John 20:19-31
April 27, 2025
Larry Bird was one of the greatest professional basketball players of all time. He won numerous awards and multiple championships. Many times when his team needed one more basket to win a game, Larry was usually given the ball and would take the last shot. One of his most famous game winning shots took place with 3 seconds left in a game against Seattle. The coach called a timeout, gathered his players together, and drew up the final play for Larry to get the ball and take the last shot. As Larry came out of the huddle, he went to the player on the opposing team who was guarding him and told him, “I’m getting the ball and I’m taking the last shot right here at this red mark on the floor.” And sure enough, even though the opposing team knew what Larry was going to do, he got the ball, took the last shot at the red mark, and made it to win the game. His teammates often said they knew if they gave the ball to Larry he would find a way to win the game for them.
Do you have a Larry Bird in your life? Someone you can count on when the going gets tough? Are you overwhelmed as a parent in trying to take care of your children? Well, just flip the ball to the grandparents and let them take over. Can’t figure out your math homework? Call on mom, she will guide you through it. But what do you do when those you normally count on let you down? Like when the doctor cannot figure out how to treat your illness or disease? Or when your spouse of many years tells you, “I don’t love you anymore.” Or when you get a letter from the company you’ve worked for over the past 15 years, telling you that your position is being cut. Who do you turn to then? Our Gospel lesson for today has the answer: put it in Jesus’ hands and trust Him. Let Him deal with your fears and doubts, because He has already dealt with death and your sins.
Our Gospel lesson describes the events of that first Easter Sunday evening when most of the disciples were hiding out in a locked room, because they were afraid, with Jesus having been unjustly crucified a few days earlier, that they might be the next target for Jesus’ enemies. Adding to their concerns and fears was the rumor that Jesus was alive. Now you would think that would have been a reason to celebrate. But how would you feel if your boss, who you failed to support at work, even though he had hired you for your position, was unjustly fired, but now was returning to work as your boss, having cleared his name? Would you want to avoid him, ashamed of how you had been less than supportive? Would be afraid that he might now make life difficult for you? Likewise, the disciples certainly had a lot to be ashamed of with the things they did or failed to do over the last several days. Jesus lived with them for 3 years. He taught them and took care of them. A week earlier they had promised to stand with Jesus no matter what, but they quickly abandoned Him after He was arrested. So how would He treat them now? So they hid.
But you cannot hide from Jesus. He knew where the disciples were hiding, so He went to them. What’s interesting about this is that it wasn’t planned this way in advance. What I mean is the day before Jesus died, He told His disciples, “After I have risen, I will go ahead of you into Galilee.” Then, after He rose from the dead, an angel said to the women at the empty tomb, “Go and tell his disciples, ‘He has risen from the dead and is going ahead of you into Galilee. There you will see him.’” As the women were on their way to tell the disciples, Jesus appears to them and said, “Go and tell the disciples to go to Galilee; there they will see me.” I’m sure the women told them what Jesus and the angel said, but the disciples do not go to Galilee. Why? Because they did not believe that Jesus had risen from the dead. So they stayed in Jerusalem, about 60 miles south of Galilee, in a locked room fearing for their lives. But Jesus’ love for His disciples was so great, that He goes to them, not to put them down by saying, “You sorry disciples, why did all of you doubt me?” But to strengthen them and to reassure them of His love for them. Jesus then miraculously appears in their locked room and says, “Peace be with you.”
The startled disciples, though, were a little slow to believe what they were seeing. In fact, the Gospel of Luke tells us that Jesus ate some food in their presence in order to prove that He was not a ghost. But when the disciples realized that Jesus was really alive, they were thrilled, but there was one, in addition to Judas, who was not there to rejoice with them – Thomas. We don’t know where he was, but we learn in this text that his absence hurt his faith. And maybe that’s a warning to us, Jesus’ moder day disciples. Whenever we pull away from the church and the fellowship of believers, no matter the reason, our faith may suffer.
When the disciples eventually met up with Thomas again and told him the news that Jesus was alive, Thomas refused to believe it. In fact, he insisted that he wouldn’t believe it unless he saw Jesus with his own eyes and touched His hands and side. But why would these guys, who had spent 3 years with Thomas following Jesus, lie to him? Thomas did not just doubt the resurrection, at this moment he demonstrated a firm unbelief.
You could say that Thomas was just being stubborn when he refused to believe, but stubbornness can destroy relationships and lead to unbelief. How many marriages, business partnerships, and friendships has stubbornness ruined? Don’t let it ruin the most important relationship you have: your faith in Jesus.
But stubbornness can also be used for good. The other disciples showed a “righteous stubbornness” when they kept telling Thomas that they had seen the Lord alive and refused to abandon him and let him wallow in his unbelief. And, of course, Jesus did not give up on Thomas either. A week later when the disciples were in that locked room again, this time with Thomas, Jesus appeared to them and again said, “Peace be with you.” Jesus then told Thomas to touch His hands where they nails had been and to touch His side. By encouraging him to do the very thing Thomas had demanded, Jesus showed that He had known all about Thomas’ doubts. But now Jesus was inviting Thomas to place all of his doubts into His hands. And Thomas did so when he confessed to Jesus in verse 28, “My Lord and my God!”
Whatever doubts or fears you may be facing today, I encourage you to put them in Jesus’ hands as well and trust Him. He is, after all, your Lord and God. There is no problem too difficult for Him to handle. He handled death, didn’t He? There is no situation too embarrassing or too small or so messed up that He doesn’t want to touch it. He’s already handled our sins, right? Just consider those marks from the nails on His hands. They testify to the brutal nature of our sin. Sin hurts, destroys, and kills; but at the same time those scars from the holes in Jesus’ hands speak to the depth of His love for you and me. He allowed nails to be pounded into His hands and feet, and a spear to be thrust into His side, so we could live with Him today and forever.
Larry Bird was a great basketball player and while he made several baskets at the end of games to help his team win, there were times when he missed the last shot and his team lost. You could say his most famous miss took place in the championship series in 1987 against the Los Angeles Lakers. With 3 seconds left in the game, Larry got the ball, as everyone expected, and was wide open, but he missed the shot. As a result, instead of being tied 2 games each, his team went down 3-1, and went on to lose the championship.
Do you ever feel that way about Jesus? Sure, He hit the winning shot on Easter when He rose from the dead, but maybe after your Easter celebrations you are still hurting today and you’re wondering where Jesus is or if He is listening since your struggles continue. Perhaps the reason it appears that Jesus is not helping is that you’re not letting Him take control of the situation. Instead of giving it all to Him and trusting Him, you keep stubbornly trying to do things your way. Put everything in Jesus’ hands and let Him handle the situation, including your fears and doubts, after all, He has already dealt with death and your sins.
