God has not left us

They were told about this, by the way.

They were told about all of this.

And they were told this just 12 hours or so before the particular verses we read this morning.

In fact, the two verses directly before this mornings’ read:

Jesus said to her, ‘Do not hold on to me, because I have not yet ascended to the Father. But go to my brothers and say to them, “I am ascending to my Father and your Father, to my God and your God.” ’ Mary Magdalene went and announced to the disciples, ‘I have seen the Lord’; and she told them that he had said these things to her.

So they knew.

They were told by Mary, the first evangelist, that Jesus said those things.

They were told their Lord was risen.

And still they were fearful.

Still they sat and stood and cowered behind a locked door.

It all seemed so impossible.

Yes, Mary told them, but what did she really mean?

How did she see Christ?

They heard he had died on the cross, how is he now risen?

Was she experiencing visions of Christ?

Was Mary, so close to Christ and so full of love for her messiah, hallucinating?

Yes, she told them all what was happening but all of what was happening made no sense.

It was safe to stay in the room.

It was comforting to be in the place where they were last all together.

It was better here.

The authorities could not find them.

They could talk amongst each other and try to figure it all out.

In a smaller group, a separate group as they were, they could confirm each other’s biases, feel sameness in each other’s fears.

What was done was done and they now needed to figure things out.

Alone.

Separate from most people.

Together as one.

Except for Thomas.

Thomas went out.

And in that room came a voice.

“Peace be with you.”

Wait, what?

Who said that?

That sounded like…

No way.

That sounded like…

Jesus.

He showed the disciples his body, his wounded hands, feet, and his side.

“Peace be with you,” he said.

And the disciples rejoiced.

And they were given their mission to mission as missionaries would to people looking for the Word.

And he left.

He didn’t use the door to enter the room where he had supped with his disciples; that door was locked.

And so, I wonder, how he left.

Did he exit with a dramatic cloud of smoke?

Did he fade away like some bad special effects trick from eighties television?

But leave he did and in comes Thomas.

“Thomas! We saw him! We saw Jesus!”

And Thomas, well, Thomas wanted to see too!

Thomas wanted the same experience the other disciples had.

And for that, we now call Thomas, Doubting Thomas.

And I think that’s kind of unfair.

Over centuries we say, don’t be like Thomas, just have faith!

Or something similar to that.

For two thousand years, Thomas has been made out to be a bad example.

And then we get the counter to the argument, Thomas isn’t bad, he’s just looking for confirmation too.

And wouldn’t we all like to have a similar opportunity to meet our savior in the flesh?

In however we receive the story, we point to Thomas and say don’t be like him or be like him but Thomas is the true protagonist of this bit of scripture and I ask, what if he wasn’t?

Because I think the players in this story, Thomas and the disciples are all key to understanding the lesson.

Jesus addresses all of them.

And except for Thomas, they were all locked in that room due to fear.

Except for Thomas, they were sitting under windows closed to sunlight, the shutters were shut.

And when he first arrived, did they truly believe what they were seeing?

Could they be seeing visions of Jesus as well?

And perhaps they didn’t believe their own eyes until Jesus showed them his hands, his feet, his side.

Then they believed.

Then they no longer had any doubt.

Just like Thomas, after he saw his savior’s hands and touched his side.

Jesus' reply to Thomas could have been the same to the disciples when he visited them in that room.

“Do not doubt but believe,” said Jesus.

And that is where we enter the story.

No longer is this just a story about Thomas confirming his faith, but a lesson for all of us.

No longer is this story just about disciples behind a locked door, but a lesson in faith for all of us.

“We walk by faith, and not by sight; no gracious words we hear from him who spoke as none ever spoke; but we believe him near.”

I think faith would be easier if we could be like Thomas or the disciples.

I sometimes wish to demand that my faith will not be satisfied until Jesus appears, (not sure I want to touch his wounds, but we’ll cross that bridge when we get there.)

Because I would love to have the physical presence to confirm that all that we are doing is good and correct, to have that conversation with Jesus that makes this make sense.

Faith is not always easy, but then, maybe none of this is about the opportunity meet Jesus, but to realize our faith through our actions.

We walk by faith and not by sight and our faith is specific: Faith in Christ, faith in God, faith in each other.

“We may not touch his hands and side, nor follow where he trod; but in his promise we rejoice; and cry, "My Lord and God!"

Some people would consider this era in history as being described as a post-Christendom time.

No longer do we need church or worship or our particular triune God.

What good has the church done, any old way?

And yet, I just think that those who would describe these times as being post-Christendom are a bit misguided.

For God has not left us.

Some may be more comfortable behind their locked doors; some may see the absence of evidence as evidence of absence, but faith boils down to what the eyes of our hearts ask us to see: That Christ is risen and the Spirit is alive.

“Help then, O Lord, our unbelief; and may our faith abound, to call on you when you are near, and seek where you are found:”

So, through difficulty and even doubt, our faith continues and it can even thrive.

Or, as the father said in Mark’s gospel whose son was freed of demons and given the ability to speak said, “I believe; help my unbelief!”

These disciples behind the locked door found belief through the physical presence of God standing before them.

And, when perhaps it is hard to feel because we haven’t had the opportunity to see Jesus physically before us, we can confirm our faith through the Word that never left us and the Spirit that flies amongst us.

God helps our unbelief through community.

Just as the disciples may have confirmed their fears by retreating behind a locked door and speaking only to those with similar fears, we can experience God through relationship with one another.

Our faith is confirmed by walking together in community.

Our faith too can be confirmed by performing the works Christ asks us to perform, to feed, to forgive, to serve.

God is truly present when we leave this place to hand out sandwiches on a town green or a city park.

God is present when the poor are clothed and fed and loved.

And the feeling we get when performing such works is the feeling of God present in our lives.

“that, when our life of faith is done, in realms of clearer light we may behold you as you are, with full and endless sight.”

Yes, there is a chance we may not physically see Christ in our living lives, but we see the very real and very present Christ being with us in all things.

For “blessed are those who have not seen and yet have come to believe.”

We receive the blessing of God because we have faith even though we have not seen.

And that blessing is confirmation of God’s love for all of us.

That blessing is Christ’s love; our faith is a blessing received, a confirmation of God’s real presence in all our lives.

So, come.

I invite you to say the Creed and pass the peace and afterwards, through faith and experience, let us realize the real presence of God as we share in community Christ’s bread, his body, and Christ’s wine, his blood.

Christ is risen and is present among us, alleluia.

Christ is risen indeed, alleluia!

Amen.