Sermon Tone Analysis

Have you believed?

Second S. of Easter

Acts 5:12-20  (21-32)  Rev.

1:4-18 John 20:19-31

 

†  In the name of Jesus †

 

The God-given gifts, of grace, mercy, and peace are yours, in Christ Jesus!

The Knight’s Lady

 

Few stories that come out of the historical period of the Crusades are as powerful as the story of a Lady, her husband, who was a knight in King Richard’s service, and the Emperor Saladin.

For in it, we see a devotion, a level of faith, and an act of faith, that shows love and devotion like few others.

Though sincere in his desire, and a man of prayer, King Richard led his crusade to a devastating series of defeats, losing many of his knights and men who were captured by the army of the brilliant Muslim commander in chief, Saladin.

Normally, such men were given a choice: recant their faith, or be beheaded.

One knight, too poor to ransom himself, asked for Saladin’s mercy.

The story tells of he how asked for mercy, not for his sake, but for that of the wife whom he loved and who love him very much.

Saladin, not believing any woman could be as the knight praised his wife, determined to open communication with the Lady.

It was determined that some form of ransom must be paid, though the lady indicated that their family was the poorest of the realm’s nobility.

Saladin then asked a terrible price, that she cut off her own hand, to show her devotion and love to the knight, who proudly spoke of her incredible love.

Today, in England, in one of the cathedral’s that dominate the landscape around London, there are two tombs, with the likeness of a Lady, and her Knight husband carved on the top of the stone.

He died, not in the far away holy land, but in her arms, decades after he was released by Saladin.

Her effigy, telling of why he was released, is missing her right hand….

As we look at the gospel assigned for today’s service, the hands and side of Jesus show in the same manner, a far greater love and devotion, for the apostles, and for Thomas, yet for you, and I, as well.

Malady

                Fear of death w~/o resurrection

                Thomas’ focuses “trust” on event – not person

                                Willing to Die (as was Peter!) Jn 11:16

                Do not become unfaithful!

That first night, that our gospel describes vividly, Jesus shows up, and finds the apostles, without Thomas, hiding and quivering in fear.

Rumors abound that Jesus is alive, making the Jewish leaders and Roman soldiers both very nervous.

Actually, the word is phobia – and better translated – they were terrified!

Like the prisoner knight, they deared for their very lives!

If they nailed Jesus to the cross four days earlier, know he could be “the” Messiah, , what would they do to the followers that remained?

In the midst of such terror, all else was forgotten.

The last supper, where Christ shared how His body would soon be given over, and His blood spilt, was shaken from their memories.

So too, the teaching on His sacrifice, and the countless signs and wonders that they have seen.

All of the trust that had in Him, which had been carefully encouraged and strengthened – they could not find.

All hope of the eternal kingdom of God, which Jesus had assured them of, gone from their minds, as they stared at the door, waiting for the temple guards, or the roman legionnaires, to take the door – and arrest, and kill them.

/Jesus will inform them, that peace is theirs…./

Likewise distracted from his relationship, Thomas will have problems trusting what the other disciples have said, “whaddya mean you have seen the LORD – four days ago, we saw him DIEEEEE….”

How can one believe in the resurrection, unless one understands why Jesus had to die?

In order to have faith in the resurrection Thomas has to understand what the disciples saw, what they understood – for the word “showed” in the phrase “he showed them his hands, and his side means more that they viewed them.

Show means, “/to make known the character or significance of something by visual, auditory, gestural, or linguistic mean*[1]*”  /So while the other 10 apostles now knew why Jesus had to suffer, and die and rise, Thomas is struggling with the idea, that the one he saw crucified.

How can one trust in a tale too incredible, to miraculous to be true?

How can one believe in that?

His side was through by a spear, the wrists and feet pierced.

How can one trust that someone could rise from the dead?

Can you imagine the defeat that wracked Thomas’ soul, that not only did His master die, but that he, like Simon Peter, broke his promise to die at his side?

John 11:16 (ESV) says,* *16 So Thomas, called the Twin, said to his fellow disciples, "Let us also go, that we may die with him."

But he didn’t, and Jesus is dead, for how can one rise from the dead?

\\ \\

/Jesus will inform Thomas, as He did the disciples, that peace is His,/

 

We live in a world, as they did then, that allows for fears, and doubt to distract us from the real issues.

The pressures of the world attacking those who follow Jesus are intense, from subtle challenges like scheduling conflicts, to out right persecution and threats of death.

Or things like science and naturalism telling us miracles don’t happen, that God doesn’t interrupt the world He created.

And our own “moral failures” are used by Satan to help us conclude that our relationship with Jesus could never be the same – because we let him down, we let him die…..

/ /

/Jesus’s words inform us that peace is ours…./

This passage is chock full of interesting phrases, that tend to escape our notice.

One I mentioned above, that showed meant to do more than put in their view.

It meant to show the significance of – those nail spiked hands, that hole in His side, testified of His love, His faithfulness, His desire for the apostles to know the relationship was restored.

Like the lady’s hand – which was sent to Saladin, the marks on His hand, testifies of His love, and how important this relationship we have, is to Him.

Of similar interest to me, is the phrase which Jesus directs to Thomas in verse 27.

Do not disbelieve, but believe!

Literally, it is a command, /do not *become* faithless, but faithful!

/The verb there, is the word “become” not believe, for believe or faith, or trusting is but an adjective.

Jesus is telling Thomas – look – do not become one who doesn’t trust  in me, but trust, believe, be faithful!

Means

                Be Faithful

                /The hands and Side demonstrate/

My Lord – and My God! -

God’s Presence

                He can even thrust you into ministry becuz

                The Sunday School Teacher

 

Place your faith in ME, Jesus says, trust ME, believe in ME, realize that though the cross and the resurrection are necessary, they are necessary because our relationship that had to be restored.

The cross, and the empty grave are the plan of the Father, accomplished through our Lord Jesus.

Even so, they are signs of His love towards us, His desire for us to be our people.

For there, at the cross, our salvation, our deliverance, was accomplished, just as a forerunner of this even happened, when death, and fear, and failure was buried with the Egyptian Army at the Red Sea.

In Exodus 20, after delivering His people, God gathers them at Sinai, and says to them, I AM the Lord, your God….

Words echoed by Thomas, when, seeing the hands and feet, and the hole in His side, he cannot utter anything else.

It says he answers and says – in Greek, the word for answer is similar to verdict, or judgment cast, or legal conclusion.

Thomas no longer doubts, he knows he is in the presence of His God, His Lord, His deliverer.

Thus his verdict  - noting the same relationship as Exodus 20 -   My Lord, and My God…

 

That is why Jesus reminds them, that they have peace, for that is part of what we are given, when we are in the presence of God.

We, who have faith in Him, those of us, who trust in Him, and know the promises He backs up, come to the understanding that we have in Him, peace, incredible, peace.

It comes upon us, and should we take our eyes off of the world, and keep them on Him, we realize that.

It is why baptism is so special – for it brings the promise of God’s presence in our lives, that we have been cleaned spiritually, so that we can rejoice in His presence!

The gift of forgiveness, but more importantly, the blessing of the gift of the Holy Spirit!

It is why the Lord’s Supper, also known as the Eucharist, is so special, to realize that we are accepted up here, in the holiest of places, to fellowship with God, spiritually and yes, physically.

To once again, have my faith affirmed, built up and strengthened, as I encounter the Jesus who told Thomas, do not become faithless, but have faith, in ME.

How many of those things that Jesus had promised to the apostles, prior to Jesus’ death on the cross, now apply to us as well!

The Holy Spirit, breathed upon them, giving them new life, was given to us in our baptism, just as God’s breath brought life to Adam in the Garden.

The promise of life eternal, life abundant, is ours.

These promises, heard by the apostles and forgotten during their mourning and fear, now begin to come alive again, as they realize the peace that has been given them…as they realize the relationship that they have with Jesus, is even more incredible, even more alive, even more…, the relationship that God has, with the very people for whom He died.

A relationship so incredible, that even as God sent Jesus, to bring His message of love and forgiveness.

So to, will Jesus thrust us into situations where God’s grace needs to be evident, to be seen, not just view, but where people are changed because the Holy Spirit gives them the comprehension to know that the wounds are testimonies of God’s love, of His faithfulness, to us.

That His promises are made sure, because He was willing to prove them, by sending to us Jesus.

And so He can send us out into this world, literally – He thrusts us out into the presence of the world, to bring them forgiveness, but more – the relationship with a God, who hands are pierced for love, whose side has a gaping hole, gouged by a spear.

We go not alone, but with the Holy Spirit, the very presence of God, as real as the Lord who Thomas proclaimed.

But we also do not go, without assistance.

John and the other apostles, led by the Holy Spirit, left us something so incredible – the word of God.

For we are the ones Jesus told Thomas about – the ones who believe without “seeing”.

But while we do not see Jesus walking around, cooking fish on the beach, or sharing a laugh with Peter, we understand the nailprints in His hands, the wound in His side.

We have this scene, and so many others that testify of His works, of His love, for the last verse of our passage tells of this too,

/ /

/Jesus did many other signs in the presence of the disciples, which are not written in this book; 31 but these are written so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name./