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Since Jesus tomb was empty, he obviously arose in his material body, and throughout the Bible references to shutting the door at night, is the same as us locking the door at night since it is obvious in Acts 12:13-16 that Peter was unable to open the door until someone inside opened it for him.

Acts 12:13-16, KJV

13 And as Peter knocked at the door of the gate, a damsel came to hearken, named Rhoda.

14 And when she knew Peter's voice, she opened not the gate for gladness, but ran in, and told how Peter stood before the gate.

15 And they said unto her, Thou art mad. But she constantly affirmed that it was even so. Then said they, It is his angel.

16 But Peter continued knocking: and when they had opened the door, and saw him, they were astonished.

Yet in John 20 He appears inside a locked door in his physical body since Thomas was physically able to touch him.

John 20:26-27, KJV

26 And after eight days again his disciples were within, and Thomas with them: then came Jesus, the doors being shut, and stood in the midst, and said, Peace be unto you.

27 Then saith he to Thomas, Reach hither thy finger, and behold my hands; and reach hither thy hand, and thrust it into my side: and be not faithless, but believing.

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Great question! I'm sure it was a miracle because John would not have bothered to mention the locked doors otherwise.

On the evening of that first day of the week, when the disciples were together, with the doors locked for fear of the Jewish leaders, Jesus came and stood among them and said, ‘Peace be with you!’

John 20:19

So how did it happen? Jesus clearly had a physical body:

And while they still did not believe it because of joy and amazement, he asked them, ‘Do you have anything here to eat?’ They gave him a piece of broiled fish, and he took it and ate it in their presence.

Luke 24:41-43

So how did Jesus just appear in a different location? Well, this is not the only time in Scripture this has happened:

When they came up out of the water, the Spirit of the Lord suddenly took Philip away, and the eunuch did not see him again, but went on his way rejoicing. Philip, however, appeared at Azotus and travelled about, preaching the gospel in all the towns until he reached Caesarea.

Acts 8:39-40

Here the Spirit of the Lord performed a miracle.

Furthermore, we also read that Jesus also could suddenly disappear (Luke 24:31):

Then their eyes were opened and they recognised him, and he disappeared from their sight.

Whether Jesus Himself in His resurrected body could perform miracles by Himself (which I suspect) or whether The Holy Spirit did it for Him, the conclusion must be - it was a miracle.

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  • I cannot imagine any other answer, unless as Andrew Leach says he dematerialized on the outside of the door and rematerialized on the inside.
    – BYE
    Commented Nov 18, 2013 at 21:16
  • The doors were locked for fear of the Jewish leaders. John explains why he mentions it. Read the verse in all its translations. Read John Gill and others. There is no walking through doors. That is in 'Casper the Friendly Gost'. Leave it there. I voted you down for implying that Jesus does party tricks.
    – gideon marx
    Commented Nov 19, 2013 at 6:55
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    Party tricks like Casper. Or like magicians at the circus. Jesus did not do tricks. He did not walk through doors. He would have knocked. All his miracles had a point to them and it was not to amaze the crowds or the disciples. What would walking through a door have proved after he rose from the dead? Nothing. The point of the verse is that he had to hide from the aurhorities who said he was a magician that did party tricks (like walking through doors).
    – gideon marx
    Commented Nov 19, 2013 at 15:25
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    @ Gideon marx I cannot agree with your party tricks synopsis I am quite certain that Jesus did not and does not fear being killed again, since it could only be done the first time with his expressed consent, and after considering Wikis answer it seems to be the best scenario to suddenly appear among them in human form would dispel any misgivings by not only Thomas, but also any others who may have doubted his resurrection. We have no way of knowing if there were any unbelieving among them.
    – BYE
    Commented Nov 19, 2013 at 18:26
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    If Jesus knocked on the door, and they answered the door, the disciples' amazement would have spilled onto the street. Jesus made a point of ONLY appearing to his disciples after his resurrection. He did not walk through walls for a party trick but to conceal from unbelievers what he was doing. When the apostles finally proclaimed his resurrection to the world, they had to do so with their courage, faith, and boldness, not with his obvious power backing them up. Even on Pentecost, unbelievers blamed it on wine.
    – Paul Chernoch
    Commented Nov 15, 2016 at 18:09
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Jesus in his resurrected body is not bound by the physical laws of this realm. And that is the body all believers should hope for and are promised.

Beloved, now we are to be sons of God, and it does not yet appear what we will be, but we know that when He is revealed, we will be like him, for we will see him as he is. (1 John 3:2)

The above scripture implies that they were incapable of seeing Jesus as he is but there is hope that they will.

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  • Welcome to Stack Exchange, we are glad you are here. When you get a chance, be sure to check out the site tour and read up on how this site is a little different than other sites around the web. This is not a comment on the quality of your answer, but rather a standard welcome message. That said, it would greatly improve your answer if you explain who a pre-crucifixion passage helps explain Jesus' post-resurrection nature.
    – ThaddeusB
    Commented Sep 8, 2015 at 3:09
  • Welcome to Christianity.SE. For some tips on writing good answers here, please see: What makes a good supported answer?
    – Lee Woofenden
    Commented Sep 8, 2015 at 4:27
  • The question itself is testament to his not being subject to physics, however his body had to be a physical reality if it could be touched. So the question remains as to how it suddenly appeared among his followers. not to be mean, but this does not answer my question.
    – BYE
    Commented Sep 8, 2015 at 12:05
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But did he? Did he come through a locked door? That would be to say that before he appeared in the room he was outside the room and still in this world and its dimensions.

More likely, he was outside of our world altogether, and in a dimension that we cannot enter.

Not because he had a resurrection body, but because he is God could he pass into our world(?).

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