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'Doubting Thomas' Receives the Faith to Believe in the Resurrection of Jesus

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[John 20:28~29]

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."

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Jesus rose again. Hallelujah!

Jesus rose again three days after his death.
Then, Jesus appeared to many people and proved his resurrection.

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After Jesus died, the disciples were afraid that the Jews might do something bad to them so they locked the door and stayed inside. However, Jesus, who rose again, appeared among them and greeted them. "Peace be with you."

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To the surprised disciples, Jesus kindly showed his nailed hands and feet. Only after seeing the nail marks on the hands and feet of Jesus, did the disciples become happy because Jesus had indeed resurrected from the grave!!

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However, among the disciples of Jesus, Thomas, called Didymus, was not there.

The other disciples said to Thomas,

"Hey, we have met with Jesus, who has risen again."

The disciples gladly told Thomas about the reunion with Jesus.

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However, since Thomas did not see Jesus with his own eyes, he did not believe the words of the other disciples. "I am sorry but I cannot believe that Jesus rose again until I touch the hands and feet of Jesus." Thomas strongly said that he could not believe in the resurrection of Jesus until he put his finger in the hands and feet of Jesus and put his hand into Jesus' side.

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Thomas was not able to believe in the resurrection of Jesus. Thomas thought by himself. "How could a dead man rise again? That must be a lie. Maybe the people saw an illusion because they miss Jesus so much." Thomas thought that the resurrection of Jesus definitely had to be impossible.

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One week passed from the resurrection of Jesus.

Even that day, the disciples gathered in the house that Jesus had appeared.

Even that day, they were afraid so they locked the door and gathered in one place.

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That day, Thomas was also with them. Just like last time, Jesus appeared again.
Then, Jesus said, "Peace be with you."

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The people who were gathered there were so surprised and felt happy again

Jesus knew that Thomas was doubting the revival of Jesus.

Jesus came close to Thomas.

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Then, Jesus gave his hand to Thomas and said,

"Thomas, look at my hand." Jesus continued.

"Stretch out your hand and put it in my side. Stop doubting and believe."

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Thomas stretched out his hand and touched the nail marks in the hands of Jesus. Then he also touched the side that was pierced by a spear. At that moment, Thomas became ashamed of himself about not believing in the resurrection of Jesus.

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He bowed down in front of Jesus' feet and confessed,

"You are my Lord and my God."

The faith of believing in the resurrection of Jesus was made in the heart of Thomas.

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Jesus said to Thomas, who believed him only after seeing him.

"Do you believe me only after you have seen me? Blessed are the people who believe in me without seeing me." Thomas got the faith of believing in the resurrection of Jesus only after he had seen that Jesus truly had risen again.

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Believers of Jesus are the ones who believe that Jesus rose again three days after his death on the cross. To the believers of Jesus, the Holy Spirit gives the faith to believe in the resurrection of Jesus.

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If you doubt the resurrection of Jesus like Thomas, pray to God sincerely. Pray to God that you want to have a firm faith of believing in the resurrection of Jesus. Dear friends who already believe in the resurrection of Jesus, tell your friends that Jesus is alive and get praised by God.

(You can change the conclusion of this sermon best suiting to your listeners of this sermon. We want to make it clear that the provided conclusion is only a sample conclusion provided by CTM.)