A colleague of mine, Julia Wharff Piermont, preached a confirmation sermon on this text last week at Worthington Presbyterian Church in Worthington, OH. Her sermon included a reference to Thomas having a FOMO moment, which seemed like a great way to put Thomas' experience of missing seeing Jesus in an appropriate context, so I am grateful to her for that insight.
I always find the sermon on the day the confirmands profess their faith and join the church (some are baptized) to be a special moment. Much like Easter, I really wanted to make this sermon speak to the deep questions of our faith and the call to respond to the God of resurrection we discover in Jesus Christ.
“Believing” John 20: 19-31; SAPC, Denton; May 1, 2022; Confirmation Sunday; Richard B. Culp
24 But Thomas (who was called the Twin[a]), one of the twelve, 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 the mark of the nails in his hands, and put my finger in the mark of the nails and my hand in his side, I will not believe.”
26 A week later his disciples were again in the house, and Thomas was with them. Although the doors were shut, 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. Reach out your hand and put it in my side. Do not doubt 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 come to believe.”
30 Now Jesus did many other signs in the presence of his disciples, which are not written in this book. 31 But these are written so that you may come to believe[b] that Jesus is the Messiah,[c] the Son of God, and that through believing you may have life in his name.
Introduction: Benson, Josh, Wills, Sophia, Hunter, Fletcher, Griffon, and Ross - today’s sermon is written for you on this day you profess your faith and for Obenson and Sophia, come to the waters of baptism.
Everyone is invited to listen in - but, this is your sermon, and you don’t even have to do an outline of it.
move 1: The disciple Thomas has the Biggest FOMO moment, that is the greatest Fear of Mission Out Moment, in history come true.
Can you imagine being the one who missed seeing the resurrected Christ?
you’ve been following Jesus wiht all the others all this time, and then they were there when he appeared in resurrected form, but you missed him.
What does Thomas do? He doubles down on his FOMO moment:
“Unless I see the mark of the nails in his hands, and put my finger in the mark of the nails and my hand in his side, I will not believe.”
a. Let’s stop there and reflect on Thomas.
1. Thomas has been with Jesus,
seen what he has done,
heard what others have said about, a
nd surely thought for himself about who Jesus is. If nothing else, he had been there that day when Jesus asked, “Who do you say that I am?’
But, in this moment, he has to decide for himself. Will I believe in Jesus as my Lord and Savior, will I believe taht he has been resurrected,
or not?
b. Not exactly comparing Thomas to a confirmand, but you have spent the time since September reading the Bible listening to sermons to learn about God, the Holy Spirit, and Jesus Christ.
you have done lots of reflecting
you have studied how the Presbyterian tradition worship and lives out its calling as the body of Christ;
You have listened to what others in the class;
you have talked to people like your mentors and heard them speak about their experiences of God and they believe in Jesus Christ.
you have ever written a statement of faith
But, you have had to decide for yourself - will you believe in Jesus Christ,
or not?
move 2: Is this the first moment Thomas has stepped out in belief?
a. Maybe.
1.Certainly the first time he has expressed his belief in Christ since his death and resurrection.
2. But, I bet he has lots of moments along the way.
3. Moments of belief;
moments of uncertainty.
b. We do hear from Thomas at a couple other places in the Gospel of John
1. When Jesus decides to go back to Judea, where his enemies are biting for him, to see his good friend Lazarus who has died, Thomas says he’ll go with Jesus, even if it means he has to die with Jesus when his enemies get hold of him.
2. Later, when Jesus talks about going ahead the disciples to prepare a place for them, Thomas says, hey Jesus, we don’t know what you are talking about. We don’t know the place you are going.
3. From those stories, we might say Thomas is a 50-50 disciple - is full of faith about half the time.
4. that’s his average in the story we read - he begins doubting, and finishes professing “my Lord and my God.”
c. Not inviting you to be a 50-50 disciple, but that is the life of a disciple - believing one moment at a time,
1. But sometimes struggling to believe.
2. Never quite having it all figured out but stepping out in belief, one step, followed by another step, followed by another step.
3.sometime they are giant leaps of faith;
sometimes, tentative, uncertain steps;
sometimes, it may feel like you moving backwards.
4 but he keeps moving, trying, reaching out in faith to Jesus Christ, who is always coming back for him
d. not where Thomas is when this story takes places - hanging out with the other disciples.
1. he may not have seen the resurrected Christ, but he is surrounding himself wiht those who have.
2. look around - you see those people who surround you.
some full of certainty in their faith today;
some with questions;
all standing with you as you step out in faith.
c. After the story of Thomas, the writer of the Gospel says, “Now Jesus did many other signs in the presence of his disciples, which are not written in this book. 31 But these are written so that you may come to believe[b] that Jesus is the Messiah,[c] the Son of God, and that through believing you may have life in his name.”
1. Today, you join with those who tell the stories of why they believe.
2. On other days, you will need to listen and be reminded of others about why they believe.
3. Today, you stand and claim your faith for yourself, but you are not alone.
3. the Risen Christ is in your midst;
the body of Christ surrounds you and joins you, and they will be with you again and again as you live into your profession of faith.
Conclusion: Final thought - did you notice that we are never told if Thomas actually stuck his hand into Jesus’ side?
Why? because the story is not about proving Christ’s resurrection.
The story is about professing faith in Jesus Christ.
today you join with Thomas in professing, “my Lord and my God.”
