The Main Idea
What if the resurrection wasn’t just something we celebrated once a year on Easter, but something we could live from every single day? The encounters after the resurrection with Mary, the Emmaus travelers, and Thomas reveal something deeper: God is doing a new thing. Even in our doubt, fear, and confusion, Jesus meets us, walks with us, and invites us to trust in Him fully.
Scriptures
John 20: 19-31
19 On the evening of that first day of the week, when the disciples were together, with the doors locked for fear of the Jewish leaders, Jesus came and stood among them and said, “Peace be with you!” 20 After he said this, he showed them his hands and side. The disciples were overjoyed when they saw the Lord.
21 Again Jesus said, “Peace be with you! As the Father has sent me, I am sending you.” 22 And with that he breathed on them and said, “Receive the Holy Spirit. 23 If you forgive anyone’s sins, their sins are forgiven; if you do not forgive them, they are not forgiven.”
Jesus Appears to Thomas
24 Now Thomas (also known as Didymus[a]), one of the Twelve, was not with the disciples when Jesus came. 25 So the other disciples told him, “We have seen the Lord!”
But he said to them, “Unless I see the nail marks in his hands and put my finger where the nails were, and put my hand into his side, I will not believe.”
26 A week later his disciples were in the house again, and Thomas was with them. Though the doors were locked, Jesus came and stood among them and said, “Peace be with you!” 27 Then he said to Thomas, “Put your finger here; see my hands. Reach out your hand and put it into my side. Stop doubting and believe.”
28 Thomas said to him, “My Lord and my God!”
29 Then Jesus told him, “Because you have seen me, you have believed; blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.”
The Purpose of John’s Gospel
30 Jesus performed many other signs in the presence of his disciples, which are not recorded in this book. 31 But these are written that you may believe[b] that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name.
Questions for Discussion
- Ice Breaker: What’s something in your life you believed only after seeing it for yourself?
- Have you ever had a “Thomas moment” where doubt made you pull back from faith? What happened?
- Read John 20:24-29. How did Jesus respond to Thomas’s doubts? What does this say about Jesus’ character?
- What are some “conditions” you’ve placed on God? What might it look like to let go of those conditions and trust Him more fully?
- How would your daily life change if you truly lived as someone empowered by the resurrection?
The resurrection isn’t just a historical event; it’s a daily reality that changes everything. Even if your faith feels small or uncertain, what matters most is who your faith is in. Keep showing up, even with your doubts. Jesus meets us there.
