Post date: Mar 31, 2013 9:56:08 PM
"Then (the women who came with Jesus from Galilee) remembered his words, and returning from the tomb, they told all this to the eleven and to all the rest....But these words seemed to them an idle tale, and they did not believe them. But Peter got up and ran to the tomb; stooping and looking in, he saw the linen cloths by themselves; then he went home, amazed at what had happened." - Luke 24: 8-9, 11-12
Imagine the depth of anxiety in Jesus' closest followers in the events surrounding his death. They thought that Jesus was coming to do new and great things for them. But then everything changed. Jesus was crucified, and his followers' lives lost the hope and joy that they found in him. Not only was their hope and joy squashed, but their anxiety rose as well.
Into squashed hope and joy and great anxiety, some of the women who followed Jesus went to Jesus' tomb and brought news back to everyone else. This news was the news that Jesus' tomb was empty. It seems that something remarkable happened -miraculous even- Jesus had risen!
Even before sharing this news with the others, it took the women a bit of time to process this new, stunning information. Then they remembered that Jesus said it would happen this way, that he would live again. So they returned to Jesus' other closest followers and told them the news. It didn't sink in with the others either, and they did not believe. For whatever reason, Peter decided to check it out and he went to the tomb and saw things the way the women had said. In experiencing the empty tomb, the disciples' hope returned and their anxiety was overwhelmed by resurrection.
We are in the midst of an anxious time at Bethel. It might seem that our hope and joy are hard to see right now, but hope and joy are real. I believe that our God is at work in our midst and in our community, bringing about signs of resurrection. As we celebrate Easter, and the new life that comes through Jesus, I encourage you to be like the women at the tomb and Peter as he ran to see. Seek to notice signs of resurrection in your life and in the life of our faith community.
Like with Jesus' first followers, sometimes anxiety wins for a while. Sometimes hope and joy seem to be so far away. It takes perseverance and faith and belief to walk through anxiety. It took perseverance for the women to return to Jesus' tomb. Then they needed to be reminded of Jesus' message that resurrection follows times of despair and anxiety. Likewise, Peter needed to see tangible signs of Jesus' resurrection so he sprinted to the tomb to see that it was empty.
As we walk forward together as followers of Jesus here at Bethel, I encourage us all to seek out signs of faith and hope in our midst. Through our persevering, and through our collective faith in the power of Jesus in our lives and in the world, I believe our anxiety can be overwhelmed by resurrection like it was on that first Easter morning. Like the women who first saw the empty tomb, and Peter who followed, we too can witness the effects of Jesus' resurrection all around us and then return to the places of our lives, amazed at what is happening.
Thankful for resurrection hope,
Pastor Adam