The resurrection and the life

Mark 16 from the daily reading in the One Year Bible

When the Sabbath was over, Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James, and Salome bought spices so that they might come and anoint Him. ² And very early on the first day of the week, they came to the tomb when the sun had risen. ³ They were saying to one another, “Who will roll away the stone from the entrance of the tomb for us?” ⁴ And looking up, they noticed that the stone had been rolled away; for it was extremely large. ⁵ And entering the tomb, they saw a young man sitting at the right, wearing a white robe; and they were amazed. ⁶ But he said to them, “Do not be amazed; you are looking for Jesus the Nazarene, who has been crucified. He has risen; He is not here; see, here is the place where they laid Him. ⁷ But go, tell His disciples and Peter, ‘He is going ahead of you to Galilee; there you will see Him, just as He told you.’” ⁸ And they went out and fled from the tomb, for trembling and astonishment had gripped them; and they said nothing to anyone, for they were afraid.

⁹ Now after He had risen early on the first day of the week, He first appeared to Mary Magdalene, from whom He had cast out seven demons. ¹⁰ She went and reported to those who had been with Him, while they were mourning and weeping. ¹¹ And when they heard that He was alive and had been seen by her, they refused to believe it.

¹² Now after that, He appeared in a different form to two of them while they were walking along on their way to the country. ¹³ And they went away and reported it to the rest, but they did not believe them, either.

¹⁴ Later He appeared to the eleven disciples themselves as they were reclining at the table; and He reprimanded them for their unbelief and hardness of heart, because they had not believed those who had seen Him after He had risen from the dead. ¹⁵ And He said to them, “Go into all the world and preach the gospel to all creation. ¹⁶ The one who has believed and has been baptized will be saved; but the one who has not believed will be condemned. ¹⁷ These signs will accompany those who have believed: in My name they will cast out demons, they will speak with new tongues; ¹⁸ they will pick up serpents, and if they drink any deadly poison, it will not harm them; they will lay hands on the sick, and they will recover.”

¹⁹ So then, when the Lord Jesus had spoken to them, He was received up into heaven and sat down at the right hand of God. ²⁰ And they went out and preached everywhere, while the Lord worked with them, and confirmed the word by the signs that followed.

In yesterday’s meditation we looked at the reversal of what was verses what will be, from Jesus being mocked to the time when every knee will bow and every tongue confess that He is Lord. In today’s text we also see a reversal from what was, to what is. In Mark 15:33-39;46 it says: When the sixth hour came, darkness fell over the whole land until the ninth hour. At the ninth hour Jesus cried out with a loud voice, “Eloi, Eloi, lema sabaktanei?” which is translated, “My God, My God, why have You forsaken Me?” And when some of the bystanders heard Him, they began saying, “Look! He is calling for Elijah!” And someone ran and filled a sponge with sour wine, put it on a reed, and gave Him a drink, saying, “Let us see if Elijah comes to take Him down.” But Jesus let out a loud cry, and died. And the veil of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom. And when the centurion, who was standing right in front of Him, saw that He died in this way, he said, “Truly this man was the Son of God!”… Joseph bought a linen cloth, took Him down, wrapped Him in the linen cloth, and laid Him in a tomb which had been cut out in the rock; and he rolled a stone against the entrance of the tomb.  Jesus, the true Son of God was crucified, died and laid in a tomb. There was darkness because the light of the world was taken away. It appeared as though the devil had won, that he was victorious over Jesus. In truth though, the reversal had already begun. Even before the resurrection which we will see in today’s text, the veil of the temple was torn in two. Because of the cross, through which Jesus paid the full price for our redemption, there was and is no longer a barrier between us and God. Because of the cross, we can come into God’s presence. Hebrews 4:15-16 says: We do not have a High Priest who cannot sympathize with our weaknesses, but was in all points tempted as we are, yet without sin. Let us therefore come boldly to the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy and find grace to help in time of need.  In the presence of God, at the throne of grace we can obtain all that we need.

In today’s text it says: When the Sabbath was over, Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James, and Salome bought spices so that they might come and anoint Him. And very early on the first day of the week, they came to the tomb when the sun had risen. They were saying to one another, “Who will roll away the stone from the entrance of the tomb for us?” And looking up, they noticed that the stone had been rolled away; for it was extremely large.  And entering the tomb, they saw a young man sitting at the right, wearing a white robe; and they were amazed. But he said to them, “Do not be amazed; you are looking for Jesus the Nazarene, who has been crucified. He has risen; He is not here; see, here is the place where they laid Him. But go, tell His disciples and Peter, ‘He is going ahead of you to Galilee; there you will see Him, just as He told you.’”  The grave could not hold Him. Jesus is risen. What looked like defeat is His greatest victory. In John 11:25 Jesus says: “I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in Me, though he may die, he shall live.” The resurrection of Christ is our assurance that in Him we can also have eternal life. In John 16:33 Jesus says: “In the world you will have tribulation; but be of good cheer, I have overcome the world.” Through the cross and the resurrection, because of Jesus victory over sin and death, we not only have eternal life in heaven, but we also can live an overcoming life here and now. Whatever it is that you are struggling with today, Jesus has already overcome it. Through the cross and the resurrection, He has reversed the plans of the enemy against you. In John 10:10 Jesus says: “The thief does not come except to steal, and to kill, and to destroy. I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly.”

What does the abundant, resurrection life look like? In today’s text Jesus says: “Go into all the world and preach the gospel to all creation. The one who has believed and has been baptized will be saved; but the one who has not believed will be condemned. These signs will accompany those who have believed: in My name they will cast out demons, they will speak with new tongues; they will pick up serpents, and if they drink any deadly poison, it will not harm them; they will lay hands on the sick, and they will recover.”

May this song be our declaration and prayer:

Within the Veil - YouTube  Amen.