Bible Verses of the Week

Jesus Appears to His Disciples

¹⁹ When it was evening on that day, the first day of the week, and the doors of the house where the disciples had met were locked for fear of the [Jewish religious leaders], Jesus came and stood among them and said, “Peace be with you.” ²⁰ After he said this, he showed them his hands and his side. Then the disciples rejoiced when they saw the Lord. ²¹ Jesus said to them again, “Peace be with you. As the Father has sent me, so I send you.”... ²⁴ But Thomas (who was called the Twin), one of the twelve, 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 the mark of the nails in his hands, and put my finger in the mark of the nails and my hand in his side, I will not believe.” ²⁶ A week later his disciples were again in the house, and Thomas was with them. Although the doors were shut, 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. Reach out your hand and put it in my side. Do not doubt 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 come to believe.” (NRSV, John 20:19-21, 24-29)

Like Thomas, it is hard for us to believe Jesus could rise from the dead because nothing like that happens in our everyday life. There are no photographs, no video and no eyewitnesses still alive to offer proof. But Jesus' followers believed it strongly enough to suffer persecution, beatings, imprisonment and even death to spread the gospel message throughout the world. Jesus said to Thomas, “Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have come to believe.” Similarly, Jesus asks us to put our faith and trust in Him without proof of the spiritual truths that are beyond our understanding. There is more information in this article on our website: What Does the Bible Say About Faith?