John 20:19-31

Faith in the Resurrectio= n gives us life and peace.

A sermon preached by

Dr. William O. (Bud) R= eeves

First United Methodist Church

Hot Springs, Arkansas

April 19, 2009

I remember a cute = story from years back about a little boy who was afraid of the dark. He just knew that there was someth= ing out there that would get him, something eerie and mysterious. So this little guy never wanted to= go outside once darkness had settled in. One night, his mother asked him to go out on the back porch and bring her the broom. Not exactly a wilderness safari, but the boy refused.&nb= sp; “Oh, mama,” he whined, “it’s already dark outside. I don’t want to go.”

His mother smiled at h= im reassuringly and said, “Don’t worry. You don’t have to be afraid.= Jesus is out there, and he’l= l look after you and protect you.”

The little boy looked = at his mother intently and said, “Are you sure he’s out there?”

“Yes, son, IR= 17;m sure,” his mom said. “Jesus is everywhere, and he’s always ready to help you whenever you need him.”

The little fellow thou= ght about that for a minute. Then= he went to the back door and cracked it open just a bit. He peered into the darkness and lo= oked around. Then he said, “= Jesus? If you’re out there, would you please hand me the broom?”<= /o:p>

What does it mean to s= ay, “Jesus is out there”? What does it mean to say, “Jesus is here. He is risen. He is alive.”? What sense can we make of the resurrection? What does Easter really mean to us today?

If such questions have= ever come into your mind, consider yourself in good company today. Most mature Christians have wrestl= ed with deep questions like these, and our Scripture today tells us that those questions go back all the way to the resurrection itself. Thomas, one of the twelve chosen disciples of Jesus, was one of the first to doubt the resurrection.

On the very day Christ arose, he appeared to his disciples, but Thomas wasn’t there. When he came in to the house, ever= yone told him what they had seen, but Thomas wouldn’t believe 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,” Thomas said, “I will not believe.”[1] From that moment on, doubt ha= s been the legacy of this disciple—doubting Thomas.

But can you blame him?= How could a rational person believ= e such a preposterous tale? They had seen Jesus suffer; they h= ad seen him die. How could he be= alive again? What proof was there t= hat this really happened?

One of the major stumb= ling blocks to faith in the resurrection is the inability to scientifically veri= fy these claims. All we have are= the testimonies of these witnesses who were already followers of Jesus. He didn’t appear to Herod or Pilate or Caiaphas. And after= he supposedly ascended into heaven, no one has seen him since. How do you believe in an invisible= yet living Lord?

Not only are these cla= ims scientifically unverifiable, there is abundant evidence that evil is still present in the world. The que= stion of the agnostic or the believer in another religion is this: If Jesus is the Redeemer of the wo= rld, why doesn’t the world look more redeemed? There are still tragedies that bre= ak our hearts, and the innocent still suffer.&nbs= p; What does the resurrection say to that?

Then there are the Christians themselves. If Jes= us is alive and leading his people, why don’t his people act more like him? Look at the church; it&#= 8217;s full of hypocrites and sinners! Down through the centuries, Christians have been guilty of just about every crime known to human society. A recent George Barna poll indicated that on about 40 different lifestyle issues, ranging from alcohol consumption to honesty, there was li= ttle if any difference between those who claimed to be Christian and those who d= id not. The research showed that= in the majority of cases, it’s hard to tell a Christian from a good-hear= ted heathen. How can we believe t= hat Jesus is alive?

Yet the resurrection f= aith is the central core of Christianity. Without Easter, we don’t have a faith. Remember what Paul wrote to the Corinthians? “If for this lif= e only we have hoped in Christ, we are of all people most to be pitied. But in fact Christ has been raised= from the dead.”[2] The church has been preac= hing this faith for 2000 years; thousands upon thousands of men and women have g= iven their lives to defend the truth of this claim: Christ is alive! We need to deal with the deep ques= tions and be honest about our doubts—I think that’s important for building a mature faith. But ultimately we have to find a way to get past our doubts and enter into a relationship with the living Lord, the very same One who did rise on Easter.

The heart of the Chris= tian faith is not a fact or a proposition; it’s a mystery. It’s an encounter; it’= s an experience. Christianity is a religion, and it can be studied in a rational and intellectual way. But a relationship with the living= Lord is something beyond religion, beyond the rational, scientific, intellectual capacities of human beings. I= t involves an experience of the living presence of God. It’s something that happens = in your heart.

John Calvin was one of= the great theologians of the Protestant Reformation 400 years ago. Nobody was more rational than John Calvin in the realm of theology. But Calvin himself admitted that the resurrection was hard to believe. How could a body, co= nsumed with rottenness, be raised up? Finally even Calvin had to admit that faith in the resurrection came through an experience of the power of God.= He said, “No one is truly persuaded of the coming resurrection unless he is seized with wonder, and ascribes to the power of God its due glory.”[3]

I know Christianity; I= have studied it all of my life. I = have earned degrees in religion. B= ut that’s not how I know that Jesus is alive. It’s not because of my knowl= edge of the Scripture or theology or church organization. It’s because in those moment= s of deep prayer, or in worship, or giving comfort to someone who is hurting, or driving down the road and seeing the sunset, I have this experience, this indescribable presence, and I know that God is real. I know that Jesus is alive. I know that I am loved and cared f= or. I know it because Jesus changed my= heart and keeps on changing it. Tha= t’s the evidence of the resurrection—changed lives of the children of God= . Here’s the evidence of the resurrection—26 young people making their profession of faith in Christ. That doesn’t co= me from honoring a great teacher who died 2000 years ago. That’s the work of a living = Lord!

Thomas experienced the presence of the living Lord when Jesus showed up again a week after Easter. He appeared before Th= omas and said, “Put your finger he= re and see my hands. Reach out your = hand and put it in my side. Do not= doubt but believe.”[4]

Thomas probably though= t, “Man! How did he know I= said that?” But then he took= one look at the hands and side of Jesus and fell down before him and cried out,= “My Lord and my God!” Now he believed!

But Jesus replied, = 220;Have you believed because you have see= n me? Blessed are those who have not see= n and yet have come to believe.”[5] In a sense, Thomas had it= easy; who could argue when Jesus was standing in front of you? Nowadays it’s a matter of faith. Faith is based on the experience of the risen Christ in your heart, in your spirit. The belief will overcome your doub= t when you can fall on your knees before Christ and say with Thomas, “My Lord and my God!” It has to = get personal.

Faith is like falling = in love. You ask ten different p= eople what it’s like to fall in love, and you’ll get ten different answers. For some it’s = love at first sight; for others it’s a gradual process of friendship bloom= ing into love. Love can even begi= n with hostility or animosity and turn around.

It’s like that w= ith Jesus. Some people grow up in church and just gradually come to know Jesus as their Lord and Savior. For others there is a dramatic conversion experience. Others= come to know Christ, fall away, then come back later. That’s the wonderful thing a= bout it—the resurrection faith is customized for each individual. However it happens, it happens in = the heart, and it involves a personal decision to let go and let God have contr= ol of your life.

That’s when you = find out what life is really all about. You experience God; you come to faith; and Christ gives you life. Why does John say he wrote this gospel? “These are written so that you may come to believe that Jesus= is the Messiah, the Son of God, and that through believing you may have life in his name.”[6] Our faith in the living Lord Jesus brings us life abundant here on earth and life eternal in heaven when we die.&nb= sp; That’s something to celebrate!

Dan Soman, writing in = the Christian Reader, tells about pass= ing by a table in a restaurant and spotting an old gentleman that he knew was goin= g to be celebrating his 100^th birthday the following week. That night some family members had= taken him out to dinner. Dan stoppe= d and said to him, “You’re out celebrating a little early, aren’= ;t you?”

The old gentleman look= ed up and replied, “At my age, son, every day is a celebration!”= = [7]

Every day can be a celebration for you, too, no matter what your age is! If you have experienced his presen= ce, if you believe in him in your heart, and you have tasted of his abundant life, then every day is Easter. The= sun comes up, and you get up, and you know that Jesus Christ is alive in the wo= rld with you. That’s life; that’s joy; that’s peace!

Let me close with a tr= ue story about a little girl from Racine, Wisconsin, named Harriet wh= o was looking for peace. Her grandp= a died suddenly in September, and she didn’t get a chance to tell him how mu= ch she loved him, how much she liked his stories, how much she enjoyed making homemade ice cream with him, or how much she would miss him.

One day in October Har= riet came home from a birthday party with a big helium balloon. She went into her room and wrote a letter to her grandpa:

Dear Grandpa, I hope this letter finds you happy with God. Since you have been gone I have th= ought about you every day. I miss y= ou. Second grade is fun. Polly had a birthday party, and that’s where I got this balloon.&nbs= p; Take care of yourself and write me a note. Lots of love, Harriet. P.S. If God doesn’t like hom= emade ice cream, just put it in the freezer.&nbs= p; I’ll be up there some day myself.

Harriet addressed = the letter, “Grandpa Barnett, heaven up high.” She put her return address on it, = went outside, and released the balloon into the gray Wisc= onsin sky.

In December, a far= mer in Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania, named Henry was feeding his cows on the back forty of his farm. He saw a blue balloon hanging limp= ly on the pasture fence. When he pi= cked it up, he found Harriet’s letter still attached.

Henry had been a w= idower for five years, and his life had been withering away for some time. He was well-educated, but had a skeptical attitude. He never = had believed too much in religion, and when his wife died, he quit going to chu= rch altogether. Gradually he let himself go, neglecting to shave, going for days between showers, wearing th= e same clothes for a week at a time. Then he found the letter.

On December 20th, Harriet came home from school to find a letter waiting for her. It said:

Dear Harr= iet, Your grandpa got your letter and he’s doing fine. Since they don’t find it nec= essary to keep material things up there, he passed it down to me and asked me to write. It was a nice thing fo= r him to do. You see, I used to thi= nk that God didn’t care very much about us people. I figured it was up to us to make = life as good as we could because that was all there was to it. But when your letter came to me, I realized how important it is for us to trust in some things that we canR= 17;t touch or see, like you did when you sent your grandpa that letter. I just got home from church where = our pastor made a point to remind us adults that we’re never as smart as = we think we are. He quoted a ver= se from the Bible where it says, “A little child shall lead them.”= I just wanted you to know that your letter helped lead me back to God. Oh, good news. God lov= es homemade ice cream, and it’s okay because up there you can have as mu= ch as you want for as long as you want it.&nb= sp; Sincerely, Henry Stuart (also a grandpa) [8]

Have you come here= today wondering what sense to make of the resurrection? Are you still hiding behind walls = that you have put up for yourself ? Are you waiting behind the closed doors of fear? Do you need to make it real in your heart today?

Christ is alive. In fact, Christ is here. He wants to touch your heart today= . Close your eyes and just reach out= to him in faith. Hear him whispe= r to you, “Do not doubt, but believe.” In this faith, you will find life = and peace, now and forever. Amen!=

<= /p>

“No one is truly persuaded of the coming resurrection unless he is seized with wonder, and ascribes to the power of God its due glory.”

Harriet:Dear Grandpa, I hope this letter finds y= ou happy with God. Since you hav= e been gone I have thought about you every day.&n= bsp; I miss you. Second gra= de is fun. Polly had a birthday par= ty, and that’s where I got this balloon.= Take care of yourself and write me a note. Lots of love, Harriet. P.S. If God doesn’t like hom= emade ice cream, just put it in the freezer.&nbs= p; I’ll be up there some day myself.

Henry: Dear Harriet, Your grandpa got your letter and he’s doing fine. Since they don’t find it nec= essary to keep material things up there, he passed it down to me and asked me to write. It was a nice thing fo= r him to do. You see, I used to thi= nk that God didn’t care very much about us people. I figured it was up to us to make = life as good as we could because that was all there was to it. But when your letter came to me, I realized how important it is for us to trust in some things that we canR= 17;t touch or see, like you did when you sent your grandpa that letter. I just got home from church where = our pastor made a point to remind us adults that we’re never as smart as = we think we are. He quoted a ver= se from the Bible where it says, “A little child shall lead them.”= I just wanted you to know that your letter helped lead me back to God. Oh, good news. God lov= es homemade ice cream, and it’s okay because up there you can have as mu= ch as you want for as long as you want it.&nb= sp; Sincerely, Henry Stuart (also a grandpa)

Harriet: Dear Grandpa, I hope this letter finds = you happy with God. Since you hav= e been gone I have thought about you every day.&n= bsp; I miss you. Second gra= de is fun. Polly had a birthday par= ty, and that’s where I got this balloon.= Take care of yourself and write me a note. Lots of love, Harriet. P.S. If God doesn’t like hom= emade ice cream, just put it in the freezer.&nbs= p; I’ll be up there some day myself.

Henry: Dear Harriet, Your grandpa got your letter and he’s doing fine. Since they don’t find it nec= essary to keep material things up there, he passed it down to me and asked me to write. It was a nice thing fo= r him to do. You see, I used to thi= nk that God didn’t care very much about us people. I figured it was up to us to make = life as good as we could because that was all there was to it. But when your letter came to me, I realized how important it is for us to trust in some things that we canR= 17;t touch or see, like you did when you sent your grandpa that letter. I just got home from church where = our pastor made a point to remind us adults that we’re never as smart as = we think we are. He quoted a ver= se from the Bible where it says, “A little child shall lead them.” I just wanted yo= u to know that your letter helped lead me back to God. Oh, good news. God loves homemade ice cream, and it’s okay because up there you can have as much as you want for as lo= ng as you want it. Sincerely, He= nry Stuart (also a grandpa)