John Chapter 20

[Debra R]

Ladies, I guess we are ready for chapter 20 :pp

I love this chapter too. :)
Please feel free to join in anytime. I usually use the NASB. Momof5 usually uses NKJ. If you wish to share a different translation you are welcome to do so :). God bless you as you read about our Savior :hug:.


(NASB) John 20:1 Now on the first day of the week Mary Magdalene came early to the tomb, while it was still dark, and saw the stone already taken away from the tomb.

2 So she ran and came to Simon Peter and to the other disciple whom Jesus loved, and said to them, "They have taken away the Lord out of the tomb, and we do not know where they have laid Him."

3 So Peter and the other disciple went forth, and they were going to the tomb.

4 The two were running together; and the other disciple ran ahead faster than Peter and came to the tomb first;

5 and stooping and looking in, he saw the linen wrappings lying there; but he did not go in.

6 And so Simon Peter also came, following him, and entered the tomb; and he saw the linen wrappings lying there,

7 and the face-cloth which had been on His head, not lying with the linen wrappings, but rolled up in a place by itself.

8 So the other disciple who had first come to the tomb then also entered, and he saw and believed.

9 For as yet they did not understand the Scripture, that He must rise again from the dead.

[Debra R]

I remember when I had first read this in the King James version. It was several years ago. Actually it was in 1998. I remember because that was the year I gave my life to Jesus. I called out to Him and He saved me. He gave me new life. I can't remember the exact date but it was in June of 1998 that I was saved. And it wasn't long after that I read this.........

(KJ) John 20:3 Peter therefore went forth, and that other disciple, and came to the sepulchre.
4 So they ran both together: and the other disciple did outrun Peter, and came first to the sepulchre.
5 And he stooping down, and looking in, saw the linen clothes lying; yet went he not in.
6 Then cometh Simon Peter following him, and went into the sepulchre, and seeth the linen clothes lie,
7 And the napkin, that was about his head, not lying with the linen clothes, but wrapped together in a place by itself.

As I read about the napkin that was about Jesus' head not found lying by the linen clothes but wrapped together in a place by itself. I puzzled over that. That verse wasn't just stuck in there as an after thought. Why was the head covering placed by itself? I kept thinking on this verse for several days. Then one day at work a co-worker came up to me and started telling me about their last service at church and how their guest speaker had been speaking of this very verse. Now I hadn't mentioned my pondering over this verse and I just listened as he spoke about what the speaker had told them. He asked me did I know in Israel they had a custom concerning the napkins. Like if they were out to eat and they had finished, the way they placed their napkin told if they were returning or not. If they laid the napkin flat across their plates they were not returning, but if they folded it neatly and placed it to the side that meant they were coming back. When I heard that I was like, wow. Then I told him how I had been wondering over that verse for several days. So if that was their custom then by Jesus leaving the napkin, head covering, to the side, He was saying, I am returning!
Now I had never heard of this custom before, or when it was started, but I had thought that was so cool!

The Lord has done that many times. When you come across a verse and it just seems to stick in your mind He has a way of bringing you an answer. Sometimes through other verses that seem to define it or through books or people. I think it is so neat!
Blessings :hug:

[Debra R]

2 So she ran and came to Simon Peter and to the other disciple whom Jesus loved, and said to them, "They have taken away the Lord out of the tomb, and we do not know where they have laid Him."

3 So Peter and the other disciple went forth, and they were going to the tomb.

4 The two were running together; and the other disciple ran ahead faster than Peter and came to the tomb first;

5 and stooping and looking in, he saw the linen wrappings lying there; but he did not go in.

6 And so Simon Peter also came, following him, and entered the tomb; and he saw the linen wrappings lying there,

7 and the face-cloth which had been on His head, not lying with the linen wrappings, but rolled up in a place by itself.

8 So the other disciple who had first come to the tomb then also entered, and he saw and believed.



I was thinking on these verses today. About Simon Peter and John. What they saw made them believe. So just what did they see? The linen wrappings laying there intact. The head covering rolled up to the side.

The body of Jesus gone. They saw Him die on that cross. And now His body gone. I wonder what they thought. They didn't yet understand but they knew He was alive. They just had to know their King lived.

Hallelujah! Our Savior lives! What great things He has done for us!

Blessings :hug:

[Momof5]

Good posts, Deb.:hug: Sorry I'm late joining in - I was out all day! Here are the next verses:

10) Then the disciples went away again to their own homes.

11) but Mary stood outside by the tomb weeping, and as she wept she stooped down and looked into the tomb.

12) And she saw two angels in white sitting, one at the head and the other at the feet, where the body of Jesus had lain.

13) Then they said to her, "Woman, why are you weeping?" She said to them, "Because they have taken away my Lord, and I do not know where they have laid Him."

14) Now when she had said this, she turned around and saw Jesus standing there, and did not know that it was Jesus.

15) Jesus said to her, "Woman why are you weeping? Whom are you seeking?" She, supposing Him to be the gardener, said to Him, "Sir, if You have carried Him away, tell me where You have laid Him, and I will take Him away."

16) Jesus said to her, "Mary!" She turned and said to Him, "Rabboni! (which is to say, Teacher).

17) Jesus said to her, "Do not cling to Me, for I have not yet ascended to My Father; but go to My brethren and say to them, 'I am ascending to My Father and your Father and to My God and your God.'"

18) Mary Magdalene came and told the disciples that she had seen the Lord and that He had spoken these things to her.

I was thinking about verse 16....when Jesus called Mary's name, she recognized Him. When He called my name, I recognized Him!!!!:pp

[Momof5]

18) Mary Magdalene came and told the disciples that she had seen the Lord and that He had spoken these things to her.

This verse tells me what an important role women have in the spread of the Good News of Jesus! He is alive!! I think also of the Samaritan woman at the well who ran and told the men about Jesus and they came to Him (John 4:28).

[Debra R]

Thank you Brenda :hug: .

I thought I should post a few cross references for verses 1 and 9.

Sweet Mieke usually does our commentaries :) when she's feeling better.

I did feel I needed to post these references :) ..........

John 20:1 Now on the first day of the week Mary Magdalene came early to the tomb, while it was still dark, and saw the stone already taken away from the tomb.


reference......
Matthew 28

Jesus Is Risen!

1 Now after the Sabbath, as it began to dawn toward the first day of the week, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary came to look at the grave.

2 And behold, a severe earthquake had occurred, for an angel of the Lord descended from heaven and came and rolled away the stone and sat upon it.

3 And his appearance was like lightning, and his clothing as white as snow.

4 The guards shook for fear of him and became like dead men.

5 The angel said to the women, "Do not be afraid; for I know that you are looking for Jesus who has been crucified.

6 "He is not here, for He has risen, just as He said. Come, see the place where He was lying.

7 "Go quickly and tell His disciples that He has risen from the dead; and behold, He is going ahead of you into Galilee, there you will see Him; behold, I have told you."

8 And they left the tomb quickly with fear and great joy and ran to report it to His disciples.


John 20:9 For as yet they did not understand the Scripture, that He must rise again from the dead.


reference......

John 2:19 Jesus answered them, "Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up."

20 The Jews then said, "It took forty-six years to build this temple, and will You raise it up in three days?"

21 But He was speaking of the temple of His body.

22 So when He was raised from the dead, His disciples remembered that He said this; and they believed the Scripture and the word which Jesus had spoken.

Luke 24:26 "Was it not necessary for the Christ to suffer these things and to enter into His glory?"

27 Then beginning with Moses and with all the prophets, He explained to them the things concerning Himself in all the Scriptures.


46 and He said to them, "Thus it is written, that the Christ would suffer and rise again from the dead the third day,

[Debra R]

I was thinking about verse 16....when Jesus called Mary's name, she recognized Him. When He called my name, I recognized Him!!!!:pp

:) There is no mistaking our Savior's voice. :)

[Momof5]

John 20:9 For as yet they did not understand the Scripture, that He must rise again from the dead.

Another cross-reference is Psalm 16:10 - For you will not leave my soul in Sheol, Nor will You allow Your Holy One to see corruption.

Death and the grave could not hold Him!!

[Debra R]

I liked this from David Guzik's Commentaries for verses 17 & 18


(John 20:17-18) Jesus sends Mary to tell the disciples.

Jesus said to her, "Do not cling to Me, for I have not yet ascended to My Father; but go to My brethren and say to them, 'I am ascending to My Father and your Father, and to My God and your God.'" Mary Magdalene came and told the disciples that she had seen the Lord, and that He had spoken these things to her.

a. Do not cling to Me: Why didn't Jesus want Mary to touch Him? Actually, the ancient Greek construction of this phrase "means to stop an action already begun rather than to avoid starting it." (Tenney) Mary was holding on to Jesus and did not want to let Him go.

i. This shows that the resurrection body of Jesus was different, yet similar to His pre-resurrection body. It was definitely real and tangible, and Jesus not a phantom.

ii. "Jesus was not protesting that Mary should not touch Him lest He be defiled, but was admonishing her not to detain Him because He would see her and the disciples again." (Tenney)

iii. "We need not be detained by that curiosity of exegesis which supposes that he still had to enter the heavenly holy of holies to complete the antitype of the Day of Atonement initiated by his sacrifice on the cross." (Bruce)

b. I am ascending to My Father and your Father, and to My God and your God: Jesus is pointing out a difference between His relationship with God and the disciples' relationship with God.

i. "He says not 'Our Father': in one sense therefore, He is mine, in another sense He is yours; by nature mine, by grace yours . . . my God, under whom I also am as a man; your God, between whom and you I am a mediator." (Augustine)

c. Go to My brethren and say to them: The fact that Jesus makes a woman the first witness of His resurrection is significant. The law courts of that day would not recognize the testimony of a woman, but Jesus did.

i. This also argues for the historic truth of this account. If someone fabricated this story, would they make the first witnesses to the resurrection women, who were commonly (if unfairly) regarded as unreliable witnesses?

[Debra R]

I have always loved these next verses........

(NASB) John 20:19 So when it was evening on that day, the first day of the week, and when the doors were shut where the disciples were, for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood in their midst and said to them, "Peace be with you."

20 And when He had said this, He showed them both His hands and His side The disciples then rejoiced when they saw the Lord.

21 So Jesus said to them again, "Peace be with you; as the Father has sent Me, I also send you."

22 And when He had said this, He breathed on them and said to them, "Receive the Holy Spirit.

23 "If you forgive the sins of any, their sins have been forgiven them; if you retain the sins of any, they have been retained."

24 But Thomas, one of the twelve, called Didymus, was not with them when Jesus came.

25 So the other disciples were saying to him, "We have seen the Lord!" But he said to them, "Unless I see in His hands the imprint of the nails, and put my finger into the place of the nails, and put my hand into His side, I will not believe."

[JesusRocks]

Hi ladies :) I have to go back first....When I read the thread yesterday what hit me was when Jesus spoke to Mary she then knew him...I do not have human kids but I have a dog that is like my kid...he has some well, mental issues it may have to do with his brain....anyhow sometimes he will look at things and yet not recognize them...he gets very frightened and can have a seizure when he is that afraid .... ..... ...BUT when I speak to him in his fear...he always knows ME...I thought of MARY and how she must have felt so frightened that Jesus was missing and when she heard the voice of the one she loved ...she knew him..That really touched me. He looked different but she knew her master's voice.

As to Thomas (doubting) I have always liked that story because when I was very young I wanted proof on just about everything..I can identify with him and Jesus is so loving and patient with us...Sorry to babble

[Debra R]

Hi ladies :) I have to go back first....When I read the thread yesterday what hit me was when Jesus spoke to Mary she then knew him...I do not have human kids but I have a dog that is like my kid...he has some well, mental issues it may have to do with his brain....anyhow sometimes he will look at things and yet not recognize them...he gets very frightened and can have a seizure when he is that afraid .... ..... ...BUT when I speak to him in his fear...he always knows ME...I thought of MARY and how she must have felt so frightened that Jesus was missing and when she heard the voice of the one she loved ...she knew him..That really touched me. He looked different but she knew her master's voice.

As to Thomas (doubting) I have always liked that story because when I was very young I wanted proof on just about everything..I can identify with him and Jesus is so loving and patient with us...Sorry to babble

Hey JesusRocks :hug:,

I know, I can also imagine how frightened Mary was and how much sorrow she felt over seeing Jesus die and now His body missing.


He looked different but she knew her master's voice.


That reminds me of this..........

John 10:27"My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me;


I can identify with Thomas too. I have read that verse and cried because I had been so much like him.


Thanks for sharing your thoughts sis. :hug:

[JesusRocks]

:hug: ((Debra)) thanks....yes I imagine she was in a panic and maybe mad too..I would be so scared and willing to do anything to get the body back and she was testing that person she did not know...testing by way of slowly asking him IF he knew where the body was..I think she thought he took it maybe....cause he was there.....its like she was trying all she could to just no questions asked get the body back like people do when they lose a ring or something of great value to them.

I too thought of that verse yesterday....yesterday being friday for me....where Jesus said my sheep know my voice..that hit my mind when I read the posts in here too.

Jesus had some special reason he chose Mary to see him first

[beachbum53]

Hello! Been reading thru everything; great posts; one thing I found is that while talking to Mary Jesus called His disciples 'brothers'..before that they were called servants or friends but not brothers. Jesus' work on the cross in place of us allowed the new relationship with Christ.

Romans 8:14

14 For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, these are sons of God. 15 For you did not receive the spirit of bondage again to fear, but you received the Spirit of adoption by whom we cry out, “Abba, Father.” 16 The Spirit Himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God, 17 and if children, then heirs—heirs of God and joint heirs with Christ, if indeed we suffer with Him, that we may also be glorified together.

Hebrews 2:10-13

10 For it was fitting for Him, for whom are all things and by whom are all things, in bringing many sons to glory, to make the captain of their salvation perfect through sufferings. 11 For both He who sanctifies and those who are being sanctified are all of one, for which reason He is not ashamed to call them brethren, 12 saying:
“ I will declare Your name to My brethren;
In the midst of the assembly I will sing praise to You.”
13 And again:
“ I will put My trust in Him.”
And again:
“ Here am I and the children whom God has given Me.”

Galations 3:26
26 For you are all sons of God through faith in Christ Jesus.

Eph. 1:5

5 having predestined us to adoption as sons by Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the good pleasure of His will,


falling sleep :sleeping: night!

[Momof5]

I love that we are adopted into the family of God! As an adoptive mother, that is so special to me. Adoption means we have the same rights and privileges as a natural child!

[Momof5]

(NASB) John 20:19 So when it was evening on that day, the first day of the week, and when the doors were shut where the disciples were, for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood in their midst and said to them, "Peace be with you."

This was miraculous! The doors were shut!

20 And when He had said this, He showed them both His hands and His side The disciples then rejoiced when they saw the Lord.

21 So Jesus said to them again, "Peace be with you; as the Father has sent Me, I also send you."

He was preparing the disciples to continue His ministry.

22 And when He had said this, He breathed on them and said to them, "Receive the Holy Spirit.

23 "If you forgive the sins of any, their sins have been forgiven them; if you retain the sins of any, they have been retained."

24 But Thomas, one of the twelve, called Didymus, was not with them when Jesus came.

25 So the other disciples were saying to him, "We have seen the Lord!" But he said to them, "Unless I see in His hands the imprint of the nails, and put my finger into the place of the nails, and put my hand into His side, I will not believe."

The other disciples had been shown His hands and feet and I would think they told Thomas about it. But he was not going to believe unless shown. How many times do we not take things on faith, but have to be shown?

I am searching Scripture and looking up information on some of the other verses in this passage....will post again later.:)

[Momof5]

22 And when He had said this, He breathed on them and said to them, "Receive the Holy Spirit.

I believe this is when they were born-again! How else could they have been prepared for the ministry Jesus had for them? They could only do what they did by the Holy Spirit......Thomas was not in the room with them and when he said he had to see to believe, was it because he was a non-believer?

[Momof5]

Since I have a lot of time today, I will post the next verses:

26) And after eight days His disciples were again inside, and Thomas with them. Jesus came, the doors being shut, and stood in the midst, and said "Peace to you!"

27) Then He said to Thomas, "Reach your finger here, and look at My hands; and reach your hand here, and put it into my side. Do not be unbelieving, but believing."

28) And Thomas answered and said to Him, "My Lord and my God!"

29) Jesus said to him, "Thomas, because you have seen Me, you have believed. Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed."

[beachbum53]

[quote=Momof5;1171997]This was miraculous! The doors were shut!

Makes me think about countries where they worship secretly; Christ can never be locked out of 'their meetings' /quote]

[beachbum53]

20:22
22 And when He had said this, He breathed on them and said to them, "Receive the Holy Spirit.

Genesis 2:7


7 Then the LORD God formed man of dust from the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living being.

Need feedback...confused about acts and 20:22

8 but you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be My witnesses both in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and even to the remotest part of the earth."


1When the day of Pentecost had come, they were all together in one place.

2And suddenly there came from heaven a noise like a violent rushing wind, and it filled the whole house where they were sitting. 3And there appeared to them tongues as of fire distributing themselves, and they rested on each one of them.

[Debra R]

Hello! Been reading thru everything; great posts; one thing I found is that while talking to Mary Jesus called His disciples 'brothers'..before that they were called servants or friends but not brothers. Jesus' work on the cross in place of us allowed the new relationship with Christ.

Romans 8:14

14 For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, these are sons of God. 15 For you did not receive the spirit of bondage again to fear, but you received the Spirit of adoption by whom we cry out, “Abba, Father.” 16 The Spirit Himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God, 17 and if children, then heirs—heirs of God and joint heirs with Christ, if indeed we suffer with Him, that we may also be glorified together.

Hebrews 2:10-13

10 For it was fitting for Him, for whom are all things and by whom are all things, in bringing many sons to glory, to make the captain of their salvation perfect through sufferings. 11 For both He who sanctifies and those who are being sanctified are all of one, for which reason He is not ashamed to call them brethren, 12 saying:
“ I will declare Your name to My brethren;
In the midst of the assembly I will sing praise to You.”
13 And again:
“ I will put My trust in Him.”
And again:
“ Here am I and the children whom God has given Me.”

Galations 3:26
26 For you are all sons of God through faith in Christ Jesus.

Eph. 1:5

5 having predestined us to adoption as sons by Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the good pleasure of His will,


falling sleep :sleeping: night!

That is great Laura! Thank you! :hug:

[beachbum53]

20:29
29Jesus said to him, "Because you have seen Me, have you believed? Blessed are they who did not see, and yet believed."

1Peter1:8

8 and though you have not seen Him, you love Him, and though you do not see Him now, but believe in Him, you greatly rejoice with joy inexpressible and full of glory

Was Jesus not 'annoyed' with Thomas because of Jesus' character?
I'm not positive if He was or wasn't. Thoughts?

[Debra R]

Hey Laura :hug:,

I meant to answer earlier but I got busy.

I'll have to look this up later and get verses but it was only after Jesus was resurrected that the Holy Spirit could reside in us. In the old testament you see that the Holy Spirit came upon a person. So there is a difference. I'll have to look this up hopefully tomorrow. I better get to sleep now though. Past my bedtime. :D

Love you :hug:



20:22
22 And when He had said this, He breathed on them and said to them, "Receive the Holy Spirit.

Genesis 2:7


7 Then the LORD God formed man of dust from the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living being.

Need feedback...confused about acts and 20:22

8 but you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be My witnesses both in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and even to the remotest part of the earth."


1When the day of Pentecost had come, they were all together in one place.

2And suddenly there came from heaven a noise like a violent rushing wind, and it filled the whole house where they were sitting. 3And there appeared to them tongues as of fire distributing themselves, and they rested on each one of them.

[JesusRocks]

Hey Beachbum....I cannot prove it or anything but I don't think Jesus was annoyed with Thomas.....Thomas was kind of NEEDED because his need to see is soooo human and we needed Thomas so that many like him would know how precious those of us who believe but have not seen are to the Lord...Now I would not doubt if Jesus was kind of saddened by it...but not really bad cause he was God and knew the whole deal ...thats my take on it anyhow...Hey ya Momof5 and Debra

[beachbum53]

Hey Beachbum....I cannot prove it or anything but I don't think Jesus was annoyed with Thomas.....Thomas was kind of NEEDED because his need to see is soooo human and we needed Thomas so that many like him would know how precious those of us who believe but have not seen are to the Lord...Now I would not doubt if Jesus was kind of saddened by it...but not really bad cause he was God and knew the whole deal ...thats my take on it anyhow...Hey ya Momof5 and Debra


I think you're right; the verse is 'kinda like' the parables teachng us a lesson even though John doesn't contain any 'real' parables. I think maybe Jesus was telling us it's ok to have some skepticism sometimes but with faith we will 'search' and grow and be certain of the truth.

John 11:16

16Therefore Thomas, who is called Didymus, said to his fellow disciples, "Let us also go, so that we may die with Him."


I see things a little easier with some sleep!!

[Momof5]

Morning, ladies!:hug:

Hey Beachbum....I cannot prove it or anything but I don't think Jesus was annoyed with Thomas.....Thomas was kind of NEEDED because his need to see is soooo human and we needed Thomas so that many like him would know how precious those of us who believe but have not seen are to the Lord...Now I would not doubt if Jesus was kind of saddened by it...but not really bad cause he was God and knew the whole deal ...thats my take on it anyhow...Hey ya Momof5 and Debra

I think you're right; the verse is 'kinda like' the parables teachng us a lesson even though John doesn't contain any 'real' parables. I think maybe Jesus was telling us it's ok to have some skepticism sometimes but with faith we will 'search' and grow and be certain of the truth.

I don't see Him saying it's ok to have some skepticism when He told Thomas in verse 27 ".....Do not be unbelieving but believing." A non-believer has to be shown....see to believe! We "see" His hands, feet and side by hearing the word of God preached.

John 11:16

16Therefore Thomas, who is called Didymus, said to his fellow disciples, "Let us also go, so that we may die with Him."

Laura, this verse showed again Thomas' skepticism. He went out of loyalty but felt they were going to their deaths.

[Momof5]

20:22
22 And when He had said this, He breathed on them and said to them, "Receive the Holy Spirit.

Genesis 2:7


7 Then the LORD God formed man of dust from the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living being.

Need feedback...confused about acts and 20:22

8 but you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be My witnesses both in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and even to the remotest part of the earth."


1When the day of Pentecost had come, they were all together in one place.

2And suddenly there came from heaven a noise like a violent rushing wind, and it filled the whole house where they were sitting. 3And there appeared to them tongues as of fire distributing themselves, and they rested on each one of them.

Well, here's what I see in this... In verse 22, Jesus is commissioning the disciples for continuing His ministry and preparing them for the beginning of the Church. Acts 1:8 tells that the power they were to receive was to spread the gospel to all the earth. Acts 2: 1&2 tells that the Holy Spirit came and unified believers into one body and gave them power to testify of Jesus. Think about what happened here - there was a huge crowd from various places, many languages. They heard the Gospel in their own language! About 3,000 people were added to the church that day!!

Jesus promised the Holy Spirit would come and remind the disciples of all Jesus said and would teach all things and dwell within them. (John 14:16-18)

[beachbum53]

20:29
29Jesus said to him, "Because you have seen Me, have you believed? Blessed are they who did not see, and yet believed."

1Peter1:8

8 and though you have not seen Him, you love Him, and though you do not see Him now, but believe in Him, you greatly rejoice with joy inexpressible and full of glory

Was Jesus not 'annoyed' with Thomas because of Jesus' character?
I'm not positive if He was or wasn't. Thoughts?

Maybe skepticism is a little 'strong'. I'll stick with doubt; :hmm: I was trying to figure out for sure what Jesus was thinking after Thomas's doubt.

I think Jesus had compassion for Thomas. Putting it in more of the example of.... someone honestly seeking Christ, and Jesus in His compassion has patience while 'they' try to learn. 'They' may have difficulty/doubt/want to be positive while honestly seeking the truth/ Jesus, but He is patient and doesn't get 'upset'.

Morning, ladies!:hug:





I don't see Him saying it's ok to have some skepticism when He told Thomas in verse 27 ".....Do not be unbelieving but believing." A non-believer has to be shown....see to believe! We "see" His hands, feet and side by hearing the word of God preached.

I agree but for some it takes a while to 'get it'. I agree it's all in His Word and Jesus was saying we are esp. blessed for believing because we have not seen Jesus physically.



Laura, this verse showed again Thomas' skepticism. He went out of loyalty but felt they were going to their deaths.

yep agree........my 'main point' when I was trying to understand that verse was....
was Jesus upset with Thomas's doubt. I'm trying to think on it in depth before reading what 'scholars' interpret with their commentary's. I haven't looked any up on that verse yet; I was trying to hold off.

I see I used "us" this morning; I had just opened my eyes a few minutes earlier. I meant more along the lines of 'ones' seeking Christ but also I do think a lot of believers have at least had that 'nagging doubt' even for just a minute at sometime in their lifes'. Well I have had moments of 'doubt' while learning along the way; I won't deny it. I do believe He understood and had patience.

It comes back to my wandering what you'll think of how Jesus was regarding/thinking about Thomas.

Thanks Brenda, I'll get back to the rest...gotta run.

[Momof5]

Maybe skepticism is a little 'strong'. I'll stick with doubt; :hmm: I was trying to figure out for sure what Jesus was thinking after Thomas's doubt.

I think Jesus had compassion for Thomas. Putting it in more of the example of.... someone honestly seeking Christ, and Jesus in His compassion has patience while 'they' try to learn. 'They' may have difficulty/doubt/want to be positive while honestly seeking the truth/ Jesus, but He is patient and doesn't get 'upset'.



yep agree........my 'main point' when I was trying to understand that verse was....
was Jesus upset with Thomas's doubt. I'm trying to think on it in depth before reading what 'scholars' interpret with their commentary's. I haven't looked any up on that verse yet; I was trying to hold off.

I see I used "us" this morning; I had just opened my eyes a few minutes earlier. I meant more along the lines of 'ones' seeking Christ but also I do think a lot of believers have at least had that 'nagging doubt' even for just a minute at sometime in their lifes'. Well I have had moments of 'doubt' while learning along the way; I won't deny it. I do believe He understood and had patience.

It comes back to my wandering what you'll think of how Jesus was regarding/thinking about Thomas.

Thanks Brenda, I'll get back to the rest...gotta run.






I think we have all had some momentary doubt....but Jesus tells us not to doubt.

In Matthew 14, after Peter walked on the water toward Jesus, but then took his eyes off Jesus and became afraid of the wind, he sank and cried out to Jesus to save him. 31) And immediately Jesus stretched out His hand and caught him and said to him, "O you of little faith, why did you doubt?"

Doubt means to be divided in our minds, an uncertainty.

James 1: 6: But let him ask in faith, with no doubting, for he who doubts is like a wave of the sea driven and tossed by the wind.

That does not mean that Jesus does not love us or have compassion for us....he wants us to believe without doubt....that He is who He says and did, is doing and will do what He says!

I'm trying to think on it in depth before reading what 'scholars' interpret with their commentary's. I haven't looked any up on that verse yet; I was trying to hold off

That is a good way to do it. While commentaries are good and can be helpful, I have found a better way to do it is to cross-reference other Scripture. Look up word meanings and search keywords in your concordance for Scripture......

[Momof5]

28) And Thomas answered and said to Him, "My Lord and my God!"

You think Thomas believed now? He also believed that Jesus is God. I think of John 1:1 - In the beginning was the Word, and Word was with God, and the Word was God.

[beachbum53]

You think Thomas believed now? He also believed that Jesus is God. I think of John 1:1 - In the beginning was the Word, and Word was with God, and the Word was God.


Thomas's confession is what John purpose was in writing John


John 20:28

28Thomas answered and said to Him, "My Lord and my God!"


20:31 but these have been written so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God; and that believing you may have life in His name.

6:35 Jesus said to them, "I am the bread of life; he who comes to Me will not hunger, and he who believes in Me will never thirst.

8:12 Then Jesus again spoke to them, saying, "I am the Light of the world; he who follows Me will not walk in the darkness, but will have the Light of life."

10:7 So Jesus said to them again, "Truly, truly, I say to you, I am the door of the sheep.

10:9 "I am the door; if anyone enters through Me, he will be saved, and will go in and out and find pasture.

10:11 "I am the good shepherd; the good shepherd lays down His life for the sheep.
10:14 "I am the good shepherd, and I know My own and My own know Me,

11:25 Jesus said to her, "I am the resurrection and the life; he who believes in Me will live even if he dies,

14:6 Jesus said to him, "I am the way, and the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father but through Me.

15:1 "I am the true vine, and My Father is the vinedresser.

15:5 "I am the vine, you are the branches; he who abides in Me and I in him, he bears much fruit, for apart from Me you can do nothing



lots of "I am" identifying Jesus as God and Messiah

[Debra R]

Hey ladies, :hug: great verses!

Laura, I'm sorry I haven't had time to look up many verses. Here are a few though :).

John 7:37 Now on the last day, the great day of the feast, Jesus stood and cried out, saying, "If anyone is thirsty, let him come to Me and drink.
38 "He who believes in Me, as the Scripture said, 'From his innermost being will flow rivers of living water.'"
39 But this He spoke of the Spirit, whom those who believed in Him were to receive; for the Spirit was not yet given, because Jesus was not yet glorified.


John 14:16 "I will ask the Father, and He will give you another Helper, that He may be with you forever;
17 that is the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it does not see Him or know Him, but you know Him because He abides with you and will be in you.


John 15:26 "When the Helper comes, whom I will send to you from the Father, that is the Spirit of truth who proceeds from the Father, He will testify about Me,

John 16:7 "But I tell you the truth, it is to your advantage that I go away; for if I do not go away, the Helper will not come to you; but if I go, I will send Him to you.
8 "And He, when He comes, will convict the world concerning sin and righteousness and judgment;
9 concerning sin, because they do not believe in Me;
10 and concerning righteousness, because I go to the Father and you no longer see Me;

Ephesians 5:18 And do not get drunk with wine, for that is dissipation, but be filled with the Spirit,




I am really tired and better get to sleep soon. It's been rough the past few days. My brain is even tired :D. But I wanted to post these verses for us to think about. I better go post a little on the PDL thread real quick and get to sleep.

Love you my sisters :hug:

[Momof5]

Hi ladies!:hug:

Laura and Deb, thanks for the great scripture posts.

Here are the last verses (I know Laura referenced one already):

30) And truly Jesus did many other signs in the presence of His disciples, which are not written in this book;

31) but these are written that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that believing you may have life in His name.

[Debra R]

20:22
22 And when He had said this, He breathed on them and said to them, "Receive the Holy Spirit.

Genesis 2:7


7 Then the LORD God formed man of dust from the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living being.

Need feedback...confused about acts and 20:22

8 but you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be My witnesses both in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and even to the remotest part of the earth."


1When the day of Pentecost had come, they were all together in one place.

2And suddenly there came from heaven a noise like a violent rushing wind, and it filled the whole house where they were sitting. 3And there appeared to them tongues as of fire distributing themselves, and they rested on each one of them.

Hey Laura :),

I was just looking up some commentaries and read some from Matthew Henry's. It was only as I read his commentary that the verse you posted


Genesis 2:7 Then the LORD God formed man of dust from the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living being.


that it connected in my mind with John 20:22. Duh, sometimes I'm slow. Or else I've been so busy and my brain is overworked :D.

Read this.......

Matthew Henry commentary


(4.) The qualifying of them for the discharge of the trust reposed in them by their commission (John 20:22): He breathed on them, and said, Receive ye the Holy Ghost. Observe,

[1.] The sign he used to assure them of, and affect them with, the gift he was now about to bestow upon them: He breathed on them; not only to show them, by this breath of life, that he himself was really alive, but to signify to them the spiritual life and power which they should receive from him for all the services that lay before them. Probably he breathed upon them all together, not upon each severally and, though Thomas was not with them, yet the Spirit of the Lord knew where to find him, as he did Eldad and Medad, Numbers 11:26.

Christ here seems to refer to the creation of man at first, by the breathing of the breath of life into him (Genesis 2:7), and to intimate that he himself was the author of that work, and that the spiritual life and strength of ministers and Christians are derived from him, and depend upon him, as much as the natural life of Adam and his seed.

As the breath of the Almighty gave life to man and began the old world, so the breath of the mighty Saviour gave life to his ministers, and began a new world, Job 33:4.

Secondly, That the Spirit is the gift of Christ. The apostles communicated the Holy Ghost by the laying on of hands, those hands being first lifted up in prayer, for they could only beg this blessing, and carry it as messengers; but Christ conferred the Holy Ghost by breathing, for he is the author of the gift, and from him it comes originally. Moses could not give his Spirit, God did it (Numbers 11:17); but Christ did it himself.

I thought that was really good. :)

[Debra R]

Since I have a lot of time today, I will post the next verses: 29) Jesus said to him, "Thomas, because you have seen Me, you have believed. Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed."

That verse is special to me too. We are called blessed because even though we have not "seen" Jesus in the flesh yet we believe.

[Debra R]

Maybe skepticism is a little 'strong'. I'll stick with doubt; :hmm: I was trying to figure out for sure what Jesus was thinking after Thomas's doubt.

I think Jesus had compassion for Thomas. Putting it in more of the example of.... someone honestly seeking Christ, and Jesus in His compassion has patience while 'they' try to learn. 'They' may have difficulty/doubt/want to be positive while honestly seeking the truth/ Jesus, but He is patient and doesn't get 'upset'.



yep agree........my 'main point' when I was trying to understand that verse was....
was Jesus upset with Thomas's doubt. I'm trying to think on it in depth before reading what 'scholars' interpret with their commentary's. I haven't looked any up on that verse yet; I was trying to hold off.

I see I used "us" this morning; I had just opened my eyes a few minutes earlier. I meant more along the lines of 'ones' seeking Christ but also I do think a lot of believers have at least had that 'nagging doubt' even for just a minute at sometime in their lifes'. Well I have had moments of 'doubt' while learning along the way; I won't deny it. I do believe He understood and had patience.

It comes back to my wandering what you'll think of how Jesus was regarding/thinking about Thomas.

Thanks Brenda, I'll get back to the rest...gotta run.






I was just like Thomas at one time. Wanting to believe but not sincerely believing, holding on to doubt. Our Lord was very patient with me. He did some very remarkable things in my life at that time that there could be no doubt that it was the hand of God. And when I had read these verses it was as if Jesus were standing in front of me saying these words to me......


John 20:27) Then He said to Thomas, "Reach your finger here, and look at My hands; and reach your hand here, and put it into my side. Do not be unbelieving, but believing."

28) And Thomas answered and said to Him, "My Lord and my God!"

And I did, cry like a baby, because I had not believed before. I was filled with remorse and sorrow for not believing Jesus and that I had hurt Him because of my unbelief.

[Debra R]

Hi ladies!:hug:

Laura and Deb, thanks for the great scripture posts.

Here are the last verses (I know Laura referenced one already):

John 20:30) And truly Jesus did many other signs in the presence of His disciples, which are not written in this book;

31) but these are written that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that believing you may have life in His name.

Thank you Brenda :hug:,

thinking on verse 30, I do wish we had more. Not the signs, but more about Jesus. Though we do have all that we need. Jesus made sure that all was written for us to know Him, that He is our Savior, our God.
That we may have life, eternal life, in His name.

Love you my sisters, thank you for a great study! :hug:

[beachbum53]

I was just like Thomas at one time. Wanting to believe but not sincerely believing, holding on to doubt. Our Lord was very patient with me. He did some very remarkable things in my life at that time that there could be no doubt that it was the hand of God. And when I had read these verses it was as if Jesus were standing in front of me saying these words to me......


John 20:27) Then He said to Thomas, "Reach your finger here, and look at My hands; and reach your hand here, and put it into my side. Do not be unbelieving, but believing."

28) And Thomas answered and said to Him, "My Lord and my God!"

And I did, cry like a baby, because I had not believed before. I was filled with remorse and sorrow for not believing Jesus and that I had hurt Him because of my unbelief.

If 'doubt' moves one to search for answers it's 'good'. I have been thinking if one has doubt but never talks about it or searches then one will never find answers. Thomas wanted to be faithful; even though he had doubts he was honest enough to voice them. He truly wanted to follow Jesus and believe. Doubt without wanting to learn the truth won't change anything.

:hmm: So after a few days of thinking I'm sure Jesus understood. :pp Doubt without searching would lead to a 'hardened heart'.

[Momof5]

If 'doubt' moves one to search for answers it's 'good'. I have been thinking if one has doubt but never talks about it or searches then one will never find answers. Thomas wanted to be faithful; even though he had doubts he was honest enough to voice them. He truly wanted to follow Jesus and believe. Doubt without wanting to learn the truth won't change anything.

:hmm: So after a few days of thinking I'm sure Jesus understood. :pp Doubt without searching would lead to a 'hardened heart'.

Absolutely!

Love you my sisters, thank you for a great study!

I have to echo this! Thank you, ladies.:hug:

[beachbum53]

In 1887, Henry Drummond preached a sermon in Northfield, Massachusetts, entitled Dealing With Doubt. Here is one of his observations:
Christ never failed to distinguish between doubt and unbelief. Doubt is can’t believe; unbelief is won’t believe. Doubt is honest; unbelief is obstinacy. Doubt is looking for light; unbelief is content with darkness. Loving darkness rather than light—that is what Christ attacked and attacked unsparingly. But for the intellectual questioning of Thomas, and Philip, and Nicodemus, and the many others who came to Him to have their great problems solved, He was respectful and generous and tolerant.
But how did He meet their doubts? The church, as I have said, says “Brand him!” Christ said, “Teach him.”
When Thomas came to Him, denied His very resurrection, and stood before Him waiting for the scathing words and lashing for his unbelief, they never came. They never came. Christ gave him fact—facts.



* (http://bibleforums.org/forum/#_ftnref1)Warren W. Wiersbe, Listening to the Giants (Grand Rapids: Baker Book House, 1980), 115–116.

Hebrews 4:15
15 For we do not have a high priest who cannot sympathize with our weaknesses, but One who has been tempted in all things as we are, yet without sin.