Not Seeing, Yet Believing: Post-Easter Discipleship in John 20:29 and 1 Peter 1:8
Not Seeing, Yet Believing: Post-Easter Discipleship in John 20:29 and 1 Peter 1:8

Summary/Abstract: Jesus’s first disciples lived in an era that many righteous people before Christ had longed to witness (Matt 13:16–17; Luke 10:23–24). This raises the question of how later generations who have not seen the earthly Jesus should regard themselves. This issue is primarily addressed in John 20:29 and 1 Pet 1:8. Although these verses appear in different parts of the NT, they are closely related. This paper identifies eight notable parallels between the texts. It argues that a new era began with Jesus and continues beyond his ascension. Although later believers have not seen Christ, they are still blessed, for eternal life and salvation are available to them as well. Moreover, there is evidence of mutual respect between the earliest disciples and later believers. Later Christians held those who had seen the Lord in high regard. Likewise, the first disciples respected those who believed without seeing him (1 Pet 1:8; cf. John 20:29).

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