John 20:24-31
Jesus Appears to Thomas
24 Now Thomas (also known as Didymus), one of the Twelve, was not with the disciples when Jesus came. 25 So the other disciples told him, “We have seen the Lord!”
But he said to them, “Unless I see the nail marks in his hands and put my finger where the nails were, and put my hand into his side, I will not believe.”
26 A week later his disciples were in the house again, and Thomas was with them. Though the doors were locked, Jesus came and stood among them and said, “Peace be with you!” 27 Then he said to Thomas, “Put your finger here; see my hands. Reach out your hand and put it into my side. Stop doubting and believe.”
28 Thomas said to him, “My Lord and my God!”
29 Then Jesus told him, “Because you have seen me, you have believed; blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.”
The Purpose of John’s Gospel
30 Jesus performed many other signs in the presence of his disciples, which are not recorded in this book. 31 But these are written that you may believe that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name.
C. S. Lewis wrote in his book Mere Christianity: “I am trying here to prevent anyone saying the really foolish thing that people often say about Him: I’m ready to accept Jesus as a great moral teacher, but I don’t accept His claim to be God...That is the one thing we must not say...A man who was merely a man and said the sort of things Jesus said would not be a great moral teacher...He would either be a lunatic — on the level with the man who says he is a poached egg — or else he would be the Devil of Hell...You must make your choice...Either This Man was, and is, the Son of God, or else a madman or something worse...You can shut Him up for a fool, you can spit at Him and kill Him as a demon or you can fall at his feet and call Him LORD and God, but let us not come with any patronizing nonsense about His being a great Human Teacher...He has not left that open to us...He did not intend to.”...
As Lewis is referring to, we all experience moral obligations throughout our entire lives...Almost all people regardless of their personal background and beliefs, have an innate sense of what is right and what is wrong...We instinctively understand concepts like fairness, justice, and compassion...
These beliefs on right and wrong were have were not invented by humans...These moral laws seem to exist independently of human opinion or cultural norms...They have a universal quality, suggesting a source beyond human invention...
If the universe is purely material and governed by only impersonal laws of nature, it's difficult to explain the origin of these objective moral laws...Why should we be moral if there is no ultimate source of morality?...By believing that God is the Source of morality, we not only better understand God, but we better understand where morality came from...Lewis argues that the existence of objective moral laws points to a transcendent source, a higher power that has instilled these moral principles within us...Lewis suggests that this Source is God...Why should we be moral if there is no ultimate source of morality and there is no God in Heaven?...
Let us think of it like this...Imagine a game of chess, which have rules...The rules of chess exist independently of any individual player...They were created by someone, and players must abide by those rules to play the game correctly...Similarly, Lewis argues that the moral laws we experience are not merely human inventions...The rules of life and morality point to a Higher Lawgiver, a God who has instilled within us a sense of right and wrong...
This argument is not about proving God's existence with absolute certainty...But it is about presenting a plausible explanation for the existence of objective moral laws...These ideas challenge the naturalistic worldview...By acknowledging the existence of objective moral laws, we are acknowledging a Reality that cannot be fully explained by purely natural causes, such as evolution...Evolution does not bring up" the origin of morality...Evolution, as a biological theory, primarily explains the development of life on earth...While it can shed light on the development of human behavior and social structures, it doesn't directly address the origin of moral values...Lewis' argument encourages us to consider the deeper questions about the origin of morality and the nature of reality, which evolution does not bring up...
Jesus was a Man who was more than a man...I am not sure it is even fair to call Him a man...Jesus said the sort of things to me that speaks of Divinity...Each of must make a choice of who He is, as He ask His Disciples - "Who do you think I AM" (Matthew 16:15-16)...St. Thomas made His decision...You, too, must make your choice...Either This Man was, and is, the Son of God, or else a madman or something worse...Pilate tried to question Him about Truth and did not understand that Truth was standing right in front of Him...Roman soldiers tried to shut Him up for a fool, and then spit at Him and later killed Him for saying what He said and the many signs and miracles He had done...Or we can do as St. Thomas did and fall at His feet and call Him LORD and God, but let us not come with any patronizing nonsense about His being a great Human Teacher...He has not left that open to us...He was and always will be the Doubting Thomas' Great Moral Teacher and Master...Thomas believed that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God, and by him believing, he has Eternal Life in His name...