Now What?
Scripture References
Acts 5:29-42
The Apostles Arrested and Freed
19 But during the night an angel of the Lord opened the prison doors and brought them out, and said, 20 “Go and stand in the temple and speak to the people all the words of this Life.” 21 And when they heard this, they entered the temple at daybreak and began to teach. Now when the high priest came, and those who were with him, they called together the council, all the senate of the people of Israel, and sent to the prison to have them brought. 22 But when the officers came, they did not find them in the prison, so they returned and reported, 23 “We found the prison securely locked and the guards standing at the doors, but when we opened them we found no one inside.” 24 Now when the captain of the temple and the chief priests heard these words, they were greatly perplexed about them, wondering what this would come to. 25 And someone came and told them, “Look! The men whom you put in prison are standing in the temple and teaching the people.” 26 Then the captain with the officers went and brought them, but not by force, for they were afraid of being stoned by the people. 27 And when they had brought them, they set them before the council. And the high priest questioned them, 28 saying, “We strictly charged you not to teach in this name, yet here you have filled Jerusalem with your teaching, and you intend to bring this man’s blood upon us.” 29 But Peter and the apostles answered, “We must obey God rather than men. 30 The God of our fathers raised Jesus, whom you killed by hanging him on a tree. 31 God exalted him at his right hand as Leader and Savior, to give repentance to Israel and forgiveness of sins.
1 Peter 1:3-9
Born Again to a Living Hope
3 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! According to his great mercy, he has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, 4 to an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading, kept in heaven for you, 5 who by God’s power are being guarded through faith for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time. 6 In this you rejoice, though now for a little while, if necessary, you have been grieved by various trials, 7 so that the tested genuineness of your faith—more precious than gold that perishes though it is tested by fire—may be found to result in praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ. 8 Though you have not seen him, you love him. Though you do not now see him, you believe in him and rejoice with joy that is inexpressible and filled with glory, 9 obtaining the outcome of your faith, the salvation of your souls.
John 20:19-31
Jesus Appears to the Disciples
19 On the evening of that day, the first day of the week, the doors being locked where the disciples were for fear of the Jews,[3] Jesus came and stood among them and said to them, “Peace be with you.” 20 When he had said this, he showed them his hands and his side. Then the disciples were glad when they saw the Lord. 21 Jesus said to them again, “Peace be with you. As the Father has sent me, even so I am sending 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, they are forgiven them; if you withhold forgiveness from any, it is withheld.”
Jesus and Thomas
24 Now Thomas, one of the twelve, called the Twin,[4] was not with them when Jesus came. 25 So the other disciples told him, “We have seen the Lord.” 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.” 26 Eight days later, his disciples were inside again, and Thomas was with them. Although the doors were locked, Jesus came and stood among them and said, “Peace be with you.” 27 Then he said to Thomas, “Put your finger here, and see my hands; and put out your hand, and place it in my side. Do not disbelieve, but believe.” 28 Thomas answered him, “My Lord and my God!” 29 Jesus said to him, “Have you believed because you have seen me? Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.”
The Purpose of This Book
30 Now 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.
Now What?
Do you still have goosebumps from when you heard the stone was rolled away? Were you overwhelmed when the darkness lifted and the dawn was breaking on that Easter morning? I could see it, couldn’t you?… The women trembling at the empty tomb, the disciples running in disbelief and hope, the angel proclaiming, “He is not here; He has risen!” … Oh yes, those precious words… He is risen indeed has and will forever change the world. That is what makes Easter such a bright and joyful time, wouldn’t you agree? … A celebration that has now come and gone… (sigh) So, now what?
Our Invitation
Well, on this second Sunday after Easter we look to transition that joy into action. An invitation to step into the life Christ has made possible with His exultation… An invitation to shout with Mary Magdalene, “I have seen the Lord…” and then not only talk the talk but also walk the walk with Him on our own journey down that road to Emmaus… reflecting on the journey we took with Jesus to the cross. His victory over sin and death… and the promise of a new life for all who believe in what is beyond the empty tomb.
Behind Locked Doors
The fact that He has risen from the dead truly transforms everything we have ever done or what we will ever do… holding fast to the comfort found in the truth that death has been conquered and hope restored… Easter joy, my friends, that cannot be taken away. I can only imagine how overwhelming it must have been for those who witnessed these things and the awe there must have been in and around Jerusalem that first Easter morning… Do you suppose their hearts were racing behind locked doors as they pondered “now what?” A question that may have overshadowed the triumphant reality graciously unfolding before their eyes.
Beyond Belief
I admit, the thought of “now what” crossed my mind as I studied the readings provided for this day, and how we must expand our Easter hope found in the gift we call faith. Yet at the same time, urged to consider how we are to respond, live, and serve from this day forward… carrying the warmth of Christ’s presence within us. Then asking ourselves… What fears and uncertainties do I still hold on to? Do I mirror Thomas, who struggled to accept things that appear to be beyond belief?
It seems in our diverse world today there are many things we hear or see that are beyond belief. The saying “Believe nothing you hear and only half of what you see” is much too common in the world we live… My beyond belief rant is when a tour guide starts talking about how old the earth is. It doesn’t seem to matter if I am exploring a Mammoth cave in Kentucky… visiting a State Park in big sky Montana… or wondering among the mystical mountains of Greece, each tour guide I have encountered credits these landscapes to millions… if not billions of years to geologic transformation.
Doubting Thomas
But challenging scientific theories is what Christians do quite well, especially when such claims oppose our faith or introduce some level of doubt. This points us to Thomas’ statement in the Gospel lesson of John 20, verse 25, he says… “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.”
Have you ever given much thought to why Thomas doubted?
Jesus stood in front of all the other disciples just the week before. They tried to tell Thomas that they have seen the Lord, yet he did not want to take their word… He needed to see for himself… Those who read this story label him as “doubting Thomas…” I’m sure we all have called him that as well. But I find it interesting that only Thomas gets this identity.
Not Only Thomas
We read in Luke 24:11-12 that Mary Magdalene and the other ladies with her saw the empty tomb and relayed this great news to the disciples… but they did not take their word for it either… The disciples who were there had to run over to the stone that was rolled away and look for themselves. Is that not doubting as well?
We can look at other stories in the Bible… Moses doubted God’s power, Elijah doubted God’s plan, Job doubted God’s character, Sarah doubted God’s promise… I could go on, but that doesn’t change the fact that we only call Thomas… “a doubter.” I think there is much we can learn from Thomas. In fact, I think as a disciple, he needed to doubt. Let me explain.
Differance Between Disciples And Apostles
I first want to point out the difference between a disciple and an Apostle. A disciple is a devoted learner and follower of a teacher. For the twelve… and for Christians around the world… Jesus is our teacher. This is why we are called to be disciples ourselves and to inspire others to follow suit.
An Apostle on the other hand means “one who is sent.” Not only sent… but sent by Jesus Himself. This includes Paul as he testifies in 1 Corinthians 15 where he speaks of Christ’s resurrection and being sent… yes, on the road to Damascus by the resurrected Jesus in a blinding heavenly light … Luke writes then how all these Apostles use this witness in Acts 4:33, “with great power the apostles were giving their testimony to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus,” The eleven we read about today were disciples until the time they were called as witnesses to our resurrected Lord Jesus. Then they become known as Apostles.
Why is this important?
Because, before the Apostles could say without a doubt, “He has risen indeed,” they needed to see, with their own eyes, our resurrected Lord. They were then sent forth as confident Apostles to share the message that Jesus died and rose again for all people. Experiencing Jesus’ presence after His resurrection was essential for them. This is why Thomas needed to doubt.
Jesus said to Thomas in verse 27, “Put your finger here and see my hands; and put out your hand, and place it in my side.” But Thomas didn’t have to.
He saw, he knew, he then makes the greatest profession of faith in the entire bible of who Jesus is by saying “My Lord and My God!”
Now What
Now what does this mean as we ponder this reality on this first Sunday after Easter? Well, we know that the Apostles saw and believed. Which equipped them for one of their many persecutions like we heard in the first reading from Acts 5. Here we find a compelling depiction of the Apostles drawing resilience and fortitude from the risen Christ.
Evidenced by their confrontation with the Sanhedrin, where Peter and the others courageously state that they must follow God’s commands rather than their man-made laws. They boldly proclaim that God raised and exalted Jesus… whom they crucified… as our risen Lord and Savior, so that repentance and forgiveness could be offered. Witnessed firsthand… once again, by the Apostles as they declared in verse 32, “And we are witnesses to these things, and so is the Holy Spirit, whom God has given to those who obey him.”
Sure, they could have been thinking “now what” as they were beaten and ordered not to spread the truth found in Christs resurrection. But they refused to be afraid, they trusted in God’s guidance, and rejected the convictions of the world to prove that faithfulness matters more than life itself. They doubted no more.
Growing In Faith
This same assurance can be found for you and me in the second reading of 1 Peter chapter 1. Here we are reminded that through Christ’s resurrection, we are given new life, filled with a living hope and an everlasting inheritance…
Even in times of hardship, we can take comfort in knowing that God is purifying our faith like gold, and the joy we have in Christ remains strong regardless of our circumstances.
This is how we can expand our Easter hope… growing our faith given to us during baptism. Because of the resurrection, as disciples we can now transition that joy into action. Through faith. An invitation to step into the life Christ has made possible because He is “our Lord and our God.” Documented by the Apostles who have seen and without a doubt… can tell others this truth.
Eyes Of Faith
Jesus said to Thomas, “Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.” Because he doubted… because he needed to see… people around the world will grow in faith who have not seen yet believe Jesus is here right now. How many great things have you seen the Lord do through the eyes of faith? Look around and you will see God at work in your life each day… We can see the empty tomb and Jesus’ wounds… we can see God’s hand in nature… all these things we can see, through the eyes of faith. All these things we can see that the world cannot…
We have this vision without a doubt… because… of the Apostles witness… Knowing Jesus has risen indeed unlocks that door for a personal relationship with Him… because the disciples were determined to see. We have no need to ask… “Now what?”
Look To Thomas
Now the next time you hear someone talk about doubting Thomas. Take that opportunity to describe him as a faithful example of what it means to be a Christian. Or when in doubt yourself, look to him as the Apostle who erased doubt by not believing what he heard, but sought the true gospel of our risen Lord. Use him as an example of how Jesus shows up and meets you where you are, no matter where that might be, with extreme love and patience. How Thomas speaks for us all when we are feeling down and out… or when we have doubt that we will overcome a difficult situation… Whatever the case might be that finds you hiding behind a locked door… remember that you just need to look at Jesus’ wounds.
That’s why it’s helpful to use Thomas’ story to see more clearly. He gives us opportunity to take a closer look at the transition from doubt to belief… and how his journey from doubt to belief can help us understand the process of growing in faith. Just as Thomas’s doubt led to a profound confession of faith, our own doubts and struggles can become opportunities for a deeper trust in God. You see, faith is not the absence of doubt, but the journey through it, met by Christ’s presence and grace. Like Thomas, we are invited to encounter Jesus in our moments of uncertainty and to allow Him to transform our hesitations into declarations of hope and conviction.
My Lord And My God
Paul goes on to say in 1 Corinthias 15 that if the tomb was not empty, that Christ had not been raised from the dead, there would be no faith. There would be no hope… there would be no life after death. But we are given confident hope, through faith, and are among the blessed who did not see, yet still believe Jesus is “My Lord and My God.”
Church tradition and what little history we know, tells us Thomas went on to spread the gospel of our risen Lord to the far reaches of India, where he surrendered his life telling others about what he saw. Without a doubt…
He Is Risen
John concludes the Gospel lesson for today by adding that Jesus did many other things that did not get written down. But how blessed we are as he shares with us in verse 31, “but these things 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.” Life in His name because… He is risen…
Brothers and sisters in Christ…. Let those Halleluiah’s ring in your hearts throughout the year. Reflecting on how Jesus’ resurrection comforts, strengthens, and calls us to look at His wounds. Let your eyes of faith, empowered by the Holy Spirit, invite you to live out the victory of our risen Lord… to stand firm with courage, to share hope with gentleness, and to walk in loving obedience. Till we see Him again with everlasting life in His name. Our answer to “now what.”
And may the peace of God which surpasses all understanding, keep your hearts and minds in our risen Lord, Christ Jesus.
Amen.