Thomas And “Them”…

When they saw him, they worshiped him; but some doubted. (Matthew 28:17)

On Sunday, Pastor Sam gave us an encouraging word: there can be authentic worship even in the face of doubt.

When we think of the word “doubt” in Scripture, most Christians familiar with their Bibles tend to default to Thomas, the disciple who had missed the first post-Resurrection meeting between Jesus and the other ten disciples. Thomas was very vocal about his unbelief concerning the resurrection of Jesus from the dead. But Thomas was present for the second encounter, and he believed. These eleven disciples then met the Lord in Galilee, having walked about 90-100 miles from where they had seen him in Jerusalem (see John 20:19- 21:14).

So, we have this curious post-Resurrection situation: Thomas had seen Jesus twice. The other ten disciples had seen Him three times. And, in the face of these multiple appearances, there was still doubt… and not just in the heart of Thomas. Other disciples felt it too.

What about you? Do you feel it? Have doubts clouded your discipleship? Do you have things happening in your life that make you question whether you've really had an encounter with the living God?

The prescription for doubt is authentic worship. Pastor Sam said (paraphrased here), If you are obediently worshiping instead of disobeying by staying away, if you are doing your best even in the face of doubts, if you are engaged with God through sincere worship of Him, then your doubts will be addressed by the resurrected Christ.

We serve an amazing Lord. In the Matthew 28 account, Jesus responded to the doubt with a declaration of His power and with a dispatching of His disciples: Then Jesus came to them and said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Therefore go and make disciples of all nations…” (Matthew 28:18-19a). In other words, doubt could not disqualify the disciples from service so long as they were found obedient in worship.

Is there doubt in your heart today? Don't let it deter you from your devotion.

All Scripture references are from The Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.®Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

Food Court.

Then the disciple whom Jesus loved said to Peter, “It is the Lord!” So Simon Peter, when he heard that it was the Lord, tucked in his outer garment (for he had nothing on underneath it), and plunged into the sea. Meanwhile the other disciples came with the boat, dragging the net full of fish, for they were not far from land, only about a hundred yards. When they got out on the beach, they saw a charcoal fire ready with a fish placed on it, and bread. (John 21:7-9, NET)

In John 21:7, we read that Peter reacted quickly when he heard that it was the Lord who was speaking to the seven disciples who had gone fishing. It seems the boat was not fast enough for Peter: he jumped out and swam to shore, as the other six disciples followed in the boat. The narrative then makes an interesting point: When they got out, they saw a charcoal fire, fish, and bread.

After a long night of unfruitful works, the men were blessed with a breakfast served by the Lord Himself.

Perhaps there are situations we can look back on: issues with school, work (or lack of work), family concerns, or even needing the basics of food and water. Perhaps the depth of our struggles led us to say, “God, You’re taking too long… I have to work this out for myself.”

For some of us it may not be a past event: it might be today that we, figuratively speaking, are about a hundred yards away from shore. It’s just enough of a distance that we’re unsure if it’s Jesus we’re seeing. We, like those seven disciples, might not even recognize His voice calling to us. But the disciples’ confusion was immediately erased when they obeyed His instruction. There was the benefit of fish in the net, and there was an even greater benefit on the shore: Christ Himself, the Lord of Glory, present to share in fellowship with those He loved. He fed them. He feeds us.

Where do you find yourself today?

Are you out on the sea, making your own way?

The Lord loves you and has made provision for you;

Return to the shore of His grace.

Command Performance.

When it was already very early morning, Jesus stood on the beach, but the disciples did not know that it was Jesus. So Jesus said to them, “Children, you don’t have any fish, do you?” They replied, “No.” He told them, “Throw your net on the right side of the boat, and you will find some.” So they threw the net, and were not able to pull it in because of the large number of fish. (John 21:4-6, NET)

Jesus could have asked, “Guys, why are you out here fishing? Didn’t I take you away from all this?” But He did not say that. In His love and compassion He asked, “Children, have you caught any fish?”

Jesus met the disciples in the midst of their failing attempt at self-sufficiency. He does the same for us. And, what is even more amazing is that He blessed them, just as He blesses us, with a demonstration of His miraculous provision. Yes, you are professional fishermen, but I am the one who spoke life into all the fish. I can command the fish to swim into your net, instead of away from it.  

Let us learn a lesson from the disciples, and from our Lord: without the presence and help of Jesus, our best efforts are in vain. But, when He intercedes on our behalf, we see the “impossible” become reality; we become witnesses of His grace and power; we are encouraged to let go of our personal agendas, even the agendas that seem logical; and we fully submit ourselves to God, who is Lord over all.

Lord God, our Father and King, You are all that we want… and You graciously supply all that we need. Thank You.

Don't Go There.

Afterward Jesus appeared again to his disciples, by the Sea of Galilee. It happened this way: Simon Peter, Thomas (also known as Didymus), Nathanael from Cana in Galilee, the sons of Zebedee, and two other disciples were together. “I’m going out to fish,” Simon Peter told them, and they said, “We’ll go with you.” So they went out and got into the boat, but that night they caught nothing. (John 21:1-3)

Early in Jesus’s ministry, Jesus had called Peter away from the world of commercial fishing. But after the crucifixion, burial, and resurrection of Christ, and even after having had personal encounters with the resurrected Christ, Peter made an astonishing decision: I’m going back to what Jesus told me to leave.

So Peter, and some of the other disciples, went fishing that night. It seemed to be a great idea. After all, Peter had been a professional in the trade. He knew the best time to go fishing is at night. And, in a context where they feared for their lives, it was certainly safer for the men to go out at night instead of broad daylight. So they went. They fished. They caught nothing.

I wonder if you and I are in this story.

I wonder if we, even after having encountered the resurrected Christ, still hold in our hearts a desire to do our own thing and make our own way. We have a problem of sorts: we are gifted. We have some things that we can do very well, and we can enjoy the accolades of men. Some of these things will even make us money, and we might even give the money to God’s work. But if that thing we do well is in opposition to the calling God has placed on our lives, then we can be sure that we, like the disciples of old, will find ourselves “catching nothing” for our extended hours of effort.

Yes, we have experienced crisis and sorrow and even death, whether of persons or of dreams. And yes, in our anguish Jesus has appeared to us, more than once, to assure us of His risen life in us. And yes, for some of us our crisis is tempting us to step away from our calling and instead do something that is expedient, something that we do with excellence, something to alleviate our inner fears... something that is no longer part of God’s script for our life-play. Today, I pray that we will not give in to that temptation.

Christ, the Desire of Nations, is risen! May all other desires be obscured by His Light.

Afterward…

As we walk through the rest of this Easter week, let us reflect on Jesus’s third appearance to the disciples after His resurrection. Today’s reading is taken from John’s Gospel.

John 21:1-14 (NIV)

Afterward Jesus appeared again to his disciples, by the Sea of Galilee. It happened this way: Simon Peter, Thomas (also known as Didymus), Nathanael from Cana in Galilee, the sons of Zebedee, and two other disciples were together. “I’m going out to fish,” Simon Peter told them, and they said, “We’ll go with you.” So they went out and got into the boat, but that night they caught nothing.

Early in the morning, Jesus stood on the shore, but the disciples did not realize that it was Jesus.

He called out to them, “Friends, haven’t you any fish?”

“No,” they answered.

He said, “Throw your net on the right side of the boat and you will find some.” When they did, they were unable to haul the net in because of the large number of fish.

Then the disciple whom Jesus loved said to Peter, “It is the Lord!” As soon as Simon Peter heard him say, “It is the Lord,” he wrapped his outer garment around him (for he had taken it off) and jumped into the water. The other disciples followed in the boat, towing the net full of fish, for they were not far from shore, about a hundred yards. When they landed, they saw a fire of burning coals there with fish on it, and some bread.

Jesus said to them, “Bring some of the fish you have just caught.” So Simon Peter climbed back into the boat and dragged the net ashore. It was full of large fish, 153, but even with so many the net was not torn. Jesus said to them, “Come and have breakfast.” None of the disciples dared ask him, “Who are you?” They knew it was the Lord. Jesus came, took the bread and gave it to them, and did the same with the fish. This was now the third time Jesus appeared to his disciples after he was raised from the dead.