10.4- Are you a doubter?

 10.4-

 

Are you a doubter? We used to play a card game called, “I doubt it.” It is a simple card game where the point of the game is to get rid of all your cards. You start with Aces and work down through the values saying what you are putting on the table wit the cards face down. If I were starting I might lay down two cards and say, “Two aces.” If no one says,” I doubt it.” The next person puts down a King and it goes around that way. If you say, “I doubt it.” If they had the cards then you must take those and the stack of cards, but if they didn’t, they have to pick up their fake cards and the stack. This goes on until someone wins.

Do you ever hear someone down at church say something from the pulpit and you say to yourself, “I doubt it.”

Maybe the preacher is estimating the crowd. It could be that a very positive elder who is not a very experienced music person comments on the last hymn as being great singing and to you it was horrible.

These things may be overlooked as human judgments. But what if the basics of the gospel are spoken.

Jesus was born of a virgin.

Jesus lived a perfect life.

Jesus healed a man dead for four days.

Jesus rose from the grave after three days.

Jesus sent His Holy Spirit to fill the church.

Maybe these basic beliefs have been preached and your response from your heart of hearts was. “I doubt it.”

How does God feel toward you with this honest expression from your soul? God’s Son, Jesus, had a follower who heard that Jesus had risen from the grave. He said, “I doubt it.” Unless I see the nail marks in his hands and put my fingers were the nails were I will not believe.” Jesus reaction was this to Thomas. "Peace. Put your finger here. See my hands. Reach into my side and stop doubting."

To all you who read this who have doubts about the next life. Reach out and touch the body of Jesus. You may say, “How?” The body of Jesus is around today spiritually in the form of the church, His people. Touch. Reach. Engage. See what happens when you open yourself to touch and be touched by them. There is a blessing to seeing. There is also a blessing to those who do not see and yet believe enough to reach out and touch people who can help them and be helped by them.

 

John 20.

¹⁹ So when it was evening on that day, the first day of the week, and when the doors were shut where the disciples were, for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood in their midst and *said to them, “^[b]Peace be with you.” ²⁰ And when He had said this, He showed them both His hands and His side. The disciples then rejoiced when they saw the Lord. ²¹ So Jesus said to them again, “Peace be with you; as the Father has sent Me, I also send you.” ²² And when He had said this, He breathed on them and *said to them, “Receive the Holy Spirit. ²³ If you forgive the sins of any, their sins ^[c]have been forgiven them; if you retain the sins of any, they have been retained.”

²⁴ But Thomas, one of the twelve, called ^[d]Didymus, was not with them when Jesus came. ²⁵ So the other disciples were saying to him, “We have seen the Lord!” But he said to them, “Unless I see in His hands the imprint of the nails, and put my finger into the place of the nails, and put my hand into His side, I will not believe.”

^26 [e]After eight days His disciples were again inside, and Thomas with them. Jesus *came, the doors having been ^[f]shut, and stood in their midst and said, “Peace be with you.” ²⁷ Then He *said to Thomas, “Reach here with your finger, and see My hands; and reach here your hand and put it into My side; and do not be unbelieving, but believing.” ²⁸ Thomas answered and said to Him, “My Lord and my God!” ²⁹ Jesus *said to him, “Because you have seen Me, have you believed? Blessed are they who did not see, and yet believed.”

Why This Gospel Was Written

³⁰ Therefore many other ^[g]signs Jesus also performed in the presence of the disciples, which are not written in this book; ³¹ but these have been written so that you may believe that Jesus is ^[h]the Christ, the Son of God; and that believing you may have life in His name.