Have you ever felt like the walls of your life are just closing in on you? Problems on this side, worries on that side, add in several fears. You are just surrounded with trouble. Today as we look into Scripture for Easter, the Resurrection of the Lord, we will look at three women, whose day started like that, but ended so much better.
As our passage from the Gospel of Mark opens, we read of three women who had been followers of the Lord Jesus throughout His ministry, heading to the tomb of the Savior. Late in the afternoon of Friday, the dead body of Jesus had been removed from the cross, and laid in a nearby garden grave which was lovingly donated by Joseph of Arimathea (Matthew 27:59-60). Now that the Sabbath was over, the women wanted to perform the ritual anointing of the dead. It was dawn, and the sun was just coming up over the horizon. This had been a very difficult, stressful, and horrific past several days for them, along with the disciples and their other friends. Jesus was dead, crucified like a common criminal. Due to His sudden arrest and execution, they had not been prepared with everything necessary for His burial and anointing, and then they could not do anything over the Sabbath. Now was the first time they were able to perform this loving ritual.
As they approached the tomb the women realized a seemingly huge problem. How would they get into the tomb? There was a massive stone in front of the entrance. Scholars have estimated that this stone could easily have weighed over 3,000 pounds, way too heavy for three women to easily move. And these women were probably not comfortable asking the Roman guards that the Jewish leaders had stationed around the tomb for any help. “Who will roll away the stone?” This was a big worry. They couldn’t handle it, and they had no solution. What were they going to do?
However, when they arrived, they saw that this problem of theirs was already taken care of. The stone had been rolled away! (vs. 4). Like many of our worries, God had already taken care of it for them! He had provided a solution to their problem, and also a gift beyond all hope! In the tomb the women met someone who looked like a young man, but who was actually an angel. He gave them a message for the disciples, and especially Peter, that Jesus had risen (vs. 5-7). The women were afraid, and quickly left, telling no one. However, as we read in the other Gospels, any reluctance to tell the disciples was quickly dispelled, and they did indeed tell them (Matthew 28:8; Luke 24:9). Will we be silent with the message of Jesus’ death and resurrection? Or will we use the empty tomb and the proclamation of His resurrection as a starting point to take the message of the Gospel to everyone without fear?
The angel specifically said for them to be sure and tell Peter. As I spoke about in my previous devotional, Peter had denied, with curses, knowing Jesus three times, and felt broken because of that. Yet in spite of Peter’s denial, Jesus had not disowned or deserted him. He wanted Peter to know that He had risen and come back, just as He said, and that He had forgiven him. Peter was included, not cast out! When we stumble and fall, no matter how grievously, if we confess and repent, the Lord will forgive us, as well.
There are some further thoughts to take note of from the Gospel account of the Resurrection. Even the Jewish leaders did not deny the reality of the empty tomb. They just concocted a story, a lie, that the disciples had stolen His Body (Matthew 28:11-15). However, neither the disciples, nor these women, could have overpowered a unit of Roman soldiers that the Jewish leaders had demanded to be stationed there. Another thought, the angels did not roll away the stone so Jesus could get out. They did it so that others could get in and see for themselves that Jesus had, indeed, risen from the dead, just as He said!
In closing, there is no invitation by the angels to stay at the tomb. The invitation is to go and follow where Jesus is leading (vs. 7). We are to follow the risen Savior. And remember, no burden is too heavy for God to carry, and no stone too large for God to move. We never need to worry about who will roll away our stones!
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