All four Gospels record Jesus’ resurrection. This one event is the keystone of Christianity and following Christ. John records the discovery in a very personal way. As you read the passage below, know that the “other disciple whom Jesus loved” is John.
“Now on the first day of the week Mary Magdalene came early to the tomb, while it was still dark, and saw the stone already taken away from the tomb. So she ran and came to Simon Peter and to the other disciple whom Jesus loved, and said to them, “They have taken away the Lord out of the tomb, and we do not know where they have laid Him.” So Peter and the other disciple went forth, and they were going to the tomb. The two were running together; and the other disciple ran ahead faster than Peter and came to the tomb first; and stooping and looking in, he saw the linen wrappings lying there; but he did not go in. And so Simon Peter also came, following him, and entered the tomb; and he saw the linen wrappings lying there, and the face-cloth which had been on His head, not lying with the linen wrappings, but rolled up in a place by itself. So the other disciple who had first come to the tomb then also entered, and he saw and believed. For as yet they did not understand the Scripture, that He must rise again from the dead. So the disciples went away again to their own homes.” (John 20:1–10, NASB95)
It is almost amusing to picture the foot-race to the empty tomb between John and Peter. John was faster and arrived at the tomb first. He looked in but didn’t enter the tomb. The record doesn’t say why he hesitated. Peter didn’t have John’s qualms and entered the tomb when he caught up. John soon followed Peter inside.
The linen wrappings and face cloth were lying there. Remember back to when Jesus commanded Lazarus to “come forth.” Lazarus is pictured as hobbling out of the tomb, still bound in the wrappings he couldn’t undo himself. Jesus would have been wrapped in a similar manner, yet there the wrappings lay with the face-cloth carefully rolled up.
There are several skeptical responses to Christ’s resurrection. One is that He just fainted or swooned. Two facts mitigate against that. One fact is the Roman spear thrust. The other is the removal of the wrappings. If Jesus simply woke from a faint, it is highly doubtful He would have the strength to remove the wrappings along with additional 75 pounds of spices. Even a perfectly healthy person would struggle with that but also remember the beatings and blood loss Jesus suffered.
Another response of the skeptics is that the disciples stole the body and faked the whole thing. Why leave behind the wrappings or bother to fold the face cloth? That would all take a great deal of time which increases the chance of discovery. And we know from the other gospels that the tomb was guarded.
When John saw the empty tomb and the wrappings, he believed. He may not have understood it all yet, but something clicked. At that point, the disciples went to their own homes. All except Mary of Magdala.
If there is a pivotal person in the narrative of Jesus’ death and resurrection, it is Mary. Mary was on Golgotha as Jesus hung crucified. She followed Joseph and Nicodemus to the tomb. The following Sunday morning, she went to the tomb before the sun peeked over the horizon. Mary first discovered the open and empty tomb. She first reported the empty tomb to the other disciples. And we’ll see next week, that Mary is the first person to encounter the resurrected Jesus.
He is risen… the resurrection of Christ is everything. As Paul wrote, “and if Christ has not been raised, then our preaching is vain, your faith also is vain.” (1 Corinthians 15:14, NASB95) And, “More than that, I count all things to be loss in view of the surpassing value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and count them but rubbish so that I may gain Christ, and may be found in Him, not having a righteousness of my own derived from the Law, but that which is through faith in Christ, the righteousness which comes from God on the basis of faith, that I may know Him and the power of His resurrection and the fellowship of His sufferings, being conformed to His death; in order that I may attain to the resurrection from the dead.” (Philippians 3:8–11, NASB95) …He is risen indeed!
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