With Dale Ratzlaff
John 20:24-31
24 But Thomas, one of the twelve, called Didymus, was not with them when Jesus came.
John does not tell us why Thomas was not present the week before when Jesus appeared to the other disciples. There is no praise or blame, just the fact. John gives his name in both Greek, “Didymus,” and Hebrew “Thomas,” both of which mean “twin.” We remember after Jesus had told the disciples that Lazarus was dead and He was going back to Judea where Jesus had been threatened with death it was Thomas who urged the other disciples to accompany Jesus in the face of death.
Therefore Thomas, who is called Didymus, said to his fellow disciples, “Let us also go, so that we may die with Him” (Jn. 11:16).
Thomas here showed his loyalty to Jesus. He considered it better to die with Jesus than to live without Him.
25 So the other disciples were saying to him, “We have seen the Lord!” But he said to them, “Unless I see in His hands the imprint of the nails, and put my finger into the place of the nails, and put my hand into His side, I will not believe.”
John shortens what must have been said that evening to only, “We have seen the Lord!” “Have seen” is in the perfect tense indicating that the vision of the Risen Lord would remain with them, and it did. Doubtless, they rehearsed to Thomas all the incidents of Resurrection Sunday: Peter and John saw the linen wrappings, Mary Magdalene held onto Jesus’ legs, when the two disciples who saw Jesus in Emmaus returned, we have this record:
And they got up that very hour and returned to Jerusalem, and found gathered together the eleven and those who were with them, saying, “The Lord has really risen and has appeared to Simon” (Lk. 24:33-34).
They related what had happened when just a week ago Jesus appeared to them.
While they were telling these things, He Himself stood in their midst and said to them, “Peace be to you.” But they were startled and frightened and thought that they were seeing a spirit. And He said to them, “Why are you troubled, and why do doubts arise in your hearts? See My hands and My feet, that it is I Myself; touch Me and see, for a spirit does not have flesh and bones as you see that I have.” And when He had said this, He showed them His hands and His feet. While they still could not believe it because of their joy and amazement, He said to them, “Have you anything here to eat?” They gave Him a piece of a broiled fish; and He took it and ate it before them (Lk. 24:36-43).
The way this is written in Greek indicates that the disciples kept trying to convince Thomas. We could conclude, then, that Thomas had enough evidence to believe. He knew the character of the disciples, weak as they were in some areas, they were, nonetheless an honest witness to what they had seen. Yet unbelieving Thomas rejected all the evidence given to him. He laid down his own criteria for belief.
Unless I see in His hands the imprint of the nails, and put my finger into the place of the nails, and put my hand into His side, I will not believe.
26 After eight days His disciples were again inside, and Thomas with them. Jesus came, the doors having been shut, and stood in their midst and said, “Peace be with you.”
“Eight days” according to the inclusive method of counting signifies a week. Therefore, this incident took place on Sunday evening one week after Resurrection Sunday. The doors were locked. Jesus again appeared to the disciples, including Thomas. He suddenly stands in their midst.
27 Then He said to Thomas, “Reach here with your finger, and see My hands; and reach here your hand and put it into My side; and do not be unbelieving, but believing.”
Jesus condescends to give Thomas the evidence he wanted. There is no record, however, that Thomas actually felt the wounds of Jesus. When He saw Jesus and beheld the scars, it was enough.
28 Thomas answered and said to Him, “My Lord and my God!”
This confession of Thomas aligns with the testimony of the gospel of John. Jesus is more than just an ordinary man. He is God in the flesh. After the resurrection, we see additional evidence of His divinity. “My Lord and my God” is a new form of address. There is no record of anyone else addressing Jesus in this way. It marks the “leap of faith” from doubt to belief. Just seeing Jesus and the scars of crucifixion were enough for doubting Thomas.
29 Jesus said to him, “Because you have seen Me, have you believed? Blessed are they who did not see, and yet believed.”
Jesus’ answer to Thomas reinforces the facts of the case. He had enough evidence based upon the witness of the other disciples. Jesus seems to confirm that Thomas’ belief was conditional on seeing Jesus, including the scars. Also, Jesus includes a wonderful promise of blessings to us who believe even though we have not seen the Risen Christ as did Thomas.
30 Therefore many other signs Jesus also performed in the presence of the disciples, which are not written in this book;
John now gives us His stated purpose for writing his Gospel. He tells us that his record is not a complete story of Jesus’ life and ministry. Rather, he has selected miracles, signs, witnesses, and teaching that give evidence for belief. John gives us the very highest view of the Person of Jesus. He has just given us the confession of Thomas, “My Lord and my God.” There is no doubt that John considered Jesus to be the very incarnation of God.
31 but these have been written so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God; and that believing you may have life in His name.
John, in this powerful summary statement, tells us that there are two major truths necessary to saving faith. We must believe Jesus is the Christ, the Messiah prophesied in the Old Testament. We are not, however, to understand the Messiah’s role which Judaism expected at the time. He is “the Son of God” in the fullest sense of the term. John’s opening statement in his Gospel aligns beautifully with his conclusion.
In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things came into being through Him, and apart from Him nothing came into being that has come into being. In Him was life, and the life was the Light of men. The Light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not comprehend it…And the Word became flesh, and dwelt among us, and we saw His glory, glory as of the only begotten from the Father, full of grace and truth (Jn. 1:1-5,14).
Several things should be mentioned from the records of first-day appearances. First, there are no planned “first day of the week” meetings, as if Christ had told His disciples before His death to meet on the first day of the week. Rather, the disciples were taken by surprise. They were apparently afraid for their own lives and were hiding behind locked doors “for fear of the Jews.”
Second, while the events which happened on this day seem not to have been planned by the disciples, that in no way diminishes the importance of what did transpire in the sovereign will of God.
When a day is mentioned in connection with Christ’s post-resurrection meetings, it is always on the first day of the week. There is no record that the risen Christ ever met with His disciples on a Sabbath.
We should also remember that the gospel accounts, as well as the book of Acts, were written years after the events described therein. The fact that the first day of the week is mentioned repeatedly indicates that some significance was given to that day in New Testament times.
- On Sunday morning, Mary “worshipped Him.”
- On Sunday evening, Jesus took bread, blessed it, broke it and began to give it to the disciples in Emmaus. It is of importance to note that these two disciples recognized Jesus in the breaking of the bread. Only a few days earlier He had broken bread, given it to His disciples and said, “Do this in remembrance of Me” (Lk. 22:19). When they did recognize Jesus, He suddenly vanished from their sight.
- Sunday night, Jesus said, “Peace be with you,” two times.
- Sunday evening, Jesus commissioned His disciples by saying, “As the Father has sent Me, I also send you.”
- On the evening of the first day of the week, Jesus breathed and said, “Receive the Holy Spirit.”
- Sunday evening, Jesus gave His disciples the authority to proclaim forgiveness to those who believe in Him.
The meeting on the Sunday evening a week after the resurrection is of interest on two accounts. First, why were the disciples meeting on Sunday evening? This question, for our purposes, has only two possible answers. If the disciples were purposely meeting on the first day of the week, it would show that some significance was given to this day. On the other hand, they may have been meeting together on many evenings or even living together, and it just happened to be on this evening that Jesus appeared to them. If the former is correct, then it appears that the disciples were given some significance to the first day of the week. However, if the latter is the case, then Jesus is the one who chooses to reveal Himself on the first day of the week. - In either case, some significance must be given to the fact that Jesus appeared to the disciples “eight days later”⎯a commonly accepted term for “next week” ( See Leon Morris, The Gospel According to John, The New International Commentary of the New Testament, p. 852, (Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Co. Grand Rapids, MI, 1971).
- It was on this occasion that Thomas said, “My Lord and my God!”
- When a day is mentioned in connection with the appearances of the risen Lord, it is always the first day of the week.
Application
- First and foremost, here we have additional evidence for saving faith which is squarely based upon the bodily resurrection of Jesus.
- The elements of saving faith are a belief (and trust) in Jesus as the Messiah and the divine Son of God.
- We are to believe credible witnesses to the resurrection and not demand our own criteria for belief.
- There are times when God will condescend to give us evidence which will satisfy our conditions for believing.
- We are blessed when we demonstrate faith in the written word of God.
- The gospel of John expresses the very heart of the “beloved disciple.” It was evangelism. He carefully chose material from a vast pool of information about the life and ministry of Jesus that would generate saving faith. In this we have an excellent example to follow.
- There is no record that the resurrected Christ ever met with His disciples on the Sabbath. Every time a day is mentioned in connection with His appearances, it is on the first day of the week.
Prayer,
Father, thank you for the evidence of the bodily resurrection of Jesus. Thank you for understanding the nature of our unbelief and your willingness to give us more evidence if we are honestly seeking the truth. I believe that Jesus is the Messiah and is the eternal, divine Son of God. May I be motivated to share this good news of Christ’s life, death for sin, burial, and resurrection.
In Jesus name.
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