Thomas said to Him, “Lord, we do not know where You are going, how do we know the way? Jesus said to him, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father but through Me. New American Standard Bible: 1995 Update (LaHabra, CA: The Lockman Foundation, 1995), Jn 14:5–6.
When the young disciple asked this question, how could he have not known where Jesus was going and what path was He taking? He heard all the conversations from Jesus about the kingdom! You see, from the beginning Thomas was a skeptic. He was one who carefully listened to Jesus while he taught the others. He had one fault though; it was his dark skepticism. He knew Jesus was a king and was going to bring His kingdom to pass, but what that meant in great detail he never knew. None of them did!
A great lesson is about to occur here. Jesus told him that He is the one who is "The Way" to His kingdom. All Thomas had to do was to follow Him and Jesus would provide the path and direction to follow. Surely if Jesus had taken all the time to tell the disciples about the coming kingdom, He wouldn't leave them without a way to get there?
How complicated is it to know for sure that we will go to heaven and we will all arrive there without getting lost along the way? Do you feel sometime like Thomas?
This brings about an interesting statement by Bruce: "The doctrine that in Christ is the fullness of grace and truth is very comforting to those who know Him: but what of those who know Him not, or who possess only such an implicit, unconscious knowledge as hardly merits the name? Does the statement we have been considered excluded such from the possibility of salvation? It does not. It declares that no man cometh to the Father but by Christ, but it does not say how much knowledge is required for salvation. It is possible to that some may be saved by Christ, and for His sake, who know very little about Him indeed. This we may infer from the case of the disciples themselves. What did they know about the way of salvation at this period? Jesus addresses them as persons yet in ignorance concerning Himself, saying: 'If ye had known me, ye should have known my Father also.'" The Training of the Twelve, A. B. Bruce, pg. 396.
So, are you a doubting Thomas today or have been in the past? Here is a really good thing to remember that will help you in the future as stated so eloquently by Bruce; "These observations may help us to cherish hope for those whose opportunities of knowing Him who is 'the way, the truth, and the life' are small. They do not, however, justify those who, having abundant facilities for knowing Christ, are content with the minimum of knowledge. There is more hope for the heathen than for such men. To their number no true Christian can belong. A genuine disciple may know little to begin with: this was the case even with the apostles themselves; but he will not be satisfied to be in the dark. He will desire to be enlightened in the knowledge of Christ and will pray, 'Lord, show us the Father." Bruce, pg. 398.
Every day is about change and growth in our lives for the Lord Jesus Christ. How is yours doing today? I am not satisfied with just going along with the attitude of "business as usual." Will you join me this year in your growth. I don't want to go on in the dark this year!
