The resurrection of Jesus
Today on Choosing Peace you’ll read about a courtroom, an amazing book and the third day.
In part 2 and part 3 of The Beauty of the Bible, we explored the phenomenal life of Samson, chronicled in Judges 13 thru 16. I didn’t know what Bible story I’d be writing about next. Then I woke up one morning with a song in my head—and I knew I’d write about The Resurrection.
Here’s the song: “Before the Throne of God Above” by The Worship Initiative and Shane & Shane.
Why Jesus died
What does it mean when we say, “Jesus died for my sins”? Why? Why was that necessary?
The separation caused by sin
God is our Creator and our heavenly, spiritual, true Father. He is holy—without flaw, error or darkness. We were created by God and for God. We were created to love God and experience God in a deep, personal relationship. But we rejected God and The Good Way. We went our own way. We have done wrong. We have sinned. Sin separates us from our holy God—our heavenly Father.
God made us for himself—to enjoy and experience his love, his glory, his goodness, his protection and so much more. To be made right with God—reconciled to God—brought back to God—someone or something had to atone for—or pay for—our sin. Pure, sinless blood had to be spilled.
The courtroom and the payment
From time to time, our preacher has given us this helpful analogy. Let’s say that I was taken to God’s Court—owing a vast sum of money in unpaid traffic tickets. The prosecutor—Satan, The Accuser—had all his documents in order. He was ready to win this case because I was guilty as charged. If someone in the courtroom stepped forward and paid all my tickets, my case would be dismissed.
I had done wrong. A lot of wrong. There was no doubt about that. I incurred a cost or debt associated with that wrong, and I couldn’t pay it. Someone had to pay for it or I would be sent away.
This gospel hymn, “He Paid a Debt He Did Not Owe,” describes it well. The lyrics to the song at the beginning of this post also take us to a courtroom setting, with words like throne, plea, High Priest, guilt, free, God the Just, satisfied and pardon.
The first sacrificial system
In the Old Testament, God established the sacrificial system, where animals were killed and their blood was spilled on the altar to atone for the people’s sin.
“I will dwell among the children of Israel, and will be their God. They shall know that I am the LORD their God, who brought them forth out of [slavery in] the land of Egypt, that I might dwell among them: I am the LORD their God.
“You shall make an altar to burn incense on. You shall make it of acacia wood. You shall overlay it with pure gold, its top, its sides around it, and its horns; and you shall make a gold molding around it. Aaron [the high priest] shall make atonement on [the altar’s] horns once in the year; with the blood of the sin offering of atonement once in the year he shall make atonement for it throughout your generations. It is most holy to the LORD.”
Exodus 29:45 to 30:1, 3, 10, New Heart English Bible
This passage from Zechariah shows, beautifully, the cleansing of God’s people—from filthy rags to pure white garments. It also shows God’s authority over Satan.
The perfect sacrifice
In the book of Hebrews, we learn about the similarities and differences between the Old Testament sacrificial system and the once-for-all sacrifice of Jesus. The old system of sacrifices provided only a temporary “cleansing” of the people, so it had to be repeated again and again. Jesus Christ—the son of God and the sinless man—atoned for sin once, making the perfect sacrifice, which paid the penalty for the sins of all who believe in him and receive him as their Lord and Savior.
For, “Whoever will call on the name of the Lord will be saved.”
Romans 10:13, New Heart English Bible
Jesus’ crucifixion and burial
Jesus was crucified on a Friday at Golgotha, which means “The Place of a Skull.” A place of death. He was buried in a new tomb belonging to Joseph of Arimathea. Nicodemus brought 75 pounds of spices to wrap up with Jesus’ body, in keeping with the Jewish custom. Wow. That’s a lot of spices. Joseph of Arimathea rolled the stone in front of the tomb. (He may have had some help with that.)
Why Jesus was raised from the dead
I’m going to keep this short. Don’t fall out of your chair.
1. Jesus is the Lord of the dead and the living.
2. Death has no power over Jesus.
3. Jesus reigns.
4. Jesus will unite things in heaven and things on earth.
5. Because we believe in and follow Jesus, we’ll spend eternity with him in heaven.
Resurrections—now and then
Speaking of heaven, I read Imagine Heaven by John Burke during spring break last month. Kathleen, my new mom, gave it to me. What a tremendous book. I can’t recommend it highly enough. I’ve read five other books in this genre and this one is definitely the pièce de résistance. Impeccably researched. Beautifully written. You will be amazed. Speaking of resurrection, you’ll read about many resurrections in this book. The one that comes to mind first is the man who “woke up” in the morgue.
We call resurrections Near-Death Experiences—or NDEs—these days. Where do we draw the line between a Near-Death Experience and a bona fide resurrection? I have no idea. If you read Imagine Heaven, you’ll probably find yourself thinking, That person died and was resurrected!
The Bible also tells us about a number of people who were resurrected—raised from the dead. See this article from Got Questions.
The resurrection of Jesus
On Sunday after Jesus died—the day we call the third day—Jesus rose from the dead. He was resurrected. Let’s focus on this account from the book of John, chapter 20. John sometimes referred to himself as the disciple whom Jesus loved.
The women at the tomb
After Jesus was raised from the dead, women arrived at his tomb to tend to his body, but he was gone. In addition to being overwhelmed with grief, now they were stunned—believing someone had stolen Jesus’ body. Mary Magdalene, a devoted follower of Jesus, ran to find Peter and John, and told them, “We do not know where they have laid him.” Who is “we”? Matthew mentions “Mary and the other Mary.” Mark mentions Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James, and Salome. Luke tells us a little more.
Now they were Mary Magdalene and Joanna and Mary the mother of James and the other women with them who told these things to the apostles.
Luke 24:10, New Heart English Bible
The list
We have Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James, Salome, Joanna and “the other women,” so we don’t really know how many women went to the tomb. (Pssst. Jesus had a half-brother named James, so “Mary the mother of James” was probably Jesus’ mother—who was definitely not slackin’ in The Mom Department.)
The backstory
Who were these women?
It happened soon afterwards, that [Jesus] went about through cities and villages, proclaiming and bringing the good news of the Kingdom of God. With him were the twelve [disciples], and certain women who had been healed of evil spirits and infirmities: Mary who was called Magdalene, from whom seven demons had gone out; and Joanna, the wife of Chuza, Herod’s steward; Susanna; and many others; who provided for them from their possessions.
Luke 8:1-3, New Heart English Bible
Mary Magdalene—also known as Mary of Magdala
Mary Magdalene had a dark past. A painful past. Jesus saved her. He cast seven demons out of her. The Bible says a lot about Satan, demons and dark spiritual forces.
Recently, I learned more about spiritual warfare from Dr. Sam Storms, an expert who gave some great training at our church. This Q&A with Dr. Storms gives an excellent introduction to spiritual warfare and what the Bible says about Satan, demons, etc. See the Index here on Choosing Peace to explore these topics more: Satan, Evil, The Occult and Warfare—Psychological and Spiritual.
Let’s get back to Mary Magdalene.
Devoted
Jesus changed Mary Magdalene’s life and she followed him faithfully. She came to the tomb to serve Jesus after he was dead. She came while it was still dark outside. She came because she loved him. She came, not knowing how she would get past the massive stone that had been rolled in front of the tomb. Even though it seemed impossible, she came anyway. She was devoted.
Running, crying, recognizing
Remember from John’s gospel: Mary Magdalene saw the empty tomb and she immediately ran and told Peter and John. She thought someone had stolen Jesus’ body. Mary Magdalene ran to tell Peter and John, and they ran to the tomb. This was urgent. And they knew it. When Peter and John saw the linen in the tomb—linen that had been wrapped all around Jesus’ dead body—they realized what had happened. Jesus’ body wasn’t stolen. Jesus was resurrected.
But Mary was standing outside at the tomb weeping. So, as she wept, she stooped and looked into the tomb, and she saw two angels in white sitting, one at the head, and one at the feet, where the body of Jesus had lain. They told her, “Woman, why are you weeping?” She said to them, “Because they have taken away my Lord, and I do not know where they have put him.” When she had said this, she turned around and saw Jesus standing, and did not know that it was Jesus. Jesus said to her, “Woman, why are you weeping? Who are you looking for?” She, supposing him to be the gardener, said to him, “Sir, if you have carried him away, tell me where you have put him, and I will take him away.” Jesus said to her, “Mary.” She turned and said to him in Hebrew, “Rabboni,” which is to say, “Teacher.” Jesus said to her, “Do not touch me, for I have not yet ascended to the Father; but go to my brothers, and tell them, ‘I am ascending to my Father and your Father, to my God and your God.’” Mary Magdalene came and told the disciples, “I have seen the lord,” and that he had said these things to her.
John 20:11-18, New Heart English Bible
Transformed—from nightmare to strength
Mary Magdalene is the only woman mentioned at The Resurrection in all four gospels—Matthew, Mark, Luke and John. Why? This is significant. And why is she always mentioned first? Mark gives us the vital clue.
Now when he had risen early on the first day of the week, he appeared first to Mary Magdalene, from whom he had cast out seven demons. She went and told those who had been with him, as they mourned and wept. When they heard that he was alive, and had been seen by her, they disbelieved.
Mark 16:9-11, New Heart English Bible
Jesus “appeared first to Mary Magdalene, from whom he had cast out seven demons.” Mary’s life had been utterly transformed—from chaos to peace, from fear to love, from rejection to purpose. From being labeled Crazy Mary to being called A Miracle—A Totally New Person. Mary’s love for Jesus was great because he’d rescued her from a very extreme situation—from a very dangerous situation. I believe, from the way all four gospels are written, that Mary Magdalene led the group of women who came to the tomb. Jesus transformed her life—from nightmare to strength.
And Mary Magdalene showed her strength. After she ran and told Peter and John that the tomb was empty, she went back to the tomb. She saw two angels and then she saw Jesus, and she told the disciples.
Mary Magdalene was a bold, faithful witness.
The breath of life, the stone and the timeline
Let’s back up a little. When the breath of life was breathed back into Jesus’ dead body, who was there? Jesus’ heart began to beat again. His lungs filled with air. God Almighty raised Jesus from the dead. God was there. Read my favorite passage about resurrection.
Who rolled back the stone in front of Jesus’ tomb?
And look, there was a great earthquake, for an angel of the Lord descended from the sky, and came and rolled away the stone, and sat on it. His appearance was like lightning, and his clothing white as snow. For fear of him, the guards shook, and became like dead men.
Matthew 28:2-4, New Heart English Bible
See a timeline for The Resurrection here.
The aftermath
Seeing it
Sometimes when a miraculous act of God has taken place, we don’t see the actual miracle. We see the aftermath. We see the evidence. Here’s an example from my life.
Mary Magdalene didn’t see The Resurrection.
She saw the aftermath.
The empty tomb. Angels. Jesus.
Hearing it
Other times when God’s done a miracle, we hear the aftermath.
I hope you’re blessed by a personal example of this type of miracle aftermath—the type we hear. Scroll to the Song for Healing at the end of this post.
We also read about this type of aftermath in the book of Mark. After Jesus healed a deaf man who had a speech impediment, the people heard the man speaking clearly. It blew their minds and they couldn’t stop talking about it.
The ultimate aftermath
After the ultimate resurrection—The Resurrection—Jesus’ disciples saw and heard him. They also received the ultimate gift from him—the gift of the Holy Spirit.
When therefore it was evening, on that day, the first day of the week, and when the doors were locked where the disciples were, for fear of the Jewish leaders, Jesus came and stood in the midst, and said to them, “Peace be to you.” When he had said this, he showed them his hands and his side. The disciples therefore were glad when they saw the Lord.
Jesus therefore said to them again, “Peace be to you. As the Father has sent me, even so I send you.” When he had said this, he breathed on them, and said to them, “Receive the Holy Spirit.”
John 20:19-22, New Heart English Bible
Same here
Peaceful Readers, that’s a great place to wrap up part 4 of The Beauty of the Bible. Jesus gives his followers today the same things he gave his disciples right after his resurrection.
Jesus gives us peace.
He gives us a mission.
And he gives us the Holy Spirit.
Happy Easter to you all. Jesus is risen!
Peace be with you. Enjoy my favorite Easter song below.
Coming next: In part 5, I’ll be writing about Esther. Have you ever felt unwanted, like an outcast, rejected? If so, this remarkable story of good vs. evil, power vs. weakness, impending doom vs. victory will speak to you about God and his love for his people. When things look impossible, sometimes God steps in and does what only he can do.
How will Esther’s story speak into current events? More than you can imagine…. Come back next time. Thanks for reading and for Choosing Peace.
Blessed by truth and music
Peaceful Readers, I’m deeply blessed by God’s word and music. I hope the scripture and song that I share at the end of each post will bless you too.
Truth from The Word: Acts 10:39-44
Song: “Christ Is Risen” by Matt Maher