One of the twelve disciples, Thomas (nicknamed the Twin), was not with the others when Jesus came. They told him, “We have seen the Lord!”

But he replied, “I won’t believe it unless I see the nail wounds in his hands, put my fingers into them, and place my hand into the wound in his side.”

Eight days later the disciples were together again, and this time Thomas was with them. The doors were locked; but suddenly, as before, Jesus was standing among them. “Peace be with you,” he said. Then he said to Thomas, “Put your finger here, and look at my hands. Put your hand into the wound in my side. Don’t be faithless any longer. Believe!”

“My Lord and my God!” Thomas exclaimed.

Then Jesus told him, “You believe because you have seen me. Blessed are those who believe without seeing me.”

John‬ ‭20‬:‭24‬-‭29‬ ‭NLT‬‬

Did Thomas think the other disciples where trying to fool him? I wonder if someone in his past had broken his trust. Or could it have been because he, like many others, believed Jesus would be the conquering Messiah. Or was he like my friend, who will only believe what can be scientifically proven, and so will not believe in God. (My heart breaks for him.)

The Bible doesn’t tell us why Thomas needed proof, but it does give eyewitness testimony that Jesus truly rose from the dead.

The resurrection is the single most important tenet of Christianity.

And if Christ has not been raised, all of our preaching has been for nothing and your faith is useless. Moreover, if the dead are not raised, that would mean that we are false witnesses who are misrepresenting God. And that would mean that we have preached a lie, stating that God raised him from the dead, if in reality he didn’t.

1 Corinthians‬ ‭15‬:‭14‬-‭15‬ ‭TPT

This passage tells us our faith would be useless, basically calling us fools, if we don’t believe in Jesus resurrection.

Jesus resurrection was foretold by the Old Testament prophets, reconfirmed by Jesus to His disciples, and witnessed by many over 40 days before He ascended visibly into heaven. It was the ultimate proof that every word Jesus spoke was true and in fulfillment of prophecy. The ultimate proof of His power and victory over death.

From Paul, a servant of Christ Jesus. God chose me to be an apostle, and he appointed me to preach the good news that he promised long ago by what his prophets said in the holy Scriptures. This good news is about his Son, our Lord Jesus Christ! As a human, he was from the family of David. But the Holy Spirit proved that Jesus is the powerful Son of God, because he was raised from death.

Romans‬ ‭1‬:‭1‬-‭4‬ ‭CEV

You are not a fool and this is no joke. The good news is for you. The proof is written down in the Bible. Jesus said, “Blessed are those who believe without seeing me.” Are you ready to believe? Here’s all you need to do:

If you openly declare that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.

Romans‬ ‭10‬:‭9‬ ‭NLT

This is why we celebrate new life on Easter. Because of Jesus.

Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection and the life. Whoever believes in me, though he die, yet shall he live, and everyone who lives and believes in me shall never die. Do you believe this?

John‬ ‭11‬:‭25-26‬ ‭ESV

Grace & Peace,

Sandy

Image from Canva.