Faith and Doubt

The Show-Me State
May 4, 2025
Chris Seidman, Teaching Minister, The Branch

John 20:19-31 (NIV)
On the evening of that first day of the week, when the disciples were together, with the doors locked for fear of the Jewish leaders, Jesus came and stood among them and said, “Peace be with you!” After he said this, he showed them his hands and side. The disciples were overjoyed when they saw the Lord. (vs.24) Now Thomas (also known as Didymus), one of the Twelve, was not with the disciples when Jesus came. So the other disciples told him, “We have seen the Lord!” But he said to them, “Unless I see the nail marks in his hands and put my finger where the nails were, and put my hand into his side, I will not believe.” A week later his disciples were in the house again, and Thomas was with them. Though the doors were locked, Jesus came and stood among them and said, “Peace be with you!” Then he said to Thomas, “Put your finger here; see my hands. Reach out your hand and put it into my side. Stop doubting and believe.” Thomas said to him, “My Lord and my God!” Then Jesus told him, “Because you have seen me, you have believed; blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.” Jesus performed many other signs in the presence of his disciples, which are not recorded in this book. But these are written that you may believe that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in His name.

John 11:16 (NIV)
“Let us also go, that we may die with him.”

Categories of Doubt

• Intellectual – when our minds have reservations about whether or not something is true or actually happened.

• Emotional – this kind of doubt is most often associated with pain or trauma; we don’t feel like something is certain or true because of our experience.

• Moral – this kind of doubt has to do with not believing something because we don’t want it to be true because of what it may cost us.

John 20:26 (NIV)
A week later his disciples were in the house again, and Thomas was with them.

John 20:26 (NIV)
“Peace be with you!”

John 20:27 (NIV)
“Put your finger here; see my hands. Reach out your hand and put it into my side. Stop doubting and believe.”

John 20:28 (NIV)
Thomas said to him, “My Lord and my God!”

Takeaways

• For those of us with more doubt than faith right now: engage and don’t withdraw from people in faith.

• For those of us in more faith than doubt: be merciful and hospitable to those in doubt.

Jude 22 (NIV)
Be merciful to those who doubt.

• The more personal the struggle, the more personal the confession of faith on the other side.

More often than not I’ve found that the people who have a faith that cannot be shaken also have a story of themselves being shaken - and that’s how they got to a faith that cannot be shaken.

Communion

• Are you believing in Jesus today?

• Take a moment and join Thomas is his confession, “My Lord and my God!”

• Ask Him if there’s someone you need to be attentive to this week that could be struggling in their journey of faith.