John 20: 1 – 10 (NLT)
Early on Sunday morning, while it was still dark, Mary Magdalene came to the tomb and found that the stone had been rolled away from the entrance. 2 She ran and found Simon Peter and the other disciple, the one whom Jesus loved. She said, “They have taken the Lord’s body out of the tomb, and we don’t know where they have put him!”
3 Peter and the other disciple started out for the tomb. 4 They were both running, but the other disciple outran Peter and reached the tomb first.5 He stooped and looked in and saw the linen wrappings lying there, but he didn’t go in. 6 Then Simon Peter arrived and went inside. He also noticed the linen wrappings lying there, 7 while the cloth that had covered Jesus’ head was folded up and lying apart from the other wrappings. 8 Then the disciple who had reached the tomb first also went in, and he saw and believed— 9 for until then they still hadn’t understood the Scriptures that said Jesus must rise from the dead. 10 Then they went home.
Luke 24: 1 – 12 (NLT)
“But very early on Sunday morning the women went to the tomb, taking the spices they had prepared. 2 They found that the stone had been rolled away from the entrance. 3 So they went in, but they didn’t find the body of the Lord Jesus. 4 As they stood there puzzled, two men suddenly appeared to them, clothed in dazzling robes.
5 The women were terrified and bowed with their faces to the ground. Then the men asked, “Why are you looking among the dead for someone who is alive? 6 He isn’t here! He is risen from the dead! Remember what he told you back in Galilee, 7 that the Son of Man must be betrayed into the hands of sinful men and be crucified, and that he would rise again on the third day.”
8 Then they remembered that he had said this. 9 So they rushed back from the tomb to tell his eleven disciples—and everyone else—what had happened. 10 It was Mary Magdalene, Joanna, Mary the mother of James, and several other women who told the apostles what had happened.11 But the story sounded like nonsense to the men, so they didn’t believe it. 12 However, Peter jumped up and ran to the tomb to look. Stooping, he peered in and saw the empty linen wrappings; then he went home again, wondering what had happened.”
In chapter 19, we read the story of the crucifixion, and at the end of that chapter, Joseph of Arimathea and Nicodemus took the body and had it buried in a nearby tomb. It was almost the time for Passover, and they would have hurried to get the body placed before sundown. Jewish law says that Passover must be celebrated from sundown Friday evening to sundown on Saturday. During that period of time, they were to do absolutely no work.
I have a Jewish friend who keeps Jewish laws quite faithfully, and I’ve learned a lot from her. I do know that she finds Friday afternoons rather hectic, because she has to get all the preparations for the Sabbath (Saturday) done before it gets dark. In the summer time, it’s not so much of a problem, but in the winter the days are much shorter. When we taught together at Riverside many years ago, we all knew she was “out of there” as soon as the bell rang on Friday so she would be ready for the Sabbath. Passover was even more crucial since it was considered the most important Sabbath in the year.
I suspect the women who arrived on the first day of the week (Sunday) were there with spices to complete the burial properly. They were likely hoping the Roman guards would be sympathetic and let them into the tomb to place the spices in their traditional ways. I’m not surprised it was the women who were concerned about the proper burial. Isn’t that often the way we act even today. Women often seem to like things to be done properly.
But what those women who wanted the burial to be done properly weren’t expecting was an empty tomb. I included 2 versions of that moment so you could get a more complete picture of what happened that morning. All of Jesus’ disciples and His followers were in complete despair; all their hopes of a future glorious Israel had collapsed. The Messiah was dead. Even without hopes being dashed, the death of someone we love brings a crushing sense of loss and grief. That’s certainly something I experienced as I adjusted to life without my husband/best friend. So that morning as they faced an empty tomb, they had a hard time accepting that Jesus was alive. Instead, they were sure that someone had sabotaged the tomb. That actually was quite possible when you remember the political maneuvering that went on to get Jesus crucified. Either the Romans or the Jews might want that body gone. Would they want a place where Jesus’ followers could congregate and celebrate their “murdered Messiah”?
I think I understand their reaction to the empty tomb. They hoped Jesus was alive, but they had a hard time believing it was true. As we continue to read chapter 20 next week, we’ll see that Jesus is patient with the confusion of His disciples and followers. Jesus understands our weakness and is willing to help us develop our faith in him. So, if you find you question your faith sometimes, or question if God is actually present and loving you, God doesn’t turn away from you. He is patient.
Romans 2: 4 says, “Don’t you see how wonderfully kind, tolerant, and patient God is with you? Does this mean nothing to you? Can’t you see that his kindness is intended to turn you from your sin?” Sin doesn’t always mean doing horrible things; sin is also not trusting God. So God is patient with you when you doubt Him.
In reading some commentaries about these verses, I came across another interesting piece of information that I think you would like to read. It’s from Warren Wiersbe’s BE Bible Study Series, and I’ll close with this:
“It is significant that the first witnesses of the resurrection of Christ were believing women. Among the Jews in that day, the testimony of women was not held in high regard. “It is better that the words of the law be burned,” said the rabbis, “than be delivered to a woman.” But these Christian women had a greater message than that of the law, for they knew that their Savior was alive.”
Our song for today is Trust in You by Lauren Daigle