The message begins with a personal family story about baseball and habits passed down through generations, illustrating how traits and influences leave lasting marks. In the same way, God’s “fingerprints” can be seen in our lives through the character of Christ passed on to His followers.
The focus is on the apostle Thomas. While he’s often remembered only as “Doubting Thomas,” the sermon reframes him as Courageous Thomas. In John 11, when Jesus decides to return to dangerous Jerusalem to help Lazarus, Thomas boldly declares, “Let us also go, that we may die with him.” This shows loyalty, courage, and willingness to risk everything to be with Jesus.
The sermon emphasizes that Thomas’s courage came from Jesus himself, who modeled ultimate courage in confronting religious leaders, protecting the vulnerable, resisting temptation, and going to the cross. After the resurrection, Thomas carried this courage across nations, bringing Christianity as far as India, where he was eventually martyred.
The takeaway is that no personal weakness, excuse, or past failure can stop God from working through us. With the Holy Spirit, the same courage that lived in Jesus—and in Thomas—lives in us. The invitation is to surrender excuses, claim God’s courage, and follow Jesus wherever He leads.
Get new episodes of First Methodist Traditional automatically
