Our gospel for today is John 20:19-31 and this is about the risen Jesus who appeared to His disciples for the first time. This is about the time when the doubtful finally see the truth. Thomas is the person who is very skeptical about this resurrection. Thomas never believed it because according to him, he will only believe if he sees Jesus again with his own eyes.
Gospel: John 20:19-31
19 In the evening of that same day, the first day of the week, the doors were closed in the room where the disciples were, for fear of the Jews. Jesus came and stood among them. He said to them, ‘Peace be with you,’
20 and, after saying this, he showed them his hands and his side. The disciples were filled with joy at seeing the Lord,
21 and he said to them again, ‘Peace be with you. ‘As the Father sent me, so am I sending you.’
22 After saying this he breathed on them and said: Receive the Holy Spirit.
23 If you forgive anyone’s sins, they are forgiven; if you retain anyone’s sins, they are retained.
24 Thomas, called the Twin, who was one of the Twelve, was not with them when Jesus came.
25 So the other disciples said to him, ‘We have seen the Lord,’ but he answered, ‘Unless I can see the holes that the nails made in his hands and can put my finger into the holes they made, and unless I can put my hand into his side, I refuse to believe.’
26 Eight days later the disciples were in the house again and Thomas was with them. The doors were closed, but Jesus came in and stood among them. ‘Peace be with you,’ he said.
27 Then he spoke to Thomas, ‘Put your finger here; look, here are my hands. Give me your hand; put it into my side. Do not be unbelieving any more but believe.’
28 Thomas replied, ‘My Lord and my God!’
29 Jesus said to him: You believe because you can see me. Blessed are those who have not seen and yet believe.
30 There were many other signs that Jesus worked in the sight of the disciples, but they are not recorded in this book.
31 These are recorded so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that believing this you may have life through his name.
Reflection:
2023 Reflection
Today is the second Sunday of Easter and our gospel is from John 20:19-31. In our gospel today, I want to point some important facts to remind us. First, Jesus showed Himself to his disciples and He said “Peace be with you”.
Peace is what Jesus wanted for His people since then. In the gospel from John 20:19-31, it is clear that He wanted to show His disciples to spread peace all through the places.
As Jesus showed Himself to His disciples in John 20:19-31, there is one disciple who is adamant. Thomas refused to believe that Jesus rose form the dead. Unless he saw the hands of Jesus and the marks of the nails on His hand, Thomas won’t believe. Then Jesus showed Himself to him so he believed it.
The gospel from John 20:19-31 is such so big that we all should know what its deep meaning is. What Thomas did show us that faith is a big thing. If we have faith in God, there is no need for us to doubt anything regardless of what it is. We are ready to always do what is right because we have faith.
The gospel from John 20:19-31 is a reminder for every individual that God is always there as long as we have faith. Thomas as a disciple is full of doubt. He did not have that much faith because he wanted to see firsthand if it is Jesus.
FAITH and PEACE are the two words we should always linger on today in this gospel. If you have a huge faith within yourself, then your life will be at peace. There is no need for you to worry when and where you should get your food. Only faith will give us enough strength and courage to face everything in life.
2022 Reflection
The gospel for today is from John 20:19-31. Today marks the second Sunday of Easter where Jesus appears in front of His disciples. We have to pinpoint a very important virtue and that is FAITH.
In the gospel from John 20:19-31 today, we can see ourselves as Thomas. Who is Thomas? Thomas is an ordinary person, with all n his own fears and doubts. Even if he is a believer of Christ himself still he doubted the resurrection of Jesus.
We all carry something of the DNA of Thomas. Here is the great miracle where he have seen transformation yet he doubts. He encountered Jesus yet he refuses to believe this great miracle. Unless he himself witness and see Jesus and touch Him, Thomas won’t believe.
This is the message from the gospel from John 20:19-31. Faith has something to do with us. If we believe in Him we don’t need to see the real scenario first because we give ourselves in faith to Him. Faith is to believe in what we do not see.
In John 20:19-31, Thomas touched the wounds of Jesus and it was there when he believed. Yet, as for us we don’t need to see His wound to believe. It is enough that everyday is a miracle and a blessing.
I myself don’t need to witness the wound od Jesus in order to believe in Him. Since the day I was born until today that I am still breathing, I know that He is working in my life. He is working in your lives too and you may not see it. This is what FAITH is all about.
Jesus, I thank you for the grace of life and for the people all around me. I may not have seen you but I feel your presence in my life as always. I don’t need to see you because I trust and I have faith in you. It is enough for me that You are not letting go of me even if I am a sinner. Please look upon your people Lord and don’t abandon us.
2021 Reflection
In John 20:19-31, Thomas is the very symbol of each and every one of us. He is an ordinary person with all his fears and doubts. Jesus always tells us to believe and have faith in Him. As a person with doubts like Thomas, we can never find our own happiness and purpose here on earth. The only thing that will make us worthy while living here is the good deeds we do every day. We have to entrust everything to Jesus: our will, our wisdom and our lives. John 20:19-31 is about faith and hope for the thirst of seeing our savior.
The gospel is here to let us believe that Jesus is our only Messiah, the Son of God who will be the light of the world. Through believing in Him, we are save. All that is temporary will fade away someday, but our faith will put us to redemption.
Now, in this time of pandemic where all problems seem unending, we only have one pillar to lean on, that is Jesus. No matter how heavy our burdens at present may be, as long as you have Jesus, all is well. Let us try to take a moment of silence and try to reflect on how strong is our faith is today. Problems like this pandemic create other problems to everyone. If this will push through, people will suffer.
Let us take time to pray and ask Him for everything. “Lord, in these times of chaos and turmoil, You are only our refuge. Your people are weak and distress. Let your powers shine upon us all so that we may be enlighten and offer this sacrifice for the good. Touch the hearts and minds of our leaders to soften their hearts for their people who needs help. Make this world be happy again. Let your powers erase all the wars. These we pray with humble heart that you may hear us.” – Clea | Helpline PH
