On Thomas and Experts - John 20

1. A Prayer for the People of God
O God,
you raised up Jesus Christ
as your faithful witness
and the first-born of the dead.
By your Holy Spirit, help us to witness to him
so that those who have not yet seen
may come to believe in him
who is, and was, and is to come.
Amen.

2. The Church Calendar
April 24

3. John 20
on THOMAS and EXPERTS…

4. Later on that day, the disciples had gathered
together, but, fearful of the (Jewish leaders),
had locked all the doors in the house.
Jesus entered, stood among them, and said,
“Peace to you.” Then he showed them
his hands and side. The disciples, seeing
the Master with their own eyes, were
awestruck. Jesus repeated his greeting:
“Peace to you.
Just as the Father sent me, I send you.”
JOHN 20:19-21 (MSG)

5. Then he took a deep breath and breathed into them.
“Receive the Holy Spirit,” he said. “If you forgive
someone’s sins, they’re gone for good. If you don’t
forgive sins, what are you going to do with them?”
But Thomas, sometimes called the Twin, one of
the Twelve, was not with them when Jesus came.
The other disciples told him, “We saw the Master.”
But he said, “Unless I see the nail holes in his hands,
put my finger in the nail holes, and stick my hand
in his side, I won’t (trust).”
JOHN 20:22-25 (MSG + 2nd Testament)

6. Eight days later, his disciples were again in the room.
This time Thomas was with them. Jesus came through
the locked doors, stood among them, and said,
“Peace to you.” Then he focused his attention on
Thomas. “Take your finger and examine my hands.
Take your hand and stick it in my side. Don’t be (un-
trusting. Trust.)”
Thomas said, “My Master! My God!” Jesus said,
“So, you (trust) because you’ve seen with your
own eyes. Even better blessings are in store
for those who (trust) without seeing.”
JOHN 20:22-25 (MSG + 2nd Testament)

7. A literary device, also known
as bracketing or an envelope structure,
which consists of creating
a frame by placing similar material
at the beginning/end of a section.
INCLUSIO

8. In the beginning was the Word,
and the Word was with God,
and the Word was God.
JOHN 1:1 (NRSV)
Thomas said,
“My Master! My God!”
JOHN 20:28 (MSG)

9. • Why wasn’t Thomas there with
the other disciples the first time?
Was he angry/despondent?
• How did Jesus get in the house?
• Why was seeing Jesus wounds
enough for the other disciples,
but Thomas had to touch them?
• What were those eight days like?
• What was Jesus doing all that time?
Why did he wait so long?
I HAVE QUESTIONS…

10. John 20
on THOMAS and EXPERTS…

12. • From Holton, KS, then Lawrence/KU
• Mom died of cancer when he was 5;
his dad was a janitor; hard childhood
• Wrestled deeply with the meaning
of life and how to make sense of it all
in the midst of human suffering
• Escaped into the safe, logical world of
baseball and statistics
• Invented SABRmetrics ; his insight and
expertise changed baseball
and how we think about all kinds
of things re: statistical analytics
BILL
JAMES

13. • Eventually got fed up with how
his work was being applied,
both by those in/out of baseball
• Rejected the notion of being an
expert outside his narrow skill set, and
challenged those who he saw
as wildly misapplying his work
BILL
JAMES

14. 1. I love that Thomas wasn’t an expert
and didn’t claim to be one
I HAVE SOME THOUGHTS…

15. Don’t let this rattle you. You trust God, don’t you?
Trust me. There is plenty of room for you in my
Father’s home. If that weren’t so, would I have
told you that I’m on my way to get a room ready
for you? And if I’m on my way to get your room
ready, I’ll come back and get you so you can live
where I live. And you already know the road I’m
taking.”
Thomas said, “Master, we have no idea where you’re
going. How do you expect us to know the road?”
JOHN 14:1-5 (MSG)

16. 1. I love that Thomas wasn’t an expert
and didn’t claim to be one
2. Though always gracious/loving,
I think Jesus, too, gets more miffed
by those who claim to be experts
than those who know they aren’t
I HAVE SOME THOUGHTS…

17. Notice that the text doesn’t
say “and when they had
repented of what complete
(jerks) they had been; and
when they had perfected their
faith and the purity
of their doctrine; and when
they had finally became
good people, THEN they were
worthy of being
visited by Jesus.”
NADIA
BOLZ-WEBER

18. 1. I love that Thomas wasn’t an expert
and didn’t claim to be one
2. Though always gracious/loving,
I think Jesus, too, gets more miffed
by those who claim to be experts
than those who don’t
3. I have a tremendous amount
of respect for Thomas, both for
his honesty and his courage
I HAVE SOME THOUGHTS…

19. …though Jesus loved Martha and her sister and
Lazarus, after having heard that Lazarus was ill, he
stayed two days longer in the place where he was.
Then after this he said
to the disciples, “Let us go to Judea again.” The
disciples said to him, “Rabbi, the Jews were just now
trying to stone you, and are you going there again?”
Then Jesus told them plainly, “Lazarus is dead. For your
sake I am glad I was not there, so that you may believe.
But let us go to him.” Thomas, who was called the Twin,
said to his fellow disciples, “Let us also go, that we may
JOHN 11:5-8, 14-16 (NRSV)

20. There are no experts on God except
Jesus, because he is God; and there are
no experts at being human except
Jesus; he was one, and still is. Anyone
presenting themselves as experts on
either subject is either ignorant of their
own hubris, or is aware of it,
but is convinced a sense of certainty
along these lines is required for
genuine faithfulness and is trying to
convince others of the same error.
The point is trust, not “expertise.”
DEACON
GODSEY

21. Prayer
Creator of the universe,
you made the world in beauty,
and restore all things in glory
through the victory of Jesus Christ.
We pray that, wherever your image is still disfigured
by poverty, sickness, selfishness, war and greed,
the new creation in Jesus Christ may appear in justice,
love, and peace, to the glory of your name.
Amen.