Introduction

·        Illustration: Missouri is nicknamed the Show Me state because of a quote from Congressman Hillard Duncan Vandiver: “Frothy eloquence neither convinces nor satisfies me.  I am from Missouri.  You have got to show me!”

·        Doubting Thomas got his nickname because he would not believe that Jesus was really alive until he could see the nail prints in his hands and touch his wounds.

·        In the realm of faith, we, like Thomas, find ourselves being pushed beyond the limits of ordinary logic.

Faith is not belief without proof, but trust without reservation.

·        Thomas’ doubts were the normal consequences of what it means to be human.

·        If we did not doubt, we would be hopelessly naïve.

      -     Illustration: In the play A Raisin in the Sun, the mother longs to use her late husband’s insurance money to buy a little home for her family, but gives in to her son’s dream of a business venture. His partner skips town with all of the money, and they are left with nothing.

Faith demands a commitment to a Person.

·        Illustration: Evangelist Billy Sunday humorously answers the age-old question of where Cain and Abel got their wives by saying, “Don’t risk losing salvation by too much inquiring after other men’s wives.”

·        Biblical writers were not concerned with offering logical explanations of how God created the things that exist, but only the affirmation that God is the source of all life.

·        Thomas does not inquire after the logic of Christ’s resurrection, but the reality of Christ’s presence in his life.

·        John 20:28–29

·        John 16:13

·        Big Idea: Because Christ has risen, the Spirit of Truth has come to empower us to take the leap of faith.

Conclusion

·        The Spirit of Truth has come to make it possible for us, who have not seen, to believe.

·        The experience of his presence can be as real to us as it was for Thomas.

·        We can acknowledge, in faith, the supremacy of love in our lives with God and with one another.

·        We who love Christ can give nothing less than our full faith response to the cries of “show me” from those who doubt.