Post Lenten Read
Easter (3), Doubting Thomas
Prayer
Heavenly Father, we acknowledge that You are the true and Living God of the Bible. Help us to be locked in to Your word, to understand, and apply them to our lives, in Jesus’ name, Amen.
John 20:19-31
Verses 19-23, 19 When therefore it was evening on that day, the first day of the week, and when the doors were locked where the disciples were assembled, for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood in the middle, and said to them, “Peace be to you.” 20 When he had said this, he showed them his hands and his side. The disciples therefore were glad when they saw the Lord. 21 Jesus therefore said to them again, “Peace be to you. As the Father has sent me, even so I send you.” 22 When he had said this, he breathed on them, and said to them, “Receive the Holy Spirit! 23 If you forgive anyone’s sins, they have been forgiven them. If you retain anyone’s sins, they have been retained.”
Reflection
By now, it was Easter Sunday evening. The disciples were hiding behind locked doors in the upper room for fear of the Jews.
The Risen Christ passed through the locked doors and appeared in front of the disciples. He pronounced peace or ‘shalom’ in Hebrews to them and showed them His hands and His side.
Christ pronounced ‘shalom,’ again and imparted the Holy Spirit to the disciples through His breath.
Verses 24-25, 24 But Thomas, one of the twelve, called Didymus, wasn’t with them when Jesus came. 25 The other disciples therefore said to him, “We have seen the Lord!” But he said to them, “Unless I see in his hands the print of the nails, put my finger into the print of the nails, and put my hand into his side, I will not believe.”
Reflection
However, Didymus or Thomas was not there when Christ appeared to the disciples. When the others told him about it, he was adamant that he would not believe unless he saw the Lord with his own eyes and touched the Lord’s hands and side, with his own hands.
Verses 26-29, 26 After eight days again his disciples were inside and Thomas was with them. Jesus came, the doors being locked, and stood in the middle, and said, “Peace be to you.” 27 Then he said to Thomas, “Reach here your finger, and see my hands. Reach here your hand, and put it into my side. Don’t be unbelieving, but believing.” 28 Thomas answered him, “My Lord and my God!”29 Jesus said to him, “Because you have seen me, you have believed. Blessed are those who have not seen, and have believed.”
Reflection
Eight days later, Christ appeared to the disciples again at the same place, passing through the locked doors and pronouncing ‘shalom’ on them.
He turned to Thomas and told him to touch His hands and His side, and told him to believe.
At once, Thomas confessed his great confession of faith, ‘my Lord and my God.’’
Christ replied, ‘Blessed are those who have not seen and yet believe.’ We, who are reading this 2000 years later are ‘those who have not seen and yet believed.’
Verses 30-31, 30 Therefore Jesus did many other signs in the presence of his disciples, which are not written in this book; 31 but these are written, that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that believing you may have life in his name.
Reflection
Jesus Christ did many other miracles that could not be recorded in the gospel due to lack of space. But John wrote all these events as a testimony to us that Jesus is the Christ so that readers down the generations will believe and receive eternal life in His name.
John wrote this Gospel so that ‘you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God and that by believing you may have life in His name,’ John 20:31.
The Gospel of John ended on the high note of John 20:21.
John chapter 21 was added in later as an epilogue by another writer.
Application
Jesus rose from death on Easter to conquer sin and death. Even death could not hold Him in the grave.
Jesus, who has no sin, paid the penalty of our sin through His death.
Jesus died that death that we deserve, so that we may have eternal life through faith in Him.
The resurrection power of God raised Jesus from death. The resurrection of Jesus proved beyond any shadow of a doubt that Jesus is God and He is everything that He claimed to be.
We can be absolutely certain that Jesus of Nazareth is the Christ, the Son of God, and by believing this, we will have eternal life in His name.
In the kingdom of the world, seeing is believing, but in the Kingdom of God, believing is seeing. It is only by believing that we will see the Glory of God.
Prayer
Heavenly Father, thank You that Jesus Christ is the substitutionary atonement for our sin. I pray for those who have not committed their lives to Him or have wandered away from Him. We pray that they will turn away from sin and turn to Him as their Lord and Saviour today, in Jesus’ name, Amen.