Thomas and Pilate Connecting to God in…

How Was Your Day to Day? Was Jesus your guest or family member?

The Intent: So far we have looked at people connecting to God through having and being a mentor, studying the Word of God, odd experiences, victory, and in the day to day. Today as we look at a few passages about Thomas and Pilate I want us to see how connecting to God in honesty impacts your life.

About Thomas: We know that he was a twin because he is also called Didymus and that is what that name means. We know he was part of the twelve but other than that we do not know anything about him except what John brings forth.

About Thomas: Doubting Thomas and Chicken Little!

John 11:1-17 Page Jesus had been speaking of his death, but his disciples thought he meant natural sleep. So then he told them plainly, "Lazarus is dead, 15 and for your sake I am glad I was not there, so that you may believe. But let us go to him." 16 Then Thomas (called Didymus) said to the rest of the disciples, "Let us also go, that we may die with him." 17 On his arrival, Jesus found that Lazarus had already been in the tomb for four days.

Thomas’ Words : “Jesus, if you are willing to put your life at risk then we should risk ours to be with you.” The Message says it this way: "Come along. We might as well die with him."

John 14:1-8 on Page 1675 "Do not let your hearts be troubled. Trust in God; trust also in me. 2 In my Father's house are many rooms; if it were not so, I would have told you. I am going there to prepare a place for you. 3 And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with me that you also may be where I am. 4 You know the way to the place where I am going.“ 5 Thomas said to him, "Lord, we don't know where you are going, so how can we know the way?"

John 14:1-8 : JN 14:6 Jesus answered, "I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me. 7 If you really knew me, you would know my Father as well. From now on, you do know him and have seen him." 8 Philip said, "Lord, show us the Father and that will be enough for us."

Your Tendency? : Some people just quit. Some people work harder to figure it out on their own. Some people rely on others to figure it out. What is your tendency with the things in your life that confuse you? That tendency will likely carry over into how you deal with the confusion that comes during spiritual growth.

Inside His Head : Thomas honestly does not know what Jesus is taking about and so he stops and asks. He may be embarrassed by the others who did not ask. He may be the only one who does not seem to get it and so he could feel self conscious, but whatever is going on inside he steps over that to ask. He wants to be right with God.

John 20:19-31 Page On the evening of that first day of the week, when the disciples were together, with the doors locked for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood among them and said, "Peace be with you!" 20 After he said this, he showed them his hands and side. The disciples were overjoyed when they saw the Lord.

John 20:19-31 : 21 Again Jesus said, "Peace be with you! As the Father has sent me, I am sending you." 22 And with that he breathed on them and said, "Receive the Holy Spirit. 23 If you forgive anyone his sins, they are forgiven; if you do not forgive them, they are not forgiven." 24 Now Thomas (called Didymus), one of the Twelve, was not with the disciples when Jesus came. 25 So the other disciples told him, "We have seen the Lord!"

John 20:19-31 But he said to them, "Unless I see the nail marks in his hands and put my finger where the nails were, and put my hand into his side, I will not believe it." 26 A week later his disciples were in the house again, and Thomas was with them. Though the doors were locked, Jesus came and stood among them and said, "Peace be with you!" 27 Then he said to Thomas, "Put your finger here; see my hands. Reach out your hand and put it into my side. Stop doubting and believe."

John 20: Thomas said to him, "My Lord and my God.” 29 Then Jesus told him, "Because you have seen me, you have believed; blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed." 30 Jesus did many other miraculous signs in the presence of his disciples, which are not recorded in this book. 31 But these are written that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name.

Thinking it Through : Thomas did not think that he could believe unless he saw the Lord and touched Him. His heart was heavy at the loss of Jesus and so he may have honestly felt that if he did not get to experience Jesus in this way then he would not believe.

Thinking it Through : Instead of denying that he felt that way he shared his doubt and when he did encounter Jesus in the way that he thought he needed he realized that it was not necessary. He had reason to believe without actually touching Him.

For Us : In verse 20 it says that Jesus had shown the others His side and hands, maybe that is what they needed as well. We will not have that option. We will have to believe in the testimony of others and the work of the Spirit but when we connect with God in honesty it impacts us and others around us.

Today : Jesus is approachable today. When we have doubts or questions we can go to God and encounter Him in honesty. Tell Him your concerns, joys, questions, and take the time to lay it out before the Lord. When we approach God with this honesty and vulnerability we can grow in ways that are unimaginable as we take on the call of the Great Commission.

About Pilate… Pilate struggles with doing what he knows is right or following the crowd.

John 18:37-39 on page “You are a king, then!” said Pilate. Jesus answered, “You are right in saying I am a king. In fact, for this reason I was born, and for this I came into the world, to testify to the truth. Everyone on the side of truth listens to me.”

John 18:37-39 on page “What is truth?” Pilate asked. With this he went out again to the Jews and said, “I find no basis for a charge against him. 39 But it is your custom for me to release to you one prisoner at the time of the Passover. Do you want me to release ‘the king of the Jews’?” People today are confused and that is why you are in their lives.

Matthew 27:23-26 page “Why? What crime has he committed?” asked Pilate. But they shouted all the louder, “Crucify him!” 24 When Pilate saw that he was getting nowhere, but that instead an uproar was starting, he took water and washed his hands in front of the crowd. “I am innocent of this man’s blood,” he said. “It is your responsibility!” 25 All the people answered, “Let his blood be on us and on our children!” 26 Then he released Barabbas to them. But he had Jesus flogged, and handed him over to be crucified.

Let His Blood… Connecting to Jesus in honesty involves honoring His sacrifice and sharing the good news that forgiveness is available to everyone.

Thomas may have had his doubts but he took his doubts to God. How is your relationship with God? What do you talk to the Lord about? How open are you before the Lord? Pilate struggled with making the connection to Jesus instead of being swayed by the crowd. Where are you honestly at with Jesus?

Taking it Home : Take some time to express your concerns, your fears, your frustrations, and your failures to the Lord. Turn them over to God and when we do, we often find that what we thought we needed, we do not really need. What we needed was to give it to God. Connect with God in honesty and He will transform your life and use it to spread the good news as we go and make disciples.

Next Week: We Conclude With Connecting to God Changes Lives: Looking to Zacchaeus as He Counts the Cost of Being a Disciple of Jesus.