Not seeing, yet believing

Jesus said to him, “Have you believed because you have seen me? Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed” (John 20:29)

To a certain extent of truth, seeing is believing. But it is not all that there is to know about believing. There is every possibility that a person can believe the truth of that which he does not see with his own eyes. There is every chance for one to believe in Jesus without having seen Him in person.

Jesus said to him (Thomas)

1. Thomas (who was also called the Twin) is the one being addressed by Jesus
2. He was indeed a loyal disciple of Jesus Christ
3. He could not bring himself to believe, through the testimonies of his friends that Jesus rose from the dead (John 20:24-25)
4. What does the struggle of Thomas tell us about the Apostolic teaching on the resurrection of Jesus Christ?
   1. The doctrine of the resurrection of Christ Jesus was not invented
   2. None of the Apostles was not hallucinated about the rising of Jesus from the grave
   3. They too were reluctant to believe the fact of the resurrection of Jesus
5. Jesus came down to the level where Thomas was struggling; Jesus gently individually addressed Thomas at the point of his weakness (John 20:27)

Have you believed because you have seen me?

1. It is quite natural for a person to believe what she sees
2. Thomas too believed that Jesus is the risen Christ simply because he has seen Him so (John 20:27-28)
3. Thomas’ belief in Jesus expressed itself in this dictum – “My Lord and my God” (John 20:28)
4. Many people came to believe in Jesus simply because they had seen who Jesus was (while walking here on earth)

Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed

1. There would come people who would believe in Jesus without seeing Him (Jesus) for who He really is
2. Blessed are those of us who have believed in Jesus without having the benefit of physically seeing the risen Jesus
3. The blessing pronounced will see us (1 Peter 1:8-9)
   1. Loving the Lord Jesus
   2. Rejoicing in the Lord
   3. Obtaining the outcome of our faith, just like the Apostles

May we always be thankful that we can believe in Jesus at all (Phil.1:29)!