Trinity UMC, Hummelstown
April 19, 2015 / 3rd Sunday of Easter
T.A. Maurer
Text: John 20:24-29
“From Doubt to Faith”
The space age in which most of us grew up viewed reality as a
closed system of natural laws. The scientific method of cause and
effect dominated our world view. As a result it became generally
accepted that there were no exceptions to the laws of nature.
Belief in miracles became passé, relegated to the arena of
ignorance and superstition. We were taught to believe that if
something contradicted the laws of science, it just wasn’t true.
So it’s not surprising that many Christians came to have serious
doubts about the resurrection of Jesus. While wanting to believe
in the resurrection, their belief has become guarded, suspicious
that anyone could be raised from the dead - including the Son of
God.
That’s not to say these same Christians don’t profess a belief in
God, and that Jesus is the Son of God, or that He died for their
sins. Nor does it shake their belief in the afterlife. But when it
comes to believing in the resurrection – well, that’s a different
matter.
You see, its one thing to have a near-death experience – to see a
bright light, a tunnel, and familiar faces on the other side waiting
to welcome you. People from a wide variety of cultures have
documented such experiences. But no modern culture has
documented a single instance of anyone having died, been
entombed for three days, and then walked out alive. Yet that’s
exactly what the Christian Faith claimes happened to Jesus.
Understand, the early Church never claimed Jesus had a near
death experience. What they claimed – as did Jesus Himself – is
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that Jesus died, was entombed for three days, after which He was
resurrected. The Apostle Paul wrote in his First Letter to the
Corinthians that no less than 500 people saw Jesus during a
period of forty days following His resurrection. (I Corinthians 15:6).
But you say, “Come on, Pastor Tom. Those were ancient times
when everyone believed in miracles. This is the 21st Century.”
True. Scientific evidence is overwhelming that the resurrection
must be exaggerated if not fraudulent. After all, how can any
educated person be so gullible as to believe that someone could
be resurrected after being dead three days - including Jesus?
Don’t be embarrassed or ashamed if that happens to be your
position; you’re in good company. It’s natural to have doubts
about Jesus’ resurrection. Without exception, everyone one of
Jesus own disciples initially doubted His resurrection. Even the
women who first gazed into Jesus’ empty tomb that Easter morn
ran away in fear and doubt. There isn’t a single biblical instance
where one of Jesus’ followers initially believed in His resurrection.
So when Jesus appeared before Thomas and said, “Stop your
doubting, and believe,” Jesus wasn’t saying anything he hadn’t
already encountered with every other disciple. Without exception
every follower of Jesus initially doubted His resurrection. Despite
having seen Jesus raise the dead on several occasions, it was
still incredulous for them to believe that Jesus Himself had been
resurrected.
But why? Why was it so incredulous? For the same reason it
appears so incredulous to many today. They wanted proof. It’s
natural to want proof. Thomas is best known for stating that
position.
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After the other disciples had told Thomas they had seen the risen
Lord, Thomas refused to believe them. He bluntly said: “Unless I
see the scars of the nails in His hands and put my finger on
those scars and my hand in His side, I will not believe.”
You see, despite the fact Thomas has been labeled the Doubter,
he was no different than any other follower of Jesus. Scriptures
reveal that in every instance Jesus’ disciples and followers
required some kind of proof. They needed some kind of evidence
to prove Jesus was resurrected. But what proof?
Interestingly, proof is in the eye of the beholder. What do I mean
by that? I mean we often see what we want to see, what we
expect to see. Let me illustrate.
When Mary Magdalene traveled to Jesus’ tomb that first Easter
morn, she wasn’t going to greet her risen Savior, but to finish
preparing His corpse for burial. As she came upon the tomb she
was terrified to see that the stone to the tomb had been rolled
away.
Seeing the open tomb, Mary’s initial response was one of terror
and dismay. Dread pierced her heart. Immediately she expected
the worse. She surmised that someone had maliciously stolen
Jesus’ body. After all, what other explanation could there be? The
proof was self-evident. The tomb was open and Jesus’ body was
gone. It never once dawned on Mary that Jesus might have been
raised from the dead as He had predicted.
Filled with grief and dread, Mary stood outside the tomb crying.
Consumed by grief she turned and saw a man standing before
her supposing him to be the gardener. She said to Him, “If you
took Him away, sir, tell me where you have put Him, and I will
go and get Him.” (20:15b)
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Because Mary never even considered the possibility that Jesus
was risen, the empty tomb was “proof” that Jesus’ corpse had
been stolen. Moreover, despite the fact that Jesus stood before
her very eyes and spoke to her, still she did not recognize Him.
Why?
Because she saw what she expected to see. Being convinced by
the empty tomb that Jesus’ corpse had been stolen, Mary was
blinded from identifying Jesus for who He was - her resurrected
Lord.
My point is that proof is sometimes in the eye of the beholder. We
see what we expect to see – not necessarily what is. So it’s not
surprising that some Christians find it difficult to believe in Jesus’
resurrection. Why? Because the “proof” they’ve accepted does
not allow for the possibility of resurrection.
Which brings us to the next point of our sermon. Doubt is not
satisfied by proof, but by faith.
But what is faith? The author of the Book of Hebrews writes, “To
have faith is to be sure of the things we hope for, to be
certain of the things we cannot see.” (11:1). Faith is seeing
beyond the proof that blinds us. Faith is accepting what otherwise
appears unacceptable.
Had Mary Magdalene, the Apostle Thomas, or any of the other
disciples had had a mustard seed of faith that Jesus would be
resurrected, chances are they would not have been blinded by the
proof they expected. Instead of suspecting that the empty tomb
was an instance of grave theft, they might have considered the
possibility that Jesus was alive. Had Thomas or Mary had the
slightest faith in Jesus’ prediction that He would rise after three
days, the scriptures may not have recorded these stories of their
doubt.
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My point is that if we accept the proof of science that even the
Son of God could not have been resurrected, then our faith will be
limited by the proof we expect. We will dismiss as superstition the
greatest news the world has ever heard: Jesus is risen! Proof
does not satisfy doubt. Faith satisfies doubt.
But what does it take to have such faith? Faith that even the
disciples and Mary Magdalene lacked that first Easter? My
answer is threefold.
First, you must have a personal encounter with Christ. By this
I don’t mean you know about the events of Jesus’ life - His birth,
miracles, and His Passion and resurrection. While these things
are important they don’t indicate you’ve encountered the risen
Christ.
Let me illustrate. Many sports enthusiasts can recite all kinds of
statistics about their favorite athletes. What their batting average
is; how many touchdowns they scored; who won gold medals in
what Olympics. But knowing these statistics doesn’t mean they
personally know the athlete or that they even ever met them.
Knowing about someone is not the same as having a relationship
with them.
To have faith in the resurrection requires more than knowing
about Jesus. You need to personally encounter Him. This was
true for every one of Jesus’ disciples and the women who
followed Him. Not one of them initially believed in His resurrection
until they first encountered Him. So it is for us. Until we personally
encounter the risen Christ we will always have doubts about the
resurrection.
Second, to have faith in Jesus’ resurrection requires a bold
profession of assurance. Having personally encountered the
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risen Christ you will find yourself transformed. Suddenly the world
will appear different.
It’s as if you were to win the lottery Power Ball. Suddenly the
world appears different to you. You no longer have to worry about
paying bills or saving for your children’s education or retirement.
Winning the Power Ball suddenly changes the way you see the
world.
While my intent is not to endorse you buying Lottery tickets,
hopefully you get my point. Having a personal encounter with the
risen Christ changes the way we see things. Suddenly we find
ourselves filled with a joyful assurance, as did the Apostle
Thomas when he boldly answered Jesus, “My Lord and my
God.” (20:28)
Encountering the risen Christ gives you an assurance that
suddenly transforms, making life appear more hopeful, more
joyful, and more assured.
Lastly, to have faith in the resurrection requires a willingness
to tell someone about it.
Let me ask you, if some good fortune came your way, do you
suppose you’d keep the news a secret? I doubt it. More than likely
you’d be so excited that you’d feel compelled to tell someone.
So it is with experiencing the joy of Christ’s resurrection. When
you have faith in the resurrected Christ you no longer view His
resurrection as something that happened 2,000 years ago, but a
reason to celebrate the assurance of eternal life.
It’s for this reason that the Apostle Paul wrote in his Letter to the
Romans: “How can they believe if they have not heard the
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message? And how can they hear if the message is not
proclaimed?” (10:14).
If you’ve personally encountered the risen Christ you’ll feel a need
to tell someone about it. It was no less true for Thomas, the other
eleven disciples, and Mary. They were all overcome with such joy
they had to tell someone. The Easter Gospel was never intended
to be kept a secret.
If you happen to believe that faith is a private matter just between
you and God consisting little more than believing the “right”
things,” I encourage you to reassess your faith. Open your heart
and mind to see expose your doubts and embrace the possibility
of Christ’s resurrection. Experience for yourself a personal
encounter with the risen Lord. If you’re willing to do that, then join
me as I pray for you.
Prayer:
Glorious Christ: Transform the doubts of those sitting here who
have difficulty believing in Your resurrection. Grant them the faith
to overcome their suspicions that they may encounter You as their
risen Lord. We pray this in Your holy name. Amen.
If you’ve prayed this prayer with me and would like to speak
further, I invite you to phone or email me this week so we can
arrange a time to sit and chat together. Don’t leave this morning
before you’ve gained the assurance of faith in the resurrected
Christ. AMEN
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