Day 41: He has risen, just as he said
Mary Magdalene led the way through the quiet streets of Jerusalem, her skirt swishing softly behind her. Joanna, Salome, and the other Mary followed quietly in the gray half-light of the pre-dawn, each carrying some of the spices they had purchased and prepared after Sabbath. The scent of the spices wafted as a pungent and visceral reminder of Jesus’ death. Still in shock and disbelief, they were taking the spices mixed with oil to anoint Jesus’ dead body as a final act of love. They had seen the tomb where Joseph of Arimathea had laid Jesus’ hastily-wrapped body on the day he died, the day of Preparation. Each wrapped in her own thoughts, they hardly spoke until they got closer to the tomb. Ever the pragmatic one, Joanna voiced her thoughts, “Who will roll the stone away from the entrance of the tomb?” Perhaps Mary Magdalene responded a little tersely, “We’ll figure it out.” Their pace quickened, and turning the corner, they stopped abruptly in amazement. The stone was already rolled away!
Cautiously, they approached the open tomb. Mary Magdalene bent over and went in first, bracing for the smell of a dead body. With a start, she realized someone was sitting there, and there was a glow lighting up the tomb. She cried out in fright and started backing up. The angel (for that’s who the someone was) said,
“Do not be afraid, for I know that you are looking for Jesus, who was crucified. He is not here; he has risen, just as he said. Come and see the place where he lay. Then go quickly and tell his disciples: ‘He has risen from the dead and is going ahead of you into Galilee. There you will see him.’ Now I have told you.”
Turning around, she could see the wide eyes of the other women staring into the tomb. “Let’s go tell the others!” said Mary Magdalene. They raced back to the disciples and told them all they had seen and heard, but their story was so wild, no one believed them. Peter and John exchanged glances. Jesus had taught them to listen to the women, and instinctively they both started running towards the tomb to verify the women’s story. Mary Magdalene followed at a distance, sobbing again, wondering if she had gone crazy.
Only strips of linen were in the tomb when Peter and John bent down to look in. Perhaps, they walked back into town slowly, a little confused, discussing what they had seen. But Mary stayed, her heart broken with grief upon grief, thinking someone had stolen Jesus’ body. Sensing someone approaching and thinking it was the gardener without even looking at him, she said, “Sir, if you have carried him away, tell me where you have put him, and I will get him.”
Then, Jesus said to her, “Mary.” Whirling around, Mary cried out at the sound of Jesus’ familiar voice calling her name. There he was! Jesus was very much alive!
Matthew 28, Mark 16, Luke 24, and John 20 NIV
Vineyard Metaphor
While there is no perfect metaphor for Jesus’ resurrection, maybe considering bud break would give some insight into the surprise and joy of resurrection. As the days in spring warm the earth, the sugars that have been dormant in the vine begin to move towards the buds, stimulating them to swell and burst open.
Like Jesus’ body buried in the tomb for several days, the bud is formed in a dark, hidden place over the course of several seasons.
Scripture does not tell us everything that happened during the time that Jesus was in the tomb, but we know that transformation happened on a scale grander than the universe! Similarly, a whole cosmos of tendrils — leaves, shoots, and nascent grape panicles — is quietly formed inside the tiny bud.
With surprise and delight, the bud breaks out of its secret chamber and the fuzzy, pink bud joyfully defies the deathly dormancy of the vine. What looked like a dead vine has tiny points of life bursting out. Life has come again to the vine!
When God’s purpose in Jesus’ death and burial had been accomplished, Jesus’ whole, transformed, new body broke out of the grave, defying not just his death, but ALL death. As the “firstborn from among the dead,” his resurrection opens the way for every single person to have a new, whole, transformed life, now and forever.
The joy of bud break in wine country is palpable. It brings hope for a new season and a new harvest. Like bud break on a cosmic scale, Jesus’ resurrection changed everything. In that moment, hope was restored, and a New Creation burst open.
Reflection and Meditation
On this Resurrection Day, can you feel the earth trembling with joy as we celebrate Jesus’ victory over death? Can you hear the joyful songs of each tiny bird announcing New Creation? Can you see the miracle of new life all around us… every bud… every flower… every blade of grass?
Like Mary, are you surprised to see Jesus alive today? Does your joy bubble up in uncontrollable smiling, even laughing?
Perhaps, like Peter and John, you have a different response today. There are many responses to Resurrection. You may find other feelings rising in you, like sadness, disappointment, or even anger that Resurrection has not healed all trauma, injustice, and death. You are not alone.
Without denying your feelings of joy or sadness, can you trust the deep, life-giving love of Jesus to flow into your soul, like the sugars in the vine flow to the tiny bud? Can you hear the voice of the risen Christ call your name?
Consider how, like a new bud which carries all the DNA of the vine for bearing fruit, your soul, infused with the love and grace of Jesus, will also bear fruit. Think of it! If you are attached to the Vine, the resurrection life of Jesus flows into your soul!
Rest in the magnificent truth that, as you simply abide or stay connected to the true Vine, the life-giving love of Jesus gives you a whole new life, now and forever.
“Christ has died.
Christ is risen.
Christ will come again.”