Good Morning All!
John 20:24-25;” Now Thomas, one of the Twelve, called the
Twin, 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 in his hands the mark of the nails, and place my finger
into the mark of the nails, and place my hand into his side, I will never
believe.”
Sometimes the Bible tells us stuff and we do
not know what to make of it. Why are we
told that Thomas was a twin? This is the
only time it is mentioned. We are never
told any other facts about the disciples.
We know James and John were brothers.
Peter and Andrew were brothers.
Matthew was a tax collector.
Peter had a mother-in-law (Mk. 1:30).
One was a zealot some were fishermen but that is just about all we know
from Scriptures. Traditions and folklore
tell us more, but the Bible is skimpy on info about the disciples. So why are we told that Thomas was called the
Twin?
There are some theories. Some think he was a big man, the size of two
hence: The Twin. Some think that he was
a twin to one of the prominent women in the New Testament. Yet there is no Scriptural evidence to back
any of these up. There is a different
theory as to the meaning of “The Twin” and it is the one I would like you to
think about.
Thomas has a twin, and that twin is
you. You and I are like Thomas in many
ways. Sometimes we miss important
events; we are just not there. Sometimes
we tend to doubt the accounts of our closest friends and associates. Sometimes we make brash statements without
thinking. Sometimes we doubt. Sometimes we are just like Thomas; close
enough that we could be his twin.
Thomas gets a bad rap when we call him
Doubting Thomas. The other disciples
doubted as well; until they saw Jesus with the wounds in his hands and side. Yet Thomas was not there that first Easter
eve, he was somewhere else. He never saw
Jesus. Thomas knew what he saw on
Friday. Jesus was dead. No one, absolutely no one survives the
crucifixion. He may have even watched as
Jesus was placed in the tomb. He knew
what he saw. He could not fathom any
human way that Jesus could be alive. He
had to see it for himself (are we ever like that?). He wanted to touch the wounds to be sure it was
not some cruel hoax. He only wanted the
truth (how often have you said that?).
As we look at Thomas, we could be looking
in a mirror. The same concerns and
statements that Thomas made; we make them too.
So, when the devil comes to you and tries to convict you of being small
in faith and of having doubt; remember Thomas, your twin. Thomas in verse 28 makes the greatest and
simplest confession in the Bible. Thomas
merely says,” My Lord and My God.” We
too, can make that statement; for Jesus is “Our Lord and Our God.” The whole of
the Scriptures is based on that small phrase.
We recognize that Jesus is my Lord.
All the writings of the Epistles are based on that phrase. Luther made that the center of his
catechism. Jesus is my Lord and my
God. Thomas said this and went on to be
a strong missionary. Tradition says he
worked his way to India where he was martyred.
We can take comfort in the fact that this
doubting Thomas was not thrown away but was brought back to Jesus. We too, are brought back to Jesus. Thomas was by sight and ours is by
faith. So, as we go through life, we are
just like Thomas, our twin, redeemed sinners who are declared saints by God.
Eternal God and Father,
we are often slow to recognize your powerful hand in our lives. We are often like Thomas who needs to see to
believe. Help us to see not with our
eyes by with our faith. Bring us to you
in comfort and peace that we may be your eternally. In Jesus’ precious name we pray, amen.
God’s Peace,
Pastor Bret
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