After His resurrection, the Lord Jesus appeared to His disciples, but Thomas was not present. Jesus then showed them His hands and His side. The Scripture says, “Then the disciples were glad when they saw the Lord. And Jesus said to them again “Peace be with you. As the Father has sent me, even so I am sending you.” And when he had said this, he breathed on them and said to them, “Receive the Holy Spirit” (John 20:20-22). Here, the risen Lord is breathing on those disciples and imparting to them the Holy Spirit.
On another occasion, eight days later, the disciples met again with Thomas being present. The Scripture says, “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” (John 20:25,26). Note Thomas’s words “I will never believe.”
Thomas not only wanted to see the scars of the nails in Jesus’s hands, he also wanted to physically “place my finger into the mark of the nails, and place my hand into his side.”
After Jesus greeted the disciples, 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.” Thomas answered him, “My Lord and my God!” (John 20: 27,28).
Because of Jesus’ physical and in-person appearance before Thomas who saw firsthand the scars of Jesus’ crucifixion, Thomas was finally convinced beyond any doubt that Jesus was risen indeed. At the same time, Thomas admits Jesus was both Lord and God.
Thomas’ exclaimed, “My Lord and my God,” which is a very short statement but most significant in terms of the Deity of the Lord Jesus Christ. Jesus came into the world as God in human form—the God-man. Very God of very God and yet very man of very man.
“Christ, very God of very God. In Him the God-man resides the essence of God in totality. While on earth, Christ voluntarily laid aside the exercise of His divine prerogatives to fully identify with us and pay our sin-debt” (The Alliance Tozer Devotional Fri. May 06, 2022).
At the very beginning of John’s gospel, we read: “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us” (John 1:1,2,14).
“The Word became flesh and dwelt among us,” is absolute proof that Jesus Christ was very man of very man. There was no other way for Him to satisfy divine justice than to be “made sin for us” and thereby pay the penalty for our sins. Second Corinthians 5:21 says, “For our sake [God] made [Jesus] who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.”
Jesus represents God to us because it is not possible for us to see God. “He is the radiance of the glory of God and the exact imprint of his nature, and he upholds the universe by the word of his power” (Hebrews 1:3).
“Jesus is of one substance with the Father, begotten not created” (Nicene Creed).
The Nicene Creed, a Christian statement of faith, says in part: “We believe in one Lord Jesus Christ, the only Son of God, eternally begotten of the Father; God from God, Light from Light, true God from true God; begotten not made, one in being with the Father.” This creed emphasizes the oneness of Christ the Son and God the Father.
No doubt Thomas had to realize that Jesus was God’s provision and remedy for the sins of mankind, and the fact that Jesus was the only One who could pay the ransom for his sins. “My Lord and my God” certainly says it all.
“My Lord and my God” was Thomas’s confession of faith when the Lord appeared to him after His resurrection. It would seem obvious that Thomas subsequently believed Jesus was both God and God’s Son.
Note Jesus’ response to Thomas. “Jesus said to him, “Have you believed because you have seen me? Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed” (John 20:29). For the Christian, our faith in Jesus Christ means ‘believing is seeing.’
Though we cannot see Jesus at the present time, yet the joy of knowing and loving Him as our Savior is so wonderful, it cannot be expressed or described in words. Hence, Peter declares: “Though you have not seen him, you love him. Though you do not now see him, you believe in him and rejoice with joy that is inexpressible and filled with glory” (1 Peter 1:8). No wonder Jesus told Thomas “Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.”