“The Benefit of the Doubt”

When I was a kid the movie Free Willy came out, so you can just imagine how cruel the neighborhood bullies were towards me; being that I was a fat little fellow. Hollywood messed up my life! Then, they had a part two and a part three. From hoodlum to hermit! “Willy” wasn’t only a name people called me anymore it became a name associated with a fat whale.
I did the research on Thomas, one of the Twelve, and came to the conclusion, that, he, as well, had has his named tarnished for two thousand years. Church folk, we call him “Doubting Thomas.” We preachers use his life to tell our congregation not to be like him. It’s almost like its Thomas versus the church. But, not anymore. I’m going to flip the script. I’m not only going to cheer for him, I’m a help clear his name in this blog! I’m a tell you that unless we want to see the kingdom of heaven we need to be just like him. Analyze his story in John 20:24-28, and you’ll see what I mean. First thing, I noticed was that he wasn’t there when Jesus appeared. I believe it was because he didn’t want to cry in front of his homies. (Peter would’ve probably chopped his bottom lip off as it curled with his sword!) Heck, I even cried watching The Notebook with my ex wife and that was embarrassing! Also, he wanted to see the scars of Jesus for himself. He wasn’t going to take anybody’s second hand belief.
When I was in high school I used to cheat on almost all my tests. I would copy off the nerd with the big glasses and the CSI t shirt. I would threatened him with a mad dog look and ask him the answers. He, of course, gave them to me for fear that I might eat him. (Oops, I meant beat him.) So, when the teacher would check the paper, she’d notice I’d get a “B.” (I would purposely get some wrong so the teacher wouldn’t think anything.) But, my teacher was way smarter than that. She probably thought to herself, ‘He must be cheating! Because the last time Willy seen a bee it stung him!’ So, you know what she did? The next time we’d have a pop quiz? She’d sit me upfront next to her desk.
So, why the analogy? Because a lot of people are going to get an “F” when Jesus comes because they were following or copying off somebody that was wrong. A Pastor. A Pope. A parent, even, or a denomination. Let me tell you, if God tells you to do it this way and someone else tells you to do it their way, stick your tongue out, kick them in the shin, and run!  Ask yourself: Is it MY WAY or YAHWEH?  Your salvation depends on it. Don’t let your pastor do the homework for you, either. You do it. You see for yourself. Thomas did. In fact, he put his fingers through the holes in His’ hands. And, you can too, in the new Kingdom.