Thomas, an apostle of Jesus

   Almost 2,000 years after Thomas was an apostle, he is still often called “Doubting Thomas.”  I have heard that plenty of times in sermons.  Yet though Thomas did doubt, may we remember what came after he saw and touched Jesus after the resurrection!  John 20:28 “Thomas said to him, ‘My Lord and my God!’” (NIV).

   Thomas went on to minister in several ancient countries, including Babylon.  Yet the country he is most affiliated with is India!
I lived in Colorado for 16 years, and one evening I was driving on 6th Avenue near Indiana Street.  I was listening to a preacher on the radio whom I had never heard before.  The man is from India.  He talked about the fact that the village where he grew up in India is only a few miles from the place where all the Christian elders say the apostle Thomas ministered.  And he talked about how the Christian elders in India say Thomas was murdered.

   Clement of Alexandria when talking about martyrdom in his Stromata: “…for all the saved have confessed with the confession made by the voice, and departed.  Of whom are Matthew, Philip, Thomas, Levi, and many others.” [1]

   The strong tradition is that Thomas was speared in India.

   Scripture clearly teaches what is needed for salvation: a person must believe in Jesus (see Acts 16:29-31).  Salvation from spiritual death is by God’s grace through faith in Jesus.  The twelve apostles are not the foundation of my faith.  Jesus, God the Son, is the foundation of my faith.  These tidbits of history I have accumulated as a result of countless hours of research work have increased my faith, but for someone who likes to have many details, the lack of information could have been discouraging if I had a foundation other than Christ.  My foundation is Jesus, of whom there is much evidence of in the Bible.  Yet even with the inspired Bible testimony, faith is needed to receive the One to whom it witnesses, the One who is unseen, yet who can be known.  Jesus has made faith in Him possible.
   Christ’s call to His disciples is to encourage one another in faith.  But skeptics swiftly sow discouragement and strife, and when skeptics are in Christian leadership positions, there is always the risk of people getting hurt.  Yet who of us has never had doubts about God, and Jesus loves even doubters?  Walking by faith is hard in my opinion.  I rely on Jesus to be enabled to keep in faith and to keep loving skeptics.  I am even thankful that because of the outspokenness of this skeptic apostle, we have a blessed witness of Jesus.  John 20:29 “Then Jesus told [Thomas], ‘Because you have seen me, you have believed; blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed’” (NIV).
Hunter Irvine

I close with a link to this classic song by Phil Keaggy, which I have been saving for Thomas, because there is a line about Thomas in the song which caught my attention the first time I heard the song years ago:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=owNFDPIPoSk

[1] Alexander Roberts and James Donaldson, eds., The Ante- Nicene Fathers: The Writings of the Fathers Down to A.D. 325
(1867; digital repr., Albany, Oregon: SAGE Software, 1996), 2:866.