Glorious scars

“Reach your finger here, and look at My hands; and reach your hand here, and put it into My side. Do not be unbelieving, but believing.” John 20:27

God's hand symbolizes power, protection, and deliverance, just as Jesus' hand heals sick people through the laying on of hands and performs miracles with it. Even though God's hand is so powerful, Jesus still carries his scars on His hands in this resurrected and transformed body. According to the scriptures, Jesus shows His scars to doubting Thomas in the key verse. This indicates that Jesus has scars on His hands. Perhaps He is the only one in heaven with scars. 

In the same way as Jesus revealed himself to His disciples after His resurrection, Jesus keeps the scars so we know He is our Savior. I had a friend who died in a car accident and went to heaven. Initially, he thought it was a dream, but when Jesus showed up with scarred hands, he knew He was in heaven. Eventually, he came back to earth to share his story and testify about Jesus . Perhaps Jesus kept the scar as proof that He who died on the cross, and stands before us, is alive and Heaven is for real.

Furthermore, His scars are a symbol of His divine empathy and love for mankind. Jesus knows our pain, "for He empathizes with our weakness Hebrews 4:15". Hands are not only for displaying power, but also for connecting and communicating. I can imagine Jesus greeting us with His open hands in Heaven. The sight of His scars would make us praise and worship Him. This is because without the suffering that caused those scars, no one else would be here. 

Scars are seen as a defect in the eyes of the world. However, Jesus sees them as a glorious triumph that He overcame death, the ultimate redemption, and demonstrated the greatest love to all of us.

Blessing prayer: Your scars express the greatest love. With his beautiful scars, we will worship You forever. Your scars are not a defect, but a glory beyond comparison. In Jesus' name, Amen