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Testifying without a touch
'Blessed are those who believe without seeing.' JOHN 20:29
Asking for proof before you believe something, can stop you from receiving what God wants you to accept based on His Word. Thomas watched Jesus die. That's a tough image to forget. He was majorly shook up.
When your faith has been shaken, you tend to cling to things that are basic, close and reliable. Stories of ghosts didn't fit in that category. But Jesus was gracious to Thomas and allowed him to touch his risen body saying, 'You believe because you have seen...Blessed are those who believe without seeing.' Thomas' problem wasn't lack of faith, it was misdirected faith. He trusted only what he could process on a human level. Sound familiar?
By contrast, when Mary Magdalene met Jesus at the tomb He told her, 'Don't touch me...But go find my brothers and tell them' (John 20:17 TLB). Mary was in an emotional state and just wanted a hug from the faithful friend she thought she'd lost forever. But Jesus needed her to start trusting His Word and not His flesh.
Sometimes we feel 'the touch of Jesus' calming us, strengthening us, reassuring us that He's in control. That touch has often kept us from giving up or going over the edge, but sometimes He asks us to simply trust Him at his word. That's faith at its highest level. So what's he saying to you today?
written by Bob Gass
