Easter Sunday 2015 - New Life!

Bible Passage: Mark 16:1-8

We weren't looking forward to it, for all sorts of reasons. We'd been His followers, and in a way more faithful than any of the men - we'd been with him all the way, and we were there at the end, when he died; it was only the few of us who had seen where Joseph took him. So we knew as well that all that was necessary, the anointing with spices, hadn't been done properly. We'd had a talk, and reluctantly decided that we should do this. It was only right really, but it wasn't going to be good; none of us were looking forward to going there, reminding ourselves what they'd done to him, and the fact that it had been two days... well, let's say that didn't help. We didn't want to tell anyone what we were doing, and that created another problem; these tombs usally have a stone rolled across the door, and even with all of us pushing we weren't sure that we'd get very far.

So we talked as we walked, although not much. The sun began to rise; it was a beautiful morning although I was almost angry about it; how could the sun continue to rise, how could there still be any beauty in the world when the only one that had made sense of it for us had been so cruelly snatched away? I almost longed for the sun to be eaten up, as it had been in that strange way on Friday when it all went dark; how could God allow the day to dawn so brightly when the light of the World had been taken away?

And then we reached the tomb. To our confusion, the stone was to one side; we had to check, make sure we were in the right place, but there was no doubt. We approached cautiously, and there was this sort of glow... and as we looked in - no body, but a man, all in white, shimmering! And he spoke to us, told us that he - Jesus - wasn't there - that he'd been raised from the dead, and to tell the others!

I was terrified. And I was confused. None of us expected this - were we seeing things? Would people think we were mad? But at the same time, there was this sort of warmth, like someone had kindled a fire in my heart; and as we went away, headed back to the city, that flame consumed me: I know that my Redeemer lives!