Seeing Is
Mark 16:9 Now when he was risen early on the first day of the week, he appeared first to Mary Magdalene, from whom he had cast out seven demons. 10 She went and told them that had been with him, as they mourned and wept. 11 And they, when they heard that he was alive, and had been seen of her, disbelieved. (ASV)
Did you ever just not believe? It’s so good to be great at believing, but to be honest sometimes the ole believer just dysfunctions. I’m so glad that when it does, it doesn’t totally disable your identity, your position, your possibilities or your future.
Everybody talks about Thomas and how he refused to believe until he could actually touch the wounds and prove for himself that Jesus was alive. It seems, though, from this passage, that Thomas wasn’t alone, at least in his doubting, because it says here that ‘they’ disbelieved. And, it doesn’t say that two or three believed, but just Thomas was the lone doubter. All the guys there at the announcement had a major brain hurdle. Although Jesus had clearly stated what He was up to, either they were thinking about lunch or they thought He was talking about something more pre-death, because they really weren’t anticipating this amazing turn of events. They were also probably overwhelmed with grief and not thinking clearly and Jesus was probably wearing a different tunic and cologne, and – ok, they could have had a very long list of reasons, but bottom line is, without faith (belief) you just don’t have the capacity to please God, and they, for whatever reason were without it (Hebrews 11). As a result they were without peace of mind or any certainty about how to proceed from this point.
How incredible it must have been, then, when they were together in a closed room, and Jesus comes right through the wall to join them. Not only were they shown probably the coolest miracle yet, but they were also confronted with their own doubt’s exposure. Their meal with Him is also more exposure of this doubt as Jesus actually gets after them a bit for their inability to believe before seeing. So then, when they were feeling like they had just blown it, He begins to tell them what they are going to do, and it has nothing to do with being put out to pasture for their failure. It’s like their favor- repelling doubt was overlooked for something else that was much more powerful- Jesus belief in them.
Disbelief has a way of putting a label on the brain and becoming an identity. Some people are bold and almost take pride in proclaiming their disbelief in something that Jesus came and gave His life in order to provide. Others might not make an audible proclamation, but there in the heart is a semblance of difficulty in swallowing the whole bite. In both cases Jesus displays a love and understanding that is just as impressive as the walk-through-wall thing. Rather than holding any of this failure against us, He just takes the opportunity of intimacy to replace the doubt with a display of Himself and the lack of hope or purpose with a clear vision of where we are going in our life as one of His very own. His view is never a backward disabling one, but forward and enabling. No matter where we find ourselves on the faith ladder, He sees us complete in Him, without doubt and totally qualified to heal, cast out and do all the stuff that requires only the special qualification of our intimacy with Him.
Mark 16:14 And afterward he was manifested unto the eleven themselves as they sat at meat; and he upbraided them with their unbelief and hardness of heart, because they believed not them that had seen him after he was risen. 15 And he said unto them, Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to the whole creation. 16 He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved; but he that disbelieveth shall be condemned. 17 And these signs shall accompany them that believe: in my name shall they cast out demons; they shall speak with new tongues; 18 they shall take up serpents, and if they drink any deadly thing, it shall in no wise hurt them; they shall lay hands on the sick, and they shall recover. (ASV)