Reflections on the Scandal – Chapter 5: Doubting the Resurrection of Jesus
A while ago my Dad told my Mum that he had booked a holiday for them both, but that the location was a secret. My Mum pestered him for days on end to push him to reveal this secret destination. When he finally gave in and told her, she then became disgruntled because he had spoiled the surprise…
I wondered whether to spoil the surprise today. It is Good Friday, the day when we remember Jesus’ horrific death upon the cross, and yet the final chapter of Carson’s Scandalous focuses squarely on His resurrection. I wondered whether to wait and post this final blog post on Easter Sunday instead, but as you have probably figured out already, I decided against that.
I decided to opt for posting today for two reasons. The first was that I doubt that for many of you it will be a surprise to hear that Jesus rose from the dead (though praise God if that is the first time you have heard it!). The second reason however was that the resurrection of Jesus is not a separate event to his crucifixion. True, He was raised on the third day after His crucifixion and so in a temporal sense they can be seen as separate, but in the Bible, Jesus death is constantly inextricably linked with His resurrection.
Indeed, in this chapter focusing on the account of Thomas’ doubt in John 20:24-31, Carson paraphrases Paul’s words to the Corinthians (Corinthians 15:12-19) to describe the importance of resurrection of Christ:
“If Jesus has not risen from the dead, while you believe that he has risen from the dead, then your faith in Jesus’ resurrection is futile; it is worthless”
Amazingly, Jesus’ death alone on Good Friday is not enough in and of itself. It is Jesus’ death and resurrection in which we are to hope.
Thomas knew that Jesus had died. He knew what kind of man Jesus was. He saw him teach with authority like no one else. He saw him heal the sick, cast out demons and raise the dead. Yet in Jesus’ resurrection body, Thomas saw the vindication of Christ by His Father. As Carson puts it, Thomas hadn’t been gullible. Jesus was who he said He was, and he proved it with His resurrection.
Thomas responds with perhaps one of the most powerful lines of scripture:
“My Lord and My God” John 20:28
I really felt that Carson portrayed Thomas fairly in this chapter. I always thought it harsh that all Thomas ever seemed to be remembered for was his doubt, earning him the nickname of ‘Doubting Thomas’. We don’t often hear people refer to ‘Murderous Paul’ or ‘Peter the Abandoner’. Carson points to the week between Jesus’ first appearance to the disciples without Thomas and his second whilst Thomas was present. What must have been going on in Thomas’ head during this week as he went over all that he had seen and heard? Could it all be true?
Jesus appears to Thomas, and it all falls into place: Jesus is God, without a doubt (if you’ll forgive the pun).
What stood out to me most in this chapter (though as each person has said this week, there is so much more that you really must get a hold of a copy of the book and read it for yourself), was Carson’s dealing with verse 29:
Jesus said to him, “Have you believed because you have seen me? Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.” John 20:29
Carson argues that this verse has been misused to somehow elevate the faith of later Christians (who didn’t see the resurrected Jesus) above that of Thomas, supposedly because he had so little faith that he needed to see it to believe it. Instead, Carson puts forward the idea that in fact, Jesus calls those who have not seen Him blessed, because they are blessed with the firsthand account of a man (and men) who has.
The skeptic becomes the witness; the evidence.
As Carson puts it:
“John immediately goes on to say that Jesus did many miraculous signs, and of course they could not all be written down for us. But these are written, the ones in John’s Gospel, including the appearance to Thomas, in order that the later generations who will never see the signs, who will not in this life see the resurrected body of Jesus, might believe that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God, and that by believing they might have life through his name.”
Thank God for the death and resurrection of Jesus. Thank God that we can trust in Him and have life through His name. Thank God for the Scriptures that we have that testify to this. His Word is Truth (John 17:17).
A friend of mine posted a status on facebook today that I thought was worth sharing:
“It’s Friday – but don’t despair; Sunday is coming. This is and always was plan A.”
Today we mourn the fact that the cost of our forgiveness from our sin and rebellion was the death of the Creator. Yet we celebrate, because in His resurrection there is life for those who believe.
God is good.
This is the final entry in a series of posts that took place during Holy Week 2010, recording various Firwood members’ reflections upon each chapter of Carson’s book ‘Scandalous- The Cross and Resurrection of Jesus’. For more information, click here