Friday: THE RESURRECTION

Apr 7, 2023
2 min read

John 20:11-18

Now Mary stood outside the tomb crying. As she wept, she bent over to look into the tomb and saw two angels in white, seated where Jesus’ body had been, one at the head and the other at the foot.

They asked her, “Woman, why are you crying?”

“They have taken my Lord away,” she said, “and I don’t know where they have put him.” At this, she turned around and saw Jesus standing there, but she did not realize that it was Jesus.

He asked her, “Woman, why are you crying? Who is it you are looking for?”

Thinking he was the gardener, she said, “Sir, if you have carried him away, tell me where you have put him, and I will get him.”

Jesus said to her, “Mary.”

She turned toward him and cried out in Aramaic, “Rabboni!” (which means “Teacher”).

Jesus said, “Do not hold on to me, for I have not yet ascended to the Father. Go instead to my brothers and tell them, ‘I am ascending to my Father and your Father, to my God and your God.’”

Mary Magdalene went to the disciples with the news: “I have seen the Lord!” And she told them that he had said these things to her.

Mary’s tears were the result of her grief: she believed she had lost her Savior. She was asked twice, “Why are you crying?” She asked where the body of Jesus had been taken.

When Jesus replied to her, her tears of grief became tears of joy. Jesus instructed her to tell the others that He would be ascending to the Father. I’m sure Mary ran all the way. She was full of excitement and rejoicing. She declared, “I have seen the Lord!”

THINK ABOUT THESE THINGS: The resurrection of Jesus is the most miraculous and celebrated event in all of history. It is through the resurrection that my hope for eternal life is realized.

I have hope because Jesus declared He would die and rise again. I shouldn’t be surprised when things turn out the way Jesus said they would.

I have hope because through His death and resurrection, I have salvation and eternal life. If I keep my eyes focused on Jesus, He will keep my hope in focus on eternal life.

I have hope because Jesus overcame death, and He desires to resurrect my life and accept me into His Kingdom as His child. As a child of the King, I enjoy the benefit of talking to Him about everything, including my love for Him.

Lord, today I declare my hope in You. Allow me to focus on You through this Easter season, and allow me to rejoice in You, my one and only Savior! Amen.

May you be blessed,

Chaplain Wayne Ruckman