Luke 24:38
And he said to them, “Why are you troubled, and why do doubts arise in your hearts?
Doubting Thomas’s
Thomas wasn’t the only one who had doubts about Jesus coming back to life. When Jesus appeared to the disciples, He showed them His hands and His feet where the nail holes were still visible. He asked them the rhetorical question, “Does a spirit have flesh and bones as you see that I have” (Luke 24:39)? Let us not be too hard on them. Some of them had witnessed Jesus’ torture and death on the cross, or at the least they had heard that He was dead. Why would we not be surprised by their surprise? They didn’t really have the Scriptures opened up to them yet, and most of the nation of Israel didn’t expect the Messiah to come and die, so I can’t be too hard on them for their doubts.
Then They Got It
After Jesus showed them His hands and His feet and they still couldn’t believe their eyes, He asked for something to eat (Luke 24:41-42). This was when Jesus finally opened up their eyes and they understood for the very first time (Luke 22:45). He showed them from the Scriptures, all the way from Moses’ writings to the Psalms and the prophets, and then they understood (Luke 24:44-45). When Jesus said that He showed them from the Law of Moses, was this what has been called the protoevangelium in Genesis 3:15 where the seed of the woman was to crush the serpent’s head, and also in Deuteronomy 18 where Moses wrote that a prophet shall come who will do all that the Lord has commanded Him to speak (Duet 18:18-22)? It could well be that this is what Jesus showed them and perhaps what Psalm 21-23 meant, as well as Isaiah 53.
My Times of Doubt
I must admit and I’ve heard other Christians admit that they have times of doubt. Jude acknowledged that we need to help others and have mercy on those who have times of doubt (Jude 1:22). Have you ever doubted? Have you ever been troubled by doubts about your salvation, about whether God really does exist, or about whether this is all real or not? If so, you are in the vast company of other believers who have doubts from time to time, despite God not giving us a Spirit of fear (Rom 8:15). If you really want to dash your doubts to pieces, read Romans 8 or John 6 or 10. The Bible can help us alleviate the doubts and fears that we have all had at times and been troubled by.
A Closing Prayer
Righteous, holy Father, I know that You don’t want me to live in doubt or fear, so please, by Your Spirit, give me the reassurance that I need to know that You cannot ever forsake or leave me (Heb 13:5) and to know that I can always trust You, even when I can’t trust my own feelings. In Jesus’ precious name I pray.
Amen
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