Grace To Perceive The Gospel
Scripture Passage: John 20:1-10 (NASB)
Now on the first day of the week Mary Magdalene came early to the tomb, while it was still dark, and saw the stone already taken away from the tomb. 2 So she ran and came to Simon Peter and to the other disciple whom Jesus loved, and said to them, “They have taken away the Lord out of the tomb, and we do not know where they have laid Him.” 3 So Peter and the other disciple went forth, and they were going to the tomb. 4 The two were running together; and the other disciple ran ahead faster than Peter and came to the tomb first; 5 and stooping and looking in, he saw the linen wrappings lying there; but he did not go in. 6 And so Simon Peter also came, following him, and entered the tomb; and he saw the linen wrappings lying there, 7 and the face-cloth which had been on His head, not lying with the linen wrappings, but rolled up in a place by itself. 8 So the other disciple who had first come to the tomb then also entered, and he saw and believed. 9 For as yet they did not understand the Scripture, that He must rise again from the dead. 10 So the disciples went away again to their own homes.
SUMMARY
Early on the first day of the week, Mary Magdalene heads towards the tomb before sunrise and sees that the stone had been removed. She goes and tells Simon Peter and John that the tomb is empty, and both disciples run to see with their own eyes. They see the empty tomb, the strips of linen, the cloth separate from the linen. They saw and believed Mary’s original words that the tomb was empty. They saw but did not understand, and so they went back to where they were staying.
MEDITATION & REFLECTION
First, we can see how deeply Mary loved Jesus. She was there before anyone else, at the very first opportunity. Even after the two disciples left, she remained there, weeping. She loved Him dearly.
Second, Jesus predicted His resurrection several times and spoke of it before He went to the cross, but without an encounter with the risen Christ, the disciples could not understand the resurrection. As soon as Mary said, “They have taken away the Lord,” (v. 2) Simon Peter and John ran to the tomb — they RAN. There was a sense of urgency here. They all loved Jesus very deeply. But in this entire passage, there was no understanding from any of the three that Jesus had risen. Once the disciples saw the linens, the cloth, the open tomb, they believed that people must have taken Him; they must have felt powerless because they all just returned home. All were so close to Him, and yet they could not recognize His resurrection. I realize again and again that understanding is truly by grace, that when we see, it is because He reveals Himself to us, and I am grateful.
I thought about the power of the resurrection, and how Christ defeated death’s hold on us and resurrected in glorious victory. I thought about how crucial the death and resurrection of Jesus is, how it is of utmost importance that we believe in the resurrection, in the living Christ; how it shows that He is truly the Messiah, Christ who laid down His life for His own, and resurrected us with Him. In this truth I feel it is impossible to return to how we were, and I feel there is such a contrast in the disciples in this scene (when they don’t understand the resurrection and have no faith in the living Christ so they simply return home) versus later (when they encounter the risen Son and come to a deep, intimate realization of who He is as Messiah, and cannot stop testifying).
APPLICATION
I will live my life as one who believes in the resurrection of Jesus. I don’t want to simply return to my safe place, but I want to be one who can make a straight a path for Jesus, and speak of the risen Christ.
PRAYER
Lord, thank You for the cross, and thank You for the resurrection. Thank You that even when we don’t understand or believe, You are tirelessly moving because You have a plan. Thank You that when we are confused and without hope, You again and again show Yourself to be our greatest Hope. Thank You for the way you continue to break down walls with care and grace, and how You walk alongside us to make us new day by day. In the midst of fear and uncertainty, You remind us of Your unshakeable character and love, and we find a resilient joy and a closer intimacy in this truth. Lord, may we live as sons and daughters of God who truly know our identity, who know our Father, and who deeply believe in the resurrection of the living Christ.
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