Character Studies - ElectronicGospel

. Thomas insisted that he would only believe his friends if he could verify that the person theydescribed was really Jesus, by examining the wounds of the crossc. for eight days, Thomas waited and presumably doubted, until he received his answer (John20:26-29)1. John does not tell us that Thomas complied with Lord’s invitation to handle his wounds,but we do learn that Thomas doubted no more, for he cried out, “My Lord and my God!”2. still, Jesus gently reproved his disbelief and set the stage for 2000 years’ worth ofdisciples who would believe in spite of the fact that Jesus would soon walk among men no moreII. Some ApplicationsA. Courage at Times1. Thomas’s character reveals certain obvious inconsistencies, not in his morality or particularconvictions, but in the courage of thema. at times, he is fully prepared to risk death in order to accompany Jesus into hostile territory tosave a friend, but at other times, he is prone to despondency and pessimismb. the truth is that many of us are very similar in nature–it is not that we waver in ourconvictions, but that sometimes the courage of them is tested and we are found to be uncertain2. perhaps the apostle Paul recognized this same potential in young Timothy, whom he reminded totake heart and heed to the doctrine he was teaching (First Timothy 4:6-16)a. Paul had great confidence in the young man that he considered “a true son in the faith” (FirstTimothy 1:2), but he also recognized that pressures from unbelievers and even some fellow disciplescould undermine the courage required to uphold those convictionsb. and the end result can be a colossal waste of time and resources (Second Timothy 1:6-7)3. when we are cowed into quietness or even compromise, our days and our gifts go to wastea. and so the psalmist writes, “Oh, love the LORD, all you His saints! For the LORD preservesthe faithful, And fully repays the proud person. 24 Be of good courage, And He shall strengthen yourheart, All you who hope in the LORD” (Psalm 31:23-24).b. this is the kind of courage that joins us to the body of Christ (see Mark 15:43) and shouldeven be supplied by other members of that same body (see Acts 28:15)B. Curiosity1. beyond his later doubts, Thomas should also be known for the curiosity that led him to ask Jesusabout where he was going and how to follow him2. it is hard to know exactly what was going through his mind when he asked that question, for theapostles were still laboring to some degree under the mistaken idea that Jesus was going to lead them inrevolt against the Romans (see Acts 1:6)3. still, Thomas receives an answer that has become satisfying to billions of Bible readers whowondered in their consciences about following Jesus into the midst of Goda. Thomas had what Jesus blessed in the sermon on the mount–a hunger and thirst forrighteousness that craves knowledge and produces wisdom (see Matthew 5:6)b. it is practically the definition of a noble mind–one that examines Scripture in the search oftruth (Acts 17:10-12)4. we live in an age of information addiction and the television and internet feed so much of it,while the Bible is considered to be something that has been worn outa. in fact, most people haven’t the faintest idea what the Bible is really all about, and as theircuriosity about life is leading them into experimentation with immorality and mysticism, the real truth islying undisturbed in their hotel dresser drawers or collecting dust on a high book shelfb. are you curious enough about truth to ask the Bible life’s deepest questions? (First Peter1:22-2:3)C. Absence1. Thomas became the doubter, not through any great defect in his convictions, but for an accidentof absence2. it is amazing how much you can miss simply by being absent when the saints have gathereda. some have this fate befall them due to illness or other unavoidable circumstances, but for theones who choose to be absent from worship and Bible study, what they miss is all the more disturbing, fortheir ignorance becomes willful156! Jeff S. Smith