Doubting Thomas
John 20:29 - We are blessed to believe what we have not seen
Reproduction of The Incredulity of Saint Thomas by Caravaggio, from Google Arts and Culture.
“Then Jesus told him, “Because you have seen me, you have believed; blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.””
John 20:29 NIV
Near the end of the Gospel of John comes the recounting of the resurrection of Jesus, from the discovery of the empty tomb to Jesus appearing first to Mary Magdalene, and then to His disciples. The one person who does not see Jesus is Thomas, who is away when Jesus appears to the disciples and — after hearing their excited testimonies — says “Unless I see the nail marks in his hands and put my finger where the nails were, and put my hand into his side, I will not believe.” (John 20:25)
A week later, all of the disciples including Thomas (who are meeting behind locked doors in fear of persecution by the Sanhedrin) are revisited by Jesus. Thomas must have forgotten that the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit are omnipresent, as he should have realized that his statement recorded in John 20:25 would be heard by Jesus!
Sure enough, when Jesus appears to the disciples He speaks directly to Thomas, saying “Put your finger here; see my hands. Reach out your hand and put it into my side. Stop doubting and believe.” (John 20:27) Thomas, having seen the proof that he had asked for, exclaims “My Lord and my God!” (John 20:28). Jesus then replies “Because you have seen me, you have believed; blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.”
By the way, the Caravaggio painting at the top of this post is a bit graphic, yet there really is nothing in John’s gospel that says that Thomas placed his hand into the wound on the side of Jesus. The verse says “because you have seen me, you have believed”, not “because you touched my wounds and done a full forensic analysis, you have believed”.
What a powerful experience that must have been, not only for Thomas but for the rest of the disciples! 19th century Irish biblical scholar Adam Clarke said of Jesus’ statement:
From this we learn that to believe in Jesus, on the testimony of his apostles, will put a man into the possession of the very same blessedness which they themselves enjoyed. And so has God constituted the whole economy of grace that a believer, at eighteen hundred years’ distance from the time of the resurrection, suffers no loss because he has not seen Christ in the flesh.1
In other words, those of us who “have not seen and yet believed” are as blessed by God as the apostles who were present at the visitations by Jesus. This is another beatitude (a statement of blessing) of Jesus that is not found in the Sermon on the Mount.
Charles Haddon Spurgeon2 listed the ways that this blessing could be diminished:
When we demand for a voice, a vision, a revelation to prove our faith.
When we demand for some special circumstances to prove our faith.
When we demand for some ecstatic experience.
When we demand for an answer to every difficult question or objection.
When we demand what men think of as success in our work of Jesus.
When we demand that others support us in our faith.
As usual, Spurgeon is absolutely correct. I think it’s sometimes difficult for new believers to believe without them thinking that they should suddenly experience some miraculous happening. Sure, it does happen — I’ve had both a miraculous healing of a lifelong affliction and (several times) what I’d consider ecstatic experiences where I felt the presence of God so strongly that I was moved to joyful tears. But I don’t need for these things to continue to keep my faith strong and growing!
There’s one more thought, this time from Enduring Word, that sums up not only this chapter of the Gospel of John, but the entire book:
The faith of Thomas becomes the climax of the book. Throughout the Gospel of John Jesus has triumphed over sickness, sin, evil men, death and sorrow. Now with Thomas, Jesus conquered unbelief.
Those of us who are believers in the 21st century are truly blessed.
Heaven On Wheels Daily Prayer:
Today’s prayer comes from Knowing Jesus:
Thank You, Father, for opening my spiritual eyes of faith to see You and the lovely Lord Jesus. I pray that I will not rely on senses or emotions to inform me of Your love and grace, but will trust the truth of Your Word. Strengthen my faith in You today, Lord. And send me out as a messenger to proclaim You as my Lord and my God. In Jesus' name, AMEN.
Scripture quotations taken from THE HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION®, NIV®. Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica US, Inc.®. Used by permission.
Commentary quotations from Enduring Word are used with the written permission of the author
Clarke, Adam "Clarke's Commentary: The Holy Bible Containing the Old and New Testaments with a Commentary and Critical Notes" Volume 5 (Matthew-Acts) (New York: Eaton and Mains, 1832)
Spurgeon, Charles Haddon "The New Park Street Pulpit" Volumes 1-6 and "The Metropolitan Tabernacle Pulpit" Volumes 7-63 (Pasadena, Texas: Pilgrim Publications, 1990)