Seeing and Believing: Thomas, Resurrection, and New Life

Devotional

Day 1: From Unbelief to Profound Faith

The story of Thomas reminds us that faith often emerges through honest struggle. Like Thomas, we may wrestle with doubts or demand tangible proof before embracing God’s truth. Yet Christ meets us in our uncertainty, inviting us to move beyond skepticism into deeper trust. His patient response to Thomas reveals that doubt is not rejection but a pathway to revelation. When we bring our questions to God, we open ourselves to encounters that transform unbelief into awe. [25:55]

“Then [Jesus] said to Thomas, ‘Put your finger here; see my hands. Reach out your hand and put it into my side. Stop doubting and believe.’ Thomas said to him, ‘My Lord and my God!’” (John 20:27-28, NIV).

Reflection: What honest question or doubt have you hesitated to bring to God? How might you courageously invite Him to meet you in that uncertainty this week?

Day 2: Peace in the Midst of Locked Doors

Fear often isolates us, just as the disciples hid behind locked doors. Yet Christ enters our hidden struggles, offering peace that transcends circumstances. His resurrected presence does not erase life’s challenges but anchors us in a hope stronger than despair. When we feel trapped by anxiety or grief, His words—“Peace be with you”—reorient us to the reality of His victory. True peace comes not from avoiding pain but from trusting the One who has overcome the world. [19:02]

“Jesus came and stood among them and said, ‘Peace be with you!’” (John 20:19, NIV).

Reflection: Where do you feel “locked in” by fear or uncertainty? How might Christ’s promise of peace reshape your response to that situation today?

Day 3: Resurrection as a Way of Life

Easter is not merely a historical event but a daily invitation to newness. Just as spring renews the earth, God’s resurrection power transforms brokenness into beauty, despair into hope, and death into life. This renewal happens in small, ordinary moments—forgiveness offered, healing received, love chosen over indifference. When we open our eyes to God’s work, even the “wastelands” of our lives become testimonies of His faithfulness. [33:18]

“We were therefore buried with him through baptism into death in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, we too may live a new life” (Romans 6:4, NIV).

Reflection: Where have you overlooked signs of God’s renewing work in your daily life? What “small resurrection” can you thank Him for today?

Day 4: The Sacredness of Shared Belief

Thomas’s story unfolds within a community—first absent, then present. Our faith is both personal and communal, nurtured by those who walk beside us. Like the disciples, we need others to remind us of truth when doubt clouds our vision. The Church, flawed yet faithful, becomes a living witness to Christ’s presence as we testify to His work in our lives. Together, we embody the love that convinces the world. [25:04]

“Let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds, not giving up meeting together, but encouraging one another” (Hebrews 10:24-25, NIV).

Reflection: Who in your life has helped you see Christ more clearly? How can you actively encourage someone else’s faith journey this week?

Day 5: Proclaiming Christ Through Word and Wonder

Thomas’s confession—“My Lord and my God!”—models bold faith that acknowledges Christ’s divinity. Yet awe often begins with noticing God’s fingerprints in creation, relationships, and acts of love. Like the astronauts marveling at Earth’s fragility and beauty, we’re called to recognize the sacred in the ordinary. Every moment of gratitude, every choice to love, becomes a proclamation of the risen Christ. [37:02]

“But in your hearts revere Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have” (1 Peter 3:15, NIV).

Reflection: What ordinary moment this week stirred your awe for God’s goodness? How can you share that glimpse of His love with someone else?

Sermon Summary

The reading from John recounts the disciples hiding behind locked doors and Jesus appearing among them, offering peace, showing his wounds, and breathing the Spirit into their fear. One disciple, Thomas, demands tangible proof before he will believe, insisting on touching the nailed hands and pierced side. When Jesus returns and invites Thomas to do precisely that, Thomas responds with the profound confession, “My Lord and my God,” a recognition that the risen one is truly divine. That confession becomes the climactic revelation of who Jesus is for the believing community.

The text distinguishes doubt from settled unbelief: doubt raises questions without foreclosing hope, while unbelief closes off trust. Thomas moves from skepticism to faith through an embodied encounter, illustrating that personal encounter—whether physical sight or deep interior experience—often mediates belief. The narrative also asserts that the gospel records particular signs so that readers might come to believe and receive life in Jesus’ name.

The sermon expands the Easter claim beyond a single past event into present, daily reality. Resurrection appears not merely as an event to be remembered but as God’s ongoing work in the world—transforming fear into forgiveness, opening hearts to the Spirit, and calling people to rise and share God’s life. Images from contemporary spaceflight—astronauts seeing Earth from afar—function as a modern parable: the fragile, blue island of life highlights both human vulnerability and the astonishing gift of existence, prompting wonder and gratitude.

Belief grows over time in communities that live resurrection—in acts of mercy, forgiveness, and bold witness—rather than depending solely on spectacular proofs. The reading and reflections invite a life shaped by the risen Christ: one that recognizes God’s abiding presence, practices forgiveness, and participates in God’s daily work of making all things new. The liturgy and prayers that follow the reading frame this recognition as communal confession, Eucharistic participation, and blessing—the gathered community both receives and becomes the risen life sent into the world.

Key Takeaways

1. Doubt can lead to true faith Doubt opens questions that prepare a heart for genuine encounter; it is a pathway, not a verdict. Thomas’s demand for sight models an honest faith journey in which evidence and encounter transform skepticism into worship. The path from unbelief to confession shows that God meets searching minds and wounded hearts where they are. [26:59]
2. Resurrection renews life today Resurrection is not merely historical rescue; it animates daily conversion and transformation. God’s paschal work appears whenever fear yields to forgiveness, despair gives way to hope, and lives are remade into service and love. Expect resurrection in small mercies, healed relationships, and communities that testify to new life. [33:18]
3. Encounter validates belief Personal encounter—seeing, touching, being breathed upon—turns hearsay into conviction. The narrative emphasizes embodied meetings with the risen Christ, suggesting that authentic belief often grows from relational, tangible experiences rather than abstract proofs. Seek faithful spaces where such encounters can occur and be patient with a faith that forms over time. [20:00]
4. Cosmic perspective grounds gratitude Seeing Earth from afar reframes human life as a fragile, luminous gift amid vast darkness. That perspective fosters humility, stewardship, and renewed commitment to love one another as the greatest commandment. Wonder at creation can awaken trust in God’s sustaining hand and call communities to protect and cherish this shared home. [34:11]

Youtube Chapters

[00:00] - Welcome
[01:11] - Opening Prayer and Praise
[18:40] - Gospel Reading: John’s Account
[19:40] - Thomas’s Skepticism
[20:00] - Jesus Appears to Thomas
[28:24] - Thomas’s Confession: My Lord and My God
[32:43] - Resurrection as Present Reality
[34:11] - Artemis: A Cosmic Perspective
[37:34] - Invitation to Believe and Live
[68:54] - Blessing and Sending

Bible Study Guide

Bible Reading
John 20:19-29 (ESV)
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, 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.” 24 Now Thomas, one of the Twelve, called the Twin, 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.”

Observation Questions

What did Jesus do when he first appeared to the disciples, and how did they respond?
What specific conditions did Thomas set for believing Jesus had risen?
How did Jesus address Thomas’s doubts when he appeared again?
What does Jesus say about those who believe without seeing him physically?

Interpretation Questions

Why do you think Jesus showed the disciples his wounds even after offering them peace?
Thomas’s confession, “My Lord and my God,” is unique in the Gospels. What does this reveal about his understanding of Jesus’ identity?
Jesus says, “Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.” How does this statement challenge or affirm different ways people come to faith today?
The sermon distinguishes doubt (open to questions) from unbelief (closed to trust). How does Thomas’s journey model moving from skepticism to faith through encounter?

Application Questions

When have you, like Thomas, needed tangible evidence or personal experience to strengthen your faith? How did that experience shape your relationship with God?
The sermon suggests resurrection is God’s ongoing work in daily life—like forgiveness or healing relationships. Where have you seen “small resurrections” in your own life or community recently? [33:18]
How can you create space in your life for “embodied encounters” with God (e.g., prayer, service, community) that deepen your faith over time? [20:00]
The Artemis mission’s view of Earth sparked wonder at our fragile, shared home. What practices could help you cultivate gratitude for life as a gift and steward it more intentionally? [34:11]
Thomas’s story shows doubt can lead to deeper faith. How might you support someone wrestling with doubts without pressuring them to “just believe”?
The disciples were sent to forgive others as Jesus forgave them. Is there a relationship in your life where practicing forgiveness could mirror God’s resurrection power?
The sermon emphasizes belief growing in communities. How can your small group become a place where people encounter God’s presence through acts of love and mercy?

Sermon Clips

69s

“As I said Easter morning, resurrection isn't just something that God did for Jesus a long time ago, two thousand years ago, and nor is it only something that we should anticipate after we die or on the last day. It is those things, of course, but resurrection, Easter, is also something that god makes happen every day for us, among us, and in us, in our own lives, in our own world, as we overcome our fears, as we experience forgiveness and healing, as we feel God's love and God's spirit and God's presence burning in our hearts, and as we, like Christ, rise up ourselves to share the good news of that love and that spirit and that presence with others.”

65s

“It's funny, isn't it? Or maybe it's not so funny that like the disciples, we we have no trouble believing the painful Good Friday parts of the story. While the joyful Easter aspects seem far more elusive and harder to verify. I suppose because we know that pain and death and grief and loss are all part of human life in seemingly endless abundance as evidenced by the state of the world today. So many examples. You all know them. Well, rarely rarely do we hear of miracles or stories of resurrection and new life, and certainly not of the kind that Jesus' disciples encountered on that first Easter day.”

Ask a question about this sermon

Old North Church Congregation This sermon · AI assistant

How does Thomas illustrate doubt versus unbelief?

What does Jesus' my lord and my god declaration signify?

How is resurrection described as present daily experience?