Holy Week Thoughts, Part 8: I Know You’re Looking for Jesus…
Dawn was breaking on the first day of the week; the sabbath was over. Mary Magdalene, and the other Mary, had come to look at the tomb, when suddenly there was a great earthquake. An angel of the Lord came down from heaven. He came to the stone, rolled it away, and sat down on top of it. Looking at him was like looking at lightning, and his clothes were white, like snow. The guards trembled with terror at him, and became like corpses themselves.
‘Don’t be afraid,’ said the angel to the women. ‘I know you’re looking for Jesus, who was crucified. He isn’t here! He’s been raised, as he said he would be! Come and see the place where he was lying—and then go at once, and tell his disciples that he’s been raised from the dead, and that he’s going on ahead of you to Galilee. That’s where you’ll see him. There: I’ve told you.’
The women scurried off quickly away from the tomb, in a mixture of terror and great delight, and went to tell his disciples. Suddenly, there was Jesus himself. He met them and said, ‘Greetings!’ They came up to him and took hold of his feet, prostrating themselves in front of him.
‘Don’t be afraid,’ said Jesus to them. ‘Go and tell my brothers that they should go to Galilee. Tell them they’ll see me there.’
Matthew 28:1-10 (The Bible For Everyone, emphasis mine)
One of my favorite things about the account of the resurrection is that the angel reminds the women at the tomb that Jesus promised that he would rise again from the grave.
The resurrection of His Son was God’s plan from the start. It was never meant to end at the cross.
The empty tomb is the focus of our celebrations today, along with the truth that Jesus rose from the dead and remains alive today.
With that knowledge, let’s celebrate!