"Be Not Faithless, But Believing."

There are several instances where the Lord Jesus presented Himself alive after His Passion, when by many proofs He appeared during forty days before He ascended into glory. Concerning these, John gives a longer account than do Matthew, Mark or Luke, and also more of what the Lord then said.

In John 20. 19, and 26, two of these appearances are recorded, and both occurred within a space of eight days. From the former one, the Apostle Thomas was absent; and because he disbelieved that the Risen Lord had been seen by the disciples, it resulted in the Lord saying to him later, "Be not faithless, but believing." Thomas was slow to believe what seemed incredible, although it came from trustworthy persons. He would only accept their testimony if, for himself, he could see his Lord's nail-printed hands, put his finger into the nail prints, and his hand into that side which had been pierced by a soldier's spear. Then, and only then, was he prepared to believe. How like some others who in another matter were slow of heart to believe (Luke 24. 25), and how like ourselves in matters of spiritual concern.

It is not difficult to imagine how surprised Thomas would be when seven days later the Lord Jesus came to His disciples (while they were again assembled within closed doors for fear), and after the precious benedictory greeting--" Peace be unto you," Thomas is invited to do just what be in his unbelief had said must be before he would believe. Truly, he must have been profoundly impressed, humbled, and overwhelmed in soul, and the confession bursts from his lips, "My Lord and my God! " As thus prostrate in spirit before his Lord, the words of gentle admonition are addressed to him, "Because thou hast seen Me, thou hast believed; blessed are they that have not seen, and yet have believed." The scene is one that may well be impressed indelibly on our hearts ; while precious thoughts of assurance and blessing are conveyed in the undying words of our living Lord!

We cannot over-estimate the value of words spoken by our Lord during His life's sojourn, neither can we prize too highly His utterances after His Resurrection and before His Ascension, and certainly these words, "Be not faithless, but believing," spoken as they were with the recently made marks of Golgotha on His Person, are significant and impressive to a degree. Even though for Thomas principally, they are words which will bring divine rest to our spirits as we enshrine them in our hearts; not merely reading them as in John 20. 27, but as hearing the Lord speaking them directly through the written Word to each of us.

unknown | Mar 1933
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