Sometimes, it just isn’t possible to shake a nickname. One of my favorite athletes, Landon Donovan, has that problem. Landon is arguably one of the best soccer players the United States has ever produced, but has the nickname, “Landy Cakes.” How did he get that? By constantly underachieving early in his career, seeming soft, and failing to make that big impact on a game. However, that changed in 2010. With the US facing elimination, and with time winding down on the clock, he scored the stoppage time goal needed to help the United States advance to the next round in the World Cup. He finally rose up for the moment! He delivered! And the nickname? It was still there. Despite his triumph, he could never fully ditch the nickname, “Landy Cakes.” Sometimes, you just can’t! Do you have a nickname that cannot be nixed? Do you have one that you are stuck with? Maybe, is it a family or friend who has one? My mother-in-law calls me “Kooi Kid” even though I’m married and have a child.
Thomas the Apostle knows what this is like. You know his nickname. What is it? “Doubting Thomas.” Even though he doubted the resurrection of Jesus, he also gives one of the greatest and grandest confessions of Jesus: “My Lord and My God!” However, that is not enough to ditch the nickname. He isn’t called “Believing Thomas,” “Confessing Thomas,” “Thomas the Confessor,” or “Slow to believe Thomas,” but, still, “Doubting Thomas.” This morning, we will look at his five-word proclamation, and see what it means for us Easter people. Christ is Risen!
On Easter evening, the 10 disciples and others were gathered together in a locked room for fear of the Jews. So much for Easter joy! Why are they scared, though? Simple. They just saw Jesus brutally tortured and killed, His body is missing, and the people who killed Him think they are the prime suspects. They have a right to be scared. But, amid this fear and fright, Jesus appears, and, standing in their midst, says, “Peace be with you!” With that, He shows them His hands and His side. Why? To make it clear that it is Him. To make it clear that He has died and rose again. This appearance gives them an unspeakable joy! However, Jesus is not done. There is a reason He came. He tells them, “As the Father has sent me, even so I am sending you.” He then breathes on them saying, “Receive the Holy Spirit. If you forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven them; if you withhold forgiveness from any, it is withheld.” Jesus commissions them for the work He has planned for them to do.
However, there is one little problem. Thomas is not there! Where was he? Why wasn’t he there? We don’t know. The other disciples tell Thomas what has happened. There was the women and Mary Magdalene’s report from the tomb. There was Peter and John’s observation of the empty resting place, left orderly, and not in chaos. The two Emmaus disciples who walked and talked with Jesus. The 10 disciples and other who saw Christ’s hands and side in the locked room. There multiple incidents, not just one. There many witnesses, not just a few. These people had seen these things. They were trustworthy and true. This is not hearsay or read in the paper. Thomas is getting eye witness reports from the eye witnesses. He even knows these people! On top of that, he had the word of Jesus. Did not Jesus tell them what would happen, and, what did happen? Did He not say that He would be killed, betrayed, and rise again? Didn’t Thomas remember the resurrections that he saw?
What is Thomas’ response? I’ll let him speak for himself: “Unless I see in His hands the mark of the nails, and place my finger into the mark of the nails, and place my hand into His side, I will never believe.” Pretty grotesque, isn’t it. Thomas wants not just visible proof, he wants physical proof. It is not just enough to see Jesus, he has to touch Jesus’ wounds to confirm his eyes are not deceived. People don’t just rise from the dead, afterall.
But, you know what, we can be similar. It can be hard to believe something incredible, amazing, or seemingly, unlikely. If someone said they could make a shot from half court blindfolded and turned around, would you believe them? You would probably want to see that! We do it all the time with the videos we click on to watch on either Facebook or Twitter. It can be a challenge to believe amazing and unlikely things, even from friends and family.
One week later, though, Thomas’ request is answered. The disciples are together again, and, this time, Thomas is with them. Jesus appears again, and says, “Peace be with you”, and then, turning to Thomas, answers his week old request. He invites Thomas to do what he had insisted. He cares for him and entertains his request. “Put your finger here, and see my hands; and put out your hand, and place it in my side. Do not disbelieve, but believe.” Thomas’ response? It is simple, but, yet, profound. It is little, but life changing. It is small, but it encompasses all aspects of life. It seems meager, but it gives life meaning. I’ll let him speak for himself. He says, “My Lord and My God!” This changes everything! What a confession! Thomas goes from unbelief to belief. He goes from doubting to believing. He sees Jesus as God and Lord.
Jesus’ response? “Have you believed because you have seen me? Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.” We are blessed. We have not seen Jesus, yet, by faith, we believe. We receive the blessings of what Thomas’ profession entails. “My Lord and my God” is the appropriate response to the Risen Lord. It is the appropriate response to Easter. Let’s break this five word confession down.
“My Lord.” What does it mean to have a Lord? Have you ever thought about it? Could you explain it if someone asked you? We confess the answer every week in the Creed. Luther is a great help here in the Small Catechism. When he explains the Creed, he explains what this means: “I believe that Jesus Christ, true God, begotten of the Father from eternity, and also true man, born of the Virgin Mary, is my Lord, who has redeemed me, a lost and condemned person….” To say “Jesus is my Lord” says something on how we relate to Him. It is all about what He has done for us. I didn’t make Him Lord, He made me His own. He has redeemed us. The word “redeem” means to buy back. He has redeemed “us,” lost and condemned people.
But from what? What has Jesus purchased you from? What did you used to belong to? Who or what had their grubby hands on you? Sin. Death. The power of the devil. Past hurts and failures. Past mistakes and misdoings. These things had their say over you. They called the shots and controlled the show. Make no mistake about it.
And how did Jesus do it? How did He get you back? How did He purchase you? He did it not with gold or silver. He did it with something greater, something more valuable, something more costly, precious, and priceless. He did it with His blood, innocent suffering and death. That is what He used. Whenever you buy something, you are always told “keep the receipt!” When doing taxes, they always tell you to file away the receipts incase you get audited. No one wants that! Jesus has the receipt: He shows His hands and His side. They are the receipt and proof of purchase. They show the proof that you have been bought back from sin, death, and the devil. Faith says, “Christ paid the price for me!” When sin tries to enslave you, when death tries to deceive you, and when the devil tries to destroy you, show them the receipt! Show them Christ’s hands and side. You are bought and paid for.
And, so, the classic catechism question: “What does this mean?” It means that He did so that “I may be His own.” We belong to Jesus. I don’t belong to myself but to Him who bought and paid for me. As His, He loves me, cares for me, watches over me, protects me, and forgives me. As His own, I “live under Him in His kingdom.” We have been brought in by baptism and the Word, where He has placed His name on us and given us His Spirit. Nothing can snatch us out. We have a place, and a Lord we live under. And, so, we “serve Him in everlasting righteousness, innocence, and blessedness”. What a lens to see life! What a way to see our lives, and vocations. What a way to see how we live! Doesn’t this change everything? Just like the disciples, we are sent, given His Spirit, and forgive others. The greatest service we can render our neighbor is to share this message!
“And” This little word links it with the next phrase. It makes the connection inseparable. They go together like peanut butter and jelly, pen and paper, fun and games, a burger and fries. This Lord is also “My God.” This little phrase, “my God” is key in our world today. We live in a world and culture that speaks rather quickly, easily, and, even shallow, about God in generic and unspecific terms. We hear it with phrases like I believe in “heaven,” “a higher power,” “an afterlife,” or “G/god.” We hear it with vague expressions like, “my thoughts and prayers are with you,” or, “I’m a believer!” What do these things mean or entail? The connection needs to be specific and explicit. When Thomas confesses “my God!” we are taken to the First Commandment, where we are called to “fear, love, and trust in God above all things.” Thomas says Jesus is this God. He is the One Who is eternal, powerful, and all knowing. He is the One Who still loves us even when He is not number one in our lives. He is the One Who died for us, even when we have not feared, loved, and trusted in above all things. This is the God who died for you, rose for you, and speaks, “Peace be with you!” This God holds the keys of death and hades, and has made you His own. The Creator of the Universe! He is Your God! When confronted with the Risen Christ, we cannot help but exclaim, “My Lord and my God!”
Sometimes, nicknames cannot be ditched, whether it is Landy Cakes, Kooi Kid, or Doubting Thomas. Sometimes, in life, you just can’t shake them! While Thomas doubted, the Risen Christ led him to the greatest and proclamation of faith: “My Lord and my God!” Let’s confess just what this means with the Creed.
