Episode 1637: Unless I See

===

Scott Maderer: [00:00:00] Thanks for joining me on episode 1,637 of the Inspired Stewardship Podcast.

Bill Yoh: I'm Bill Yoh. I challenge you to invest in yourself, invest in others, develop your influence and impact the world by using your time, your talent, and your treasures to live out your calling. Having the ability to find the key tenets of faith and a relationship with God are key, and one way to be inspired to do that is to listen to this.

The Inspired Stewardship podcast with my friend Scott Maderer.

Scott Maderer: You wake up the next day. You wake up the next week, and it's easy to think to yourself, that was a celebration, but now what? But this, this might be what we're being told now, what is to live? To live and to be a blessing to all those around us. [00:01:00]

Welcome and thank you for joining us on the Inspired Stewardship Podcast.

If

you truly desire to become the person who God wants you to be, then you must learn to use your time, your talent, and your treasures for your true calling. In the Inspired Stewardship Podcast, you will learn to invest in your. Invest in others and develop your influence so that you can impact

the world.

In today's spiritual foundation episode, I talk about John chapter 20, verses 19 through 31. I talk about how, if we admit it, we realize we are more like Thomas than we like to admit, and I also share how maybe seeing isn't believing. But being is John Chapter 20, verses 19 through 31 says, when it was evening on that day, the first day of the week, and the [00:02:00] doors were locked where the disciples were for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood among them and said, peace be with you.

After he said this, he showed them his hands and his side. Then the disciples rejoiced when they saw the Lord. Jesus said to them again, peace be with you as the father has sent me, so I send you. When he had said this, he breathed on them and said to them, receive the Holy Spirit. If you forgive the sins of any, they're forgiven them.

If you retain the sins of any, they're retained. But Thomas, who is called the twin, one of the 12, was not with them when Jesus came. So the other disciples told him, we have seen the Lord. But he said to them, unless I see the mark of the nails in his hands, and put my finger in the mark of the nails and my hands in his side, I will not believe a week later his disciples were again in the house and Thomas was with them.

Although the doors were shut, Jesus came and stood among them and said, peace be with you. Then he [00:03:00] said to Thomas, put your finger here and see my hands. Reach out your hand and put it in my side. Do not doubt but believe, and Thomas answered him, my Lord and my God. Jesus said to him, have you believed because you have seen me?

Blessed are those who have not yet seen me and have yet come to believe. Now, Jesus did many other signs in the presence of his disciples that are not written in this book, but these are written so that you may continue to believe that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God, and that through believing you may have life in His name.

You know the story of Thomas, good old Thomas, doubting Thomas. We call him. I dunno about you, but I'm kind of glad that story's in there. It, it saves me sometimes from having to admit that I have those uncomfortable questions. We don't have to be the only person [00:04:00] carrying doubts. Thomas shows the way he stood there in front of the remaining disciples who were still excited, glowing, happy.

Exuberant even from their encounter with the risen Jesus. And he said, Nope, I'm not buying it. I don't get it. I can't see what you see. And in so doing, he legitimized all those questions that rise through well, my mind and I think many of our minds from time to time. I don't know about you, but I've had times whether it was in college, sitting around with friends, whether it was times when I was going through a, a dark night of the soul moment when I looked up and I said, I don't really know if there's a God.

I'm not even sure God is, is necessary or God is real. I don't see it myself. I've often [00:05:00] struggled at times with a lack of belief and I think many of us do, and it kind of shakes you to your core when you express it or when others around you express it. But yet, as you live and you see. The inhumanity, the cruelty the damage that is done day in and day out.

The suffering, the isolation, the loneliness. In some ways it seems to be more sensible to realize what Thomas's position is. This is the world's position, right? Unless I touch it, unless I see it, I won't believe in it. Show me, prove it, and that makes a lot more sense. I'm a scientist by background.

I've got training in science, and that's what I was taught to substantiate my beliefs, and I actually don't think there's anything wrong with [00:06:00] that. Instead, we give Thomas a hard time, but if you admit it, Thomas, in many ways is the one most like us, the one that seems to make the most sense. We call Thomas, doubting Thomas, but you notice that is not his title.

In the Bible that never appears anywhere in any of the text about Thomas. He's called Thomas the twin, and his twin isn't called out. We don't know who the twin even really is, but if we admit it, we probably stand with Thomas way more often than we stand. With the other disciples, we, we stand needing confirmation, needing something to touch and hold onto.

We need connection to believe that's what we need. That's what we want. Even when he can't really recognize it or say it out loud, and maybe that's really the tragedy at the beginning of [00:07:00] this story, here are the disciples gathered together and Thomas is not there. He's unconnected, he's cast out in a way.

He's adrift. He's on his own Maybe. Maybe something around that is even what Jesus was referring to with his words about seeing and believing, maybe it wasn't simply about recognizing what we won't have. We won't, as much as we want to get to sit at Jesus' feet, get to hear his teachings, get to see his miracles firsthand it, it may be some people think that those last patches, passages say It's okay, nevermind.

Just enjoy what you get. But maybe there's more to it than that. Maybe Jesus is saying something deeper. Maybe Jesus is saying, seeing isn't really believing. After [00:08:00] all, maybe he's hinting that to believe you have to be, you have to be more like Christ. We have to show our wounds to the world. We have to lead with vulnerability.

We have to reach out with hope and love. Yes, Easter is a wonderful and necessary time in the life of the faithful, but you also have to remember that you wake up the next day, you wake up the next week, and it's easy to think to yourself, that was a celebration, but now what? But this might be what we're being told now, what is to live?

To live and to be a blessing to all those around us. Thanks for listening.

Thanks so much for listening to the

Inspired [00:09:00] Stewardship Podcast. As a subscriber and listener, we challenge you to not just sit back and passively listen, but act on what you've heard and find a way to live your calling. If you enjoyed this episode, do me a favor. Go over to facebook.com/inspired.

Stewardship and like our Facebook page and market that you'd like to get notifications from us so that we can connect with you on Facebook and make sure that we're serving you to the best of our abilities with time and tips there. Until next time, invest your time. Your talent and your treasures.

Develop your influence and impact the world.