had seen Him heal in the synagogue, open blind eyes, restore lame limbs, raise the dead and cast out demons, had those Pharisees changed their opinion of Him? How did the Pharisees explain how Jesus cast out demons? They said He used Satan’s power to cast out demons. The signs just brought out what was already in their heart, it did not change their heart.
How did He describe this behaviour? He called it wicked or evil, and He called it adulterous. Long before the eyes see the sign, the heart is already either good or evil. Long before your ears or your fingertips encounter the sign, the heart is either adulterous or loyal. And how the heart is, is how you will interpret the sign.
God used signs to confirm what He had said.
Hebrews 2:3-4
How shall we escape if we neglect so great a salvation, which at the first began to be spoken by the Lord, and was confirmed to us by those who heard Him,
God also bearing witness both with signs and wonders, with various miracles, and gifts of the Holy Spirit, according to His own will?
Mark 16:20
And they went out and preached everywhere, the Lord working with them and confirming the word through the accompanying signs. Amen.
They can only confirm what God has said, but if you reject what God has said, then those signs don’t confirm anything. But if you don’t trust what He says, then you won’t trust what he does. If you don’t trust the source, you’ll misinterpret the sign.
The ultimate sign is the resurrection of Jesus. But Jesus taught that even this sign would not convince people who reject what God says.
Luke 16:19-31
“There was a certain rich man who was clothed in purple and fine linen and fared sumptuously every day.
“But there was a certain beggar named Lazarus, full of sores, who was laid at his gate,
“Desiring to be fed with the crumbs which fell from the rich man’s table. Moreover the dogs came and licked his sores.
“So it was that the beggar died, and was carried by the angels to Abraham’s bosom. The rich man also died and was buried.
“And being in torments in Hades, he lifted up his eyes and saw Abraham afar off, and Lazarus in his bosom.
“Then he cried and said, ‘Father Abraham, have mercy on me, and send Lazarus that he may dip the tip of his finger in water and cool my tongue; for I am tormented in this flame.’
“But Abraham said, ‘Son, remember that in your lifetime you received your good things, and likewise Lazarus evil things; but now he is comforted and you are tormented.
‘And besides all this, between us and you there is a great gulf fixed, so that those who want to pass from here to you cannot, nor can those from there pass to us.’
“Then he said, ‘I beg you therefore, father, that you would send him to my father’s house,
‘For I have five brothers, that he may testify to them, lest they also come to this place of torment.’
“Abraham said to him, ‘They have Moses and the prophets; let them hear them.’
“And he said, ‘No, father Abraham; but if one goes to them from the dead, they will repent.’
“But he said to him, ‘If they do not hear Moses and the prophets, neither will they be persuaded though one rise from the dead.'”
Do you see that? Even if one rose from the dead, it would not persuade them. What do they already have? Moses and the prophets, which is another way of saying, the Bible. If they have the Bible, and will not listen, they will not be persuaded by the sign of one resurrected. The sign will only confirm what is already in the heart.
A sign-seeker supposedly wants proof, but too often he only trusts himself. And worse, the sign doesn’t help him, it only confirms what is already in his heart. So what was Thomas to do?
What is Better Than Proof
And after eight days His disciples were again inside, and Thomas with them. Jesus came, the doors being shut, and stood in the midst, and said, “Peace to you!”
Then He said to Thomas, “Reach your finger here, and look at My hands; and reach your hand here, and put it into My side. Do not be unbelieving, but believing.”
And Thomas answered and said to Him, “My Lord and my God!”
Jesus said to him, “Thomas, because you have seen Me, you have believed. Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.”
After eight days, Jesus appears and shows Himself to Thomas. For the most part, Thomas is the only doubting person that Jesus appeared to. He did not appear to the Pharisees. He did not appear to those who had called for His crucifixion. He appeared to those who had already believed, and confirmed their faith.
So what did He do here? He graciously, kindly condescended to Thomas and called on him to believe. Thomas was not in rejection of Christ, but his pride and self-reliance were obstacles. Jesus showed mercy on him, and appeared. What was Thomas’ response? Thomas said that Jesus was Lord and God. Jesus replied that he now believed.
Did Jesus then congratulate Thomas for being so sceptical? Did Jesus say, I commend you for your scientific attitude? Did Jesus say, “I understand that you needed proof, and I am happy to provide it.”? How did Jesus respond? “Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.”
Thomas’ ‘scientific attitude’ is not seen as a strength, but as a weakness. He has failed to believe as he should have.
Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed. Those whose faith was not dependent upon some supposed physical proof, are happier, better off. Privileged are the ones whose faith is not reliant on their eyes.
If we total up the number of Christians from history, what percentage of them saw the physical evidence of the resurrection? A very small number. So what is their faith based on? Since you are one of those, what is your faith based on?
Romans 10:17
So then faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.
1 Thessalonians 2:13
For this reason we also thank God without ceasing, because when you received the word of God which you heard from us, you welcomed it not as the word of men, but as it is in truth, the word of God, which also effectively works in you who believe.
What did Abraham say the brothers of the man in hell were to look to? The Law and the Prophets. The Word of God.
Faith is based upon a promise. The blessed ones Jesus speaks of have banked upon the word of the promise because of the trustworthiness of the One who made it. Faith is a response to a promise. The promise is as good as the one who made it.
You see, faith is a choice to regard God as true and reliable. Faith is treating the character of God as trustworthy. Unbelief is a choice to regard God as untrue and unreliable. Unbelief is treating the character of God as untrustworthy.
Imagine someone wants to get to know you. And as they begin to explore a relationship with you, you one day say to them, “Would you please provide me with proof that you have never murdered anyone.” As shocked as you are, you provide what you can. A few weeks later, the person says, ”Would you please provide me with proof that you are exactly who you say you are, and are not a fraud, pretending, using someone else’s identity”.
Well, you might do your best, but by now you are annoyed. What is this person saying about you?
That is exactly what we do when the good, loving God, who has poured out knowledge of Himself in creation and conscience and in Jesus and in the Word, and then we say, “Would you please provide me with some more proof?” Faith is not a matter of getting enough evidence. Faith is a matter of believing a person’s statements are trustworthy.
A heart that does not trust that God is truthful, will interpret every sign in the world (including the resurrection) to confirm its own distrust. A heart that says God is truthful, will take the sign (if it needs one) to confirm that God is trustworthy.
If the risen Jesus appeared before us, and we filmed him and photographed him, there are still some here who would not believe. They’d believe what their eyes were seeing, but they would reinterpret it later. It wasn’t really Jesus. It was the hype of the moment.
Something must go before the sign. The heart must believe that God is trustworthy. The heart must believe that what He has said, can and must be, trusted. And then, all the signs line up like a starry conjunction and confirm and verify.
You mean I must just take things on blind faith? No such thing is needed. The knowledge of God is hard-wired into us. We already know He exists. We know He is true, and we believe in truth. We know He is good, and we believe in goodness. We know He is beautiful, and we long for beauty.
We don’t have to look for proof that He exists; the Bible says we have to suppress the truth that He exists if we don’t want to believe in Him. Psalm 19 says that the heavens shout the knowledge of God.
The same psalm goes on to say that this God has not only spoken generally in creation, but intelligently and specifically. This God has spoken. He has primarily spoken through His Son. We know that human history revolves around the person of Jesus. We know that no other religion can come close to the prophecies about Jesus; the miracles done by Jesus; the words spoken by Jesus, and the resurrection of Jesus.
Yes we have eyewitnesses who saw Him and prove that this was not a lie, a vision, or an hallucination. But all these are not the reason we believe.
When it comes down to it, we believe because He has spoken, and He is trustworthy. He is more trustworthy than my own eyes. He is more trustworthy than my own ears. As we might say to Thomas, have you never misheard? Have you never mistaken one thing for another? Have you never misjudged distance?
Faith says, God is more reliable than my eyes and ears. For that matter, God is more reliable than my brain, and how it interprets what my eyes and ears receive.
In other words, faith is a matter of love. You love and respect God, and so you trust what He says. On this occasion, Thomas’ love for Jesus failed. He had distrusted what Jesus had said. He had distrusted the promises of Jesus. Blessed rather are those who trust the Person making the promises.
Right now, across the world, there are people debating whether the evidence proves Jesus rose from the dead or not. Supposedly one more sign will prove the case. And perhaps even today there are some here saying, ”If I just had more proof, I would believe”. Jesus says to you, seeing is not believing. Believing is seeing.
C.S. Lewis said “I believe in Christianity as I believe that the sun has risen, not only because I see it, but because by it I see everything else.” I have faith in Christ, not only because I see that He is the risen one, but because by trusting that He is the Risen one, that I see everything else properly.
Trust in the God you already know exists. Trust that the God who exists has spoken intelligibly, because everything around you speaks of an intelligible Creator of an intelligible universe. Trust that as He has focused His speaking in Jesus and in His Word – that He is reliable. Trust that what He has said in His Word is true. Look at Jesus, and say, “My Lord and My God.” When you do that, all the signs, all the proofs, all the evidence will unite to confirm that you were right to trust such a reliable God.