Hey, what's up church? I want to welcome you guys. And man, I'm so honored to get to bring you this last message in this series that we've been walking through. So today I get to be the closer.

We started this series back at the very 1st of August, and this is the last one in the series called Jesus Is. Now, I want to start this message off a little bit different. I need to start with a confession. Okay?

And sometimes this makes us feel better to confess things to you. All right? So listen, we're not coming to you perfect. There's plenty of flaws in everybody that's on the stage, and this one for me is a little bit unique.

And I don't know about y'all, but over the summer when it gets this hot, my air conditioning has problems. Yeah. Like you can just count on it. And so over the summer, two different times, I had air conditioning problems.

So two different times, and it was always the most inconvenient times. Like some people were coming over, all those kind of things. And we waited, and the AC guy came, got it fixed up, and had to spend money I didn't want to spend, all those things. And here's the part that got weird.

Just last week I got a text from one of my coworkers, from Ben Wade, that works on staff with us here, and he said, "Hey man, I'm so sorry. I'm going to be late coming in today. I'm waiting on an AC repairman." And a good pastor would've been like, "Oh, I'm so sorry. Man, I hate that.

Is there anything we can do to help you?" My reaction was kind of like, "Yes." And it hit me like there's something wrong with me. Why would I be celebrating that this close friend and coworker is going through the same thing I went through? He's having to spend money he didn't want to spend. He's got kids at his home.

It's hot. It's August. Yet when that hit him, my reaction was like, smile. I don't know if you've done that.

Maybe you've kind of been over a putt and you've missed the putt, and then your friend misses the putt and you're like, "Yes." Or you missed a big deer, it's about to be deer season, and you hear about so-and-so missing a big deer and you're like, "Yes." You hear about other people's kids that are getting in trouble, and you know yours are getting in trouble, and so you're like, "Yes." See, the idea here is there's things that we all walk through, and when we begin to share some of those, we relate. And it's the same thing in our faith. That's what I'm going to help you see today. So here's kind of the big idea of the message.

All right? Here it is. It says, "Doubts and fears, they don't disqualify you." Instead, they really just make me and you relatable. And the person in scripture you're going to see with this is the perfect example, and it's Doubting Thomas.

And you're going to love him strictly because you're going to relate to him. Now, I'm going to give you a little bit of context so you know this. Doubting Thomas was someone we would love to have in our church. Doubting Thomas was the kind of friend that was like ride or die.

This was one of the disciples. This guy's a big deal, and I'm going to help you today begin to maybe reframe what you think about when you think about Doubting Thomas. So I want you to join me. If you've got your Bible with you today, sometimes it helps to see this firsthand.

I want you to jump into John chapter 11, and we're going to walk through a couple of different scriptures today, so hang with me. And there's so much I want you to get from this message. All right? This is the last one.

This is the finale. But the theme of this message is so important. It is a game changer for you. So hang with me today.

All right, John 11, I'm going to start you in verse 14. All right? Verse 14. It says-- But let me tell you what's happened just real quick.

Jesus has just gotten word that his friend Lazarus has died. Okay? And now he's talking to his disciples. And again, Thomas is right there with him.

Watch what Thomas does. So He, being Jesus, He told them plainly, "Lazarus is dead. And for your sake, I'm glad I wasn't there. For now you will really believe.

Come, let's go see him." Now, Thomas, and I love this because he's nicknamed the Twin, so I'm going to help you because when we get done with this message today, you're not going to think about Thomas as Doubting Thomas. You're just going to think Thomas the Twin. Okay? Thomas the Twin, he was a twin, cool fact, said to his fellow disciples, "Let's go, too, and let's die with Jesus." I don't know if you have a friend like that, but that's a great friend.

Like, "I don't know what we're going to do tonight, but you want to go? I'm in." "Hey, what you think? You want to jump off that cliff? Let's go." Thomas was all in.

He was a ride or die kind of guy. And in this moment, Thomas did not understand what Jesus was saying, but what Thomas heard was, "We're going to go die with Lazarus." And what was his reaction? Ol' Doubting Thomas. Let's go.

"Let's go." Now, Jesus kind of clears up the confusion and he's like, "No, I didn't mean we're going to go die with him. We're just going to go there, and I'm going to do another miracle, and you're going to see all this." But what I need you to see is the way that Thomas responded. Thomas says, "Let's go." Now, here's the next text we're going to look at. All right?

And in this moment in scripture, the crucifixion has already happened. This is when Jesus went to the cross for you and for me. Now, this was a real moment in time, and people were at that crucifixion. Thomas was one of those.

So Thomas saw Jesus, who he had done ministry with for three years now, who he had had meals with, who he'd watched him do miracles. He'd shared all these experiences, and he's at the cross that day when Jesus is crucified, when he is killed for your sin and for my sin. He saw it all. And now this next moment in scripture is the resurrection.

He's been risen from the grave, and now he is alive. And I want you to watch what happens because this is the passage you know Thomas for. When you think about Thomas, this is the one that you typically think about. All right?

So I'm going to bounce over to John 20, and we're going to start in verse 24. John 20:24, you'll see it on the screen. Now Thomas, there it is again, the Twin, one of the twelve, remember, he was one of the disciples, was now with the disciples when Jesus came. Let me make sure I say that right.

Was not with the disciples when Jesus came. Again, that's a really important note. Jesus has risen from the grave. Thomas saw him crucified, but Thomas was not with the disciples when Jesus appeared to them.

Okay. So the other disciples told him, "We've seen the Lord. We've seen the Lord." But he said to them, "Well, unless I see the nail marks in his hands, unless I put my fingers where the nails were, unless I put my hand into his side, I will not believe." Now, I struggle with FOMO. Right?

Last thing Thomas saw was Jesus on the cross, and then when he appears to them, he wasn't there. And so all he's heard about from these guys, it's like when you're in a car and your kids are saying, "How long till we get there? How long till we get there? When we going to get there?

When we going to get there? How much longer do we have?" All Thomas has heard from them is about how they saw Jesus, but Thomas didn't see him. He wasn't there. Now watch how the passage continues.

Now, a week later, his disciples were in the house again, and Thomas was with them. Now, though the doors were locked, Jesus came and he stood amongst them. Now that's pretty incredible, but we're going to skip that. "Peace be with you." Then he said to Thomas, "Put your fingers right here.

See my hands. Reach out your hand and put them into my side. Stop doubting and believe." Thomas said to him, "My Lord, my God." Then Jesus told him, "Because you have seen me, you have believed. Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed." Now, here's the very first thing I want you to see from this passage.

Doubts don't stop the mission. Did you catch that? This all went down, and for eight days it was like this kind of holding pattern a little bit. And for eight days, the disciples were telling Thomas everything he wanted to know.

They were giving him all the scoop of what they experienced. And for eight days, Thomas was also talking about how he wasn't there for that moment. But during that time, in all the confusion, did you see the way the disciples kept loving on and caring for Thomas? Because eight days later, so he appeared, and then the disciples plus Thomas are back together again.

They're just back in church again. It was Sunday after Sunday. And despite having doubts and fears, Thomas was still right there in the seats. He was still sitting in that campus.

He was still having meals with them that week. They were still telling stories, and he was listening. They didn't put Thomas on a PIP plan, performance improvement plan. They didn't go around going, "Hey, hey, hey.

I need you to pray for something. Would you pray for dear brother Thomas? He's having doubts." They didn't not tell him when they were getting back together because of the way he acted the last time. And Thomas, what about Thomas?

He's having these doubts and FOMOs and fears, but he's still right in the circle. He's still right there with them that week, and he's still sharing with them, "These are things that are happening in my life. This is what's going on." And then you have the moment, the real moment in this story is when Jesus comes back in the room with them. I had a friend growing up, and believe it or not, I did have a friend.

And this particular friend, we would have a good time together, and life would just be going, and we could get into a little bit of trouble, a little bit of mischief, whatever, and the response that his mom would always say was, "You better watch out. Your dad's coming home today." It was like a constant threat like, "Hey, I'm not going to deal with this bad behavior, but your dad's coming home today." And when Dad got home, everything changed. And I sense that in this little moment in scripture, because it's like, hey, the disciples were okay with him still being around. Thomas had the courage to stay in the circle even though he's working through all this.

But what's going to happen when Jesus shows back up? How's he going to react to the disciple that's been having some doubts and some fears, and he was even vocal about it? He literally goes through the doors and through the walls, and he shows up face-to-face with Thomas, and he says, "Hey, man, just put your fingers right here. Put your hand right here." Do you see the way that instead of moving away from Thomas, Jesus moves towards him?

But what I really love about that moment is what you need to know about Thomas is his story didn't end right here where he gives this incredible declaration, "My Lord and my God." He went on to India to be a missionary. Do you see this? He started out this disciple that was doubting, but he ends being this disciple that's sharing the gospel all the way in India. He didn't stay in his doubts.

He didn't stay in his fears. He didn't stay in that circle. No, he was sent out. And so here's the last passage, and I need you to see this one because I've got one more passage to really help you see what I'm trying to help you see, okay?

And this one's in Matthew. This is Matthew 28, and this one's really going to blow your mind because everything you have thought about Thomas, it may not just be Thomas. All right? So I'm really going to open up a can of worms right here.

All right? In other words, there may have been more disciples that were struggling with doubt and fear than just Thomas. This is going to make you feel better. All right?

Matthew 28. Now, this is, again, this is after the crucifixion. This is after the resurrection. Jesus has now, for 40 days, been doing miracles, been sharing meals.

He's been with the disciples. All this stuff has been happening. Watch what happens when he gives these disciples the last word he's going to give them. Watch the scene that he sets up.

It says, "Then the 11 disciples went to Galilee, to the mountain where Jesus had told them to go. Now when they saw him, they worshiped him," just like we did today. Man, they worshiped so strong. "But some doubted." Wait a minute.

You mean it's not just Thomas? You mean it's not just you in Stone County watching today with your family, and you don't have answers for what's been going on? You're not the only one in your seat today dealing with fears and questions and maybe even doubts. What I need you to see is what Jesus does next.

And this is the scripture, if you've been in church, you know this scripture. It's called the Great Commission. But what you may not have known is who Jesus gave the Great Commission to. It was a group of doubters.

Watch what Jesus says next, okay? He says, "All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, teaching them to obey everything that I've commanded you. And surely I'm with you always to the very end of the age." Jesus just sent out the Avengers.

And they're dealing with doubts and questions. That should make you feel better if you maybe don't have it all figured out today. If you still, at times, like me, have some worries and some fears. But what I want you to see is that the doubts in those disciples did not stop the mission that Jesus sent them out to do, which was to make disciples and baptize in the name of the Father, Son, and the Holy Spirit.

The doubts didn't stop the mission because Jesus said, "All authority in heaven and earth has been given to me." And the last part of that verse, he says, "I'm going to go with you," even in your doubts and your fears and your questions. Now, here's the second part, and I love this part because I want you to hear clearly that the mission doesn't stop because of your doubts. But watch the second thing. You don't stop.

You, the disciple, me, the preacher, you, the mom, you, the dad, you, the student, you that's watching today, you are not disqualified because maybe you have some doubts, and maybe you have some fears. Maybe you have some questions. I think the enemy has worked this lie. He's told us this lie, and it's deep down in our cultures, deep down in the church, where it says, "Hey, you know what?

I recognize that God's moving, and you worship, and you kind of feel the Holy Spirit like sending you out. It's like an airplane that's on the runway, and you're ready to go be a disciple and to share your faith and to make disciples and baptize them." But you're grounded like an airplane that doesn't take off because the enemy's in your ear going, "Yeah, but guess what? You got fears and questions too." I mean, it's ready for takeoff. You had an experience in church.

You invited Jesus into your heart. You know the truth. You know you've been saved by grace. But because you're not perfect, he begins to tell you these little lies like you're disqualified because of that.

Fill in the blank. And you stay grounded when, man, you should have taken off with his grace. So I'm going to tell you some things. I'm going to just declare some things over you that you need to hear today.

Having doubts is a normal Christian experience. Doubt doesn't mean you're not saved. Fears don't mean you don't have faith. Questions don't mean you don't love the Lord.

I'm helping you offload some of these things that have grounded you, and I'm helping you see that it's not just you. It's me. I deal with doubts and fears and questions. What about David?

King David, a man after God's own heart. Well, watch the words he wrote in Psalms about some of the thoughts and fears that go through his mind. Maybe you relate. "How long, Lord?" Do you feel just the weight in that question?

Maybe you're here today, and it's depression, and then it is just like, how long am I going to carry this? "Will you forget about me forever?" Have you ever felt that? Like, do you see me? Does anybody else see me in this house?

David did. "How long will you hide your face from me? How long must I wrestle with my thoughts and day after day have sorrow in my heart? How long will my enemies triumph over me?" But what I'm helping you see is that this disciple, Thomas, he struggled with doubt.

The disciples, like the rest of them, you saw it in Matthew, it says, "Some of the disciples," not just Thomas. David, King David, that we just read about. Your preacher. I'm going to just be honest with you guys.

We're stepping out. We're taking a huge step of faith, and we're expanding our campus in Stone County, and sometimes fear over faith wins in my heart. How are we going to afford this? Sometimes I'll be sitting with families and walking with you through.

Man, one of the hardest things as a pastor is to be up here at a funeral, and the family's on the front row. And I know the questions and fears that they're asking themselves about the future, and I don't have answers to it. And sometimes those fears and questions just paralyze me like an airplane, just stuck. I deal with doubts as well.

But I want you to see today that those doubts don't disqualify you. One of the biggest blessings you give me as your pastor is you don't expect me to be perfect. I'm just telling you, that is a weight off my back. If you were looking for a perfect preacher, we're going to have to get the search committee back together again.

We ain't got one. And it's such a blessing to me that you give me room to be me. But what I want you to see is that ministry, you ready? This is a big one.

Ministry is not for other people who are better than you. And when I say ministry, listen, I don't mean going to seminary and standing up here. I mean like ministry, loving God and loving others. That's for you, and it's for me, and it's for people who doubt, and people who have questions, and people who deal with fears.

It's not for people who you think are, "Oh, they're a level five. I'm a level two." No. And I need you to hear this so clearly because Jesus has been using people who have doubts and fears and questions all the way from the very first moment when he called the disciples. The movement of our faith, the movement of Christianity, the movement of Christ followers, it's not on the backs of charismatic preachers on stages.

It's on the backs of ordinary people discipling their children, going to their schools and their offices and their neighborhoods, contagious with the grace and the compassion and the love of Jesus. Amen. You are not disqualified. In fact, he wants to use you.

But we do the opposite. You see, what we do when we have those things, we isolate. What would it be like on your GroupMe this week when you get ready for house church, everybody's talking about what they're going to bring to house church on Wednesday night? And I know you're in house church, and you're a contributor, so you bring things too.

Wow. What, it is a rest week. I got to. What if you wrote on your GroupMe this week, "I'm going to bring doubts and fears.

See you there at 6:30." What I'm saying is that Thomas brought it to the disciples. David, the Psalm that we just read, he turned his doubts and his fears and his depression and his thoughts into a song that people would sing. Do you see how different that is than the way me and you respond? We just hold it in, and it gets bigger and bigger.

Jeff, our legacy pastor, used to say this all the time, "What stays in the dark grows," but what we bring out into the light, man, begins to find healing. I'm challenging you today that maybe you don't need to just hold onto those things. We need to be a church that's gracious with each other, the same way the disciples were so gracious with Thomas. If you're here today and you're struggling, man, you've come to a place where we're going to receive you and love you because, spoiler alert, we've been there.

And now that's our role. Now we partner with you, and we struggle together, and we struggle well, and we keep moving. We don't stay in it. Here's the third part, and I love this part.

This is the encouraging part. Doubt doesn't get the last word. And don't you love that about this passage? And the tension that I think we all wrestle with because I think it's deep down in us by way of our culture.

We grew up in a system where when you go to your last day of preschool, you come for graduation. And everybody comes because you graduated preschool. And then you make it to your elementary school, and those elementary school teachers are such a gift. I mean, they're so patient with us, and they help us learn to tie our shoes and to eat our lunch by ourselves.

And then you graduate from elementary school. Everybody comes for graduation. Then you go to middle school, then you go to high school, and you come to the graduation. Then you go to college, then you go to graduation.

Then you go to grad school, you go to graduation. What I'm telling you is, I think we've programmed our minds to think, "Once I become a preacher, I'm not going to struggle." What? "Once I accept Jesus into my life and I get baptized, I've graduated from fears and questions." That's not in the Bible, and it's the enemy that's put this weight on you that shouldn't even be there. That you need to be perfect.

That you can't wrestle with things. He calls it a walk. It's a journey that we're on, where we're working through things as we keep following him in faith. You see that in the life of Thomas.

It's a journey. What I'm telling you is, don't wait for your fear to disappear, because it may not. But you still may go to India and share the gospel like Thomas. It may not disappear, and you still may be like the disciples that are sent out to make other disciples.

It may not disappear, and you still step into being the pastor, and you've got some real weight and fear about what that looks like. It still may not disappear, but you're still called to shepherd and love the kids that are in your home or in your class. You may not feel like you're qualified and you're ready to step into leading a KXP class or to sit knee to knee with some students on Sunday nights, but this is a season that you step into giving like you've never given before. God uses us despite our fears.

I want you to see the very last line from Thomas, because this is the line for you and for me today. Did you see what Thomas says when he finally sees Jesus? He goes from, "The last time I saw him was at the crucifixion. Man, he died for me." And then all of a sudden, here he is face to face.

And Thomas, of all the different things he could say in that moment, he says, "My Lord and my God." He gives a declaration in that moment that's bigger than everything leading up to that moment. He doesn't get into, "These were my fears. Hey, these were the things that I thought." No, no, he just says, "That is my Lord and my God, and you are alive." You remember when your kids first took their first steps? I have it on video, and I go back and watch it sometimes.

We captured the whole thing. My kids, probably like yours, had really big heads and small feet. And it is like a wobble, wobble, wobble kind of step. They're not about to run.

They're not about to win any race. But when they took their first steps, now we still aren't talking about their falls. We're not talking about how long it took them before they took their first steps. We called everybody.

We got the camera. We celebrated. There was one story to be told. They're finally walking.

They finally took a step. Listen, that's why we ended the series with this one thought. He is alive. No, no, like he is risen.

Thomas is in awe. Of all the different things he could've said and thought, he's going, "My Lord, my God, you're alive right now." I don't know how good this sermon's going to be. I don't know how good the closing story is. But if Jesus is in that room over there and he's alive, you better go.

Because that changes everything. That gives you hope. That gives you confidence that when you're not alive, you can be with him because he conquered sin and conquered death Nobody's talking about the falls. Nobody's listing out all the different doubts.

The theme of this whole series, "Who is Jesus?" It ends with this one message: He is alive. He is accessible to you. He comes running after you. He wants to change your life today because He is a living hope.

He's not dead. He's not in the grave. Because of that, we can face today, we can face tomorrow different. Do you remember the old hymn?

Some of you, you've been in church a while, you're going to love this. You've been waiting on a day like this. I'm not going to sing it because I can't sing. But I'm going to lead you to just walk through this hymn with me.

It says this: Because He lives... Boy, I wish I could sing. This would be a really powerful moment. I can face tomorrow.

Because He lives, all fear is now gone. Because I know that He holds the future, and life is worth the living. Why? Just because He lives.

Yeah, you can celebrate that. Man, can I tell you, I don't want to be known as a church that's, what are we? Are we Baptist or are we not? I mean, hey, are we the biggest in town or are we not?

Who cares? Let's be known as the church that celebrates that Jesus is alive, and because He lives, we face tomorrow, and we face it different. Because He lives, fear is gone. Because He lives, we face what we have.

Because He lives, he holds our future in His hands. And because He lives, oh man, life is worth living now. So here's what I want you to do. I want you to bow your heads for me for just a second, and I'm going to walk you through a moment where I'm helping you.

We reframed Thomas. Thomas is no longer known as Doubting Thomas. He is now known as Thomas the Twin. I think maybe you want to reframe some things.

Maybe the focus in your life for way too long has been the past. It's been fill-in-the-blank with whatever sin or struggle that you've walked through. It's been a difficult season. And I need you to come under the same label here that Jesus is alive, that there's a new story for you, that there's hope for you, that you can now face tomorrow because He lives.

So you may want to do this, and I want you to keep your head bowed, but at the end of the experience, we're going to have people on our prayer team down. Maybe you just want to write on one of those cards, the communication cards, what it is, what fear it is, or what speed bump, or what obstacle, or what thought the enemy keeps bringing in your mind. Just write it down and then come down and let someone pray with you because He lives. And you don't need to tell the old story any longer.

Like Thomas, you need to be able to say, "My Lord, my God." That's the whole story. He lives. So that's how we end this series, with one message, that Jesus is alive. God, I thank you so much that of all the things we could be talking about today, we get to end this series with the most radical thought i- in the history of time, that you rose from the grave, and that despite the miraculous moment of you rising from the grave, you still chose to come after me, to pursue us.

That God, there's a new story now. There's a new message for us to tell, and we want to tell that message, that you are alive, that your grace covers us, that you are our Lord, and that you're our God. So today, Father, begin to rewrite our stories because we have a risen Savior who is alive. It's in your Son's name we pray.

Amen.