Jesus doesn't choose disciples who never ask any questions. He chooses disciples. who are willing to be taught. His answer. Is it any wonder, beloved, that Thomas and the other disciples are soon transformed into Courageous.
Ambassadors. By the way, Thomas will eventually brave the world. I believe I mentioned this in the past. And after decades of faithful service for Christ, he will die in India. as a martyr.
for the glory and the gospel of his Lord. For the disciples huddled in fear after the crucifixion. Jesus' sudden appearance was more terrifying than comforting. At first, they thought he was a ghost. But what he said and did next changed everything.
Today, Stephen will show you how Jesus gently moved them from fear to faith. not with guilt, but with grace. Jesus doesn't give up on his disciples. He meets them and you. where you are.
If Jesus were to visit your home today, Make a special appearance.
Sometime after lunch. What do you think that encounter would look like?
Now you'd probably wish you'd had a heads up. You would have at least vacuum the living room carpet. But what do you think he would say to you? Personally, I think most of us would expect him to get on to us for something. And I'm not talking about the living room carpet.
We can imagine him saying you know, why haven't you served me as faithfully as you should have. Maybe we can imagine him going over and picking up our Bibles and leafing through them to see which pages stuck together. Because we never did read that section. Or maybe you just stand there and look at us. Silently.
And we wouldn't know whether to wilt. or worship. According to the Bible, every Christian. will one day stand in the presence of God. The average Christian thinks the Lord will go get a paddle and let him have it.
The Bible says, however, for for the Christian There is now No condemnation. And that's now and forever. No, cut. condemnation. to them who are in Christ Jesus.
In fact, when we stayed before him at the Bima seat, The judgment seat, it will be for the purpose of rewarding that which was good and profitable, that which honored the Lord, 2 Corinthians 5, 10. And I frankly believe we're all going to be a little surprised at the lavishness of his grace. The reward we would say that for that. Yeah, that little cup of water. That little act, that word of encouragement.
Part of the reason We Can anticipate that kind of gracious encounter is because that's how the Lord treats his disciple. in his post-resurrection. Appearances. Don't overlook the fact that he's appearing to a group of failures. A group of cowards.
They didn't defend them. They'd run from him. They'd thrown in the towel. But as we pick up our study now, we're in Luke's Gospel. We're about to see a stunning demonstration of love and grace.
The kind of grace that we will personally experience when we see Him one day. Face to face.
Now If you're new here, to set the stage, this is Resurrection Sunday. We've been studying these events. It's early dawn. A little group of women had gone to the tomb with the a collection of spices to anoint the body of Jesus. They're met by angels who inform them that Jesus is risen.
From the dead. With that, people begin racing back and forth from that tomb. It wasn't quite empty, you remember. Jesus had vaporized through the linen wrappings so that those wrappings are lying there undisturbed, still in their folds, looking like some kind of empty cocoon. without a body inside.
By early evening, two disciples had been a very good person. Have returned from Emmaus. They're out of breath. They're covered with dust. They're telling the news to the apostles that they've actually had dinner with the Lord.
They were tutored by him through the Old Testament for about three hours. In the meantime, Peter's announced that Jesus has made an appearance to him. Mary Magdalene still hasn't gotten over the fact that she has seen the resurrected Lord at the garden tomb. But none of this is enough. to bring the disciples out of hiding.
They're behind locked doors. They're in fear of reprisals from religious leaders for having followed a blasphemer. A heretic. No doubt. They're going to be embarrassed about all this a little later, but at the moment they're convinced that these stories of appearances were psychosomatic.
They were delusional. Sightings born out of desperation or discouragement or longing. The rumors and sightings were not enough. They were just too good to be true.
So behind closed doors, they're having this rather animated conversation. Discussing the events of the weekend, certainly this very day.
Now, with that, let's pick up the narrative to find out what happens next. Luke. Chapter 24, he writes here in verse 36, and as they were Talking. Discussing, animate. Animated.
About these things. Jesus himself stood among them. and said to them, Peace to you.
Now, wait a second. How do you get in there?
Well, now John's Gospel will emphasize the rather miraculous events by clarifying in chapter 20 and verse 19, on the evening of that day, the first day of the week, this is Sunday, the doors being locked where the disciples were for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood among them. In other words, the doors are locked. How did he get in there?
Well, liberal theologians can't stand passages like this. They're unbelievers anyway.
So they suggest that when the two disciples from Emmaus returned, Jesus slipped in behind them. And got in there. Other liberals say that Jesus had figured out where they would be meeting, and so he got in there ahead of time. He's been hiding in there. Nice try.
The disciples know He was crucified. They know a stone covered the entrance. They know Jesus is dead. They know who's in that little room. They know the doors are locked.
And suddenly Jesus appears among them. And the reaction really says it all, verse 37. But they were startled and frightened and thought they saw a spirit. You could translate that an apparition. A phantom.
A ghost Their fear was a natural reaction to something unnatural. That had just happened. One author wrote Jesus' resurrected body. can now materialize. Or dematerialize at will.
He now transcends the normal laws of physical existence. He's no longer bound by material or spatial laws. Limitations. And by the way. This is Paul's description.
in the New Testament of your body. in the future. In 1 Corinthians 15, Paul refers to The glorified body of the believer putting on immortality.
So it's still you, it's still your reconstituted body. You're not going to look like me and I'm not going to look like you. You're still Sam or John or Susie and I'm still Stephen. Just with more hair. Paul says it's a different kind of body.
He calls it a spiritual. Body. That is a literal body. That can now transcend the ordinary limitations of time. and space.
Our bodies will be like Jesus' body here. The Bible says that when we are glorified and immortalized in the Lord's presence, we will be like Him. 1 John chapter 3 verse 2. Paul wrote to the Philippians, We are waiting for our Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ, who will transform our lowly body to be like his glorious body. Can't get any clearer than that.
The glorified body of Jesus has hands. And feet. He's wearing clothes, he's talking. In a couple of minutes, he's going to eat some fish. But at the same time, he's just materialized.
Inside this room. At first glance, They think they see a ghost. Luke writes, they were startled. Terrified. If Jesus had said, Boom.
They would have all passed out, I'm convinced. He wasn't trying to scare them. He wasn't startling them just because they deserved it. He didn't just want to scare them. Unlike our six-year-old grandson Tucker.
who loves nothing more than scaring us. I'll be in my study, he'll sneak up behind me, and he'll say, boo. And if I don't flinch, he's terribly disappointed. And I'll say, Well, I heard your footsteps behind me. The other day, I didn't hear his footsteps.
He came up behind me and said, Boo! And I jumped and he said, Did I scare you, Papa? I said, You did. He clapped and laughed and I'm going to take him out of my will. Have you ever thought about the fact that Jesus could have knocked on the door?
Why show up this way? Because Jesus wants to give them further evidence. Of the uniqueness of his resurrected body. and give you and me to this very day a picture. A little foretaste.
of the description of our immortal bodies. Whole bodies. Literal physical bodies. Healed? Perfected.
Standing on two legs. Wearing clothes. Talking. Eating Recognizable.
Well we're not scary ghosts. We are immortalized. Saints. Like Jesus. who vanished at the supper table in Emmaus.
Remember that? who now materializes Inside this. Room.
Now we're not told by any of the gospel accounts where they were hiding, what room. It doesn't actually say upper room. We don't know where it was located. Where they're behind locked doors, but I love the fact that. Jesus knew.
Jesus knew where they were hiding. He knows where you are today. He knows where you might be hiding. He knows your address. He knows where you work.
He knows where you are physically. Emotionally. Spiritually And let me tell you, even your greatest fears and your greatest failures cannot walk him out. Did you notice his first words? Go back to verse 36.
Jesus himself. stood among them, and said to them, Peace. Yeah. You would expect him to say, what are you doing hiding in here? Why is the door locked?
You don't expect him to say Peace. You expect him to say something more. Like I'm through. with you. I'm going to start over.
You failed me. You don't expect this. Reminds me of the humorous story a man emailed me.
Some time ago keep emailing me stuff by the way. I read it. An old couple was sitting out on the porch in their rocking chairs or on the farm. They're both hard of hearing. Older couple.
Farmer looked over at his wife and had this moment of tenderness. And he said to her, You know, through all these years I've found you tried. True, and she looked over at him and said, What did you say? And he leaned in and he said a little louder, I found you true. Tried and true, and she romped and said, Well, I'm tired of you too.
I expect kind of that sort of statement, frankly. from the Lord, you know, I'm tired of you. I'm tired of all of you. But he arrives in a room. Where the disciples are hiding out.
And instead of saying, you abandoned me at the cross. You didn't defend me He didn't even come to my funeral. Instead of running out of patience, he demonstrates more. patience and aren't we grateful? For that?
That's his attitude toward you and me today, because we need that same kind of patience today, don't we? We need that daily deposit of mercy and compassion. Lamentation says it's new every morning, and it's got to be new every morning because we drained yesterday's. We used it all up. We depend on him never running out of patience.
His first word. is peace. They think he's a ghost. They're doubting the physical reality of a resurrected, immortalized. Lord.
So Jesus invites them to take a closer look. Luke writes in verse 38, and he said to them, Why are you troubled? And why do doubts arise in your hearts? Look. See my hands and my feet.
It is I myself. There's the emphasis in the original language. It's really me. is what he's saying. It's really me.
Touch me. And see. For spirit does not have flesh and bones. As you see that I have. And when he had said this, he showed them his hands.
And his Feet. Let me make this point here. Jesus is glorified. immortalized bodies Unique. Because he's chosen to retain these scars, they'll inspect.
John gives us a little more detail. He's no doubt reminding them and us that he is the Lamb of God sacrificed on the altar of a wooden cross for our. redemption So he will be the only person, as we've said before, in heaven with. Scars. But for those who call him Lord and Savior one day, We will have No scars, it's worth none.
Physically. Emotionally. mentally, intellectually. Spiritually. When you get to heaven one day, you will still be you.
But with the body made completely New. And the scars of Jesus will remind us, think about it, for ever. How we got in.
So Jesus shows them here to his disciples the verb to show. It is more of the idea of displaying. Jesus is displaying His will. his scars, to his disciples. These are Undeniable connections is between him and the crucifixion.
Jesus isn't showing them to his disciples. And saying Do you have any idea how much these Yeah. Do you see what The human fallen Race has put me through. You see what you put me through. No, this carries the idea that these are badges of honor, as it were.
These are symbols of love. This is kind of like a veteran of. of war showing as children. or his grandchildren, the scars left by shrapnel. Or bullets.
Look here. These scars were worth it. They're for your freedom. What an unforgettable moment this must have been between the veteran warrior. Of this great spiritual battle.
Now showing the disciples the momentas. of his love. and his victory. Luke adds verse forty-one. While they still disbelieved, For joy And were marveling.
He said to them, Have you anything here to eat? They gave him a piece of broiled fish. And he took it and ate. before them.
Now go back to the first part of the verse. They disbelieved for joy. It's a great phrase. The expression Means it's just too good to be true. We believe it, but we just have a hard time believing it because it's so great.
We use the same kind of expression. I can't believe I got that job. I can't believe I passed my final exams. I can't believe I hit that home run. You men can say, I can't believe.
She married me. Amen. You probably didn't hear me. You men could say, I can't believe she married me. Amen?
Oh yeah, there you go. I knew you were distracted. The disciples can't believe Jesus is alive. Their minds are flooded, hearts flooded with joy. And whether just You know, out of their minds here with joy, Jesus asks for some.
Fish No, more than likely, he's doing this because of the superstitions that were rampant in the ancient world and to this day that spirits. don't eat food. Spirits couldn't eat. food. They don't have a digestive system.
Well, Jesus crushes that superstition with one bite. And it says he ate before them. This carries the idea that they watched him. Bite it. They watched him chew it.
They watched him swallow it. It didn't end up on the floor. Or in his pocket. He's proving to them that he didn't merely seem. to have a body.
He had. A real body. Amazing, isn't it? He's eaten bread with his disciples at Emmaus.
Now he eats fish. That made me think, you know, according to the Bible, Eating is going to be a part of heaven. The eternal state. In our glorified bodies, we will eat. for sheer enjoyment.
Imagine eating without any Side effects. Ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha. fruit, bread, fish. Donuts. That's in my translation, in between the lines.
Now, in John's Gospel, we're told that somebody's missing. If you're older in the faith, you already know who it is. If you go over to John chapter 20, let's spend a little time there. Uh let's pick up his account in verse 24, and he tells us.
Now, Thomas One of the twelve, called the twin, Was not with them when Jesus came. Your translation might read: Thomas called Didymus, Didymus. Memes. Twin. We're never told who his twin is.
We don't know if he's a brother or a... Sister This twin is never named. And one author I was reading made the interesting application that. That's good because we can consider ourselves Thomas's. Anonymous twin.
because we all qualify. Don't we? How often have we insisted that God prove himself? Verse twenty-five.
So the other disciples told him, that is Thomas. We have seen the Lord, they recount this evening. 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.
Now this statement here has earned Thomas the nickname What? Doubting Tama.
Now as we've studied earlier in the Gospel of Luke. Several years ago. I think he's gotten a bad rap. I really do. He's no more doubtful than the rest of the disciples.
He just missed the first meeting. I think he should be nicknamed transparent. Thomas. Because he says what others are thinking. He's not the kind of guy that goes along, just goes along and acts like he's supposed to act.
Believes something that he doesn't believe. He's actually open. Very transparent with his questions. In fact, we have two illustrations of this or two other places where Thomas is quoted, and they don't reflect doubting. They actually reflect courage.
And loyal love. For instance, back in John chapter 11, Jesus says to his disciples that he's going to return to Judea. Because Lazarus died. Of course, Jesus is going to go back there and raise him from the dead. That's in Bethany.
That's just a little less than two miles from Jerusalem. And the Jewish leaders have already... Tried to stone them, they're gonna kill them. He has a price on his head. And when Jesus tells them that they're going to go back there, The disciples spend the next nine verses trying to talk him out of it.
And he won't be dissuaded.
So Thomas is the one, Thomas is the one who says in verse 16, so Thomas. Called the twin. Said to his fellow disciples, Let us also go, that we may die with him. He he is. Brutally honest.
He isn't a blind optimist. He's not saying, you know. Come on, guys, we ought to go. Everything's going to work out. Jesus has this, there's nothing to worry about.
Let's go ahead and keep them company. No, he's saying if Jesus goes back there and we go with him, we're all going to die.
Now you might see this only as pessimism. It happens to be extremely courageous Loyalty. In spite of believing they're gonna die. Thomas says, Let's not abandon them. He's effectively saying, I'd rather die with Jesus.
that live without them.
Now the second quote Is in John 14, that classic passage where Jesus says, I'm going to. Go to the father's house, prepare. Rooms for you all. Then he says, If I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and will take you to myself, that where I am, there you may be also. And you know the way to where I am going.
And Thomas. Said to him, Lord? We don't know where you're going. How could we know the way? In other words.
He's again transparent. Lord, hold on, not so fast. You haven't given us a map. You haven't given us directions. We don't know where you're going.
And we don't know the way. Thomas is like that person in your class. I had one of them in my high school science class. I was so glad because whenever the teacher was confusing, And that was daily. This person would raise her hand and ask the question.
I was so glad because I wouldn't have to. I got the benefit of the answer. Peter was the kind of student he was raising his hand to teach the teacher. Thomas was raising his hands to Answer or ask a question for asking an answer to a question. And I think the other disciples are probably nodding their heads.
In agreement, Lord. I don't understand. You're going away? And you're telling us we know the way to go find you? We need more information.
Can you help us? And Jesus gives that wonderful classic answer you've probably memorized. Yeah. The way. The truth and the life.
In other words, Thomas, I'm not going to give you a map. I am the map. I'll come get you.
So I think if we understand Thomas a little better. We can understand that he's saying to the disciples, Here in chapter 20, You say Jesus appeared to you? That's confusing to me. I want some more information.
Now NG. Instead of Jesus saying, you know, Thomas, you had your chance. But you missed the meeting. Or, Thomas, you should have listened to the others when they told you that I appeared to them. Or Thomas, I don't have time for your questions.
We got work to do. Or Even this. Thomas, who do you think you are to make those kinds of demands? Yeah. Now, don't miss the graciousness, the kindness, the humility.
One author wrote on this text: The Lord is so gracious to stoop. to our level of experience in order to lift us. Up to where we belong. He doesn't condemn us for our doubts, our desire for more information, our questions, our fears.
So, when the disciples reconvene. The following week This time, Thomas is with them, and don't miss the fact that this means that Thomas is teachable enough. to be shown what's right. And he's also willing. to be proven wrong.
So he's with them. The star.
Now, John writes in chapter 20. Verse 26. Eight days later, the disciples were inside again. Thomas was with them. Although the doors were locked, Jesus came and stood among them and said, Peace be with you.
Don't miss the fact that Jesus is willing to repeat the same message. And the same miracle of materializing in their presence so that Thomas Can have the benefit. I think we were the Lord, we'd have said, you know, I did that for them because they showed up and sorry. No, the Lord is so kind.
Now let me parallel with Thomas had said earlier to the disciples, With what Jesus now says to him in the text. Thomas had said, Unless I see his hands. In his hands, the mark of the nails, and place my finger into the mark of the nails. Jesus says. Put your finger here and see my hands.
Thomas had said, unless I place my hand in his side. And Jesus says, Put out your hand. Place it in my side. Thomas had said, unless All that happens, I will never believe. Jesus said, Thomas, do not.
disbelieve But believe. This exchange clearly reveals the omniscience, the omnipresence. of the Lord. Jesus had heard Each of Thomas's three statements, and he answers them now. in perfect And by the way, the text never tells us that Thomas ever reached out his hand to inspect the wound.
He didn't need to. He would be struck by what Jesus said. John writes here in verse 28 that Thomas immediately responds to Jesus by saying, My Lord and my. Bye. God.
No, wait a second. God had delivered through Moses the very first commandment: you shall have no other gods before me. Thomas has just called Jesus Lord and God. Jesus doesn't rebuke Thomas for idolatry. He accepts the worship of Thomas.
And he can because he is Lord and God. Jesus is the Image. of the invisible God.
now robed in a resurrected Glorified. Body. Now, there are at least two. truths that I want to highlight. that have come to mind from from this encounter.
First. Jesus doesn't choose disciples who never ask any questions. He chooses disciples. who are willing to be taught. His answer.
Is it any wonder, beloved, that Thomas and the other disciples are soon transformed into? courageous Ambassadors. Their message is the same message we have today. 2,000 years later. Jesus is our risen Lord.
The image. of the invisible God.
By the way, Thomas will eventually brave the world. I believe I mentioned this in the past. And after decades of faithful service for Christ, he will die in. India. As a martyr.
for the glory and the gospel of his Lord. The second timeless truth is this. Jesus doesn't choose disciples Who will never Fail him. He chooses disciples and then proves he will never fail. Then What kindness?
What grace? What patience, what humility. To this day, Jesus doesn't love us or Use us or guide us. Because we never fail him. He just proves over and over and over again that he will never fail.
Fail. Yeah. Right? He never has. He never will.
Pray with me, Father. Thank you. For this exchange. This conversation this demonstration of Such great love. Kindness.
We sit among these. Same. disciples. as it were. Slow to believe.
Troubled at times with doubts. More questions than answers. We thank you for your completed word. where you continually bring us. To submit.
to study, to memorize. to learn. We now have the testimony of these eyewitnesses. They have told us what they have seen. Will we believe?
We thank you for the promise of special blessing. When you gave, when you said to Thomas, you believe because you've seen me, how blessed are they who believe of not seeing me? That would be us. In the meantime, thank you for faithfully. graciously shepherding us.
Even today. We thank you in Jesus' name. Amen. Thanks for joining us today here on Wisdom for the Heart with Stephen Davey. I'm Scott Wiley.
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