There are not many words that are written in the Bible that carry a more profound meaning than these 5 words that Thomas uttered: "My Lord and my God" (John 20:28). Thomas was not present when Jesus appeared to the disciples after His resurrection, and when he was told, his first reaction was that he would not believe unless he could see and touch the risen Christ (verse 24,25). Some labeled him "doubting Thomas" but the utter magnitude of the resurrection of Jesus Christ was so enormous that Thomas simply could not immediately think clearly on the matter. Neither could the others at that moment. The word Lord is translated from the Greek work "kurios" meaning supreme in authority, God, Lord, master and sir. That is the Greek word that is used throughout the New Testament when referring to Christ. When Thomas added "my God", that word in Greek is "theos" and adds the meaning of supreme divinity or God. It was not difficult to call Jesus Lord during His lifetime because the disciples saw incredible miracles and wonders that Jesus did wherever He went. When Jesus first appeared they said: "The Lord is risen". That was a shocking event that led them all to a huge learning curve that they had trouble climbing. They were terrified when they first saw the risen Christ and thought they saw a spirit (Luke 24:34,37). It was a further step and a difficult one for them to take in their learning to acknowledge that Jesus Christ was God!
Deeply imbedded in the mind and heart of the Jews was the total rejection of anyone or anything that purported to be divine. When Jesus said that He knew God His Father and that Abraham had rejoiced to see His day, the Jews were ready to stone Him to death (John 8:54-59). That was blasphemy to their ears. There were other incidents in which the extreme ire of the Jews who heard Christ was raised. Jesus said He and the Father were one and the Jews picked up stones right away (John 10:29-39). The Jews had expected a Messiah and Jesus was frequently followed and spied upon because He was doing wonders that had never been seen before. That same strong aversion of looking toward a man as God was also in the hearts and minds of the disciples as they grew into manhood and studied the Scriptures in the synagogues. Therefore it was a giant step in learning for Thomas to say before them all: "My Lord and my God."
In the Old Testament, we can see fairly frequent references to the God of the Old Testament who was known to the Jews. He is called: "My Lord and my God" in a number of places. The term: "Our Lord and our God" is also used a few times. King Solomon stated it was the "Lord my God" that had given him rest from his enemies and that he would build a house to the "Lord my God" as the Lord had spoken to David (I Kings 5:4,5). Jeremiah had a close relationship with God and wrote that Ephraim was bemoaning himself saying: "You are the Lord my God" (Jer. 31:18). Moses saw the finger of God writing the commandments on the stone tablets and spoke to Israel saying: "surely the Lord our God has shown us His glory and His greatness, and we have heard His voice from the midst of the fire" (Deut. 5:24). Jesus stated that nobody had seen God the Father or heard His voice (John 5:37). The Jews were familiar with the Old Testament. They were not given much deep understanding about God because of their attitudes as Jesus pointed out to them. God had placed a veil over their understanding (2 Cor. 3:14,15).
It becomes apparent that Thomas and the others had a huge hill of knowledge to climb before they could think of Jesus Christ as God. That is a big hill for anyone and people have stumbled over themselves trying to understand. There are mysteries that God has not revealed to humans and they must remain mysteries until He does reveal them. Isaiah had written about the Messiah to come. These words were taught to all the Jews and were embedded in the heart of Thomas and the others. Isaiah wrote that the Child to be born (who was Christ) will carry some names. Those names that Isaiah noted were: "Wonderful, Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace" (Isa. 9:6). Can we begin to grasp the dilemma facing Thomas and the others? Jesus was doing things that no man could do, including forgiving sin (Matt. 9:2-6). That alone was considered blasphemy by the Jews. These events confirmed their determination to kill Jesus. No doubt His disciples were confused, but amazed at the same time. Actually there were many of His original disciples who simply left Him due to some of His teachings that they could not accept (John 6:66-69). Some disciples remained because they believed He was the Son of God.
There are a number of Scriptures that state that Jesus was worshipped. That would be considered idolatry by definition unless He was God. Here are a few examples: The wise men worshipped Christ at His birth (Matt. 2:11). A leper came and worshipped Christ and was made clean (Matt. 8:1-3). A woman of Canaan who had a sick daughter came and worshipped Jesus (Matt. 15:21-28). When He met His disciples after His resurrection, they held Him by the feet and worshipped Him (Matt. 28:9). God the Father said: "Let all the angels of God worship Him" (Heb. 1:6). God inspired Paul to write His words about Jesus: "But to the Son He says: Your throne, O God, is forever and ever" (Heb. 1:8). It is a sin to worship anyone or anything that is not God. John noted that in his great vision for the book of Revelation, an angel came with some true sayings of God. John fell at his feet to worship him, but the angel said: "See that you do not do that! I am your fellow servant, and of your brethren who have the testimony of Jesus. Worship God! For the testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy" (Rev. 19:10). There is only a glimpse given of the majesty of the Father and Son in Scripture. We struggle to understand and in awe of these wonders, we have good reason to remain forever humble. Every creature which is in heaven and on the earth and under the earth and such as are in the sea, and all that are in them are saying: "Blessing and honor and glory and power be to Him who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb, forever and ever" (Rev. 5:8-13). We too have a hill of understanding to climb and it is not easy.
The New Testament was not written for more than 20 years after His resurrection. The early teachings were oral and were backed up with marvelous works. When it was time to write as God inspired, John made statements that we must still ponder and wonder about today. Through John, God revealed that in the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. John continued to write that all things were made through Him. The Word became flesh and dwelt among us (John 1:1-14). God inspired John to include the important words of a special prayer of Jesus in Scripture. Jesus said He had been sent by God (John 17:3). He said that He was to give eternal life to as many as the Father had given to Him (verse 2,9). Jesus knew that any who were His were also the Father's - so there is never any hint of jealousy. Several times Jesus stated that He and the Father are One (verse 21,22). Jesus was the God of the Old Testament. He has been given a great task by the Father. There is to be a resurrection of the dead to give them the opportunity for eternal life. When all of His work is completed, Jesus Christ will present and deliver the kingdom to the Father after He (Jesus) has put an end to all rule, authority and power that is contrary to God (I Cor. 15:20-28). How difficult is it for you to worship Jesus Christ and say those 5 words: "My Lord and my God?"