[Trinity_Tx]

"If their faith was strengthened that much, it must not have been much to begin with or of the kind Jesus spoke to Thomas about: "Because you have seen me, you have believed; blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed."

The fact that even Thomas needed more than to be told (even first hand) that Jesus had indeed risen as He had promised makes me feel better about my own lack of faith.

Thomas had so much more to go on than we. Here he was, a beloved, chosen disciple of Christ, who had heard his sermons directly, slept and ate with Him, and witnessed all those miracles, and yet he was only mildly rebuked (not to mention not sent to everlasting torture in Hell) for doubting.

We, however, have a multitude of conflicting interpretations of a Bible written centuries ago, translated and edited centuries later.

I must choose which man's interpretation is correct, and have faith in them, trusting myself to be truly unbiased, led only by The Spirit in discerning between false and true...

And be confident that all those who are just as convicted that they hear the true spirit telling them my convictions are wrong, are themselves misguided, and however well-meant, they are victims of other influences from which I hold myself to be immune.

[BigSkyFreeper]

Each one of us has to believe in Him and read and understand the Word. If we read and understand the Word, that's all that matters. I might interpret the Word differently than my next door neighbor, doesn't make me right and my neighbor wrong, or the other way around. It's the understanding of the written Word, the daily walk with Jesus, and the trust and belief in Jesus that matters.