Thomas
I. Thomas was evidently a man of reserved nature a melancholy man haunted, as we should say, by a painful sense of his own individuality. He could not look at the bright side of things. He only spoke three words in the Gospel three words if you look at them, all melancholy. In his conduct, as shown in this passage, there were two prime defects. (1) Thomas did not take the plan to overcome his doubts; he was away on the first meeting of the disciples, and he missed the Lord by his absence. He was not at church that morning. Where was he, the melancholy man? (2) "Except," says Thomas. You see, he fixed his own standard and measure of belief and of evidence. Poor Thomas is confounding together things that differ. He wanted knowledge, and he would have called it faith. He makes himself the centre of his belief. "Except I shall see, I will not believe." That is the keep of Doubting Castle.
II. Between the zero and the zenith of faith the spiritual life in the soul of man there are four states. (1) The first state is perfect spiritual abortion. Neither seeing nor believing. Such persons neither note God nor things; they never think of causes; they never say, "Who is God, my Maker?" To such persons all things seem to happen.Their state is unconscious Atheism. (2) The second state is that in which men see, but do not believe. Do you notice these words of Thomas, "I will notbelieve." The fountain of belief is in the will. The fountain of doubt is in the will. "It is with the heart man believeth unto righteousness." (3) There is such a thing as believing and not seeing. If I could paint, I would paint Faith like a little child, leading Reason like a giant like a stone-blind Belisarius on his way. (4) It is possible to see and to believe. Truly this is the Divine life. In the world of sense they will tell you that you must see in order that you may believe. But my life has read me this lesson, that we must believe that we may see. How truly touching is that word pronounced by Thomas on his liberation from his despair, "My Lord and my God." Ah! instantaneous word; it solves all difficulty. Many long nights have I wept in the cell of Doubting Castle now I am free. Many a time have I watched for sunrise over the marshes and the fens, and the mournful east winds swept by me and chilled my cheek and my heart now Thou art come, Thou art come, and I am free, "my Lord and my God."
E. Paxton Hood, Sermons,p. 85.
References: John 20:24-30. Preacher's Monthly,vol. ii., p. 426. John 20:24-31. Clergyman's Magazine,vol. iii., p. 295.