Part 2 of the "Alleluia: Believing the Risen Lord" Sermon Series

The early disciples are our model for good Christian living. The text of the Bible is crucial for this as well. We can feel comforted about the doubts that we read which they felt, and we can also feel encouraged by the work they are able to do to surpass those feelings and fears. If the disciples are able to surpass those feelings and fears even amid their doubts, that must mean that wecan surpass those feelings and fears just as they did. As we read in Acts 5:29, as an example, we read about how “Peter and the apostles answered [the high priest giving them orders not to preach in the name of Jesus], “We must obey God rather than any human authority.” We too, first obey God. And to obey God confidently and consistently, we must address our own roadblocks which may include doubt, we must read the Bible which was written to help us believe, and we must be open to God’s action shown to us and by us in our own lives. These three things can give us solace in the Resurrection without a physically present Lord: qualify our doubts, read what was written to help us believe, and be open to God’s action to us and by us for others. Today, we have seen the faith and doubt of the disciples in the week immediately following the Resurrection. They did not believe until they saw the tomb themselves; last week we read about Peter physically going to the tomb before he believed the news that the women shared with them, and this week we read about Thomas not believing in the Resurrected Lord until he could touch the wounds in his side and hand. But when they saw, they believed. We are then told that we do not need to see to believe. We can have faith anyway. “Blessed are those who have not seen, and yet come to believe” (John 20:29). That “coming to believe” signifies that we are not expected to do it all at once, but that we are coming to believe: it is a work in progress throughout all of our Christian lives. We can use the experience of the disciples, and even have more faith in what we have seen than they did. Now that we have learned from the faith and doubt of the disciples, we can address our own belief when we find it a struggle during the always tumultuous times that we live in. We will move forward in this struggle next week, but first, meet this challenge this week: Discover a wonder in your life – a person, place, or thing – where you can see the face of the Lord, and where you can truly exclaim, “I have seen the Lord!” May all glory and honor be to God! Thanks be to God. Amen.