A synopsis of the sermon delivered by the Rev. David L. Hicks at St. Paul’s Reformed Episcopal Church on Easter I, April 18, 2004. Please read St. John 20:19-31.

Sometimes people of faith need to be encouraged to have faith: those who are believers need to believe. This is true in the case of Saint Thomas, as it is reported to us in John’s Gospel. Poor Thomas – forever to be known as “Doubting Thomas.” He was not going to accept any reports of Jesus’ resurrection appearance to the other disciples without certain proof. “Except I shall see in his hands the print of the nails, and put my finger into the print of the nails, and thrust my hand into his side, I will not believe.” A little over a week later, Jesus appeared a second time to his disciples, with Thomas being present this time, and he said to Thomas, “Reach hither thy finger, and behold my hands; and reach hither thy hand, and thrust it into my side: and be not faithless, but believing.” Thomas, most likely ashamed at his earlier performance, could say nothing else but, “My Lord and my God.” Jesus responds with words that are designed to be an encouragement to us, “Thomas, because thou hast seen me, thou has believed: blessed are they that have not seen, and yet have believed.”

Before we are too hard on Thomas for his doubts, we should consider that his attitude is not so far from our own at times. Thomas was a man of faith, a disciple of the Lord. He like his colleagues had left everything in order to become a follower of Jesus. He had heard our Lord’s teaching and had seen the many miracles that he performed. He was not an outsider; rather, he was a man on the inside track of what God was doing in the world through Jesus Christ, and yet this man of faith was lacking in faith. He needed to hear the words of Jesus: “Be not faithless, but believing.” We who are part of the Body of Christ, the Church, often need to be encouraged to have faith, in spite of the fact that we are people of faith. Although we did not follow Jesus in the same was as Thomas, we have been acquainted with Jesus’ earthly ministry through the witness of the Gospels that are read in church services. We have heard the preaching and teaching of the Scriptures and have been connected to Christ through baptism; yet we may have a certain checklist of questions that we want answered before we truly believe as we ought. The apostle John tells us that the writing of his Gospel has the purpose of engendering this kind of faith. “And many other signs truly did Jesus in the presence of his disciples, which are not written in this book: But these are written, that ye might believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God; and that believing ye might have life through his name.” What will you do with the Easter story, the proclamation of the resurrection of Jesus Christ that you have heard today? Will you, a person of faith, believe; or will you be unbelieving?