Doubting Thomas

It was in my first church I got a taste of hard skepticism. It was the kind of case that would make rookie preacher sweat

An 8-year-old named Bailey K.
Bailey was a precocious little girl, the child of a teacher, she was always incredibly inquisitive.
But she also wouldn’t just take ANYTHING because you said so.
One day, I was talking to the kids about God and Bailey interrupted the whole thing

Do you mean to tell me God has no parents?

Out of the blue

Yes, Bailey, God is non-created

Bailey – I’m not buying it.
She then went on to talk about exactly why that was impossible, using arguments that philosophers have used since Plotinus’/

A hardened 8-year-old skeptic.

But God bless our skeptics, they oftentimes make some of the greatest disciples of Christ

They keep on wrestling with the big ideas and, in the contest, continue to grow in Christ.

So, let’s read a text about a man who doubted.

“24 Now Thomas, one of the twelve, called the Twin,[d] was not with them when Jesus came. 25 So the other disciples told him, “We have seen the Lord.” But he said to them, “Unless I see in his hands the mark of the nails, and place my finger into the mark of the nails, and place my hand into his side, I will never believe.”

26 Eight days later, his disciples were inside again, and Thomas was with them. Although the doors were locked, Jesus came and stood among them and said, “Peace be with you.” 27 Then he said to Thomas, “Put your finger here, and see my hands; and put out your hand, and place it in my side. Do not disbelieve, but believe.”  28 Thomas answered him, “My Lord and my God!” 29 Jesus said to him, “Have you believed because you have seen me? Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.”

Who was Thomas?

HAVE YOU EVER MADE ONE MISTAKE AND GOTTEN CHARACTERIZED BY IT?

I’m a pretty good talker so when the Russian teacher got a chance to cast her play for the entire foreign language department, I was high on her list.
I froze
Kids in that class remembered that for the entire year, some, joked with me about it into the class the next semester, continued.

Thomas gets that name doubting because of one 8-day stretch.
Didymas, the Twin
HE isn’t given much character development in the other Gospels but here in John, we learn quite a bit about him in a short period of time.
First of all, we know he’s a twin.
He’s called with the rest of the disciples and, in John’s Gospel, he would’ve followed Jesus for about three years

He’d have healed and taken part in miracles and seen water changed to wine, Lazarus emerge from the tomb.

He ends up with a bad nickname, “Doubting”, when, in actuality, he’s displayed amazing faith in Jesus Christ.

John 11:14-16 – “Then Jesus told them plainly, “Lazarus has died,15 and for your sake I am glad that I was not there, so that you may believe. But let us go to him.” 16 So Thomas, called the Twin,[b]said to his fellow disciples, “Let us also go, that we may die with him.”