gotta love thomas

It’s interesting to me that the author of John ends his gospel with the story of Doubting Thomas. (Any biblical scholar worth his/her degree will tell you that chapter 21 was a later addition.) Of all the ways John could have ended his story, of all the characters John could have highlighted at the end of the story, he chooses to end with Thomas - in all his doubts, questions and unbelief.

More than likely, John ended his gospel account in this way so as to speak indirectly to us about the questions we will surely ask and the demands we will surely make - Show us you live, Jesus! John uses Thomas as a caricature of those who will come later and who will have a hard time believing. In Thomas, we are challenged to believe even though we don’t have the luxury of seeing and touching and hearing Jesus.

But I would like to think John is doing and saying something else in the story of Doubting Thomas. Could it be that John includes this story of Doubting Thomas to remind us that the spectrum of belief is varied; that there are some who are able to believe without hesitation and there are some who believe while also doubting? Could it be that John ends his gospel with this story of Doubting Thomas so that we could rest assured knowing that there is room in God’s Kingdom even for those who doubt?

Personally, I think John gives us Thomas as a nod. It is John’s way of nodding and saying, Yeah, I hear you. It’s hard. You are being asked to do a hard thing.