Today’s Reading: Luke 24:36-43; John 20:19-31

On the evening of that first day of the week, when the disciples were together, with the doors locked for fear of the Jewish leaders, Jesus came and stood among them and said, “Peace be with you!” After he said this, he showed them his hands and side. The disciples were overjoyed when they saw the Lord.

Again Jesus said, “Peace be with you! As the Father has sent me, I am sending you.” And with that he breathed on them and said, “Receive the Holy Spirit. If you forgive anyone’s sins, their sins are forgiven; if you do not forgive them, they are not forgiven.” — John 20:19-23

Thomas was not with the other disciples when Jesus appeared to them. If he had been there, he would have seen Jesus for himself. But Thomas was not in the room. His absence caused him to miss out on an opportunity to experience the risen Savior.

The disciples told Thomas what Jesus had said and what they had seen, but Thomas struggled to believe. He needed to see Jesus for himself — to see the nail marks in his hands and to touch the wounds where Jesus had been pierced. Thomas, still deep in his grief, needed proof in order to let go of his doubt and allow himself to believe that Jesus was alive.

Jesus appeared to Thomas, showing Him his wounds and calling him to believe. And because Thomas had not heard him say it to the other disciples, he took the time to say it again to this doubting disciple — “Peace be with you.”

Then he said to Thomas, “Put your finger here, and look at my hands. Put your hand into the wound in my side. Don’t be faithless any longer. Believe!”

Thomas said to him, “My Lord and my God!”

Then Jesus told him, “Because you have seen me, you have believed; blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.” – John 20:26b-29

ARE YOU LOOKING FOR JESUS TODAY?

There are many who were raised in the church yet still struggle to believe in Jesus and His Sovereignty. Today, I ask them and I ask you the same question Jesus asked Mary and the question I challenge myself with today, “Who are you looking for?”

Jesus is ready and willing to reveal Himself to us today but we will miss it if we do not expect it – if we live today without expectation that Jesus will personally reach out to us. Things will happen and we will call them coincidences. God’s blessings will pour out on our life and we will call ourselves “lucky”. Evidence of Jesus will be all around us and we will say, “I wish God would show Himself to me.” I don’t want to miss out on seeing God today.

We have been studying the gospels for several months now — accounts of Jesus’ life that were written so that we can believe that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God. It is in believing that he is who he says he is that we fully experience life in his name. Jesus’ call to Thomas to believe brings me back to one of the first verses I ever memorized and a verse we looked at towards the beginning of the book of John. It’s familiar to all of us and probably the most well-known verse in the Bible.

“For God loved the world so much that he gave his one and only Son, so that everyone who believes in him will not perish but have eternal life.” – John 3:16

Who are you looking for today? Will you join me in walking into our day with confidence that Jesus will reveal himself? Will you believe that Jesus is alive and actively involved in your life? And then, when we do experience Jesus today, let’s follow the same instructions He gave Mary and pass on the message to others – “I have seen the Lord!”