“But Thomas (Called “Twin”) one of the Twelve, was not with them when Jesus came… ‘Unless I see the mark of the nails in His hands, I will never believe.” John 20:24-25
My Namesake has a Moniker. He carries a “Nickname” if you will. You all often refer to him as “Doubting Thomas.” But the reference above said he was a TWIN? I started looking…and no one can really find evidence of a physical twin brother. But many BELIEVE that John might have been speaking “metaphorically”…as if to say that Thomas LOOKED like Jesus! Now THAT is interesting! The one that LOOKED like Him…doubted.
I hope some of you are way ahead of me on the metaphor here. Friends…we are challenged to LOOK LIKE JESUS! Paul says to “Have the same mind.” (Philippians 2:5) Jesus washed the feet of His followers and then said, “I have shown you how to do this to set an example.” (John 13:15) He watched an older widow give her last few pennies away and He said that she gave of EVERYTHING she had! (Mark 12:44)
So here’s the simple question: HOW MUCH DO YOU LOOK LIKE JESUS? Could someone accuse you of being His TWIN??
Or do your doubts tend to show up louder than your faith? If we are being totally honest…we might look a little more like Thomas than we want! Jesus PROMISED He would be there with us. He would NEVER leave us! His Grace IS sufficient for all of us! But it’s very easy when we look at the problems going on right now, wringing our hands and whispering “what are we gonna do??”…and OVERLOOK the consistency of Our Savior!
But here’s a little GOOD NEWS: the story of Thomas didn’t END with his fear! Jesus NEVER mocked him for his “doubts”…He never put Thomas down. Jesus just showed the scars to him and said, “Touch Me!” His challenge to one that had been struggling with seeing the effects of the world and being a little afraid is this: “Don’t be faithless…just believe!” (John 20:27)
Friends…it’s ok to be a little freaked out at what is going on! We are certainly living in weird days-this is like nothing any of us have ever seen! And it CAN cause us to get a little rattled. Jesus is saying, “JUST DON’T STAY THERE!” Don’t stay in FEAR! Don’t watch the news and the death toll and be afraid! “JUST BELIEVE!
And the response that the “Twin” gives…is one that we should ALL give: “My Lord and My God!” Jesus goes on to BLESS Thomas!! He doesn’t belittle him or say he is going to burn because he doubted. Maybe we should be a little more “twin-like” here! Even in the midst of fear and isolation, our declaration needs to be: MY LORD AND MY GOD!
May YOU have an up-close-and-personal encounter with the Savior that NEVER leaves! And may we all see Him as LORD and GOD in this season!! May His Peace Be Upon Your Home…and may you encounter HIM today!
Don
