"Thomas answered him, “My Lord and my God!” (John 20:28)
This is one of the most famous texts used to prove the deity of Christ. However, a common response given by Arians, Unitarians, Muslims, etc. is that Thomas was not addressing Jesus but rather was praising God as completely distinct from Jesus. In other words, it is similar to way some people flippantly say "Oh my God!" today when they are surprised. However, is this really the sense in which Thomas was speaking? Many commentators and biblical scholars say quite otherwise:
"The return to the opening proposition of the gospel is intended, and there can be no doubt that John intended this confession of faith to form the climax of the gospel (on ch. 21 see pp. 576ff.); it is his final Christological pronouncement. Dodd, Interpretation, 430, distinguishes kurios and theos : Thomas recognises the Lord Jesus, and acknowledges that he is divine. It is however better to conjoin the terms than to separate them. The pronouncement may have been taken from a liturgical setting; indeed the whole passage (from v. 19) may be liturgical in origin. The disciples assemble on the Lord's Day. The blessing is given: eirene hymin. The Holy Spirit descends upon the worshippers and the word of absolution ( cf. v. 23) is pronounced. Christ himself is present (this may suggest the eucharist and the spoken word of God) bearing the marks of his passion; he is confessed as Lord and God (cf. Pliny, Ep. x, xcvi, 7, carmenque Christo quasi deo dicere). That such a setting as this was in John's mind is supported by the fact that in the next verse the horizon of thought is explicitly extended to include all Christians as they meet under the authority of the word of God." (C.K. Barrett, The Gospel According to St. John: An Introduction with Commentary and Notes on the Greek Text, pg. 573)
"The confession "My Lord and my God!" conveys Thomas's deep shame and reverence at seeing Jesus' divine glory, a glory surpassing all human standards. It also reflects the strong personal sense with which Thomas yields to Jesus." (Herman Ridderbos, The Gospel of John: A Theological Commentary, pg. 647)
"The confession of Thomas to Jesus 'My Lord and my God,' is startling in its starkness, and is rightly regarded as the culmination of the revelation of God in Christ recorded in the Fourth Gospel." (George R. Beasley-Murray, Word Biblical Commentary - John, pg. 389)
My Lord and my God - In this passage the name God is expressly given to Christ, in his own presence and by one of his own apostles. This declaration has been considered as a clear proof of the divinity of Christ, for the following reasons:
1. There is no evidence that this was a mere expression, as some have supposed, of surprise or astonishment.
2. The language was addressed to Jesus himself - “Thomas ...said unto him.”
3. The Saviour did not reprove him or check him as using any improper language. If he had not been divine, it is impossible to reconcile it with his honesty that he did not rebuke the disciple. No pious man would have allowed such language to be addressed to him. Compare Acts 14:13-15; Revelation 22:8-9.
4. The Saviour proceeds immediately to commend Thomas for believing; but what was the evidence of his believing? It was this declaration, and this only. If this was a mere exclamation of surprise, what proof was it that Thomas believed? Before this he doubted. Now he believed, and gave utterance to his belief, that Jesus was his Lord and his God.
5. If this was not the meaning of Thomas, then his exclamation was a mere act of profaneness, and the Saviour would not have commended him for taking the name of the Lord his God in vain. The passage proves, therefore, that it is proper to apply to Christ the name Lord and God, and thus accords with what John affirmed in John 1:1, and which is established throughout this gospel. (Barnes' Notes on the Bible)
"The Socinian evasion of the supreme divinity of Christ here manifestly taught-as if it were a mere call upon Gad in a fit of astonishment-is beneath notice, except for the profanity which it charges upon this disciple, and the straits to which it shows themselves reduced." (Jamieson-Fausett-Brown's Commentary)
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