John 20:19-30: Bible Study plan and outline
John 20:19-30 may be analyzed in two parts, based on the two distinct occurrences of Jesus Christ’s appearance the passage describes. One occurs in Thomas’s absence, when he appears before his disciples on Easter evening (20:19-25), whereas in the other instance, he appears after seven days and this time, Thomas is in attendance (20:26-31). The two events may initially be considered individually, followed by an interpretation of them together. In the first (20:19-25), the disciples are described assembled on Easter evening at a dwelling, somewhere within Jerusalem or in the holy city’s vicinity. Fear causes them to hold a secret meeting. However, the impact on readers is: they expect the occurrence of a miracle, and they aren’t left disappointed. A miraculous appearance of the resurrected Christ is witnessed (Hultgren, 2008).
Why the disciples have convened together has not been mentioned. However, the preceding verse (20:18) reveals the evangelist claiming Mary Magdalene informed the disciples of the resurrection of their Master. The Beloved Disciple as well as Peter had visited the tomb during the morning hours; however, only the former held real faith in the resurrection of Jesus (20:8). This could not be said of Peter or the others. The sequel (i.e., 20:11-18) shows the resurrected Jesus appearing before Mary Magdalene, who recognizes him and informs his disciples of what she saw (Hultgren, 2008).
Four events make up the scene which is showcased in the verses 20:19b-23. Firstly, Jesus emerges amongst his disciples, greeting them with Shalom (meaning: Peace), which is the common greeting in Jewish. He is identified by his side and hands. His disciples are jubilant. Next, a commissioning ensues (20:21) with Jesus stating the Father sent him. This has been extensively affirmed (no less than forty-one times) within John. God sent Jesus to mankind so that He Himself may be revealed and so that Jesus would preach and make disciples. Moreover, Jesus pronounced that following his going back to God, his ministry would be continued by the disciples (17:18), a statement that is now seen being fulfilled. Still further is the "Johannine Pentecost" (20:22). In the view of the 4th Evangelist, the Spirit’s gift was granted on Easter evening, rather than on Pentecost day (which occurs after about 7 weeks), which is Luke’s view. Jesus instantly commissions his disciples, according them the Spirit which is a power empowering their witnessing of Jesus. Finally, the authority to pardon mankind of its sins forms the completion of the series of Easter events (20:23). The reading has been included in Mathew 18:18 and 16:19 as well (Hultgren, 2008).
Regardless of the significance of the above part of the story, preachers as well as listeners tend to be more interested in the second part (20:26-29). Here,...
Whether or not the latter occurs is unknown; however, the declaration "My Lord and my God!" is a clear pronouncement of belief. However, in declaring this, Thomas isn’t likely to be giving voice to any full-scale ontological Christology, the way the 4th-5th century Christological doctrines and principles state. Essentially, Thomas implies he has witnessed God’s presence in Jesus’s resurrection (Hultgren, 2008).
The punch-line lies in the passage’s last verse (20:29), which may be deemed to be somewhat hard to construe. It may be regarded as a reprimand of Thomas as his belief was contingent on witnessing Christ, contrary to the others who believed without proof. This is not, however, the only possible interpretation. One cannot discredit his belief only after seeing. Indeed, he is alike all others in this respect in that they also believe only after Christ appears. At this juncture, identifying a second element of difference - between the two means of believing – is also prudent. The two means are: 1) actually witnessing and 2) listening to and having faith in the Bible as declared by the witnesses (i.e., disciples) of Christ, which is distinct from actually witnessing (Hultgren, 2008).
The beatitude of Christ ("Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have come to believe") ensures all of Christianity, irrespective of which era they are born and where they reside, are on equal footing with the aforementioned witnessing disciples, who saw Christ’s resurrection within Jerusalem in the 1st century, in the eyes of God. The remainder of Christianity who were not lucky enough to experience what the disciples did have believed as well. John’s audience is referred to in this beatitude. Christians who have believed are pronounced as blessed as they listen to or read the gospel (Hultgren, 2008).
Clearly, this reading is salient as Thomas’s tale chronologically occurs a week following Easter. A second justification for its application as a preaching base is underscoring the two means of believing. Firstly, how did ancient man believe? One may presume Christ’s disciples found believing easy. However, the above passage points to the contrary. Jesus had to actually appear before them after being resurrected for them to believe. Akin to others, Thomas calls for more concrete proof and doesn’t trust unconfirmed reports. His careful and judicious nature makes him a sound example for Christians (Hultgren, 2008).
The next question is: what makes mankind believe now, in the present day? One cannot prove the resurrection in a way that satisfies everybody. Just like the creation of the universe by God…
