Jesus had just risen from the grave and had appeared to Mary Magdalene. John 20:19-20; 24-29 “Then, the same day at evening, being the first day of the week, when the doors were shut where the disciples were assembled, for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood in the midst, and said to them, ‘Peace be with you.’ When He had said this, He showed them His hands and His side. Then the disciples were glad when they saw the Lord.” “Now Thomas, called the Twin, one of the twelve, was not with them when Jesus came. The other disciples therefore said to him, ‘We have seen the Lord.’ So he said to them, ‘Unless I see in His hands the print of the nails, and put my finger into the print of the nails, and put my hand into His side, I will not believe.’ And after eight days His disciples were again inside, and Thomas with them. Jesus came, the doors being shut, and stood in the midst, and said, ‘Peace to you!’ Then He said to Thomas, ‘Reach your finger here, and look at My hands; and reach your hand here, and put it into My side. Do not be unbelieving, but believing.’ And Thomas answered and said to Him, ‘My Lord and my God!’ Jesus said to him, ‘Thomas, because you have seen Me, you have believed. Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.’” You and I have not seen the resurrected Jesus; we have not seen the print of the nails in His hands nor seen the wound in His side. But we are blessed because we believe.
Do you have to see something to believe that it is true? You probably have not been to Antarctica, but you believe that it is there. You probably have not been to Moscow, Russia, but you believe that it is there. You believe many things that you have not seen because trustworthy witnesses have seen them and you trust their testimony. It is the same way about our belief in Jesus Christ. We trust the testimony of faithful witnesses. The apostle Paul wrote the Corinthians in 1 Corinthians 15:3-8 “For I delivered to you first of all that which I also received: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, and that He was buried, and that He rose again the third day according to the Scriptures, and that He was seen by Cephas, then by the twelve. After that He was seen by over five hundred brethren at once, of whom the greater part remain to the present, but some have fallen asleep. After that He was seen by James, then by all the apostles. Then last of all He was seen by me also, as by one born out of due time.” Paul boldly wrote to the Corinthians that there were many witnesses of the resurrected Jesus and many witnesses were still alive at the time of his writing. Not only that, but history tells us that some of these witnesses were willing to die for Christ rather than deny what they had witnessed and believed. We have faithful witnesses that we can trust and believe.
There is much that you and I as Christians have not seen and yet we believe. We have not seen God, and yet we believe. Romans 1:19-20 “Because what may be known of God is manifest in them, for God has shown it to them. For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even His eternal power and Godhead, so that they are without excuse.” We believe in God because “His invisible attributes are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made.” We believe in a heavenly home that is wonderfully prepared for us. 1 Corinthians 2:9-10 “But as it is written: ‘Eye has not seen, nor ear heard, nor have entered into the heart of man the things which God has prepared for those who love Him.’ But God has revealed them to us through His Spirit. For the Spirit searches all things, yes, the deep things of God.” We haven’t seen this heavenly home but the Bible tells us about it and His Spirit within us assures us that it is wonderful and desirable.
If someone insists on seeing before believing, he would not be a Christian and would miss out on all the blessings we as Christians receive. We must believe without seeing. We must have faith. Hebrews 11:6 “But without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him.” We cannot see God, but we must believe in God. We have not seen Jesus, but we must believe that He died that we might be reconciled to God. Faith is believing without seeing. Hebrews 11:1 “Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.” We as Christians walk by faith and not by sight or what we see. 2 Corinthians 5:6-7 “So we are always confident, knowing that while we are at home in the body we are absent from the Lord. For we walk by faith, not by sight.” Our lives as Christians are based upon faith and not by what we see.
We endure the trials we face in life because we believe in the things which are not seen. 2 Corinthians 4:17-18 “For our light affliction, which is but for a moment, is working for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory, while we do not look at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen. For the things which are seen are temporary, but the things which are not seen are eternal.” The heavenly home that we cannot see is eternal. So we wait for it with perseverance. Romans 8:24-25 “For we were saved in this hope, but hope that is seen is not hope; for why does one still hope for what he sees? But if we hope for what we do not see, we eagerly wait for it with perseverance.” We grow to love Jesus whom we have not seen. 1 Peter 1:7-9 “That the genuineness of your faith, being much more precious than gold that perishes, though it is tested by fire, may be found to praise, honor, and glory at the revelation of Jesus Christ, whom having not seen you love. Though now you do not see Him, yet believing, you rejoice with joy inexpressible and full of glory, receiving the end of your faith — the salvation of your souls.” We receive salvation because we believe in what we cannot see.
I encourage you to be strong in your belief for the many things revealed in the Bible that you have not seen. Walk by faith and not by sight.