What is the first thing that you think of when someone brings up Thomas, the disciple of Jesus? Does the phrase “Doubting Thomas” come to mind? Thomas was one of the original disciples, an eyewitness to the resurrected Jesus, and was martyred for the gospel. But, whether it is fair or not, we remember him more as “the guy who doubted Jesus.”
John is the only gospel writer who records any of Thomas’ words, and in all three instances, we see that Thomas had a habit of doubting Jesus. In John 11, he doubted that they would survive the trip into Bethany after Lazarus’s death. In John 14, he doubted whether Jesus had spoken the truth when He said that His disciples knew “the way.” In John 20, he doubted the resurrection, demanding physical proof before he would believe.
What is more astounding than Thomas’ persistent doubt is the patience that Jesus showed him. He didn’t expel Thomas from the disciple club because he struggled to believe without seeing. He worked with Thomas to grow his faith until he was finally willing to walk by faith, not by sight.
We dare not excuse our doubt, because it is sin, and we dare not deny that we all struggle with doubt from time to time. But we must not accept our doubt as okay or excuse it as merely being “rational” or “reasonable.”
Jesus said to Thomas, “Blessed are they that have not seen, and yet have believed.” If you say, “I’ll believe it when I see it,” then what you are really saying is that you trust yourself more than you trust God. We must have faith in God, not in our senses or our ability to reason, if we are to enjoy God’s blessings.