By Rev Charles Seet

Preached at / Published Life BPC 1045am Svc, 2011-02-27

Text: John 20:19-31

This message is entitled, 'Be not Faithless, But Believing.' Living in unbelief can be very costly. When the Second World War ended in 1945, four Japanese soldiers who had been left on the Filipino island of Lubang refused to believe that the war was over. Even though the outside world tried to contact them by dropping leaflets, letters and photographs on the island, they thought that the Allied forces were just trying to trick them. 

And so they spent year after year huddling together in the jungle, living on bananas and mangoes. They launched attacks on the villagers, killing at least 30 of them. And they waited for their commanders to return to Lubang with reinforcements. After 27 years of waiting, only one of them was left. Lt. Hiroo Onoda, now 51 years old, was discovered by a young Japanese college dropout named Suzuki who tried to convince him that the war was over. But Onoda told him that he would believe it only if his own commander ordered him to surrender. And so Suzuki went back to Japan, found Onoda's former commander and brought him to Lubang. 

On 9 March 1974 Onoda's former commander read to him the official military order that all Japanese soldiers were to surrender as they had lost the war in August 1945. He was utterly shocked 'We really lost the war! How could they have been so sloppy? If the war has really ended, then what had my comrades died for? And what have I been doing here for all these years?' Onoda sadly unloaded his rifle which he had faithfully kept and maintained for 30 years and returned to Japan where he received a hero's welcome and a huge pension. Hiroo Onoda went on to become a successful rancher and to establish nature schools to educate young Japanese children. But think of what he could have done in all that lost time if only he had believed that the Second World War had ended 30 years earlier.

In our Scripture passage this morning we will see another group of men who suffered because of their unbelief. Despite all the eyewitness reports they heard, they refused to believe that their master had come back to life. And they would have continued to live in doubt and fear, if Jesus had not come to them personally to end their unbelief. To learn how all this happened, we shall now study John 20:19-31.

It was now about 8:00 pm on the Sunday when Jesus had resurrected from the dead. In a house somewhere in Jerusalem, a group of fearful disciples were huddled together mourning and weeping. They had locked themselves in, afraid that the Jewish authorities would come looking for them there. In subdued tones they discussed all the strange happenings that day which they had heard from others: First, a group of women had informed them that they had found the tomb of Jesus mysteriously open and His body was missing, but two angels there told them that He had risen from the dead. But the words of these women were just idle tales to the disciples, and they refused to believe them.

However, their report was soon confirmed when Simon Peter and John went to see the tomb and discovered that the graveclothes of Jesus were still lying there, but not His body (vv.6-8). Then came even more startling news to all the disciples: Mary Magdalene arrived at the house and told them, 'I have seen the Lord! I have seen the Lord!' And before they could get over this, two other disciples came all tired and breathless because they had rushed there from the town of Emmaus, 11 km away. And with great excitement the two related how a kind stranger had joined them on their journey from Jerusalem to Emmaus that afternoon, and how He explained to them all the Scripture passages which foretold the resurrection of Christ. But when they reached Emmaus and had sat down to eat with Him, they suddenly recognized that this kind stranger was none other than Jesus Himself! And then He just disappeared before their very eyes.

All this was really too much for those anxious disciples who had remained inside that house on that eventful Sunday. How could it be possible for Jesus to be alive and well when He had died such an agonizing death just 3 days earlier? How could He have walked so effortlessly to Emmaus on His nail-pierced feet, and then vanished into thin air? How in the world could they ever believe such bizzare reports? They probably thought that all these were the result of wishful thinking, or worse still, the manifestations of a ghost! 

But as they wallowed in fear and unbelief the Lord Jesus suddenly appeared right in their midst and showed Himself to them. Only then did they believe that He had risen from the dead. However, a disciple named Thomas was not present when this happened. And he continued to live in fear and unbelief until the following Sunday, when the resurrected Jesus appeared to the disciples again with Thomas present. Then he joined all the rest in believing that Jesus had truly risen from the dead. 

In this whole account there is one thing that stands out: The importance of having faith in the Risen Lord. There are at least three lessons we can learn on this:

I. Faith in the Risen Lord brings lasting peace and joy to troubled hearts (vv.18-20).

Jesus knew that His disciples had locked themselves in a house because of their great fear of the Jews. He knew how deeply troubled and anxious they all were. And so He calmed the storms that raged in their hearts, in the same way that He had calmed a storm on the Sea of Galilee two years earlier. At that time the sea instantly became tranquil and calm when He said, 'Peace, be still' (Mark 4:39). And now, His words had the same calming effect on His disciples. In v.19 He says to them, 'Peace be unto you.' And He repeats it in v.21 and v.26 'Peace be unto you.' Some would think that this was just the usual Jewish greeting of 'Shalom' which Jews give when they meet one another. It isn't. In fact, this is the only instance in the NT where Jesus ever said, 'Peace be unto you.' And so they are meant to draw our attention to the special peace that the Lord brings to His disciples.

And what a wonderful peace this is! It is the same peace that Jesus had mentioned at the Last Supper in John 14:27 'Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, give I unto you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.' But now in chapter 20, something new is revealed about this peace, because the body of Jesus now bears the permanent marks which testify of this peace. The nail-pierced hands and the spear-wounded side which the Lord showed His disciples in v.20 bear permanent testimony to His completed work on the cross - the work which is our source of peace. As Romans 5:1 says, 'Therefore being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.' Colossians 1:20 says, 'He has made peace through the blook of His cross.'

This peace is yours if you believe in the Christ who died on the cross and rose again. You have peace with God through Him. And when you have peace with God, you can also have the peace of God which passes all understanding, to keep your heart and mind through Christ Jesus (Philippians 4:7). This peace does not depend on having peaceful circumstances. It is a peace from within, a peace that you can always have even when circumstances are not peaceful at all.

Once upon a time, two artists set out to paint a picture representing perfect peace. The first artist depicted a carefree little boy sitting in a boat on a calm lake without a ripple to disturb its surface. But the other artist painted a raging waterfall with strong winds whipping the spray about. But on a branch of a tree overhanging the swirling waters a robin had built its nest. And it was sitting peacefully on her eggs with its eyes closed, content and totally undisturbed by its stormy surroundings. This, dear friends, is a picture of the lasting peace that Jesus brings - a peace that every believer can have in the midst of storms. 

And perhaps there is someone here who needs this peace right now. Perhaps you came to church with a very troubled heart because of some difficult trial you are facing. Or perhaps some recent turn of events in your life has shaken your faith to its very core. Won't you come to the Lord Jesus Christ right now and cast all your cares and burdens upon Him? Come to Him, and let Him bring perfect peace and rest to your troubled heart, just as He brought His perfect peace to the troubled hearts of His disciples so long ago. 

And that's not all that the Risen Lord brought to them. He also brought a lasting joy to their hearts. The latter part of verse 20 says, 'Then were the disciples glad, when they saw the Lord.' Can you see the profound change that came over these disciples at that moment? It was a change from mourning and sadness to joy and gladness! And the best thing about the joy they had is that it was lasting. This had been foretold at the Last Supper. Jesus said in John 16:22, 'And ye now therefore have sorrow: but I will see you again, and your heart shall rejoice, and your joy no man taketh from you.'

Perhaps you may want to know how this lasting joy can be yours. Well, you can have it only when you look to your resurrected Saviour. Verse 20 says, 'then were the disciples glad when they saw the Lord.' It was only when the disciples saw Jesus that they were glad. This made all the difference in them. By seeing Him they knew that all the reports of Him they had heard that day were true. Now they truly believed that the Lord had risen from the dead. And now they were most ready to do His will joyfully, knowing that Jesus is alive and well. Likewise, we must keep our eyes on Jesus and believe in Him in order to have this lasting joy. It can make a great difference in us. Do you know what happens when we take our eyes off the Lord? We lose our joy, and we sink right back into our doubts and fears.

One chorus which has stayed with me since my childhood days is 'Turn your eyes upon Jesus, Look full in His wonderful face, And the things of earth will grow strangely dim, In the light of His glory and grace.' So, dearly beloved, whenever you feel overwhelmed by many responsibilities, turn your eyes upon Jesus! Look to Him and say, 'I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me.' (Philippians 4:13) Whenever you feel oppressed by wicked and unreasonable people around you, turn your eyes upon Jesus! Look to Him and say very boldly, 'The Lord is my helper, and I will not fear what man shall do unto me.' (Hebrews 13:6) Whenever pain and discomfort afflict you because of illness, turn your eyes upon Jesus! Look to Him and say, 'Most gladly therefore will I rather glory in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me.' (1 Corinthians 12:9) Whenever you turn your eyes upon the Lord Jesus you will be able to rejoice in Him, and no one can take that joy away from you. 

And so we have seen that faith in the risen Lord brings both lasting peace and lasting joy to troubled hearts. However, that peace and joy should not be kept all to ourselves. It has to be shared widely with others. The blessings that the disciples received when they saw and believed in their resurrected Master were meant to be proclaimed to all men. And this is what Jesus commissioned them to do in v.21, 'As my Father hath sent me, even so send I you.' This brings us now to the second lesson on having faith in the Risen Lord-

II. Faith in the Risen Lord is the Basis for the Church's Mission on Earth (vv.21-29).

The only reason why we can carry out our mission as a church today is that Jesus has risen from the dead. If Jesus had not risen from the dead, we would have no good news at all to proclaim. What v.23 says about remission of sins would be impossible. As 1 Corinthians 15:17 says, 'If Christ be not raised, your faith is vain; ye are yet in your sins.' If Jesus had not risen from the dead, we would also have no power to proclaim the good news effectively. In verse 22 we see Jesus breathing on His disciples. This was a symbolic act which signified His giving of the Holy Spirit to empower them for service. This was fulfilled 50 days later at Pentecost. It was only with the Holy Spirit's power that the Church of Jesus Christ could become a movement to make disciples of all nations, and to be His witnesses to the uttermost parts of the earth.

Today the Church can look back and see how its mission on earth has been gloriously fulfilled. The Gospel has been preached in all parts of the world, and it continues to bring lasting peace and joy to sinners who turn to Christ. Could this have happened if Jesus had not risen from the dead? Never! It was only through His resurrection that those first disciples could go forth and fulfill their mission. And likewise, it is only through His resurrection that His Church has been able to fulfill its mission over the past two thousand years.

And Jesus may already have had the Church in mind even when He appeared to those disciples and ministered to them. Please look at what He said to Thomas in v.29 'Thomas, because thou hast seen Me, thou hast believed: Blessed are they that have not seen, and yet believed.' Who was this special blessing meant for? It was obviously not for Thomas nor for the other disciples, since they all believed only after they had seen Him. The ones whom Jesus had in mind here are believers like you and me, believers from every age of history who have never seen Him and yet we believe in Him.

There are also other points in this passage which strongly suggest that Jesus had the Church in mind. Consider for instance, the day on which all these events happened. Verse 18 tells us that it was the first day of the week, which is Sunday. And verse 26 tells us that Jesus appeared to the disciples again after 8 days. To the Jews, a part of a day is considered as a day. This explains why, when Jesus said that He would rise from the dead after 3 days, it turned out to be only 2 days later because it includes Friday, the day of His death on the cross. Following this, His appearance to Thomas in v.26 would have taken place on a Sunday, just like the first time He appeared to the disciples. The disciples apparently made Sunday the day for their weekly gathering because of Christ's resurrection and called it the Lord's Day (Revelation 1:10). And this would eventually lead to the Church's use of Sunday as the day of the week when Christians gather together for worship. According to Matthew Henry it is highly probable that Jesus promised to meet His disciples every Sunday besides other times, during the 40 days before His ascension up to heaven.

What does this mean for us? It means that when we come to Church to Sunday, we are in a sense re-enacting by faith the experience of the disciples in our passage - We gather together in one place just like they did, in anticipation of meeting with our Lord Jesus. We come in faith, believing that Jesus Himself is present here to take all our doubts and fears away and to refresh us with the Holy Spirit whom He has breathed upon us. 

And when we take the Lord's Supper, our faith is strengthened as we behold His body and blood represented in the bread and cup. They serve the same purpose as the wounds on His hands and side which Jesus showed to those disciples in v.20, testifying of His death on the cross. And as the Lord Jesus speaks to us through His Word every Sunday, He may comfort us with words of peace, or He may rebuke us for being as faithless as Thomas, or He may instruct us to go forth in His name and do His will, just as He instructed the disciples in vv.21 and 23. And then at the end of our meeting with our Risen Lord, He blesses us, as in v.29.

Think of what the result may be if such intimate fellowship with Christ were to become our own experience in Church every Lord's Day. I think we would all be filled each time with a new resolve to go forth and fulfill the mission that He gave us. The Risen Lord Jesus will work actively in and through us. He will build His Church and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it! 

So we must look forward to each Lord's Day when we can come together to meet Him by faith. Let us not forsake the assembling of ourselves together, as the manner of some is (Hebrews 10:25) but make it our top priority to be in the Lord's House for our weekly appointment with Him! We should not follow the example of Thomas. Unlike the rest of the disciples, He continued to live in doubt and fear for a whole week. And nothing that they said about their blessed encounter with the Lord could convince him that Jesus had truly risen from the dead. He remained stubbornly firm in his unbelief. Why? Because he had not been there to experience the encounter for himself! He was absent when the disciples met together on that Sunday. And it was only when he attended their meeting next Sunday that he realized what great blessings he had missed! 

So please make sure that you don't miss those great blessings. Make it a point to keep your weekly appointment with the Lord and His people every Sunday. Even though you can always read your Bible and worship at home, it is not the same as being in His House for the worship service. Therefore, unless you are sick or infirmed with age, you should never be absent from church on Sundays. 

But how about those who are still unsaved? Should you be absent from Church on Sundays? No, because of the Word of God which is always preached and taught here. By coming to Church regularly, you have ample opportunities to learn many precious truths from God's Word. But please don't ever think that you can be saved merely by coming to Church every Sunday. No one ever got saved merely by attending Church. There is only way one way to be saved, and it is through personal faith in Jesus Christ. As Acts 16:31 tells us 'Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved and thy house.' And if you truly believe in Jesus you will express it - you will confess that Jesus is your Lord and Saviour. This leads us now to the third and final lesson on having faith in the Risen Lord:

III. Faith in the Risen Lord Saves You when You Confess Him as Your Lord and Saviour (vv.30-31)

Please look at the last two verses which forms the conclusion to the Gospel of John '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.' 

Here the writer reveals his purpose for writing this book. It is to enable his readers to learn about Jesus, and especially about the many miraculous signs He did. And these signs prove beyond all doubt that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God. Since we began our study of John's Gospel 4 years ago, we have seen how Jesus turned water into wine (2:1-11), how He healed a nobleman's son who was almost dying (4:46-54) and how he made a man who had been paralysed for 38 years walk again (5:1-18). We have learned that Jesus can feed an entire crowd of over 5,000 people with only 5 loaves of bread and 2 small fishes (6:16-21), and how He healed a man who was born blind (9:1-7). We have also learned how Jesus raised Lazarus from the dead after he was buried for 4 days. In our last few sermons we saw His greatest miracle - How Jesus raised His own body back to life! 

So we come the question: Now that you know all these signs in John's Gospel which are only a fraction of all that Jesus did, what is your conclusion about Him? Is it the same as the conclusion of Thomas? Thomas arrived at his conclusion in an interesting way. Look at v.25 '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.' Compare this with what Jesus said to him in v.27 on the following Sunday 'Reach hither thy finger, and behold my hands; and reach hither thy hand, and thrust it into my side...'

How could Jesus have known everything that Thomas had said? What does this reveal about Jesus? It shows us that He is the omniscient God. Nothing is hidden from Him. Jesus knows everything that happens. He knows every word that you and I have ever said. There is only one conclusion that we draw from this: Jesus is truly God Himself - the true and living God who came down to earth in human form. This explains why Thomas responded as he did in v.28 'My Lord and my God.' Dear friends, will you also give the same response? Will you acknowledge that Jesus is both Lord and God? Well, that acknowledgement is not good enough. You must go on to confess Him as your Lord and your God, like Thomas. There must be personal submission to Him. This means giving Him willingly all rights to your life, withholding nothing at all from Him. 

Why? Because He is worthy! Jesus is worthy to receive all your love - you're your whole-hearted devotion. This is not unreasonable at all, if you consider how Jesus has made you an object of His love and devotion. His love for Thomas was revealed in the way that He granted so readily every condition for believing that Thomas had set in v.25 '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.' Jesus could easily have taken great offense at all these conditions, and at his strange refusal to be convinced by the reasonable testimony of all the rest. What right did Thomas have to demand this when he had refused to believe his fellow disciples? But instead of showing any displeasure at doubting Thomas, Jesus dealt with him lovingly, even calling him by name in v.29. And He lovingly brought Thomas to faith in Himself with a gentle rebuke in v.27 'Be not faithless, but believing.' When we study the next chapter of John's Gospel we will see how Jesus would show the same love in restoring Simon Peter, the disciple who had denied Him three times.

And Jesus has not changed the way that He deals with people. He would show you the very same love. He says to you now, 'Be not faithless, but believing.' If you are a sinner, Jesus calls you now to trust Him completely to save you from your sins and from eternal death. If you are already saved, Jesus calls you now to fulfill the mission He has sent you to fulfill, trusting Him to work in you and through you. And if you are fearful and troubled, Jesus calls you now to trust Him to bring His lasting peace and joy into your life. Dearly beloved, will you heed His call today, especially when you know that it comes from the One who has proven Himself to be most worthy of your trust? O let us not be faithless any more, but believing!

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