“The Order of Seeing and Believing "
John 20:1-31

“Then the other disciple, who came to the tomb first, went in also; and he saw and believed.”– John 20:8

You have heard the saying, “Seeing is believing.”  And there certainly is some truth to that. Years ago, I would have never believed that I’d be back in Echo Park. I grew up just three blocks up the hill on Bonnie Brae and Kent. When I left in 1980, I thought I would never return. But as the saying goes, “seeing is believing.”

Regarding this fellowship, however, the seeing came well after the believing. And such is the life of faith, the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen. Seeing this fellowship come to fruition has been a venture of faith, and it hasn’t ended; in many ways it has only begun.

This morning, we are going to read of the Resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ in the Gospel of John. For His disciples, seeing preceded believing. When John went into the empty tomb “he saw and believed.”  Jesus then appeared to Mary Magdalene, the other disciples, and lastly to Thomas.

From the other Gospel accounts, we know that Jesus appeared to many after He was raised. Paul wrote that He showed Himself to “more than five hundred of the brothers at the same time.” [1 Cor. 15:6] For that first generation, sight preceded faith. Jesus was physically in their midst for many days after His resurrection.

In our generation, however, faith precedes sight; it is in the believing that we see. You and I today cannot see Christ physically, nor can we see Him physically perform miracles. But the record of His Word is there, and that is all we need. “So then faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.” [Rom. 10:17] Jesus said to Thomas, “Because you have seen me, you have believed; blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.”

Many say, “If I could see Jesus I would believe.”  But the fact of the matter is that many who saw Jesus did not believe. The bottom line is that their love of “self” exceeded their love of God, plain and simple, nothing new under the sun.

If you want to know God, then you must receive Jesus by faith. The Bible clearly says, “the righteous shall live by faith” [Ro 1:17], and “without faith it is impossible to please God.” [Heb 6:6]

To fellowship with God, to have your eternal destiny secured, to know that when you die you will go to heaven; you must receive Jesus by faith. And that “received” order is to believe and see. The seeing comes after the believing.