Opening Prayer
Lord Jesus, overcome our unbelief; grant us grace to believe. Amen.
Text: John 20:24–31
But Thomas, called Didymus, one of the twelve, was not with them when Jesus came. The other disciples therefore said to him, “We have seen the Lord.” But he said to them, “Unless I see in His hands the print of the nails, and put my finger into the print of the nails, and put my hand into His side, I will not believe.” And after eight days His disciples were again inside, and Thomas with them. Jesus came, the doors being shut, and stood in the midst, and said, “Peace to you!” Then He said to Thomas, “Reach your finger here, and look at My hands; and reach your hand here, and put it into My side. Do not be unbelieving, but believing.” And Thomas answered and said to Him, “My Lord and my God!” Jesus said to him, “Thomas, because you have seen Me, you have believed. Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.” And truly Jesus did many other signs in the presence of His disciples, which are not written in this book; but these are written that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that believing you may have life in His name.
Devotion
How dark it seemed in Thomas’ soul, while he walked in unbelief! Was the Lord not risen and alive then? Was He not near? Was what Thomas thought in his unbelief true? O many who hear the Word and use the Sacraments are far worse unbelievers than Thomas and do not know the least bit of Christ’s peace, though the Lord truly is among us with His saving gifts. The other disciples who believe, those who had seen Him risen there, believe without seeing, – they had the truth, and they received peace. If you saw Christ die for you, saw Him nailed to the cross and dead, and saw Him risen with the nail prints and wounded side, if you saw Him open His arms to you and heard Him call to you with His own voice, would you then fall down and say with Thomas: “My Lord and my God!”? Would you give yourself to Him with your whole heart and serve Him with your whole soul? Would you rejoice in His love, be appalled at your sin, believe His forgiveness and hold on to His grace? Let us hope so. But now He is just as near to you in the Word, and yet you continue without peace in your heart! Truly, it is His own voice you hear in the preaching of the Gospel, in the Absolution, and the words of the Sacraments! Do you dare really think that your unbelief, which denies this or doubts it, is the truth, but the Lord’s own promise is a lie? What was right and true: Jesus’ Word about His resurrection or Thomas’ unbelief and denial? What is right and true: the Lord’s Word about His presence with grace and peace among His own until the end, or your unbelief which denies these? Poor soul, understand that He could still reveal Himself before our physical eyes, if He wanted, but He has decided: “Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.” Be satisfied with what the Lord in His gracious plan for our salvation has confirmed, and bow yourself before it: Believe without seeing, and you are saved. You can do it by God’s power in the Word. For the Word is the Spirit’s means to create and sustain faith in us. – Away with accursed unbelief, which makes the eternal true God into a liar! Yes, away with unbelief; it is a lie and belongs to the devil!
Closing Prayer
We pray You, merciful God, free us from the world’s dead faith, which receives Your grace in vain. And free us from the doubting thoughts of our unbelieving heart, which do not fully and completely let You rule over us with the truth of life. Give us the true faith, O give us the true, living faith, which builds simply on Your Word, receives Your grace, confesses Your name, and makes the soul confident in life and death. Amen.
Hymn
O Jesus, Treasure of our faith,
Beginning and its Ending!
O sweetest Jesus, grant me faith
Of Thy most gracious sending:
To have the faith within my heart
Thyself who surely True Faith art,
True faith, not dead, but living.
Teach me to put my confidence
In God, my dearest Father,
In Thee who art benevolence
To those who sin doth bother,
And in Thy Holy Ghost, our Light,
To trust in Thee, both day and night,
O Trinity most holy.
Let me the beauty of Thy grace
And Thy sure Word be knowing
That I may feel Thy sure embrace,
Repentance in me showing;
Sweet Jesus, stay with me for aye,
My Way, my Truth, my Life alway,
And faith’s sure path to heaven!
Denicke: O Jesu, Troens dyre Skat L 371:1-3 tr. DeGarmeaux;
tune: Es ist gewisslich (ELH 25); alternate hymn: Now I have found the ground wherein ELH 499:1