Known By The Scars

John 20:19-29 NASB95

19 So when it was evening on that day, the first day of the week, and when the doors were shut where the disciples were, for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood in their midst and *said to them, “Peace be with you.”

20 And when He had said this, He showed them both His hands and His side. The disciples then rejoiced when they saw the Lord.

21 So Jesus said to them again, “Peace be with you; as the Father has sent Me, I also send you.”

22 And when He had said this, He breathed on them and *said to them, “Receive the Holy Spirit.

23 “If you forgive the sins of any, their sins have been forgiven them; if you retain the sins of any, they have been retained.”

24 But Thomas, one of the twelve, called Didymus, was not with them when Jesus came.

25 So the other disciples were saying to him, “We have seen the Lord!” But he said to them, “Unless I see in His hands the imprint of the nails, and put my finger into the place of the nails, and put my hand into His side, I will not believe.”

26 After eight days His disciples were again inside, and Thomas with them. Jesus *came, the doors having been shut, and stood in their midst and said, “Peace be with you.”

27 Then He *said to Thomas, “Reach here with your finger, and see My hands; and reach here your hand and put it into My side; and do not be unbelieving, but believing.”

28 Thomas answered and said to Him, “My Lord and my God!”

29 Jesus *said to him, “Because you have seen Me, have you believed? Blessed are they who did not see, and yet believed.”

The disciples saw the Lord—each in his own way:

After the crucifixion, Mary recognized Jesus by His familiar voice…
The disciples at Emmaus recognized Him in the breaking of bread…
The weary fisherman knew it was Him because of the miraculous catch…

We to recognize Jesus in all these ways—by His voice, His Table, and the miracles He performs…
In the midst of the suffering in NY—the Baptist Association recognized Him by recording over 1000+ conversions to Jesus Christ since September 11th…

At the end of history John saw Him as well—while crying in Revelation, because no one was worthy to open the scroll of judgment; an elder said to him:

Revelation 5:5 NIV

“Do not weep! See, the Lion of the tribe of Judah, the Root of David, has triumphed. He is able to open the scroll and its seven seals.”

John looked up expecting to see a Lion, and he saw a Lamb—and he knew who the Lamb was, because it was wounded and scarred…

APPLICATION

Jesus made Himself known thru his scars—as His disciples, we too are known by the scars made in service.
People are looking for answers—like Thomas, they want proof of the Divine—you are the proof!

· How you live, what you say, how you react, are all indicators of who you are, who you serve, and who you belong too!

· When you see religious people of other faith groups—Buddhists, Hindus, Jews, Moslems; do you thank God you are not like them?

Or does it grieve you because they are lost?

I hear well-meaning Christian saying they were not “lucky” but “blessed”, because they did not lose their lives or a family member in the September 11th attack—they are wrong! They are blessed either way, we all are! Whether we experience suffering, or whether it passed us by, we are blessed in the midst of living life, because we recognize and bow before the scarred Lamb of God!