“Why do you look for the living among the dead? He is not here; he has risen!”
In the pre-dawn darkness of early morning, Mary Magdalene, Joanna, and Mary the mother of James go to see the tomb of Jesus. They trudge in the darkness without hope, expecting that at the end of their journey to the dead man is nothing but a dead end. They go to pay respects to a friend and teacher – perhaps because they scarcely know what else to do. Perhaps the hope of the kingdom that Jesus had spoken of was already snuffed out – though it had gone left unsaid.
But, they come upon a tomb that is not just open – but empty! At first, these first signs of hope are met with nothing but utter bewilderment. What could this mean? How could this be?
The Roman guards are nowhere to be seen.
The stone is rolled away.
The seal is removed.
The body is missing.
Hope, on its first in-breaking, is often muddled in confusion. But as the dawning realization of this unbelievably good news crests over the garden and in the hearts of these women, angelic messengers appear to dispel any question: “Why do you look for the living among the dead? He is not here; he has risen!”
It is only at this moment that the women “remember his words” (v. 8). And in remembering they begin to realize that even the hopeless, dead end, dark doom they thought was the end of the story is nothing but the beginning of resurrection. That evil is but the introduction to redemption. Sin is but the foretaste to grace. And death is just the doorway into new, everlasting life. And like a drop in time, the ripple of this morning has continued to cascade outwards on all sides of the planet and across history: Jesus is alive!
The women can scarcely wait! Returning to the Eleven and all the others, they report all they have witnessed. And yet, the testimony of women in the ancient world was unbefitting a courtroom – let alone such outlandish claims! The disciples, stuck in their doldrums of doubt refuse to believe this “nonsense” (v. 11). Only Peter dares to see for himself among the empty tomb and to find nothing but the “strips of linen” strewn out by themselves (v. 12). He is left to wonder about all these things. Surely, Jesus would boldly reveal himself were he truly alive.
But his wandering wonder will come to an end. For, the incredible news that Jesus has triumphed, that all the work is finished, that the debt has been paid, that the law has been fulfilled, and that death has been defeated – will soon appear in the flesh before him and the rest of the disciples.
Like a crime scene in reverse, Jesus leaves nothing but fragments of evidence of his resurrection in perplexing playfulness. Hope often sneaks in unannounced – first noticed by those we’re most tempted to ignore.
But there is more than enough reason to hope!
Is it too good to be true? It is – but it is too good to not be believed.
