From Doubting to Believing
Delivered on April 11, 2010 at The United Church of Winchester, NH
Affirmation
Each of us has to find a way to push away the stone of our internal tomb, and stand up in the light. Staying in the tomb isn't an option; Jesus showed us that. Yet we also struggle with how to step into the light and let the darkness stay behind. Doubt is the mother of faith and many times there is more faith expressed in sincere, honest doubt than in the recital of a creed or an affirmation of faith. Doubt gives expression to the questions we have, and as we seek answers to those questions we learn, grow, and cope with our doubts. Doubts cause turbulence in our lives, but often in the midst of doubting Christ breaks into our lives and speaks to the storm, "Peace be still," and to us He says, "Peace be with you." Please join me in our prayer of affirmation.
Lord, we all have moments of fear, of doubt, of grief. Like the Disciples in the days after your Crucifixion, we find ourselves in black pits of despair, wondering if we are on the right path and if what we are doing is what You really want. We sometimes let our minds spend too much time in Your tomb, and not enough time in the revelation of your Resurrection. Each of us has suffered from a dark time in our life, and some of us suffer now. Help us to live up to your example, and teach us through example to step into the light, Your light, and leave behind our grief, mistakes, and sins. Let our souls be lightened, filled with Your glory and the knowledge of the Resurrection of us all.
Moment of silence.
Sermon - From Doubting to Believing
In our NT reading of John today, we heard that Jesus came to the Disciples who were meeting quietly in a dark room, afraid for their lives. Imagine, if you will, how they felt. The thought in their mind would be, “He's dead, all is lost!” and “Am I next?” and then Jesus walks in, whole and hale. How many jaws fell? How many hearts skipped a beat at that moment? What were they thinking as they saw his hands, his side, his feet? Yet there was joy, because here was their beloved teacher, returned to them! Then what does he do? Jesus breathes on them.
This is an echo of what God does to animate Adam in Genesis. The breath of God gives life, and in this case, new life and new purpose. In a way, this was a Baptism for them, bringing them fully into the new world they were about to create. Essentially, it is their Baptism in fire, which Jesus promised.
But Thomas was not there. When he returned they clamored to tell him what had happened, and he didn't believe. Would you have? “Jesus came back from the dead and he had holes in his hands and feet, and he breathed on us and now we're all ready to go forgive sins!” We think of sins as things to be forgiven by our repentance because we've grown up with it. In those days, amongst the Jews especially, it would have seemed heretical talk. Only God forgave sins... and some of the Pharisees believed God didn't even do that.
Thomas is called the Doubter, and we often cast him in a negative light for his disbelief. Really, though, we should not mock him. I don't think any one of us could have done differently. How could you believe such incredible tales without seeing for yourself? Let's not condemn him for doubt which may have simply been a healthy skepticism.
Jesus doesn't seem offended by Thomas's doubt. Neither do the other Disciples. The following week he returns, and allows Thomas to prove to himself that Jesus is real. Thomas immediately honors Jesus with his full title: “My Lord and my God!” Jesus doesn't rebuke Thomas. He simply states that it's easier to believe what you see than what you don't see. For those of us living 2000 years later, believing may not be so simple, and seeing is not really an option.
We've talked about caterpillars and butterflies a lot through our Capital Campaign. At this time of the year, as spring continues to bring more light and warmth to our lives but hasn't yet blossomed into full summer, it's easy to stay in our warm, safe cocoons and hide. Belief? It's too hard. How many times have you been asked by someone, “How can you believe all that stuff?” Have you ever found yourself silently responding, “I'm really not sure...”? I have. I have doubts. I firmly believe that every person has doubts at some point in their life. Isn't it a form of doubt that brings us out of the safety net of the cocoon? The doubt of “what's out there?” or “maybe I do need to push out of the darkness” can be the catalyst to our becoming the butterflies that we're meant to be.
In the dark room where the Disciples were hiding, a room often described in a way reminiscent of the Tomb, Jesus came in to them. He breathed on them. I don't know that he dispelled their doubt, but he certainly changed it. Instead of doubting him, they doubted their own resolve, and that led them to become better Disciples in the long run. His breath, the living Breath of God, touched them and gave them the positive spin they needed to break free from their fear. Eventually it gave them the strength to withstand the persecution of their fledgling religion, through torture and death. They became butterflies, fragile and beautiful, but free.
What about us, though? We don't get to see with our eyes. Our belief is more hard won. Not only can't we see, but we can't even talk to someone who was there. It was 2000 years ago, and everyone is long gone. We rely on a book, a wonderful and exciting book, but a book touched by human hands many times. Doubt creeps in. Is it real? Was Jesus real? Did he really rise from the dead? How do we know it wasn't a metaphor?
For me, the defining moment is when Jesus appears to Mary Magdelene in the garden. She's alone, confused, grieving, and crying. When she sees a man there, she begs him to tell her if he knows where Jesus' body is. But it IS Jesus, and he stops for that moment, that eternal moment, before he speaks her name. “Mary.” That's all he says. Yet it is enough. She doesn't need to touch his hands and feet. For Mary, all that is needed for belief to blossom is to know that her precious Lord is there, alive and apparently well.
Some of us are Thomases. We need to see and feel and experience for ourselves. Some of us are Marys, needing only that moment of revelation to sink in for our faith to grow. Neither is wrong. Neither is better. We're all human beings, prone to error and doubt and confusion. We're all sometimes blinded by our cocoon walls.
We shouldn't look down on Thomas for his doubt, because that doubt led to stronger belief. He only highlights the mistakes and errors of our own lives, our own doubts and concerns. Yet, Thomas was not looked down upon for his lack of belief in Jesus. His faith remained strong, even though his belief did not.
It's important that we, too, learn to question. Moses challenged God many times in the OT. Thomas, while not directly challenging Jesus, does question him. It's alright for us to do so, also. After all, if you want to proclaim the Good News, you must have had this personal revelation. Otherwise, all you are doing is spreading a rumor, spreading gossip.
Think on this: if you go to buy a bottle of wine, or to cash a check, the clerk is likely going to ask you for your driver's license or ID. Why? They can see you're you, right? They ask, though, because they need to make certain that you really are who you claim you are. Thomas wasn't so different. He simply wanted to see Jesus' ID. Let's make sure we check spiritual ID's before we believe claims that seem outlandish, hm?
We sometimes talk about being “reborn” into Christian community. Often, this is preceded by something I call the “Dark Night of the Soul.” Metaphorically, it is the moment of dread darkness, when all around us seems dead and faithless. It's the time when despair overtakes us, overwhelms us almost entirely. In a way, it is a type of death. We say phrases like, “It sucked the life right out of me,” to describe it. This is the death that Jesus helps us to walk past.
When we reach that dark point, that moment when we are in our personal emotional tomb, Jesus holds out his hands for us, giving us strength to stand up and roll away our own tomb stone. This is the modern version of the experience that John refers to, it is our awakening into faith in Jesus, in God, and in ourselves. It is our OWN resurrection, choosing to walk at Jesus' side.
When we doubt, we can turn it into an opportunity to seek out visible and tangible evidence of our faith. When we question, we challenge ourselves as much as God, and we learn more about ourselves and the world we live in. Doubt leads to knowledge, personal knowledge of God and his work in our lives. That personal knowledge, that knowing deep inside your heart, is the same knowing that the Disciples had when they saw Jesus among them after his death. We are no different than they were, after all!
The quote I chose for our bulletin today is by Margaret Mead: "Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world; indeed it's the only thing that ever has." The Disciples, and indeed all the early Christians, were just that – a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens who changed their world. When we work to make our church better, both spiritually and physically, we are changing our world much as our ancestors did. It is a torch that we gladly carry on. Yet change does cost. It costs in emotions, because each person deals differently with change in their lives. It also costs in shekels, in money, as we build and learn and grow.
As we take our offering for this morning, I invite you to sit and listen to the music, and to take this moment to give generously of your loving spirit as much as of your wallet. We, too, are a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens, and we can – and ARE – changing our world!
Benediction
Lift your hidden faces, Ye who wept and prayed;
Leave your covert places, Ye who were afraid.
Here's a golden story, Here is silver news,
Here be gifts of glory, For all men to choose.
Alleluia, alleluia! Praise the Lord with thanksgiving: Praises sing to God!”
-- Lift your Hidden Faces, Rose Fyleman, 1928
As we go out into our day, as we face the world outside our sanctuary walls, let us do so with smiles on our faces. Jesus has died, and yet he has risen again! The Good News is there, and it is ours to tell, not just in words but in the everyday actions of our daily lives. Like Jesus, let us have the strength and creativity to show, rather than tell, about the wonderful, heart-wrenching, beautiful Good News!
Affirmation
Each of us has to find a way to push away the stone of our internal tomb, and stand up in the light. Staying in the tomb isn't an option; Jesus showed us that. Yet we also struggle with how to step into the light and let the darkness stay behind. Doubt is the mother of faith and many times there is more faith expressed in sincere, honest doubt than in the recital of a creed or an affirmation of faith. Doubt gives expression to the questions we have, and as we seek answers to those questions we learn, grow, and cope with our doubts. Doubts cause turbulence in our lives, but often in the midst of doubting Christ breaks into our lives and speaks to the storm, "Peace be still," and to us He says, "Peace be with you." Please join me in our prayer of affirmation.
Lord, we all have moments of fear, of doubt, of grief. Like the Disciples in the days after your Crucifixion, we find ourselves in black pits of despair, wondering if we are on the right path and if what we are doing is what You really want. We sometimes let our minds spend too much time in Your tomb, and not enough time in the revelation of your Resurrection. Each of us has suffered from a dark time in our life, and some of us suffer now. Help us to live up to your example, and teach us through example to step into the light, Your light, and leave behind our grief, mistakes, and sins. Let our souls be lightened, filled with Your glory and the knowledge of the Resurrection of us all.
Moment of silence.
Sermon - From Doubting to Believing
In our NT reading of John today, we heard that Jesus came to the Disciples who were meeting quietly in a dark room, afraid for their lives. Imagine, if you will, how they felt. The thought in their mind would be, “He's dead, all is lost!” and “Am I next?” and then Jesus walks in, whole and hale. How many jaws fell? How many hearts skipped a beat at that moment? What were they thinking as they saw his hands, his side, his feet? Yet there was joy, because here was their beloved teacher, returned to them! Then what does he do? Jesus breathes on them.
This is an echo of what God does to animate Adam in Genesis. The breath of God gives life, and in this case, new life and new purpose. In a way, this was a Baptism for them, bringing them fully into the new world they were about to create. Essentially, it is their Baptism in fire, which Jesus promised.
But Thomas was not there. When he returned they clamored to tell him what had happened, and he didn't believe. Would you have? “Jesus came back from the dead and he had holes in his hands and feet, and he breathed on us and now we're all ready to go forgive sins!” We think of sins as things to be forgiven by our repentance because we've grown up with it. In those days, amongst the Jews especially, it would have seemed heretical talk. Only God forgave sins... and some of the Pharisees believed God didn't even do that.
Thomas is called the Doubter, and we often cast him in a negative light for his disbelief. Really, though, we should not mock him. I don't think any one of us could have done differently. How could you believe such incredible tales without seeing for yourself? Let's not condemn him for doubt which may have simply been a healthy skepticism.
Jesus doesn't seem offended by Thomas's doubt. Neither do the other Disciples. The following week he returns, and allows Thomas to prove to himself that Jesus is real. Thomas immediately honors Jesus with his full title: “My Lord and my God!” Jesus doesn't rebuke Thomas. He simply states that it's easier to believe what you see than what you don't see. For those of us living 2000 years later, believing may not be so simple, and seeing is not really an option.
We've talked about caterpillars and butterflies a lot through our Capital Campaign. At this time of the year, as spring continues to bring more light and warmth to our lives but hasn't yet blossomed into full summer, it's easy to stay in our warm, safe cocoons and hide. Belief? It's too hard. How many times have you been asked by someone, “How can you believe all that stuff?” Have you ever found yourself silently responding, “I'm really not sure...”? I have. I have doubts. I firmly believe that every person has doubts at some point in their life. Isn't it a form of doubt that brings us out of the safety net of the cocoon? The doubt of “what's out there?” or “maybe I do need to push out of the darkness” can be the catalyst to our becoming the butterflies that we're meant to be.
In the dark room where the Disciples were hiding, a room often described in a way reminiscent of the Tomb, Jesus came in to them. He breathed on them. I don't know that he dispelled their doubt, but he certainly changed it. Instead of doubting him, they doubted their own resolve, and that led them to become better Disciples in the long run. His breath, the living Breath of God, touched them and gave them the positive spin they needed to break free from their fear. Eventually it gave them the strength to withstand the persecution of their fledgling religion, through torture and death. They became butterflies, fragile and beautiful, but free.
What about us, though? We don't get to see with our eyes. Our belief is more hard won. Not only can't we see, but we can't even talk to someone who was there. It was 2000 years ago, and everyone is long gone. We rely on a book, a wonderful and exciting book, but a book touched by human hands many times. Doubt creeps in. Is it real? Was Jesus real? Did he really rise from the dead? How do we know it wasn't a metaphor?
For me, the defining moment is when Jesus appears to Mary Magdelene in the garden. She's alone, confused, grieving, and crying. When she sees a man there, she begs him to tell her if he knows where Jesus' body is. But it IS Jesus, and he stops for that moment, that eternal moment, before he speaks her name. “Mary.” That's all he says. Yet it is enough. She doesn't need to touch his hands and feet. For Mary, all that is needed for belief to blossom is to know that her precious Lord is there, alive and apparently well.
Some of us are Thomases. We need to see and feel and experience for ourselves. Some of us are Marys, needing only that moment of revelation to sink in for our faith to grow. Neither is wrong. Neither is better. We're all human beings, prone to error and doubt and confusion. We're all sometimes blinded by our cocoon walls.
We shouldn't look down on Thomas for his doubt, because that doubt led to stronger belief. He only highlights the mistakes and errors of our own lives, our own doubts and concerns. Yet, Thomas was not looked down upon for his lack of belief in Jesus. His faith remained strong, even though his belief did not.
It's important that we, too, learn to question. Moses challenged God many times in the OT. Thomas, while not directly challenging Jesus, does question him. It's alright for us to do so, also. After all, if you want to proclaim the Good News, you must have had this personal revelation. Otherwise, all you are doing is spreading a rumor, spreading gossip.
Think on this: if you go to buy a bottle of wine, or to cash a check, the clerk is likely going to ask you for your driver's license or ID. Why? They can see you're you, right? They ask, though, because they need to make certain that you really are who you claim you are. Thomas wasn't so different. He simply wanted to see Jesus' ID. Let's make sure we check spiritual ID's before we believe claims that seem outlandish, hm?
We sometimes talk about being “reborn” into Christian community. Often, this is preceded by something I call the “Dark Night of the Soul.” Metaphorically, it is the moment of dread darkness, when all around us seems dead and faithless. It's the time when despair overtakes us, overwhelms us almost entirely. In a way, it is a type of death. We say phrases like, “It sucked the life right out of me,” to describe it. This is the death that Jesus helps us to walk past.
When we reach that dark point, that moment when we are in our personal emotional tomb, Jesus holds out his hands for us, giving us strength to stand up and roll away our own tomb stone. This is the modern version of the experience that John refers to, it is our awakening into faith in Jesus, in God, and in ourselves. It is our OWN resurrection, choosing to walk at Jesus' side.
When we doubt, we can turn it into an opportunity to seek out visible and tangible evidence of our faith. When we question, we challenge ourselves as much as God, and we learn more about ourselves and the world we live in. Doubt leads to knowledge, personal knowledge of God and his work in our lives. That personal knowledge, that knowing deep inside your heart, is the same knowing that the Disciples had when they saw Jesus among them after his death. We are no different than they were, after all!
The quote I chose for our bulletin today is by Margaret Mead: "Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world; indeed it's the only thing that ever has." The Disciples, and indeed all the early Christians, were just that – a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens who changed their world. When we work to make our church better, both spiritually and physically, we are changing our world much as our ancestors did. It is a torch that we gladly carry on. Yet change does cost. It costs in emotions, because each person deals differently with change in their lives. It also costs in shekels, in money, as we build and learn and grow.
As we take our offering for this morning, I invite you to sit and listen to the music, and to take this moment to give generously of your loving spirit as much as of your wallet. We, too, are a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens, and we can – and ARE – changing our world!
Benediction
Lift your hidden faces, Ye who wept and prayed;
Leave your covert places, Ye who were afraid.
Here's a golden story, Here is silver news,
Here be gifts of glory, For all men to choose.
Alleluia, alleluia! Praise the Lord with thanksgiving: Praises sing to God!”
-- Lift your Hidden Faces, Rose Fyleman, 1928
As we go out into our day, as we face the world outside our sanctuary walls, let us do so with smiles on our faces. Jesus has died, and yet he has risen again! The Good News is there, and it is ours to tell, not just in words but in the everyday actions of our daily lives. Like Jesus, let us have the strength and creativity to show, rather than tell, about the wonderful, heart-wrenching, beautiful Good News!
