John 20:29 AMP
[29] Jesus said to him, “Because you have seen Me, do you now believe? Blessed [happy, spiritually secure, and favored by God] are they who did not see [Me] and yet believed [in Me].”
Walking with God can be quite challenging. There will be times when it seems as if He is far away, or that you are left to fend for and take care of yourself alone. There will be times the devil will try and raise doubts in the hearts of men, to question the existence or power of God. There will also be times when things will look quite rosy, and trials seem so far away, but as we now know, trials have been built into the fabric of our experience as Christians, unless that which we hold is not the real deal. How do you cope in the face of such daunting challenges? How do you hold up when things do not go the way you plan, even after you have done things the right way? How do you still embrace a God who seems to ask you to trust Him, even without any physical senses being fully satisfied as to His existence, except for an actual throbbing conviction in the heart that He is real?
This is where Thomas, as a disciple, found himself at some point in His relationship with Jesus. He had walked with Jesus for more than 3 years, seen Him perform amazing miracles, yet when pressure came, he went back to what was familiar and predictable. Like him, we will also find ourselves at crossroads sometimes, not sure where to turn, and sometimes not sure how to stand up under the burden of expectation. What Jesus said to Thomas in the verse above, based on the latter's experience, is also critical: not everything about Jesus can be explained or fully understood by our phyiscal senses. The reality of our walk with God is first and foremost about faith. No one has seen God on this side of eternity and lived; we take it on faith that He is and lives, and by a relationship with Him, we know in our hearts that He exists and is a rewarder of all who seek Him diligently.
Thomas wanted to see, feel, touch and be satisfied, and the human nature really loves these predictable outcomes. However, if we will walk with God the right way, the secret is in walking by faith, not by sight. We read in Hebrews where it is made clear that it is impossible to please God without faith. If all I know is what my senses tell me, how can I hold on to the assurance of eternity, which I have not yet seen? How can I trust God to be true to His Word, if I am only holding to what men like myself say? What works is for me to hold on to Jesus. He alone is the answer to all of life's questions. He alone can sort out life's uncertainties. The man who can hold on to God, even when everything else is falling apart around him, is truly blessed. He does not need to see first, because he already has a relationship with the One who brings eternity into reality. Do you know Him? Do you have Him? God's time of favour is here.
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