The Second Sunday of Easter – Pr. Faugstad sermon
Text: Joshua 5:13-6:6

In Christ Jesus, who waits for just the right time to give just the right blessings, dear fellow redeemed:

The Lord’s apostle Thomas had a tough week. Mary Magdalene and the other women said, “We have seen the Lord!” The two Emmaus disciples said, “We have seen the Lord!” His fellow chosen disciples said, “We have seen the Lord!” Why did Thomas seem to be the only one who hadn’t seen the Lord that Easter Sunday? Why would Jesus leave him out? He couldn’t bear the thought; they must be mistaken.

So all week long, no matter who talked to him, and no matter what evidence they offered of Jesus’ resurrection, Thomas defiantly replied, “Unless I see in his hands the mark of the nails, and place my finger into the mark of the nails, and place my hand into his side, I will never believe” (Joh. 20:25). But did he also have some doubts about his firm position? As each day passed without the Lord appearing, did he wonder, “O Lord, what are You waiting for?” Or did the passing of each day without the Lord’s appearance make him more firm in his denials?

He asked for proof, real tangible evidence. He wanted to see it, or he said he would never believe it. This showed a misunderstanding of what it means to “believe.” It is not a decision that a person makes when the evidence is convincing enough. It is not a scientific process of gathering facts until there is no possible conclusion but one. To “believe” is to trust that something is so, or that something will be, even when there is no tangible evidence or logical basis to support it.

The Israelites were operating by faith as they marched around the walls of Jericho. They trusted that the LORD would give them the victory He promised. But we could understand if their faith wavered a bit. Like Thomas who had to wait a week before Jesus revealed Himself to him, the Israelites had to wait a week before the LORD delivered Jericho into their hands.

Each day for six days, they were directed to march one time all the way around the city. The only sound to be made was seven priests blowing seven rams’ horns. The men of war were to march in silence. As each day passed with nothing happening, did those Israelites wonder within themselves, “What are You waiting for?” What if nothing happened at all? They would be the laughing-stock of all the land of Canaan if they marched around a city for a week and nothing happened. Possibly while they marched they could hear the inhabitants of Jericho yelling down at them, taunting them, ridiculing them.

But as strange as it seemed to do what God said, they held onto His promise. They followed the LORD’s instructions. For six days, they marched around once, and on the seventh day, they marched around the city seven times in the same manner as before. Then the seven priests blew their trumpets. On their cue, the men of war sent up a great shout, and the walls of Jericho dropped straight down just like a skyscraper that is imploded.

The Israelites’ seven-day wait was rewarded with a complete victory over the city and its inhabitants. Their faith in the LORD’s promise was confirmed. The wait was definitely worth it. Because the LORD made them wait and made the walls of Jericho fall without anything touching them, the Israelites saw more clearly that the victory was the LORD’s.

The “sevens” in the account emphasize this. The number seven in the Bible is closely tied to God, so it represents His holiness or perfection. He directed seven priests to march for seven days carrying seven horns, with seven trips around the city on the seventh day. This was the work of the holy LORD; this was His doing out of love for His people.

The same holy LORD still works on your behalf, to give you blessings. But when you have to do something you don’t want to do, or when relief is taking longer than you want, it is easy to ask Him, “What are You waiting for?” You may have asked that when you were sick and didn’t seem to be getting better. You may have asked that when you were being mistreated by a classmate or co-worker or member of the community. You may have asked that when a close relationship was strained, when great troubles loomed in your future, when the questions kept piling up but no answers—“What Are You Waiting For?”

It is natural to ask this. We even have examples of wording like this in the Psalms of lament. But the psalmists don’t stop with that question. They go on to express their confidence that the LORD will act, that He will deliver them at the right time. We need to remember who is calling the shots, who has the Master plan. This is brought home to us by the first part of today’s reading, when Joshua comes face to face with a mysterious Man of war. Joshua asked Him, “Are You for us, or for our adversaries?” It’s a simple choice. We think the answer will be “I am for you.” But instead the Man replied, “No; but I am the commander of the army of the LORD. Now I have come.”

God is not interested in taking the side of sinners, as though He is just another weapon in our arsenal. He wants us to take His side, to put our trust in Him. This is instructive for when we wonder if we should pray for our favorite sports team, as though God is a fan like we are, or that our team is more righteous than another. God is above all this. He doesn’t want us to be so focused on sides in this life. He wants us to stay focused on His Word.

This is the crucial step when we ask Him, “What are You waiting for?” Instead of just staring up in the sky and waiting for something to happen, the LORD wants us to hear His holy Word. He wants us to review His promises, take them to heart, understand anew His love for us. He wants us to believe that He sent His only-begotten Son to take on flesh for us. He wants us to believe that Jesus satisfied the requirements of God’s holy Law in our place and died to make satisfaction for all our sin. He wants us to believe that Jesus rose on the third day in victory over death just as He said He would.

This was Thomas’ failing. He might have thought that His friends were playing a cruel trick on him, but he should not have rejected Jesus’ clear word. Before His death, Jesus told all twelve of the disciples, “See, we are going up to Jerusalem. And the Son of Man will be delivered over to the chief priests and scribes, and they will condemn him to death and deliver him over to the Gentiles to be mocked and flogged and crucified, and he will be raised on the third day” (Mat. 20:18-19). Thomas heard those words, but like his fellow disciples, he did not believe them.

They did not believe until they saw Jesus, until they had tangible proof. And Jesus said to them, “Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed” (Joh. 20:29). Sometimes Christians will ask God for some special sign of His love, some evidence that will show them He is really present, that He really cares. And the LORD says to us, “Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.”

He calls you to trust His love even when it seems like He is angry with you, to rely on Him even when there appears to be no end to your troubles, to follow His Word even when you can’t see a “light at the end of the tunnel.” Because He is only waiting for the right time. He will not forget about you. Everything He does is for your good.

Day seven was the right time for the walls of Jericho to come crashing down just as the LORD promised they would. Seven days was the right time to hide Himself from Thomas, so Thomas would learn to trust Jesus’ Word and not his own reason. And however long you must wait for relief or help or deliverance is the right amount of time. Whatever you go through, Jesus is with you. Did you notice how He repeated Thomas’ words showing that He had seen all and heard all? Thomas didn’t know it, but Jesus was with Him the whole time.

And so He is with you always, even to the end of your life, even to the end of the age (Mat. 28:20). He is with you “where two or three are gathered in [His] name” (Mat. 18:20). He is with you when He brings forgiveness right to your heart in the absolution. He is with you when you come forward to His holy table. These are the means of His grace by which He makes the walls of your sin and doubt come crashing down. This is where He gives you strength for today and for tomorrow. This is where He turns your desire for proof of His love into the assurance that He loves you with a perfect love.

This is where He changes your impatient, “What are You waiting for?” into a faithful and eager waiting for His grace. We join the psalmist in this faithful waiting and say, “I wait for the LORD, my soul waits, And in His word I do hope. My soul waits for the Lord More than those who watch for the morning—Yes, more than those who watch for the morning. O Israel, hope in the LORD; For with the LORD there is mercy, And with Him is abundant redemption” (Psa. 130:5-7, NKJV).

 Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Ghost; as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, forevermore. Amen.

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(woodcut from “Doubting Thomas” by Julius Schnorr von Carolsfeld, 1794-1872)