"Faith Without Facts" - John 20:l9-3l - April 7, 2002

Several years ago, during the fall, I received a phone call from my wife. She was frantic. You could tell by her voice she was badly shaken. She was alone on a country road and didn’t know what to do. After she had calmed down a bit she was finally able to tell me she had hit a deer. She was worried that the deer might die. Like most husbands I don’t remember being very empathetic. I said, "Just tell me what happened and whether or not the car was damaged."

We live in a society that thrives on information. We have been conditioned to use the left side of our brains more than the right. You frequently hear the words, "Just give me the details, spare me all the emotion." But a story, without emotion is not very interesting. It is shallow and has no real passion. In fact, I wonder if a story is really a story at all unless it has some drama.

Many doubt the resurrection story of Jesus because it does not compute. Since it can’t be proved scientifically many people do not really believe it. There have always been those who doubted the credibility of the resurrection. Each gospel writer tells a different story but each is filled with emotion.

Thomas didn't accept what the others believed carte blanche. He wanted something more. Thomas wanted to make the connection between the crucified Christ and the resurrected One. Thomas wanted some facts. I don’t believe we can be too hard on Thomas. At least he had the courage to ask questions. It's not when people ask questions about matters of faith that should concern us. It's when they stop asking questions that could seriously jeopardize the credibility of our faith.

How do we have faith without facts? The gospel of John tells the story of the disciples, hiding behind closed doors, following the crucifixion of Jesus. Notice the story reads, "They were afraid." To calm their fear Jesus appears and gives them a greeting of peace. He shows them his wounds and then "breathed on them, and said, ‘Receive the Holy Spirit.’" This was an event filled with emotion. Jesus didn’t ask them why they were hiding. Jesus didn’t explain how he had risen from the dead. I believe he showed them his wounds, not to prove his death and resurrection, but to assure the disciples that he was the Jesus they all loved.

Faith without facts means; (1) what we feel is just as important as what we think, (2) that unexplainable events shape our beliefs and move us to action, (3) the abiding presence of God comforts us and gives us assurance and (4) we are blessed.

This past week I took my grandchildren to see the movie, "Ice Age." It is about a baby who is being returned to his family by a trio of unlikely animals. I don’t want to spoil the story for those of you who haven’t seen this delightful, animated film. Much of what happens is not logical, but the movie will "move" you because of its powerful tenderness, warmth and the genuineness of the characters. I laughed and I cried and I can tell you my grandchildren noticed.

In my ministry I pride myself on the fact that I study hard and make a concerted effort to explain the scriptures based on the best information I can gather. I believe that it is unprofessional to preach without accurate scholarship. But, I have also learned over the years that people want more than details and facts; they want to "feel" their faith as well. As a pastor I have learned that people need to be touched far more than they need answers and explanations.

Several weeks ago our Rotary club listened to high school students give 5-minute presentations on the "four-way test." I talked with the judges following the speeches because I made an observation about those who were selected as winners. It was the students who told stories that were filled with emotion and feelings that influenced the judges.

To have faith means we "feel" it. We have the need to be "touched" just as Thomas needed to be touched. He said, "My Lord and my God," after he was able to touch Jesus. Thomas wasn’t present the first time Jesus appeared and he didn’t have the experience of being close to Jesus. This time he does and he believed because of what he felt.

I remember my early seminary days sitting around a table in the coffee shop. My colleagues were telling their stories. Each said that something in their lives had changed when they decided to pursue a career in ministry. There were former schoolteachers, salespeople, Vietnam veterans, divorcees, and some who had experienced a traumatic event. The common thread among them was that each had experienced a transformation. They wanted a life that was more fulfilling, one that allowed them to use their gifts. What gave them the motivation to make a change in their career was the reality of God’s transforming power. No one could explain why they were called, but each could say there were a number of strange events that influenced their decision to change their careers.

After Jesus appears to the disciples they are changed. They become the ones who continue to spread Jesus’ message. They do this with courage and profound faith. Their lives were dramatically affected by their encounter with the risen Christ. They were motivated by God’s spirit to move beyond their fears and doubts. These same disciples who were hiding in fear are the very ones Jesus sends into the world to be bearers of peace. Faith without facts moved them into action.

Every time we encounter someone whose life has changed in profound way we encounter the living Christ. We are witnesses to a power that has no scientific formula. You can’t give an equation to love and peace. They just happen because people are impassioned about their faith. I have been moved in recent weeks by the numbers of people who are protesting for peace in the West Bank. They are using their lives and shields against military force. I am impressed with their non-violent approach and their courage to stand up for their convictions.

There is no greater way to witness the power of God than in the transformation of lives. No formula, no computer, no machine, can change the human heart. Most of the changes that occur in people are subtle. We don’t always recognize God’s transforming power at work, but now and then we encounter someone whose life has changed in a dramatic way.

It is difficult to see things that are beyond our reality. We live lives that are narrowly focused, conditioned by our environment, traditions and habits. The name Hans Lippershey is not a famous one,but he made a tremendous contribution to the world of vision. In l600, he created the first telescope. He was a Dutch spectacle maker. One day two children came into his shop and were playing with some of the lenses scattered around. They put two together which greatly magnified a weathervane across the street. Lippershey capitalized on the discovery and made a profit selling his new lenses to the military.

This all happened in Middleburg, Netherlands. Several others claimed to invent the telescope about the same time. Galileo is the most famous but even he credits Lippershey for its creation. Most everyone doubted the creation at first. It was hard for them in that time to envision things could be magnified. It was beyond their reality. Even when our vision is enhanced by technology it is sometimes impaired by our lack of faith. Ironically, it took two small children at play to make it all happen. An unexplainable event shaped the beliefs of society and enabled them to see.

Faith without facts also means the abiding presence of God comforts us and gives us assurance.

About thirteen years ago I was taking a survey in the neighborhood where the church I served was located. It was part of my project for my Doctor of Ministry program. One of the questions I asked was how that particular church had made a difference in the people’s lives, even if they never attended. One person responded by saying, "Just the fact that the church is there on the corner reminded him of the presence of God. By the way," he said, "I notice it is growing." I wondered how he could possibly know that since he had never darkened the doors. He replied, "Because I see more cars in the parking lot than in the past."

I believe that the church has an impact on people we don’t even know. There may likely be more believers "out there" than we realize. The very presence of the Church in this man’s neighborhood assured him that God was present. Although the disciples were locked in a room it did not prevent God from being present. Jesus appeared in their midst to calm their fears. God is always with us. We may be feeling alone, alienated from the world, or trapped, but God is still with us.

While I was working on this sermon my six-year old granddaughter climbed beside me to read it. We were reading the part about the deer when she said, "My daddy hit a deer once and it smashed his car."
I knew about that particular accident. I also knew that it occurred several years before she was born. It is a story that her parents told her and she believes, not because she can prove it but because she believes in her parents. We had been talking about her parents earlier, who were on a cruise in the Caribbean. She was missing them a little and needed Grandpa to comfort her. The story reminded her, that although her parents were away, they were still with her.

Finally, to have faith without facts means we are blessed. "Blessed are those who have not seen and yet believe," Jesus said. Jesus was challenging his disciples to follow him. Their mission was not to prove his resurrection with empirical evidence. Their mission was to "make disciples of all nations" (Matthew 28:19). Here in John he sends them and reminds them their mission has to do with "forgiving sins." Jesus forgave his disciples for their unbelief. Now they were commissioned by him to forgive others.

When my wife called me about the deer I tried to console her. Like most husbands I was more interested in the details of the accident then I was about her feelings. Nevertheless, she was surprised that I wasn’t upset with her because the car had been damaged. She may have needed more empathy than she received, but all was forgiven. A few years later she called to tell me her car had been slightly damaged in a parking lot. This time she wasn’t frantic. Perhaps she had faith that her husband would understand.

The primary reason this story of Thomas is here is to remind us that we don’t need to have empirical evidence to believe. We can be sure, however, that these unexplainable events shaped the faith of the disciples and moved them to action. Blessed are those who accept the stories of faith and the witness of the first disciples. Blessed are those who strive for peace and love in spite of tremendous odds. Blessed are they who forgive. Blessed are those who have faith without facts.

In the midst of their fear Jesus acknowledged the feelings of his disciples and gave them hope. The strange encounter would now move them into action. The door to their newly, energized faith was opened. His appearance comforted them and reassured them that he was with them. From then on they would go forward in faith, not with facts, proof or evidence, but forward since they had been blessed.

Dr. Keith Wagner, St. Paul’s United Church of Christ, Sidney, Ohio