On the first day of the week, very early in the morning, the women took the spices they had prepared and went to the tomb. They found the stone rolled away from the tomb, but when they entered, they did not find the body of the Lord Jesus. While they were wondering about this, suddenly two men in clothes that gleamed like lightning stood beside them. In their fright the women bowed down with their faces to the ground, but the men said to them, "Why do you look for the living among the dead? He is not here; he has risen! Remember how he told you, while he was still with you in Galilee: `The Son of Man must be delivered into the hands of sinful men, be crucified and on the third day be raised again. Then they remembered his words. When they came back from the tomb, they told all these things to the Eleven and to all the others. It was Mary Magdalene, Joanna, Mary the mother of James, and the others with them who told this to the apostles. But they did not believe the women, because their words seemed to them like nonsense. Peter, however, got up and ran to the tomb. Bending over, he saw the strips of linen lying by themselves, and he went away, wondering to himself what had happened. [NIV]

Christians can have hard times just like anyone else. This was true even for Christ’s own disciples— especially after they watched their Lord Jesus suffer on the cross, and die. They had hoped He was the one who would redeem them from their sins. With his dead body sealed in the tomb, they were left scratching their heads: “Has Jesus failed us?” Sometimes we scratch our heads too, asking the same question, because of all the troubles around us and in us. When doubts like these begin to take shape, we need something powerful to instill hope once again. Thankfully, God has provided such a power to overcome these dark days and give us heaven. It is resurrection— Jesus’ resurrection! It proved to the disciples— and it proves to us again today— that Jesus did not fail anyone! Rather, it proves he saved us!

On that first Easter morning, it happened this way. While it was still dark, Mary Magdalene, Joanna, and Mary the mother of James, made their way in sadness to Jesus’ tomb. They were intending to apply burial spices to the Lord’s dead body. But arriving at the tomb they found the stone already rolled away, and his body GONE. Now their sadness sank in despair! Even Jesus’ dead body had been taken from them. Could things get any worse?

Actually, things were about to become better, much better. As the Gospel lesson tells us: “While they were wondering about this, suddenly two men in clothes that gleamed like lightning stood beside them. In their fright the women bowed down with their faces to the ground, but the men said to them, ‘Why do you look for the living among the dead? He is not here; HE HAS RISEN! Remember how he told you, while he was still with you in Galilee: The Son of Man must be delivered into the hands of sinful men, be crucified and on the third day be raised again. ’ Then they remembered his words.”

At once, a glorious change came over them as eternal light and life broke through their soul’s tomb of dark despair. The freshness of God’s forgiveness and hope in the living Christ was breathed into their souls. Knowing that their Lord was now ALIVE, they knew he had not failed them after all, but had saved them from their sins and doubts forever! Sadly, the other disciples did not immediately rejoice in this. When the women came to them with this great news, they did not believe them. To them, their words were nonsense, although Peter did run out to the tomb to see for himself. “Bending over, he saw the strips of linen lying by themselves, and he went away, wondering to himself what had happened.” Dark despair still gathered over the disciples’ heads, including Peter’s.

We take a moment to recognize our own unbelief and doubt mirrored in theirs. While we have no opportunity to visit Christ’s empty tomb to check things out for ourselves, we can visit the Bible. But, like Peter at the tomb, our sinful hearts struggle to believe what we find in the Bible. We scratch our heads and consider the Bible’s message about sin and salvation from sin through Jesus to be utter nonsense. It should not surprise us, then, that even some churches today reject the idea that Jesus rose from the dead. Recently, I ran across a TV special on the resurrection of Christ. One seminary professor who was interviewed for the program, said this regarding Jesus' resurrection: “The fact that Jesus’ body returned to life does not fit into my framework of what is possible.”

Needless to say, the framework we live by is a very small framework. Our minds are finite; they can only understand so much. We don’t even understand very much about our physical world of weather, biology, or physiology, never mind trying to understand God’s Almighty power. But true faith believes in what cannot be proven by sight or intellect. When faith comes to our hearts by God’s Word and Spirit, we believe that resurrection from the dead is possible because with God all things are possible. He is in control of all things, even death itself— as Jesus proclaimed before His death: “I lay down my life— only to take it up again. No one takes it from me, but I lay it down of my own accord. I have authority to lay it down and authority to take it up again” (John 10: 18).

But for a little while, the disciples, like that seminary professor— like us —could not fit the resurrection into the framework of their little minds. But we know that Jesus would quickly dispel their doubt later that day. As Easter evening came, he appeared to the disciples as they were gathered inside a locked house. At first they were afraid, thinking they saw his ghost. But Jesus proved to them that he was alive indeed. Now all the disciples had the life of Christ breathed into them! All their trouble and fear and sin and doubt was swept away (Luke 24: 36- 49; John 20: 19,20). Just as he proclaimed before his death, he indeed was the Resurrection and the Life! His resurrection proved to them all that their every sin was completely atoned and forgiven. These believing and confident disciples would soon proclaim this GREAT NEWS of Jesus to all people.

We hear this great news today. We are now made confident that in Him, we have salvation! As the Scripture promises: “There is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus” (Romans 8: 1). This resurrection gives us this hope— especially important when the next difficulty comes. If we begin to doubt God as family, health, and job issues cloud over our lives, let’s remember what the angels said to the women on that first Easter morning, even as they stood downcast before the empty tomb: “Why do you look for the living among the dead. He is not here; he has RISEN!" Remembering these words of Jesus’ resurrection, our dark despair will lift, and our hearts refreshed. This will help us even when the day of our death comes. Though our bodies may die, we live confident of our own resurrection in Christ. When Christ returns on the Last Day, He has promised by the power of his resurrection to return our bodies to life. Body and soul, we will live in God’s heaven forever, never to be touched by death or any trouble again! SOLI DEO GLORIA

DEAR RISEN LORD, WE ADMIT HOW WE ALLOW SIN AND TROUBLE TO CLOUD US OVER, AND CAUSE US TO DOUBT YOUR VICTORIOUS RESURRECTION. TODAY, CAUSE YOUR RESURRECTION TO DISPEL ALL SINFUL DOUBTS. IN THIS RESURRECTION WHICH CONFIRMS THAT OUR SINS WERE INDEED TAKEN AWAY AT THE CROSS, GIVE US STRENGTH TO LIVE FOR YOU EACH DAY UNTIL YOU CALL US HEAVENWARD. AMEN.

[NIV] New International Version used throughout.