1

Sunday, May 1, 2011

The 2nd Sunday of Easter
Good Shepherd Lutheran
Denver, Colorado
Pastor Dena Williams

Acts 2:14a, 22-32

Psalm 16
I Peter 1:3-9
John 20:19-31

The Holy Gospel according to the Community of St. John in

the 20th Chapter
Glory to you, O Lord

20:19 When it was evening on that day, the first day of the
week, and the doors of the house where the disciples had
met were locked for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood
among them and said, "Peace be with you."

20:20 After he said this, he showed them his hands and his
side. Then the disciples rejoiced when they saw the Lord.

20:21 Jesus said to them again, "Peace be with you. As the

Father has sent me, so I send you."

20:22 When he had said this, he breathed on them and said

to them, "Receive the Holy Spirit.

20:23 If you forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven them;
if you retain the sins of any, they are retained."

20:24 But Thomas (who was called the Twin), one of the
twelve, was not with them when Jesus came.

20:25 So the other disciples told him, "We have seen the
Lord." But he said to them, "Unless I see the mark of the
nails in his hands, and put my finger in the mark of the nails
and my hand in his side, I will not believe."
 2

20:26 A week later his disciples were again in the house, and
Thomas was with them. Although the doors were shut, Jesus
came and stood among them and said, "Peace be with you."

20:27 Then he said to Thomas, "Put your finger here and see
my hands. Reach out your hand and put it in my side. Do not
doubt but believe."

20:28 Thomas answered him, "My Lord and my God!"

20:29 Jesus said to him, "Have you believed because you

have seen me? Blessed are those who have not seen and yet
have come to believe."

20:30 Now Jesus did many other signs in the presence of his
disciples, which are not written in this book.

20:31 But these are written so that you may come to believe
that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God, and that through
believing you may have life in his name.

Praise to you, O Christ

Curious Thomas, a Disciple of Jesus Christ

We owe what we know about Thomas to the writer of the

Gospel of John.
Mentioned only in lists of the twelve in the other Gospels,
John gives us glimpses of Thomas.
We first encounter him in the story of Lazarus.
We heard this story recently on one of the Sundays of Lent.
Jesus and his disciples flee the country of Judea because the
people there threatened to stone him.
A messenger comes to tell Jesus that his friend Lazarus is ill.
Jesus says to his disciples,
“Let us go to Judea again.”
The disciples reply,
“Teacher, the people there tried to stone you to death
 3

and now you want us to go there again?”

Jesus explains that he must go to Lazarus to wake him from
the dead.
Thomas, who is called the Twin,
says to his fellow disciples,
“Let us go also, that we may die with Jesus.”

Thomas is the voice of truth,

the direct, clear witness.
He is smart enough to know what is coming,
but devoted enough to go anyway.
Thomas does not mince words.
He names the elephant in the room,
the elephant that the others could see, but did not
acknowledge.

John tells us the story of the last time the disciples and Jesus
have supper together.
Jesus talks about his death.
He tells his disciples he will leave them soon,
but promises that it will not be forever.
He explains that he will go ahead of them
to get things ready for them.
Jesus says, “I will come again and will take you with me,
so that where I am, there you will be also.
You know where I am going.”
The truth? Not one of the twelve has a clue about where
Jesus is going.
They sit silent in their confusion,
hesitant to ask,
except for Thomas.
He asks the question others are afraid to ask,
“Lord, we do not know where you are going.
How can we know the way?”
Jesus replies,
“I am the way, and the truth, and the life.”
Because Thomas has the courage and the common sense to
ask the question,
the disciples receive these words of comfort and assurance.
 4

Thomas may be my favorite disciple.

If you don’t care to ask questions, he will not be your
favorite.
If you are a person who is not afraid to ask questions,
who is honest enough to admit that you don’t know
everything,
Thomas is your patron saint.
Whenever Thomas doesn’t understand or can’t believe,
he asks questions.

I hear people say sometimes,

“We shouldn’t question God.”
“We just need to trust and have faith.”
Well, yes we do.
There is more faith, however, in asking the question,
seeking an explanation
than in simply clinging to something we do not understand.

We meet Thomas again in today’s Gospel story.

Jesus was crucified.
Last Sunday we heard how Mary Magdalene told the
disciples that she saw and spoke with Jesus, the risen Christ.
Clearly, they are skeptical.
They lock themselves in a room because they are afraid.
Thomas is not with them.
Jesus comes.
He shows the disciples his hands and his side bearing the
marks of his death on the cross.

When the disciples see Thomas again,

they tell him that they saw Jesus.
He replies,
“Unless I see the mark of the nails in his hands,
and put my finger in the mark of the nails and my hand in his
side,
I will not believe.”
Thomas is skeptical.
 5

He may think that grief has caused mass hysteria among the
disciples.
He does not believe they really saw the risen Christ.
Notice, please, that Thomas is asking for no more evidence
than Jesus already gave to the other disciples.
They saw his hands and side already.

A week later,
Jesus’ disciples and followers,
probably many men and women,
are shut up in the house again.
This time Thomas is with them.
Jesus comes and stands among them.
He invites Thomas to touch his hands and side.
Thomas recognizes Jesus and proclaims,
“My Lord and My God.”

Thomas comes to great faith

precisely because he refused to say he believed and
understood
that which he found impossible to believe and understand.

So we are called to faith.

We are called to search for answers.
We are called to lead an examined life.

An unquestioning faith may not be faith at all.

Believing is not easy.
It may seem easy to coast through life without doubts or
questions.
But if we really want to grow in faith we will examine our
faith.
We will ask questions.
We will struggle to understand and believe.

As a child, our faith is simple.

A little girl, five years old, is drawing with her crayons.
Someone asks, “What are you drawing?”
“I’m drawing a picture of God.”
 6

“Well we don’t know what God looks like!”

“We will when I finish my picture.”
The curiosity and wonder of a child!

As we grow our curiosity about faith needs to grow with us.

A teenager asks her pastor:
“What about my friends who say I’m going to hell if I don’t
believe the Bible is literally true?”
“They ask me if I’ve been ‘born again’.
What do I say?”
You say, “Yes, I was born again 2000 years ago when Jesus
died on the cross and rose again.”
What a great conversation followed!
This teenager reminds us to stay curious.
Let your curiosity mature as you grow in faith.

Some Sundays, Wendy’s good friend Alexandra worships

with us.
She is such a Thomas!
Every time she comes,
she has questions.
Alix worshipped with us on Good Friday at noon.
Sure enough, on the way home:
“Dena, what did Luther teach about Holy Communion?”
“What do Lutherans think and believe about saints?”
“What about the history of the church during the time of the
Reformation?”
We talked all the way home.
The curiosity of a young adult woman!

And, then, there’s our Bible Study group here at Good

Shepherd.
I wouldn’t say they’re old exactly,
but I am the youngest person in the room!
What a joy every single time we meet
to hear these people discuss the faith!
They have questions and answers!
They’re open and progressive.
They’re wonderfully curious about all sorts of topics:
 7

the Bible, Hell, Heaven,

good and evil,
the church,
the world,
suffering and joy,
sin and blessing—
We discuss it all!
And they have opinions!
What fun!

I love my call as your parish pastor.

I like preaching and teaching and caring for others.
I enjoy planning worship and Bible study.
I treasure the fun we have together.
I appreciate joining with you in helping others.
I am privileged to share your grief, your concerns, your
struggles.

Let me tell you what I enjoy most of all.

Let me tell you how you can truly “make my day!”
Come to see me,
call me,
e-mail me,
come to Bible Study
and ask questions,
share answers,
to help us better understand the faith.
Please!
I spent many years going to seminary
I learned a lot.
I continue to learn amazing things,
and gain great insight from leading Bible Study
with thoughtful and wise Christian sisters and brothers.
I still study and take and teach classes and write.
I do not have all the answers,
but I have some of them
and together we can find some more.
Sometimes the answer lies in mystery,
but learning there is mystery is growth as well.
 8

I read and study every week so that I can grow in faith

myself
and so that I can help you grow in faith.
You have heard me say that faith comes from God.
It does,
but God gives us the gifts, the mind and heart,
to encourage the growth of the faith that God gives us.

Be a Thomas!
Stay curious!
Lead an examined life!
Why?
Well, just for the joy of knowing for one thing!

There are other reasons as well.

Throughout our lives,
in times of joy,
in times of struggle,
it is our faith that sustains us.
It is our faith that reminds us of God’s no matter what love
for us and for all people.
It is our faith that reminds us of God’s presence with us
always.

Especially in challenging times of sadness,

questions arise:
Where is God?
What shall I pray for?
Where are the answers?
Why is this happening?
What does the Bible say?
What can we learn from history to help us understand?

People often preface their questions about faith by saying,

“This is probably a dumb question . . .”
No, it’s not!
There really are no dumb questions.
In our Bible story today,
when Thomas asks Jesus a question,
 9

perhaps one the other disciples could easily classify as

“dumb”,
when he demands proof,
there is no judgment,
there are no harsh words.

Jesus gives Thomas exactly what he needs to believe.

Oh, he reminds Thomas that those who have not seen and
have believed are blessed,
but curious, questioning Thomas is surely blessed as well.
His faith is renewed.
He recognizes the risen Christ
and worships him!

Be a Thomas!
Be curious!
Ask questions!
Ask and it shall be given,
seek and ye shall find,
knock and the door shall be opened!
Amen