Read: John 20:19-31
I like to go to a park in Columbia, Tn called Chickasaw Trace. I ride my mountain bike there regularly. I meet my friend, Alex, on some mornings and we will ride a quick lap before our daily routines begin. Out of all of the places I ride, I ride Chickasaw more than anywhere else. It is my home trail (since it is the closest one from my house). It is a very challenging trail, so it is always a great workout. And, I learned how to mountain bike there so it is close to my heart.
One thing that I love about my regular visits to Chickasaw Trace is how I get to witness the changes it makes through the year. I was riding there a lot earlier in the year while it was cold and there were no leaves on the trees. I could stop in the middle of the ride and the wilderness was soundless. There was not a lot moving around. If a person were unfamiliar with the cycle of the seasons, it would be hard to convince them that everything would come back to life in only months.
During March and April I was unable to ride at Chickasaw much because of all of the rain that we got. Technically, you are not supposed to use the trails when they are wet and muddy. Too much use while wet will cause long-term damage. Since we had no rain last week I was good to go for a little ride Friday morning. I met with Alex and when we started to ride we both noticed that the trail had completely changed since the last ride. Everything was green and the woods were alive! The squirrels were jumping from tree to tree; rabbits were running around everywhere; and, the grass was grown over some sections of the trail. It only took those few weeks of rain and a little bit of sunshine to nourish everything back into strength. I always get excited about this time of the year because I love to witness God providing just enough nourishment to the natural world for sustainability.
I will spare you from my hippy, tree-hugging speech about the environment and how we all play a key role in being God’s hands and protecting the gift of nature. But, have you ever thought about how every living thing needs nourishment? If it is living, it has to have sustainability. As far as I know, I cannot think of a single living thing that does not need nourishment of some sort. When it dies, it no longer needs nourishment. In the fall and winter when the trees lose their leaves they do not die, they simply rest for a while. But, in the springtime with the Lord’s nourishment, they come to life and produce life for other organisms. For some reason, I find that very exciting. It gives me an example of God’s life-giving process. It makes for a great illustration of God’s process of life, of death, and of renewal.
God is well aware of each individual living organism that needs nourishment to live, breathe, and flourish. I think that we can agree that in the life of a living organism, as it takes in nourishment, it grows and becomes stronger. God provides that nourishment so that these organisms can be alive and grow. Much like a living organism, our faith requires the same. Our faith constantly requires nourishment to be alive, active, and to grow. Just like God provides nourishment for all living organisms, the Lord provides nourishment for our faith. The way that I see it, our faith is a living organism in itself. It needs nourishment, it needs to be healthy, it needs to be active, it needs to face challenges, it needs exercise, and it constantly needs to grow. Let’s face it; our faith is by far the most important part of our bodies. Our faith doesn’t just give us life; it gives us eternal life.
On the other hand, if one’s faith were not alive and active, why would it need nourishment? Why would God provide for something that is dead? If something is not active, it doesn’t need nourishment.
Before we go any further, let’s take a detailed look at John's story as he witnesses the living Christ. In this text we can witness a story of God’s life-giving nourishment not simply for living organisms but the faith of those that carried on the legacy of Christ and the bestowment of the ever-present Holy Spirit.
In the first section of this story we find the disciples hiding and locked behind closed doors. These Christ followers were in fear for their life because they knew that the road that Jesus took them on was full of risks. They were in fear of the consequences of following Christ. Therefore, they locked themselves behind closed doors. Let’s talk about this for a moment. Since the first Christ followers, for centuries Christians have been locking themselves behind closed doors. For these early Christians, hiding was the easiest option. Hiding was the safest option. That idea has carried on to our current disposition. Locking ourselves behind walls is the easiest option; it is the safest thing to do. But, just as these early Christ followers failed to understand, we fail to understand that the need is on the other side. The need is on the other side of the wall. The need is on the outside of the church. Jesus did not hide or lock himself inside the wall to avoid those on the other side. Jesus was on the other side. These Christ followers were in fear of what might happen if they unlocked the door and ventured into the unknown. Their faith was weakened by what the world showed them. But that is not what Christ commissioned them to do. After they locked themselves inside due to fear, Jesus came to them, offered them peace, and sent them outside of their enclosed place. Before he sent them he gave them the tools they needed to be courageous. The text tells us that he breathed the Holy Spirit on them and sent them to show the world the Spirit so that they might receive it too. There were needs on the outside and Jesus sent them out to meet those needs.
My friends, Jesus is on the outside of our enclosed safe places, sending us to go out with him. He is sending us to face our fears and to have courage. And, Jesus equips us with the tools we need to be courageous when we do this. This is the heart of the mission of Christ. Christ gives us the courage, nourishment, and the Holy Sprit to share with the world. To deny this opportunity is to deny the mission of Christ in the world.
When Jesus came to these disciples, to prove to them that he was real, he showed them his scars. Scars tell stories. I think we all have a scar or two and a story to tell. We have stories to tell in regard to how we got them. Jesus’ scars also tell a story, but not just his story; they tell our story too. Jesus’ scars tell us that his pain was essential to his life on earth. They are marks of a lived experience that affect our lives today. They, too, tell a story of his life and they tell a story of our life. For those that were present to see Jesus’ scars they knew that the Lord was there to fulfill a promise and a mission. But of the eleven disciples remaining, there was one that was not present. Thomas was not present. Now, we refer to Thomas as the one that doubted the return of our Lord. But, let us not demonize this disciple for his skepticism. First, the text does not tell us why he was not present. The text does not tell us why he was not there with the others hiding behind closed doors. He was the only one not hiding, which tells me that he might have had a little more courage than the rest of them. We can speculate that he might have skipped town but we don’t know that. There is a good chance that he continued to serve the poor or the people in need despite what his comrades were doing. But, when the others tell him that they have seen the Lord, he says the same that anyone would say. He says, I need to see it for myself. I mean, come on! Thomas was just a straight shooter. He was a no nonsense kind of guy. He needed to know for sure; he needed the nourishment that the others had received. He needed proof. Thomas, along with all the others present, witnessed the brutal death of his friend, Jesus. He saw him beaten, humiliated, the wounds, the blood, and he saw Jesus take his last breath. I feel like we would all do the same.
Second, I believe Thomas had a lot of faith in Christ. But, his faith was slowly weakening. His faith needed nourishment. He needed to see those wounds, he needed to witness the risen Christ, and he needed the breath of Christ just as the other disciples needed it. Thomas’ faith was becoming weak and it needed some nourishment.
Last year my mom gave me a large healthy tomato plant to put on my back porch. I put it out on my porch so that it would get some sunshine. I went out of town for a few days and I assumed it would be fine until I got back. When I returned I noticed that the wind had blown the plant over and some of the dirt had dumped out. When I tilted it back up I noticed that it had started to wither. Some of the leaves had started to turn yellow and it was drying out. I packed some dirt back in it, watered it, put some fertilizer on it, and put it in the sunlight. In a matter of a day the plant branched back out, the leaves perked up, and some blooms came out. All it needed was a little nourishment and the touch of a gardener. With this little bit of encouragement it came back to life. I have a feeling that if my tomato plant had the ability to think it would have thought that there was no hope for growth or prosperity. It might have thought that hope was lost. But, with the nourishment of the gardener it started growing and serving a purpose.
When Thomas’ faith was starting to weaken Christ gave him the nourishment that he needed to grow. Jesus came to Thomas like a gardener and gave him strength and affirmation of hope. He strengthened his faith and gave him sustainability to move forward with the mission of Christ.
Much like plants, trees, nature, life, weak disciples, and Christ followers, we all need nourishment; our faith needs to be strengthened. Active faith needs to be nourished. The disciples had locked themselves away from the world and the things that they feared the most. If they had kept themselves locked away their faith would have withered and eventually died. But, Christ came to them and led them to be active with their faith. Christ has come to us and commanded that we be active in our faith. Christ has commissioned us to step beyond our walls and be courageous. Just like when trees, plants, and the life around us becomes active, God strengthens it with the proper nourishment. When we step outside of these walls and become active we receive an abundance of nourishment. Christ has given us the same breath of life that he gave his disciples. Now, we must go and share it with the world around us. When we do this we will find nourishment and growth.
In verses 22 and 23 the Lord tells his followers, “Receive the Holy Spirit. If you forgive anyone’s sins, they are forgiven; if you don’t forgive them, they aren’t forgiven.” Friends, we have received the Holy Spirit and with it we have been given a great responsibility, to forgive people of their sins. They say, with great power comes great responsibility. We have been given a great power. With it we have a great responsibility. When we serve this request of Christ, we gain nourishment. Our Lord openly gives it to us. Receive this responsibility and serve the mission of the risen Christ.
