BELIEVERS WITH A MISSION

George Butterfield
April 6, 1997

A. John 20:19-31.

B. This text is rich. There are three aspects of it that I want to stress this morning.

I. Believing in Jesus.

A. Notice in this text how the disciples come to believe in Jesus.

1. V. 8- John saw an empty tomb and believed.

2. Vv. 16-18- Mary heard Jesus' voice and saw him. Then she believed.

3. Vv. 19-20- the gathered disciples must see him and see his wounds.

4. Vv. 24-7- Thomas would not accept the testimony of others.

a. I think that by labeling Thomas "Doubting Thomas" we have made a distinction between Thomas and the others that is not legitimate.

b. Sure, Thomas doubted. But how was he different than the rest of the disciples? They all doubted. They all would not believe until Jesus appeared to them.

c. Thomas is just blunter, cruder than the rest. He has to see the mark and the wound and put his finger in the hole and his hand in his side before he'll believe. But when Jesus appeared to the others (v. 20) he "showed them his hands and his side." They're no different. Thomas just says it.

B. What can we learn from this?

1. We know that John records this for his readers (vv. 30-31).

2. Look at v. 29- Imagine a stage on which you have scenes and characters from first century Palestine. The theater is dark and future believers are silently watching what is going on up on the stage. Up there is Jesus and his earliest disciples. And Jesus is talking to them about faith and life. Then, all of a sudden Jesus turns and talks to the audience. "Blessed are those who have not seen and have come to believe."

C. What is the point of all this?

1. I think that John is saying that not everyone comes to believe in Jesus in exactly the same way. We're all different.

a. Some will read of miracles and signs and believe.

b. Some will receive food or clothing from the Lord's body and believe.

c. Others will reflect upon the empty tomb and believe.

d. Some will have to see the marks and the wound in the body of Christ, the Church, before they'll believe.

e. Some will come to faith in the midst of the worshipping community, the gathered disciples. Others will have an individual encounter with the Lord through the written testimony or through the faith of another believer or through reflecting on something that has stayed with them for years and years.

2. On the other hand, there are certain constants when it comes to belief.

a. In one way or another it is the risen Jesus who produces faith.

(1) Finely tuned doctrine won't do it.

(2) The most upbeat worship won't do it.

(3) Great church programs won't do it.

(4) These things are all wonderful. But people come to believe in Jesus when they, in one way or another, see the risen Lord. I'd like to think that in our worship and through our programs and what we teach people could see the risen Christ. But if they don't, faith will not come.

b. There is another constant: doubt.

(1) Even the disciples, after seeing the Lord, had doubts. Matthew really stresses this point, moreso than John.

(2) I believe that our doubt is a sign of the depth of our concern, that we do, in fact, have faith and that we take it seriously. I believe it was Paul Tillich who said, "Serious doubt is confirmation of faith. It indicates the seriousness of the concern." Doubt is a sign that we take our faith seriously, that we want to understand, to grow.

(3) Doubt can become cynicism and take on a destructive edge. But honest doubt is not unbelief. It's belief taking what it believes seriously.

II. The Mission of the Church.

A. Vv. 21-22.

1. Notice that the Father's sending of the Son serves both as the model and the ground for the Son's sending of the disciples.

2. Our mission, if we choose to accept it, is to continue the Son's mission.

3. What are the practical implications of this?

a. Jesus could not have fulfilled his mission without the presence of the Father. Likewise, without the presence of the risen Lord, we won't be able to fulfill ours.

b. The sending of Jesus by God meant that in the words, works, and person of Jesus humans were confronted not merely by a Jewish Rabbi but by God himself. Likewise, in the apostolic mission of the church the world is not just confronted by a human institution but by Jesus, the Son of God.

c. But how can this be? We are frail, we are sinners, in many ways we are nothing but a human institution.

(1) In Jesus' ministry he was entirely dependent upon and obedient to God the Father. He lived in the power of the Holy Spirit.

(2) Likewise, the church of Jesus Christ has been commissioned by Jesus and experienced the inbreathing of the Spirit of Jesus. And it is only as we trust him, obey him and live and move in the power of the Holy Spirit that we can fulfill our mission.

(a) We fail when we try to solve problems in our own wisdom and strength.

(b) We fail when we propagate our message instead of the message of Christ.

(c) We fail when we are more into man-made policies instead of the will of Christ.

B. V. 23- the Church is Christ's instrument of forgiveness. May we, like him, be a channel of mercy, forgiveness and grace.

III. The Worship of the Church.

A. John writes to a community of believers who live 50 years after the events recorded in this Gospel. Yet behind this text I think we can see John's attitude toward the Church as a worshipping community.

B. What is true when the Church gathers together in the name of Jesus as v. 19 says, "on the first day of the week"?

1. Jesus stands in the midst of the congregation.

2. Jesus offers God's peace to the worshippers.

3. But to see the Lord is to, like Isaiah, say, "Woe is me. I am a man of unclean lips and I dwell in the midst of a people of unclean lips."

4. Yet we hear the word from the Lord's own mouth, "Your sins are forgiven."

5. In the communion, the Lord's Supper, the eucharist, the Lord shows us his hands and his side and we rejoice when we recognize the Lord in the breaking of the bread.

6. Like Thomas, we fall on our faces and proclaim, "My Lord and my God."

7. The Holy Spirit of God descends and we are renewed and empowered for service.

8. And, finally, we hear the words of Jesus as we leave this place, "As the Father has sent me, so I send you."

C. We have not been a people to believe that much happened in worship. And sometimes it might seem that not a lot is happening.

1. But Thomas didn't show and missed the Lord.

2. May we have our eyes opened so that we can see the risen Lord standing in our midst.

Conclusion

A. Brothers and sisters, those first disciples rejoiced when they saw the Lord.

B. May we be people of faith who see Jesus, experience his peace, his life, his Holy Spirit and go forth to be the body of Jesus in this world.

C. My friend, if you believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and you want to confess your faith this morning and be united with Jesus in baptism, come.