The resurrection - restoring relationship with Man

Now Mary stood outside the tomb crying.

He (Jesus) 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!” John 20: 13, 15 - 16

The Gospel accounts of the resurrection vary but the basic facts are consistent. Jesus appeared first to the faithful women who had gone to the tomb, not sure what they would do as they could never move the stone, but they had to be there. 

John’s Gospel is my favourite account. Jesus met Mary who only recognised him when he called her name. How precious. 

As I was pondering again the terrible account of the death by crucifixion of our Saviour, I came back to the original thought ‘Why? Why would Jesus do it?’ The answer has to be love and love of a magnitude that we have no comprehension of. 

If we consider all other ‘gods’, and many other leaders only interested in power, all they demand is slavish obedience, fearful worship. They only want people who will bow down and do their will. They may sit in fake grandeur, high and distant from their subjects surrounded by obsequious attendants and ‘ministers’ but all they engender in these people is fear. There is no relationship.  

Instead, our wonderful, magnificent God created a beautiful world with Man as the pinnacle of his creation, made in his image, with whom he desires to walk in the cool of the day. Ever since Man rebelled from God’s plan, He has been working towards restoring the original design and the only way for Man to be redeemed from his sin and rebellion was for His precious, sinless son to pay the penalty in our place. 

The reason he would do this is love. God doesn’t want slavish obedience, he wants relationship based on love, his love for us and our love and adoration in return, freely given. We have only to read the accounts in the Bible of God’s presence and we see clouds of glory, majesty that creates such awe in sinful man that they fall flat upon their faces. Anyone who has come face to face with God in any measure whether Moses, Isaiah, Daniel, Ezekiel, Peter becomes overwhelmed by their sinfulness. Yet God wants to breach that gap between sinful man and holy, holy, holy God and the price was high, extremely high. 

Love always finds a way because love grieves over separation, love wants relationship - face to face relationship and the only way was the death of the sinless, perfect, beautiful Jesus.

As we celebrate again the victory of Easter – not just the death but the glorious resurrection conquering death, sin and all its attendant woes, let us be those who walk in the victory that Jesus won for us, not wallowing in our sin, guilt and shame but letting the work of the cross, the body and blood of Jesus do the work God intended to set us free, to walk in beautiful relationship with him. He loves us and all he wants is our hearts, our love and everything follows on from that. Our salvation and freedom came at a terrible cost, but Jesus says again, ‘I love you. It was worth it.’ 

Revelation changes expectations

It has always puzzled me that the disciples were so unprepared for Jesus’ resurrection. No one seemed to foresee it. It wasn’t as if Jesus had not told them on various occasions what would happen but somehow the truth just hadn’t sunk in.

No one was waiting at the tomb in anticipation of Jesus walking out alive. The disciples were hiding away in Jerusalem and even the women who did visit the tomb went to prepare a dead body with no expectation of a risen Lord. In fact when they did see Jesus, they could hardly believe it and when they told the disciples they thought it was just nonsense (Luke 24: 11). Only Peter and John actually went to the tomb.

Cleopas and Simon on the road to Emmaus could not make sense of what had happened either and even when Jesus walked with them and explained the Scriptures they did not realise they were talking with Jesus till ‘their eyes were opened and they recognised him’ Luke 24: 31. In fact when they hurried back to Jerusalem to tell the others and Jesus appeared in the room they thought he was a ghost. Even when Jesus showed them his scarred hands and feet and he ate some fish, they were still not convinced.  It was not until ‘he opened their minds so they could understand the Scriptures’ (Luke 24: 45) that they got it.

They needed revelation – their minds opened to what had been prophesied and what they had been told. The disciples had seen Jesus crucified, they had seen his body taken down from the cross and placed in a tomb so their experience said he was dead. They therefore did not expect resurrection even though they had been told about it. Even when the evidence was presented to them, they still could not believe it till Jesus himself opened their hearts and eyes to what the Scriptures said.

We too need this revelation because, like the disciples, our past experiences can shape our expectations. However when we do not live by our experiences but by what the Bible says, we can live victoriously even in the midst of the most difficult times. With revelation of God bringing life to the Scriptures we no longer expect the defeat and failure of past experiences but we live in the expectation of God’s goodness, kindness, love, mercy and grace.

The Bible no longer becomes theoretical but an amazing book full of the endless possibilities of what God can and wants to do in our lives and in the lives of those around us. Our expectations change when we believe and act on what the Bible says.

The disciples certainly had very wrong expectations of Jesus’ resurrection but under the revelation of God and the anointing of the Holy Spirit, they turned from frightened men and women into world changers and powerful ministers of the Gospel.

If we let our future expectations be based on our past experiences not on the Word, we will always be disappointed which can lead to frustration and even cynicism. Instead we need the Holy Spirit to open our minds to the wonders of what God is doing so with an expectation of God’s goodness we will see great and wonderful things.

For no matter how many promises God has made, they are ‘Yes’ in Christ. And so through him the ‘Amen’ is spoken by us to the glory of God. 2 Corinthians 1: 20

His divine power has given us everything we need for a godly life through our knowledge of him who called us by his own glory and goodness. Through these he has given us his very great and precious promises, so that through them you may participate in the divine nature, having escaped the corruption in the world caused by evil desires. 2 Peter 1: 4