Now, disasters throughout the world are unfolding on a larger and larger scale and many of the prophecies associated with the return of the Lord have already been fulfilled. On Facebook and other social media platforms, there are many people testifying that the Lord has returned. When hearing the news of the Lord’s return, however, some people raise doubts: “Has the Lord returned? Why haven’t we seen Him coming down on a cloud? I won’t believe unless I see it with my own eyes.” Is such an attitude in line with the Lord’s will? In the following, let’s seek the answer together from the Lord Jesus’ appearance to Thomas after His resurrection.
When Thomas heard the news of the Lord Jesus’ resurrection, he said, “Except I shall see in His hands the print of the nails, and put my finger into the print of the nails, and thrust my hand into His side, I will not believe” (John 20:25). Because of Thomas’ little faith, the Lord rebuked him when He appeared to him, “Because you have seen Me, you have believed: blessed are they that have not seen, and yet have believed” (John 20:29). Why did the Lord Jesus not approve of Thomas’ faith? Almighty God says: “Before the Lord Jesus was nailed to the cross, Thomas always doubted that He was Christ, and was incapable of belief. His faith in God was established only on the basis of what he could see with his own eyes, what he could touch with his own hands. The Lord Jesus had a good understanding of the faith of this type of person. They only believed in God in heaven, and did not believe at all in the One sent by God, or the Christ in the flesh, and nor would they accept Him. In order for Thomas to acknowledge and believe in the existence of the Lord Jesus and that He truly was God incarnate, He allowed Thomas to reach out his hand and touch His rib. Was Thomas’ doubting any different before and after the Lord Jesus’ resurrection? He was always doubting, and except by the Lord Jesus’ spiritual body personally appearing to him and allowing him to touch the nail marks on His body, there was no way that anyone could resolve his doubts and make him let go of them. So, from the time the Lord Jesus allowed Thomas to touch His rib and let him really feel the existence of the nail marks, Thomas’ doubt disappeared, and he truly knew that the Lord Jesus had been resurrected, and he acknowledged and believed that the Lord Jesus was the true Christ and God incarnate. Although at this time Thomas no longer doubted, he had lost forever the chance to meet with Christ. He had lost forever the chance to be together with Him, to follow Him, to know Him. He had lost the chance for Christ to perfect him. The Lord Jesus’ appearance and His words provided a conclusion and a verdict on the faith of those who were full of doubts. He used His actual words and actions to tell the doubters, to tell those who only believed in God in heaven but did not believe in Christ: God did not commend their belief, nor did He commend them for following Him while doubting Him. The day when they fully believed in God and Christ could only be the day that God completed His great work. Of course, that day was also the day that a verdict was made upon their doubt. Their attitude toward Christ determined their fate, and their stubborn doubt meant that their faith bore them no fruit, and their hardness meant that their hopes were in vain. Because their belief in God in heaven was fed on illusions, and their doubt toward Christ was actually their true attitude toward God, even though they touched the nail marks on the Lord Jesus’ body, their faith was still useless and their outcome could only be described as drawing water with a bamboo basket—all in vain. … The Lord Jesus also wanted to use the case of Thomas as a warning for future people: Although you can neither see nor touch the Lord Jesus in your faith in Him, you are blessed because of your true faith, and you can see the Lord Jesus because of your true faith, and this kind of person is blessed.” From these words of God, we can see that Thomas not only doubted the resurrection of the Lord Jesus, he also had always been doubting and not certain about the Lord during his following the Lord Jesus. He never treated the Lord Jesus as God. The Lord Jesus feels hatred for people who hold this kind of attitude toward God; even if they believe to the end, they will still be eliminated. Because they are too crafty in their hearts and always differentiate between true and false with their own eyes, believing too much in themselves and holding to the viewpoint of “Words are but wind; seeing is believing” in their belief in God. They just rely on what their eyes see in all they do, and do not have a heart of seeking the truth. God does not acknowledge this kind of people as His followers. If they continue with such manner of faith, they will only end up being abandoned by God. Because God only blesses those who can accept and obey once they hear God’s words and determine that God’s words are the truth.
The Lord Jesus’ appearance to Thomas after His resurrection is a warning for us believers in God. God does not want us to be like Thomas. Because while Thomas was believing in the Lord, he did not focus on hearing the words spoken by the Lord and did not confirm through the utterances of the Lord that He was the manifestation of God for he stubbornly held on to the viewpoint of unbelievers “Words are but wind; seeing is believing.” In the matter of welcoming the Lord’s return in the last days, many people stubbornly cling to their own viewpoints, believing that any Lord Jesus who does not arrive upon a white cloud is false. No matter who testifies that the Lord Jesus has already returned, they just don’t believe, holding the view that that only when the Lord Jesus descends on a cloud will they believe. Isn’t their thought the same as Thomas? If we don’t put aside our notions and imaginations, nor do we pay attention to hearing God’s voice and humbly seek and investigate the true way, we will very easily lose the chance to be saved and enter the kingdom of heaven. The Lord Jesus said: “Because you have seen Me, you have believed: blessed are they that have not seen, and yet have believed.” These words of the Lord Jesus give us a warning that we, who live in the last days, must not follow in Thomas’ footsteps. Almighty God says: “The return of Jesus is a great salvation for those who are capable of accepting the truth, but for those who are unable to accept the truth it is a sign of condemnation. You should choose your own path, and should not blaspheme against the Holy Spirit and reject the truth. You should not be an ignorant and arrogant person, but someone who obeys the guidance of the Holy Spirit and longs for and seeks the truth; only in this way will you benefit. I advise you to tread the path of belief in God with care. Do not jump to conclusions; what is more, do not be casual and thoughtless in your belief in God. You should know that, at the very least, those who believe in God should be humble and reverential.”
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