An Absence, an Attendance, an Appearance, an Affirmation

May 3, 2015

John 20:24-29

Jesus arose on “the first day of the week”—Sunday (vs. 1). On that evening, the disciples were assembled together for the first Sunday evening church service (v. 19). They were discussing “the empty tomb.” They listened to Peter and the Emmaus disciples testify they saw the Lord. Suddenly, Jesus appeared out of nowhere right in the middle of their Sunday evening church service.

But the Scripture inserts this comment—“But Thomas, one of the twelve, called Didymus, was not with them when Jesus came” (John 20:24). Typical of some Baptists: Thomas missed this Sunday night church service!

In this message we’ll look at five things about Thomas’ absence and Christ’s subsequent appearance to Thomas.

I. The DISPOSITION of Thomas

His NAME (v. 24). Thomas (Heb.) = “twin” / Didymus (Gk.) =“double”
Did Thomas have a twin brother or sister?

APPLICATION: Every believe has an “alter ego” of two conflicting natures. An old nature is fleshy/carnal—Contrary to faith. The divine nature is spiritual and walks by faith.

During the emotional stress surrounding the crucifixion of Christ, Thomas gave into his carnal disposition. His carnal nature manifested itself in two ways:

A. His SOMBERNESS.

1. He had a melancholy temperament—sullen. Probably didn’t smile very much. Do you know anyone like Thomas?

2. He was somewhat of a pessimist, always looking on the dark side of things. Every time he said something in the Bible it was tainted with negativity (John 11:16; 14:5; 20:25). The only positive thing Thomas ever said was his confession after Jesus showed him the nail prints in His hands.

3. A “gloom and doom” attitude. When the Lord Jesus would go to Jerusalem to raise Lazarus, Thomas, looking on the dark side, said to the other disciples, “Let us also go, that we may die with him” (John 11:16). Who said anything about dying?

4. At least Thomas wasn’t a coward.

B. His SKEPTICISM. He is often referred to as “Doubting Thomas.” I would rather call him the apostle who wanted to be sure. He was the “apostle from Missouri” (show me).

In John 14 Jesus said, “Let not your heart be troubled: ye believe in God, believe also in me. In my Father’s house are many mansions … I go to prepare a place for you … And whither I go ye know, and the way ye know” (vs. 1-4).
But Thomas contradicted the Lord by questioning, “Lord, we know not whither thou goest; and how can we know the way?” (v. 5). Thomas never accepted anything unless he could fully understand it and “see it.”Thomas is like the guy that if you tell him there are 581,678,934,341 stars in the universe, he’ll believe you. But if you show him a sign that reads “Fresh Paint” he must make a personal investigation before he believes it!

II. The DELINQUENCY of Thomas.

Why was He missing? Did he know about the meeting? Was he too busy doing other things? Was he afraid? Scripture doesn’t say.

A. He wasn’t absent because he lost his love for the Lord. At heart, Thomas was extremely loyal to Christ—He would die for Jesus.

He followed Jesus for 31⁄2 years. He pinned all his hopes and future on Jesus being the Messiah.
However, the crucifixion of Christ took him by complete surprise. All his aspirations were nailed to the cross. His world was shattered, leaving him disillusioned … despondent… discouraged… and depressed. Isolation is linked to depression.
Thomas couldn’t get past the horrors of Calvary. He was completely devastated by the death of Christ.B. Understanding Thomas’ pessimistic attitude, he was probably wallowing in “the slough of despond.” He just didn’t believe Jesus was alive! Because, if Thomas believed Christ was going to show up at the meeting, he would have been there.
1. One of the main reasons people miss a church service— They don’t really believe Jesus will be present in the service.
2. On the other hand, none of the other disciples expected Jesus to show up either. They were assembled together trying to figure out what happened at the tomb.

C. Thomas not only missed the meeting and the testimonies, he also missed the Lord and His bestowal of peace! Whatever he was doing was not worth it.

It is sad that those who fail to attend church services miss the opportunity of meeting with the Lord Himself!
How do you spend your evenings on the first day of the week?