My Lord and My God

We all remember the story of "doubting Thomas." When Jesus first appeared to his disciples following his resurrection, Thomas wasn't there (John 20:24). He wanted to see Jesus' hands, to touch the marks of the wounds, and unless he could do that, he would not believe that Jesus had risen. The other disciples tried to convince him that they all had seen Jesus alive, but Thomas would not be persuaded (John 20:25).
A week following Jesus' resurrection, the disciples were again meeting together, but this time Thomas was with them. Even though they were in a room with the doors shut, Jesus miraculously appeared in the middle of them (John 20:26). Jesus was very gracious to Thomas, and called on him to examine his hands and feet, to touch the wounded side, and to feel the nail marks, to no longer be faithless or unbelieving, but to believe in Jesus Christ (John 20:27).
Thomas' response is amazing. He did not take Jesus up on his offer and touch the wounds. Thomas replied, "My Lord and my God!" (John 20:28). His statement here is very interesting. He was not simply acknowledging Jesus as his master (although the word "lord" often means "master"); rather, he was saying that Jesus is the LORD of the Old Testament— Jehovah. He was saying that Jesus was God! He was calling the Man standing in front of him, Jesus of Nazareth, the Eternal God!
Jesus' response is equally interesting. In the book of Acts, God struck down King Herod immediately when people were shouting out that he was a god, and not a man. Because Herod did not give God the glory, God killed him on the spot (Acts 12:22–23). In Revelation 19:10, the apostle John fell down at the feet of an angel in worship, and the angel immediately rebuked him, instructing him to worship God instead.
If Jesus were not God, it would have been completely blasphemous for Jesus to accept Thomas' worship of him as God. It would have been dishonest of Jesus to accept it, if he were not God. But the Bible is clear that Jesus is God. As God, Jesus Christ is completely worthy to accept the worship of men. He told Thomas, "Thomas, because thou hast seen me, thou hast believed: blessed are they that have not seen, and yet have believed" (John 20:29). This blessing from Jesus extends to us who put our faith in Jesus. We have not seen him in person, but with the eye of faith, "we see Jesus, who was made a little [while] lower than the angels for the suffering of death, crowned with glory and honour; that he by the grace of God should taste death for every man" (Heb 2:9).