JOHN 20:28 = " MY LORD AND MY GOD!"

Thomas answered him, "My Lord and my God!" (John 20:28 RSV) One of the witnesses summoned by proponents of the Christ-is-God theology to prove their contention regarding the doctrine of the alleged deity of Christ is Thomas the Apostle, who is well known in theological and religious circles as the "doubting Thomas," because of his adamant position of not believing the testimonies of those who had actually seen the risen Lord, unless the account could be visibly proven. However, was Thomas' statement in John 20:28 a statement of faith of a believer or a statement of a person who was in a state of disbelief and amazement when he addressed Jesus as "my Lord and my God?" According to the narrative of John, Jesus rose from the dead on the first day of the week (John 20:1). Mary Magdalene saw Him alive and was told by Jesus to tell His brothers these messages, "... I am ascending to my Father and your Father and to my God and your God"" (John 20:17). Take note that Jesus told Mary that His God is also the God of His brothers. Thomas is one of His brothers, so he should believe the message sent to him by Jesus. The message is clear: His God is the God of Thomas and everyone else who considers himself to be the brother of Jesus. Mary Magdalene came and told the disciples that Jesus had spoken these things to her (John 20:18). Since Thomas was one of the disciples, we could assume that he got the message and the news about Jesus’ resurrection. What was his reaction to the news about the resurrection? In line with the other disciples, he reacted in the same fashion when told by Mary Magdalene about the news of Jesus' resurrection. What was the reaction of the disciples when Mary Magdalene told them about these things? Mark reported that when they heard that he was alive and had been seen by her, they believed not (Mark 16:11). Luke reported that the apostles did not believe the women, because their words seemed to them as nonsense (Luke 24:9-11). Thomas, being one of the apostles, was among those who did not believe that Jesus was resurrected. After this event, Jesus appeared in another form to two of the disciples (Mark 16:12) who went to a village called Emmaus (Luke 24:13). He walked with them and while they were on the road, they told Him about the news that He was seen by some women who had seen a vision of angels and reported that He was alive (Luke 24:23). What was Christ's reaction to their words? Christ called them "'fools and slow of heart to believe" (Luke 24:25). With these statements, Jesus was condemning them because of the hardness of their heart. These two disciples returned to Jerusalem and told the Eleven apostles that Christ had risen (Luke 24:33-34). What was the reaction of the apostles upon hearing them? Mark reported that they did not believe the report of these two disciples who were with Jesus on the road to Emmaus (Mark 16:13). We could likewise assume that Thomas was one of them who did not believe the report of the two disciples since he is one of the apostles. When the disciples were assembled with the doors locked for the fear of the Jews, Jesus came and told them to be at peace. Then He showed to them His hands and side (John 20:19-20). What was their reaction? The disciples were overjoyed when they saw the Lord (John 20:20). Who was not present when Christ first came? John reported that Thomas was not with them when Jesus came (John 20:24). The other disciples told him that they have seen the Lord (John 20:25). Did Thomas believe this report? Possessing an attitude similar to that of the other disciples, he reacted with unbelief and skepticism. He told them, "except I shall see in his hands the print of the nails, and put my finger into the print of the nails, and thrust my hand into his side, I will not believe" (John 20:25). By this infamous statement, Thomas became identified with skepticism and disbelief. Mark reported that Jesus later appeared to the Eleven as they were eating (Mark 16:14). Luke reported that when the two disciples found the Eleven assembled together, they told them that the Lord had risen (Luke 24:33). John reported that this event happened eight days after Jesus initially and briefly appeared to the disciples (John 20:26). The disciples were gathered again and Thomas was with them at this time (John 20:26). He summoned Thomas to reach out his finger, to look at his hands, and to reach out his hand to him (John 20:27). What was the reaction of the disciples, including Thomas? They were terrified and frightened and supposed that they had seen a spirit (Luke 24:37). What did Christ do when they supposed Him to be a spirit? He showed His hands and His feet and told them that a spirit has no flesh and bones (Luke 24:38- 39). But before He showed His hands and feet, what did Christ tell them? "'Why are you troubled and why do thoughts arise in your hearts?" (Luke 24:38). What is the meaning of these statements? Christ was upbraiding them! Christ's statements in Luke 24:39 is also tacitly teaching them that he is not God. Christ, prior to this event, had earlier instructed the disciples about the nature of God. He taught that God is a spirit (John 4:24, Greek. pneuma). The apostles mistook Him for a spirit which is tantamount to recognizing Him as God. Is this only an assumed position? The very fact that Thomas stated to Jesus, “my Lord and my God!” serves as palpable evidence that they have indeed a mistaken identity of Jesus. Therefore, Jesus immediately corrected their wrong conclusion concerning His nature. He emphasized that He is not a spirit, which is tantamount to saying that He is not God in his state of being. Jesus’ statement in Luke 24:39 serves as a didactical teaching of Jesus himself to anyone who would misinterpret him to be God. His denunciation of those who thought that he was a spirit is a strong signal to anyone who would think of him as God. Whenever someone has a question regarding the true nature of Jesus Christ, he should be reminded simply about Jesus' own statements in Luke 24:39. In another account, Mark reported that He upbraided them or scolded them for their unbelief and hardness of heart, because they did not believe those who saw him after he had risen (Mark 16:14).   Was Thomas one of those that Jesus rebuked and upbraided? Yes, because he is one of the Eleven (Luke 24:33; Mark 16:14).   At this juncture, Christ told him "to be not faithless but believing" (John 20:27). What are these words that Christ uttered to Thomas? These words which Jesus spoke to Thomas is another example of the upbraiding which He did to him and to the rest of the apostles as narrated by Luke (24:39). Jesus realized then that Thomas still did not believe in His resurrection so He reproved him. When Thomas answered and said to Him, "My Lord and my God!" was he at this point affirming his faith in the alleged deity of Jesus or was he in a state of unbelief? Try to imagine the situation before Jesus showed himself to them: the doors were shut when Jesus abruptly stood in their midst and summoned Thomas to come near to Him. What was Thomas’ reaction? A reaction of unbelief and amazement. Is this kind of reaction something that is strange or unusual? No. The fact is: not only was Thomas caught perplexed but so were the rest of his companions. Luke reported that when Jesus appeared abruptly in their midst when the disciples were gathered together, they were terrified and frightened (Luke 24:36-37). Even after Jesus showed His hands and His feet (Luke 24:40), still they did not believe because of their joy and amazement (Luke 24:41). It was at this time that Mark reported that Jesus upbraided them (Mark 16:14). It is not surprising, therefore, for Thomas to react in such fashion similar to the other disciples. Being in a situation of wonder and disbelief, he uttered statements that were contrary to the message taught to them by his Lord through Mary Magdalene. What did Jesus tell Mary that Thomas and the rest of the disciples should believe concerning the subject of who should be their God? Jesus taught Mary and the disciples that "their God is his God" (John 20:17). A few days before his death, Jesus taught His disciples who is the only true God whom they should believe. In His intercessory prayer to the Father in heaven, He emphasized the absolute oneness of God by these statements:      “. . .Father, . . . you are the only true God . . . (John 17:1, 3).       Obviously, Thomas did not remember the words of his Master. When he uttered those heretical statements in John 20:28, it should not be regarded as a statement of faith or something that was uttered under the guidance and inspiration of the Holy Spirit. Nor should it be considered as a strong biblical foundation to augment Christ's alleged deity. Thomas’ statement in John 20:28 were not divinely inspired and should be rejected as a proof in proving the alleged divinity of Christ. If the proponents of Christ-is-God theology would summon Thomas as their witness to prove their point, their evidence is so weak because their witness is a doubting man with an unreliable testimony due to his obstinate character. Others ask: "'why did Jesus not rebuke Thomas if his statement was wrong?" They alleged that Jesus accepted Thomas’ statements and He blessed him afterwards. Is it true that Thomas was not rebuked? Is it true that he was blessed later? What did Jesus tell him after he proclaimed, "my Lord and my God!"? Jesus said to him, "Have you believed because you have seen me?" (John 20:29 RSV) What do we see at this point? Jesus was rebuking him, not blessing him! Who are blessed according to Jesus? "Blessed are those who have not seen and yet believe" (John 20:29). Many of Christ’s disciples have neither seen Him personally nor witnessed His resurrection or have seen His resurrected body. Still, they believed that Jesus existed and His body rose from the dead. These are the disciples that are more blessed than Thomas. Many have not seen Jesus walk on earth as a man but many believe His testimony that He is a man telling the truth which He heard from God (John 8:40). His disciples, Peter, Paul and James, unanimously testified that He was a man proven by God by miracles, wonders and signs which God did through Him. He is their Mediator to God (Acts 2:22 TEV; I Tim. 2:5 KJV; James 2:6 RSV). Never that they proclaimed Jesus to be God. Unfortunately, there are still some that would continue to summon the doubting apostle as their principal witness in proving their case. The reason is quite clear: this is done because of their failure to provide unquestionable biblical evidence in proving the alleged deity of Jesus so they have nothing left but to summon the testimony of a doubting person. It is ironic to find that there are many doubting Thomases today, who in spite of the overwhelming biblical evidence that it is not Jesus but the Father alone in heaven is the true God (John 17:1, 3; 1 Cor. 8:6; Eph. 4:6), would still contend that Jesus-is-God using Thomas’ erroneous statement. If these stubborn people would only accept the inspired testimonies of the Lord Jesus and Apostle Paul regarding the Father as the only true God (John 17:1,3; I Cor. 8:6), then they would not fall into that serious mistake regarding the true identity of Jesus Christ. However, for those who have done a thorough investigation, their conclusion regarding Thomas’ alleged statement of faith in John 20:28 is clear and unequivocal: it is not a confession of faith but a statement of a person in a state of disbelief.