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CONLEY COMMENTARY (WSAU) – Who are you in the Easter story?
Are you one of the women who heads to the tomb early that Easter morning? They’re expecting a task of drudgery: embalming Jesus’ body. God had different plans for that day.
Are you Mary Magdalene, doesn’t recognize Jesus at first, and asks Him “if you have taken him away, tell me where and I will remove him”? She becomes the first evangelist. The one who tells the disciples that she has seen the risen Lord.
Are you Peter, who hears Mary’s fantastic story and runs to the tomb? There he finds the discarded burial cloth, and believes in the resurrection.
Are you one of the disciples, hiding in the locked room, fearful that the Jewish leaders might round you up and have you crucified next?
I know exactly who I am in the Easter story. I am Thomas. Doubting Thomas. I consider myself a person of reason. I would have seen Jesus scoured and nailed to the cross. A spear was jabbed into his side. His blood flowed. He was dead. It would be in perfect keeping with my nature to say something like, “Oh? He’s come back to life? Show me.” Thomas said until he could put his hands in Jesus’ side, and feel the wounds in his hand and feet, he wouldn’t believe.
I don’t consider Thomas to be bad. He’s being completely reasonable. He’s a lot like me.
Thomas also teaches me something important about faith. Oftentimes faith asks unreasonable things. Pray for your enemies. Love others as you love yourself. Repent of your sins and you shall have life everlasting. Those all unreasonable foundations of the Christian faith. Won’t I look like a pushover? Or a weakling? Why should I depend on something that simply cannot be proven?
Here’s why: because a faith that only exists after feeling nail holes isn’t faith. If we trust only in things that are verifiable, faith gets crowded out of our lives. That’s why Jesus says to Thomas “Because you have seen me, you have believed; blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.”
Jesus forgive me for the times when I am slow in my belief.
Chris Conley
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