24 Now Thomas, one of the twelve, called the Twin, was not with them when Jesus came. 25 So the other disciples told him, “We have seen the Lord.” But he said to them, “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.”
26 Eight days later, His disciples were inside again, and Thomas was with them. Although the doors were locked, Jesus came and stood among them and said, “Peace be with you.” 27 Then He said to Thomas, “Put your finger here, and see my hands; and put out your hand, and place it in my side. Do not disbelieve, but believe.” 28 Thomas answered Him, “My Lord and my God!” 29 Jesus said to him, “Have you believed because you have seen me? Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.”
Last Sunday we looked at the account of Jesus appearing to His disciples and other followers on the evening of Resurrection Sunday, and today, appropriately, John takes us forward by exactly a week to the following Sunday. Thomas was not with them the previous week. We’re not told why, but his friends told him the exciting news that they had seen Jesus risen from the dead.
Thomas’ famous (or should we say infamous) reply in verse 25 was, “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.”
Jesus then appears to them, apparently in much the same way He had the previous week, and after Jesus led Thomas to faith, we have the highest profession of belief in any of the 4 Gospel records. “My Lord and my God.”
The label “doubting Thomas” has become part of the English vocabulary, and it is a term used by Christians and non-Christians alike, and while it is true that Thomas doubted the resurrection at first, we must guard against applying this unfortunate label to Thomas alone, as if the other disciples and even ourselves never doubted the resurrection of Jesus.
None of the other disciples believed it either until Jesus revealed Himself to them, and neither do people today believe in something so supernatural, unless it is God who does a work within us. The faith to believe in something so out of the ordinary, so outrageous as the resurrection of Jesus Christ, is a gift which God graciously gives us.
This is not the first time we’ve met Thomas in the Gospel of John. In chapter 11, after receiving the news that Lazarus had died, Jesus told His disciples that they needed to return to Judea so that He could raise Lazarus. The problem for the disciples was that the last time they were in Jerusalem (which was only 3km from Lazarus’ hometown of Bethany), Jesus had so upset the Pharisees that the crowd tried to stone Him. John 11:8 says, “The disciples said to Him, ‘Rabbi, the Jews were just now seeking to stone you, and are you going there again?’”
Verses 14 - 16 continue, “Then Jesus told them plainly, ‘Lazarus has died, and for your sake I am glad that I was not there, so that you may believe. But let us go to him.’ So Thomas, called the Twin, said to his fellow disciples, ‘Let us also go, that we may die with him.’”
At first glance, this seems to be quite a brave thing for Thomas to say, but R. C. Sproul makes the point that Thomas’ words were also tinged with “blunt realism.” James Boice says, “The words were honest, loyal, and courageous, but they were not cheerful. They were quite grim.”
We see this again the next time we meet Thomas in chapter 14. “‘In my Father’s house are many rooms. If it were not so, would I have told you that I go to prepare a place for you? And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and will take you to myself, that where I am you may be also. And you know the way to where I am going.’ Thomas said to Him, ‘Lord, we do not know where you are going. How can we know the way?’” (John 14:2-5)
This conversation took place in the Upper Room, just hours before Jesus was arrested, and He spent the next 3 chapters in the Gospel of John reassuring His disciples as the cross loomed large. Thomas spoke for the rest of the disciples here, but his words in verse 5 show us his general attitude of skepticism, which we see again in 20:25. “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.”
As we know, Jesus graciously removed Thomas’ doubts and skepticism, but Thomas was far more than just a doubter at first. As much as we’d prefer not to admit it, doubts about the absolute assurance of our salvation is something we all struggle with occasionally. We give into temptation and fall into sin, or we might go through a time of spiritual barrenness caused by any number of circumstances in our lives, and those age-old questions keep cropping up: Am I really saved? Is this all really true, or am I just fooling myself? This is one of the many reasons we need each other in the church, because as we meet together, we are encouraged on our journey of faith.
In Mark 9 Jesus delivered a boy who was demon-possessed, and in verse 24 the boy’s father perfectly summed up the strange mixture of faith and lack of faith we all experience: “I believe; help my unbelief!”
The problem with Thomas though, was that he really was not a doubter at all. Instead, he was a determined unbeliever. He set demands that expressed not his willingness, but his unwillingness to believe: “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.”
Earlier on, when we first met Thomas he was a skeptic, a doubter, but no more. After a whole week of hearing the spreading news that Jesus had risen from the dead, he was not unsure or puzzled. Instead, he stubbornly rejected the news. Leon Morris wrote, “He would not be persuaded by the combined testimony of all the rest of the apostolic band. He could not understand why all the apostles, sensible men whom he knew well, had accepted it. And no matter how stupid they had been, he was not going to follow their example.”
A hardened heart to the truth of the risen Christ is a very bad place to be.
We’ve all heard the story of Thomas many times, but as so often, there are details in the well-known Biblical accounts which are easy to overlook. Jesus first appeared to His disciples on Resurrection Sunday and did not appear to them again until the following Sunday. Could it be that He was emphasising the importance of His people gathering for worship on the Lord’s Day?
Some might say this is stretching things a bit, but the story of Thomas suggests otherwise. For whatever reason, he was not there the previous Sunday when Jesus first appeared to His disciples. As we saw last week, the other disciples finally believed that it was true - Jesus had indeed risen from the dead. At last, they got it, and as a result, their faith was based on the solid truth of Jesus’ triumph over death.
Thomas, on the other hand, had had a whole extra week to deepen his unbelief. If you look at the text, what John records in verses 24 and 25 occurred before that second Sunday. “Now Thomas, one of the twelve, called the Twin, was not with them when Jesus came. So the other disciples told him, ‘We have seen the Lord.’ But he said to them, ‘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.’” It is only in verse 26 that the scene moves forward to the next Sunday.
The commentator John Gangel explains it very well. “In the Greek language, tense is very important. The word translated told in verse 25 appears in the imperfect tense. The disciples kept on telling Thomas they had seen the Lord. Thomas, fed up with such nonsense, grew weary of holding on to a faith that had crumbled. He took the old motto “seeing is believing” to frightening dimensions. He removed himself from the disciple band, telling them he wanted to hear no more about this ridiculous notion of a resurrection.”
So while the other disciples were strengthened in their faith, Thomas drifted into a hardened state of unbelief. His absence from the fellowship of the others contributed to his unbelief. This is a good reminder to us of the importance of Christians gathering regularly to worship together, especially to those, who like Thomas, may be going through a time of spiritual drought, something which happens to us all.
The Scottish baptist minister Alexander Maclaren wrote, “The worst thing that a man can do when disbelief or doubt or coldness shrouds his sky and blots out the stars, is to go away alone and shut himself up with his own perhaps morbid or disturbing thoughts. The best thing that he can do is to go amongst his fellows. If the sermon does not do him any good, the prayers and the praises and the sense of brotherhood will help him.”
Because he was not there when Jesus first appeared to the disciples, Thomas missed the joy of His presence and the building up of faith the others received. Instead, he had an extra week to brood over his doubts, his fears and his unbelief.
We’re not told why Thomas was not with the others on the first Sunday, and neither are we told why he was there a week later, but it is quite possible that although the other disciples were unable to convince Thomas that Jesus had risen from the dead, their enthusiastic witness may well have drawn Thomas to be with them. The lesson to us is that we should be praying for and encouraging our brothers and sisters who may have drifted away from the fellowship of the church. When we cut ourselves off from worship and the fellowship of the saints, we miss out on so much.
We have looked at Hebrews 10:24-25 a few times in recent weeks: “Let us consider how to stir up one another to love and good works, not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the Day drawing near.”
The disciples were not able to convince Thomas about what they had seen, yet their witness somehow appears to have attracted him to be there on the second Sunday, so that Thomas was there when Jesus appeared once more.
John then described what happened as Jesus appeared in verse 26. “Eight days later, His disciples were inside again, and Thomas was with them. Although the doors were locked, Jesus came and stood among them and said, ‘Peace be with you.’” This was almost exactly what happened the previous Sunday. “On the evening of that day, the first day of the week, the doors being locked where the disciples were for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood among them and said to them, ‘Peace be with you.’” (John 20:19)
The difference this time though, was that now Jesus spoke directly to Thomas. “Put your finger here, and see my hands; and put out your hand, and place it in my side. Do not disbelieve, but believe.” (John 20:27)
There are at least three important lessons we can learn as Jesus calls Thomas to faith.
Firstly, Jesus repeated His message of peace from a week earlier. “Peace be with you.” He came into this world to bring peace with God to those lost in sin, which makes us natural enemies of God. It’s the same message the multitude of angels sang more than 30 years earlier on the night Jesus was born. “Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace among those with whom He is pleased!” (Luke 2:14)
At the heart of the Gospel message is the wonderful news that through faith in Jesus Christ, we can be at peace with God. If you have been saved, it is because Jesus came to you through His Word and declared peace. He told you that His atoning death has put an end to God’s wrath against your sins. This is what the Bible proclaims - Jesus offers peace with God and eternal life. That is the assurance He brings to you as the Holy Spirit calls you to faith in Jesus Christ.
Secondly, Jesus reminded Thomas, the others, and each of us, just how we are reconciled with God. It is through His atoning, substitutionary death on the cross. He showed them His wounds once more as He reminded them of His sacrifice. Here we have yet another reminder of the centrality of the cross of Christ in the message that the church is to proclaim. As Paul wrote in 1 Corinthians 1:23, “We preach Christ crucified.”
If you find yourself doubting God’s love, remember the cross, where Jesus freely and willingly gave His life for you. If you ever feel there is no way you could ever be at peace with God, remember the cross and the wounds of Christ. This is the price which was paid on your behalf so that you can be at peace with God. It was the Christ of the cross who reached Thomas. The greatest proof of the love of God is the Cross of Calvary.
Paul wrote in Romans 5:1-2, “Since we have been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ. Through Him we have also obtained access by faith into this grace in which we stand, and we rejoice in hope of the glory of God.”
It is the blood of Christ which makes all the difference. We are reconciled to God and we are at peace with Him through the death of His Son. A. W. Pink writes: “When we have gone astray, what is it that recalls us? Not occupation with the intricacies of prophecy or the finer points of doctrine (important and valuable as these are in their place), but the great foundational truth of the Atonement. It was the sight of the Saviour’s wounds which scattered all Thomas’ doubts, overcame his self-will, and brought him to the feet of Christ as an adoring worshipper.”
And the third lesson we can learn from Jesus’ reply to Thomas was in how He ministered to Thomas’s disbelief. It was personal, it was direct, and it was with compassion and patience. Thomas, after all, should have known better, just as the other disciples. For three years Jesus told them exactly what would happen, but when it did, they just could not bring themselves to believe it, but instead of rebuking or ridiculing Thomas, Jesus graciously said to him, “Put your finger here, and see my hands; and put out your hand, and place it in my side.”
J. C. Ryle wrote, “It is hard to imagine anything more tiresome and provoking than the conduct of Thomas. But it is impossible to imagine anything more patient and compassionate, than our Lord’s treatment of this weak disciple. He deals with him according to his weakness, like a gentle nurse dealing with a difficult child.”
Notice also, how Jesus directly answered Thomas’ demands:
“Unless I see in His hands the mark of the nails.” “See my hands.”
“Unless I place my finger into the mark of the nails.” “Put your finger here.”
“Unless I place my hand into His side.” “Put out your hand, and place it in my side.”
“I will never believe.” “Do not disbelieve, but believe.”
This is how God always deals with the lost who come to faith. Jesus, by the Holy Spirit, calls to each one of us on a personal level, so if He is calling to you, you need to listen to what He says through His Word. Do not disbelieve, but believe.
It’s also interesting to see that although Jesus invited Thomas to reach out and touch His wounds to prove that He had risen from the dead, it was not necessary for Thomas to do so. Instead, all doubt, skepticism and unbelief removed, Thomas made his wonderful declaration of faith: “My Lord and my God!”
It wasn’t because Thomas’ demands and conditions were met that he was convinced to believe. Rather, it was the overwhelming evidence and personal ministry of Jesus that overcame Thomas’ unbelief and drew him to the Lord. There is no greater profession of faith in the 4 Gospel accounts than Thomas’.
He professed Jesus as his Lord, and in so doing, Thomas committed himself completely to Jesus for salvation, worship, and obedience. Jesus is not just the Saviour of those whom He saves, but He is Lord. He is our Master as we learn to surrender to His authority and rule over our lives.
Thomas also confessed the deity of Christ when he proclaimed Him as God. Jesus, while fully man, is, was and always will be, fully God.
There are some false teachers and heretics like Bill Johnson of Bethel Church who teach that during His earthly life, Jesus ceased being God, and only took up His deity once more when He ascended to heaven. This is a heresy called kenoticism, which comes from an incorrect understanding of Philippians 2:6-8, where Paul writes that Jesus, “though He was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied Himself, by taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men. And being found in human form, He humbled Himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross.”
Jesus did not surrender His deity during His earthly life. Instead, He chose for a time to not grasp or hold onto the power and authority which He has held for all eternity. The Reformation Study Bible notes on Philippians 2:7 and 8 say that Jesus, “removed from Himself neither His deity or His identity as God. Instead, the Son of God added to His person a human nature without surrendering any of His divine attributes. The phrase means that He humbled Himself, not relinquishing His divine being but embracing dishonour by becoming human.”
The Christian website GotQuestions.com says of the heresy kenoticism, “The Biblical truth is that Jesus Christ fully possessed both a divine nature and a human nature, and the two natures co-existed in what is often called the hypostatic union. Kenoticism is an attempt to redefine the nature of Christ. Interestingly, it is only the divine nature of Christ that kenoticism calls into question, not His human nature. Most people can easily accept the reality of Jesus’ humanity. Few would argue with the fact that Jesus was born, lived, and died as a human being. What is harder to accept is that He was born, lived, and died - and rose again - as God incarnate.”
But why is this important? What was the significance of Thomas confessing Jesus as both Lord and God? Simply put, if kenoticism were true, Jesus’ death on the cross would not be sufficient to save us, because those who teach this heresy believe that Jesus died as a man and nothing more.
In order for Jesus’ death on the cross to provide our salvation, it is necessary for Him to be both fully human and fully God, or “very God of very God,” as the ancient Nicene Creed teaches. Jesus’ eternal priestly mediation, His sufficient atonement for sin, and His perfect redemption, along with the effectual, sovereign call by which He calls sinners to believe, all require that Jesus be not only fully human, but fully God too.
J. C. Ryle writes, “Forever let us bless God that the Deity of our Lord is taught everywhere in the Scriptures, and stands on evidence that can never be overthrown. Above all, let us daily repose our sinful selves on Christ with undoubting confidence, as one that is perfect God as well as perfect man. He is man, and therefore can be touched with the feeling of our infirmities. He is God, and therefore is able to save unto the uttermost them that come unto God by Him.” (He quotes from Hebrews 7:25 here.)
Thomas worshipped and confessed Jesus as both Lord and God, and Jesus’ reply to him in verse 29 is of infinite importance to us, all these years later. “Have you believed because you have seen me? Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.”
Do you, like Thomas did at first, have conditions and demands, things that you have to see, before you will believe in Jesus for your salvation? He may well answer you, not in the way you might want, but He will reveal Himself to you personally if you seek Him through His Word.
Boice writes, “How gracious our God is! We have no right to demand anything of Him. Yet He who has created us and has died to redeem us stoops to provide what we need. Do we need evidence? If we do and if we will approach the matter honestly, we will find the proof of His deity, death for sinners, resurrection, and promised return overwhelming. Do you say, ‘But I don’t see it?’ Then come to Him. Ask for the evidence. You will find that God, who is far more anxious to reveal Himself to you than you are to find Him, will provide the revelation.”
Unlike Thomas, we have not seen the risen Christ with our own eyes. That glorious privilege and honour is yet to come. 1 John 3:2 says, “Beloved, we are God’s children now, and what we will be has not yet appeared; but we know that when He appears we shall be like Him, because we shall see Him as He is.”
We are told in verse 29 that that if we believe without having seen Him, we will be blessed. What are these blessings? They include the blessings received by anyone who has ever believed. Your sins will be forgiven, you will receive the free gift of eternal life, you will be adopted by God as one of His own, you will be spared from the judgment and wrath that is to come, you will be raised in a glorious body like the resurrected body of Christ, you will have the power of the Holy Spirit to help you live a holy and spiritually peaceful life, and you will be blessed to be used by God as a witness for the salvation of others.
All of these blessings and more will be yours when you make Thomas’ confession your own, as you proclaim, “my Lord and my God!”
“Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.”
Homegroup Study Notes
Read John 20:24-29
Our first reaction whenever we read the account of “doubting” Thomas is along the lines of, “Thomas, how could you?”
What doubts have you had about the truth of the Bible and the glory of the Gospel, and how has God ministered to you through those times?
We are not told why Thomas was missing the first time, nor why he was there on the second Sunday, yet it would seem the enthusiasm of the other disciples played a part. What can we, as the church, learn from this?
Compare verses 25 and 27. How does Jesus directly and personally address Thomas’ doubts?
Thomas then confesses Jesus as both Lord and God. Why is this important, and why was it crucial for Jesus to be both fully man and fully God as He gave His life for us on the cross?
Discuss the wonderful promise Jesus makes to each of us in verse 29.
What are some of the many ways in which we are blessed when we believe?