Alive!

“We know that Christ, being raised from the dead, will never die again; death no longer has dominion over him.” (Romans 6:9, ESV)

What a strange week this had been in Jerusalem. The Passover celebration. The crucifixion. The pause for the Sabbath. Now, as the first rays of the sun began to pierce the darkness of this first day of the week, Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James, and Salome made their way to the tomb. These loyal followers of the Lord carried anointing spices for His body.

As the women walked, they discussed a problem. Who could remove the heavy stone that sealed the tomb? How would they get to the body of Jesus?

the empty tomb

Nearing the place where He had been buried, they were astonished.

• The guards placed there to secure the tomb were missing, their post abandoned.
• The seal was broken, and the heavy stone was rolled away.
• Even more puzzling, the tomb was empty! The body of Jesus was gone. Yes, the grave clothes were still there, and the napkin that had covered His face lay in a separate place.

As the women tried to take all this in, an angel greeted them and said:

“Do not be afraid, for I know that you seek Jesus who was crucified. He is not here, for he has risen, as he said. Come, see the place where he lay . . . So they departed quickly from the tomb with fear and great joy, and ran to tell his disciples.” (Matthew 28:5, 6, and 8, ESV)

In that moment, the women did not realize they were the first witnesses to the empty tomb and the resurrection of our Lord. Yes, the religious leaders tried their best to do damage control by bribing the guards to say His body had been stolen. But there were too many witnesses to disprove this planted lie. The women were only the first witnesses, not the only witnesses to this wonderful truth.

• “He presented himself alive to them after his suffering by many proofs, appearing to them during forty days and speaking about the kingdom of God.” (Acts 1:3, ESV)

• “And that he appeared to Cephas, then to the twelve. Then he appeared to more than five hundred brothers at one time, most of whom are still alive, though some have fallen asleep. Then he appeared to James, then to all the apostles. Last of all, as to one untimely born, he appeared also to me.” (I Corinthians 15:5-8, ESV)

the foundation of our assurance

The Easter story is so familiar to most of us. The empty tomb does not surprise us because we know the end of the story. But that day some rejoiced, some doubted, and some tried to disguise the facts.

Why is this knowledge of the resurrection so important? Because our hope rests upon the truth of the resurrection of Jesus. First Corinthians 15:17 and 19 tells us:

“And if Christ has not been raised, your faith is futile and you are still in your sins . . . If in this life only we have hope in Christ, we are of all men most miserable.” (ESV)

The Lord did rise from the dead. Our faith is not futile, and our hope reaches beyond this life on earth. On this Easter day, embrace this glorious truth and rejoice!