"What You’re Known For"
John 20:19-31
April 27, 2003
St. Paul United Methodist Church
Rev. John Fleming
I wonder what life would be like for us if we were known for just one event, one instance, one incident, in our lives. Think about that for a moment or two. I think that I know what you are doing. I think that you are re-living a glorious moment or two in your lives trying to decide which one that you'd most want to be remembered for. Could it be the moment that you married your sweet, little bride or a handsome husband? Could it be the day that you hit the home run in the bottom of the seventh inning to win the game? Would it be that day? If that is what you are doing, then I have some bad news for you this morning. Since this is my sermon and since I brought it up in the first place, there are some rules and some guidelines for the exercise. You do not get to choose the moment. By and large moments that define us choose us. And sometimes what we are known for isn't so wonderful.
Just ask Steve Lyons and he will tell you. If you are a baseball fan, then you might remember his name. He was a player a decade ago. Steve could have been known for a lot of things. He could have been known for his hustle on the field, often giving one hundred percent a hundred and one percent of the time, running as hard as he could on routine ground balls and sliding in first base when the play was close. He could have been known as the above average player who made it with his average abilities. He could have been known as one of the fan's favorites. When there was a fan who caught a foul ball and Steve was close by, he would run over and give the fan a high five and then sometimes an autograph, right in the middle of the game. He could have been known as the player, who during the course of one game played every position, including pitcher. It is a rare feat these days, to do that. Did you notice that I said that he could have been remembered, he could have been known for doing all of those things? He was not known for doing any of those things. What he is remembered for happened on a hot, July evening. His team, the Chicago White Sox, was in Detroit playing the Tigers. It was late in the game when Steve laid down a beautiful bunt. He needed to get on base and when he saw where the bunt landed, he knew that it was going to be a close play at first base. So, when he got close enough to the bag, he slid into it. When the dust settled, the umpire, threw his arms out to the right and to the left and yelled, "Safe!" Detroit's first baseman did not agree with the call and so he and the umpire began a shouting match. While they were doing that, Steve picked himself up and brushed himself off. He was listening to their argument when he realized that some of the dirt he slid into was trickling down the inside of his pants. So Steve walked off first base, to the foul line, pulled down his pants and began to loosen the dirt. It was about then that twenty thousand mouths opened in awe and twenty thousand jaws hit the ground. I want you to know that this story isn't an "x" rated one. I can tell it from the pulpit because Steve was wearing sliding shorts. So the story is rated "PG-13"and not "x".
Well, you might imagine what happened next. After the shock wore off, the jokes began. Women who were sitting near the dugout winked at him and offered to give him their phone numbers. The press was relentless in their reporting of the incident. One of the writers used these words, "No one has ever dropped his pants on the field. Wally Moon didn't do it. Blue Moon Odom didn't do it. Even Heinie Manauch couldn't be convicted of doing that. Thinking about it himself, Steve said that within twenty-four hours, he had done more interviews and appeared on more newscasts than he had in all of his career. It is hard being known for one thing in your life, isn't it?
Just ask Thomas and you will begin to understand that. When you hear Thomas' name, an adjective almost always accompanies it. He is famous, or maybe we should say that he is infamous, because of what happened to him on the first Easter evening. If I say the name Thomas, what is the adjective that comes to your mind? Doubting, that is right. Thomas is known for his doubts.
I do not know how it is for you, but for me it seems as if Easter happened a month ago. The week before last, we gathered in our sanctuary two extra nights singing songs, praying prayers, eating bread and tasting juice, and hearing the story that still puts lumps in our throats. Then, last Sunday, there were 382 people in our two worship services. Hallelujah! But since that time, it seems like life has gotten back to normal. Now it seems that life is business as usual. We have gone back to the chores and back to the news. I do not mind telling you that as I preacher, it is hard to sustain the enthusiasm of Easter once Easter is over and once the memory gets further and further away.
No one knew that better than John, the gospel writer. He wrote his gospel near the end of the first century, to people who had never seen or heard Jesus in the flesh. In fact, most of them were born after Jesus had died. The stories of his life and teachings were now second and third hand. There were some eyewitnesses still around, but even they were getting up in years. A child who was six on that first Easter would have been nearly seventy by the time John's gospel was written. John's problem, which has always been a problem for the church, was how to encourage people in the faith when Jesus was no longer there to be seen or touched. I think that the story of Thomas gave John the chance to do just that. I think by including it (he is the only one who does) John takes the words right out of the believer's mouths and minds and gives us all the chance to ask how we come to believe in Jesus.
Thomas has gotten a bad rap. I would like to redeem the disciple this morning. You will remember this, Thomas was not there the night that Jesus first appeared to the disciples. Perhaps he went out for pizza, I don't know. Perhaps he went to get sandwiches for the rest of the disciples, I am not sure. John does not tell us where Thomas was, only that he wasn't there the night that Jesus first appeared, which might tell you something about his character. Like Peter, he distinguished himself by saying those things that no one else would say. When Jesus was going to Lazarus' house, in Bethany, deep in enemy territory, and everyone else was trying to talk Jesus out of the trip, it was Thomas who said, "Let us also go, that we might die with him." When Jesus sat down for the last supper with his disciples and told them not to be afraid because they knew where he was going, it was Thomas who said, "Lord, we don't know where you are going, how can we know the way?" He was brave and he could be counted on for doing the right thing, but only after the right thing was obvious to him. Those who were there on that first Easter evening saw the risen Lord. They were so convinced that it was him that afterwards they told Thomas that he could take their word for it. Jesus was back, still wounded, but still very much alive. He had forgiven them. He who had every right to hunt them down and punish them for deserting him when he needed them the most had forgiven them, given them the Spirit, and a job to do. Maybe they told Thomas in harmony, "We have seen the Lord." Perhaps Thomas should have said, "All ten of you, all at the same time? Well, that is good enough for me! I believe you, what do we do next?" We know this story. This story is the gospel lesson every year, on the Sunday right after Easter. We know that instead of saying that, Thomas says words that have marked him, "Unless I see, I will not believe."
Doubts surrounding the resurrection aren't just limited to Thomas. In fact, it was a problem right from the beginning. Matthew tells us that when Mary showed up and told the disciples, "He is risen!" Two of the disciples run to the tomb, perhaps because they did not believe Mary. Matthew puts this line in his account, "...some doubted." Luke tells us that when Jesus appeared to them, some, "...disbelieved for joy." Whatever that means! I think that I know what it means. I think that it means that they thought that his being alive was too good to be true. Because if Jesus is resurrected, then love is stronger than hate, good is stronger than evil, and life can be greater than we ever thought it could be. Thomas, you see, is not the only one who wanted to see some kind of a sign. Frederick Buechner, a great writer and sometime preacher, asked this question, "Why doesn't God send us a sign to dispel all our doubts, such as a message in the sky, written by the rearrangement of the universe with suns and moons to dot the "i's" and cross the "t's", so that the night sky would read, ‘I am God. I really do exist!" Woody Allen, the great comedian and actor said that it would be easier for him to believe in God if God would send him a sign such as making a large deposit in a bank account under the name, Woody Allen. Woody, the riches of Jesus are so much better! Jesus himself recognized the need for signs. Earlier in John's gospel, Jesus says this, "Unless you see signs and wonders, you will not believe!"
Don't you know how Thomas must have felt? Has it happened to you? You were not somewhere. You missed something and when people talked about it, you had a hard time believing that it was that great. It happened to me one year, my junior year in high school. I was active in my youth group. I was there every time the doors were open. When it came time for our summer trip to Florida, I did not sign up. Summer baseball was more important than a youth trip. I was there when the bus arrived back at the church after that trip. I was there on the following Sundays when my friends talked about the retreat. They talked about it with passion and enthusiasm. They talked about how great it was. They talked about how they could not wait to take the trip again. The ones who went on the retreat were always together. I was invited, but somehow I felt left out. I was the first one to sign up the next year. They were right, it was a powerful retreat! It was that great! Maybe it happens this way. You hear someone's testimony, the story of something that happened in their lives. It was a powerful story, one where they talked about how powerful God was for them. How they talked to Jesus or how He healed them or how He answered their prayer in some dramatic and powerful way. You heard it, but you could not help but to think to yourself, "God has never done that for me!" The punch line, friends, to this story, is Jesus' words, "So you believe because you have seen with your eyes. Blessed are those who believe even though they have not seen." Which, of course, is all of us. There is no place in this gospel that says that Thomas actually touched Jesus' wounds. John tells us that when Thomas saw him, he fell to his knees and said, "My Lord and My God." Jesus says, Blessed are you and blessed is everyone else who believe even though we don't see." That is it. The writer of Hebrews tells us, "Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen."
I was visiting with a man a few days ago. We were talking about many things when he brought up our Easter sermon. He said, "I would like to believe all that you said in the sermon. I would like to believe that new life is possible. I think that I believe it now because you believe it so powerfully. But sometimes, it is hard to believe." Imagine yourself in the room where Jesus appeared to Thomas. All of the disciples are there when Jesus comes through the door. Jesus says, "Touch my hands, Thomas, and you will believe." There is a phrase in our lesson occurs three times. Jesus says "Peace be with you." Peace is a powerful thing. Wasn't it Jesus who said to his disciples shortly before he was arrested, "My peace I give to you. I do not give you peace as the world gives you peace. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not let them be afraid." Yes, it was Jesus who said that. My peace I give to you. Do you know how powerfully that can speak to you?
How do you get faith? I think that you get it one moment at a time, one instant at a time. I think that as long as I live, I'll remember a man who was in the Harmony Grove Church. He was my first visit, really. There I was fresh out of seminary, on my way to see him, because he was about to have surgery to remove cancer from his stomach. Already he had a heart transplant. I nervously went to see him. I had never done this sort of thing before. I was a nervous wreck. His wife invited me in and I went back to where he was. His surgery was going to be here in Little Rock. I would see him before the surgery, at St. Vincent's, but I wanted to see him at home, too, to talk about his surgery. I was his pastor, but I soon learned that he was the one doing the ministering. We talked about his surgery. He looked at me and said, "I'm going to be all right. If I go to Little Rock and the surgery goes well, then I'll be back here, in my chair, visiting with you." With a twinkle in his eye, he looked back at me and said, "If things don't go well, then I'll be with Jesus." By the way, he came to Little Rock and he went to be with Jesus. I witnessed a powerful thing in his hospital room. He reached his hands toward the heavens as if to say, "My Lord and my God." I remember Myron as a man of faith. So how do you want to be known? Do you want to be known as a baseball player who dropped his pants on a baseball field? Do you want to be know as the Christian who trusted God with everything? That is how I want to be known. And as your pastor, that is how I want you to be known. Let us pray.