Day 1226: Empirical evidence - John 20 vs 24-29

24-25 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.” 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.” 30-31 Now Jesus did many other signs in the presence of the disciples, which are not written in this book; but these are written 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 20:24-29 English Standard Version

Thomas wasn't just a doubter. Rather, he was basically saying that he would never believe Jesus' resurrection unless he had 'empirical evidence'. Empirical evidence refers to information gathered through observation or experimentation that confirms a scientific theory, or establishes as reasonable, a person's belief. And so Thomas said that he needed to see with his own eyes the mark of the nails, and touch with his hand the place where the soldiers had pierced the body of Jesus. He was not ready to believe the disciples testimony that they had 'seen the Lord'. How many people through the ages has Thomas spoken for!

If Jesus had ascended to heaven immediately after seeing the disciples, many people would have accused them of hallucinating. And I'm sure this is why the apostle Paul wrote what he did to the Corinthians. He said: “What I received I passed on to you as of first importance, that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures, and that he appeared to Cephas, and then to the Twelve. After that, he appeared to more than five hundred of the brothers and sisters at the same time, most of whom are still living, though some have fallen asleep. Then he appeared to James, then to all the apostles, and last of all he appeared to me also, as to one abnormally born.” (1 Corinthians 15:3-8)

So it was that, eight days later, Jesus appeared to them again, and Thomas was there! We should conclude that it was in His resurrection body that He came to them as the doors were locked and He had no need to knock. And then He gave Thomas the empirical evidence he had sought. We're not told if Thomas did reach out to touch the Lord. But what was his response that John records? (vs 28)

Notice that Jesus didn't rebuke Thomas for calling Him 'the Son of God.' That is who He really is, and that's why Thomas also called Him 'my Lord'. Thomas was now fully convinced that Jesus was really alive. Now it might be that someone reads this post who is in the same state Thomas was before He saw Jesus. They're not convinced that Jesus arose. I would encourage such a person to regard Thomas as their proxy! That is, a deputy who acts as a substitute for another. Thomas hesitancy was the same as theirs. But Thomas’ new found assurance can be theirs as well.

At this point of his gospel John mentions that Jesus 'did many other signs in the presence of His disciples', including Thomas. 'But' he says, 'these are written 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.' And though this incident of Thomas was not a sign as such, it was still significant enough for John to record it. One last point. What was the greeting that Jesus gave to His disciples? (vs 26)

“Peace be with you.” (Jewish translations say 'Shalom Aleichem.') That is the wonderful blessing that comes from Jesus to anyone who, though they've never seen Him, yet have believed on His name.