April 3 ~ Luke 24:2-7
When they found the stone rolled away from the entrance, they went in. But they did not find the body of the Lord Jesus, and they did not know what to think. Suddenly two men in shining white clothes stood beside them. The women were afraid and bowed to the ground. But the men said, "Why are you looking in the place of the dead for someone who is alive? Jesus isn't here! He has been raised from death. Remember that while he was still in Galilee, he told you, 'The Son of Man will be handed over to sinners who will nail him to a cross. But three days later he will rise to life.' "
Scripture taken from the Contemporary English Version © 1991,1992, 1995 by American Bible Society, Used by Permission.
Before you toss this as a duplicate of the previous devotional, stick with me for a few minutes. We’ve all seen movie scenes where someone goes to a cemetery and stands over a tombstone and talks to the person who is buried there… and you may have done this yourself. If we are rational, we realize that the person to whom we are speaking isn’t going to answer – and probably can’t even hear what we are saying. But somehow, we are drawn to the grave. There is nothing wrong with this. In fact, it may be therapeutic to stop and meditate at a gravesite. But expecting any response – or to find anything other than a mound of dirt and a marker – is unreasonable.
This is what makes the account of the women who visited Jesus’ tomb so remarkable. Jesus truly was NOT there! And the significance of this contrast to the graves of mere human beings is huge. Because the tomb could not hold Jesus… because of what He did for us and God’s power… the grave is not our final resting place. Because of Jesus and the sacrifices – and victories – He experienced on our behalf, the tomb will not hold us either – at least not our souls.
Jesus was raised from physical death. And because of that, we are raised from the death of sin – if we choose to believe in Him and the power of God to work in our lives. We do have a final resting place… but it’s not in a cemetery. We who have become followers of Christ will live in Heaven with God Almighty for all of eternity! This is very good news – not only for this Easter weekend, but forever. The tomb is empty – death is not the end – Hallelujah! Celebrate new life in Christ Jesus today – and always!
©2010 Debbie Robus
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