25 Mar 2007
Jesus told them it would happen, but they didn’t believe Him, they refused to accept it. Jesus told them He would be arrested in the garden; they didn’t believe Him, so they slept under a tree. Jesus told them He would be crucified; they didn’t believe Him, so they stayed away from Golgotha. Jesus told them He would rise on the third day; they didn’t believe Him, so they hid in an upper room. But everything happened just like He said. They just needed a little help to believe.
After Jesus was crucified Joseph of Arimathea...asked for Jesus’ body. So Joseph...placed it in a tomb cut out of rock. Then he rolled a stone against the entrance...” (Mark 15:43, 46). By sundown Friday it was over. Jesus’ lifeless body had been properly entombed according to Jewish custom. Out of respect for his teacher, Joseph did the last thing he could for the one he hoped would be the Messiah—he gave Jesus the dignity of a public burial. But Joseph, like the rest of the disciples, like the Jewish religious leaders, and like the Romans from Pilate to the centurion who pierced Jesus with a spear, did not expect what would happen early Sunday morning.
At dawn on the first day of the week...there was a violent earthquake, for an angel of the Lord came down from Heaven and...rolled back the stone...” (Matthew 28:1, 2). God had done the unbelievable! Jesus was alive, and every promise He made would now come true. Salvation had come to earth. God’s mercy, forgiveness and grace could now be ours. All because of the resurrection of Jesus.
But how would we know for sure? How could we be certain that this really happened? What would be the evidence? Well, for starters, God moved the stone!
The stone that sealed Jesus’ tomb was moved out of the way, revealing to all—to the disciples, to the Jews and to the Romans—that the only body placed in that new tomb was no longer there. But why? Certainly not to let Jesus out. Something simple like solid stone could not contain the risen Lord. No, the stone was moved, not to let Jesus out, but to let us in! The barrier to belief was cast aside so all could see the Truth—those who wanted to believe, and those who didn’t believe. The stone was moved so every human being could see what the power of God could accomplish, a power He continues to offer each of us today.
That’s why this Easter we will be celebrating the resurrection of Jesus by asking the question Who Moved The Stone? When we know the answer to that question we will also know that the One who showed us that Jesus is alive is also the One who wants to make us alive in Christ. He wants to move the stones in our lives so that we can be set free to live the abundant life the resurrection offers us. For we all have stones in our lives, blocking the access to our heart. These are stones built up slowly over time as we harbor grudges, disappointments, failures or doubt. Or they are stones that come crashing into our lives through crisis, pain or our own sinful choices. It doesn’t matter how the stone got there. What matters is that it must be removed so that we can be set free. And the only way for the stone to be removed is for God to do it. Just like the stone that was moved from the entrance to Jesus’ tomb, this is not to let us out, but to let Jesus in!
So for the ten weeks following Easter we will be looking at different people who met Jesus and how they let Him move the stone from their life. By looking at this picture gallery of Jesus’ successful excavation projects we will see not only what He did for them, but what He wants to do for us as well. We’ll look at people like Thomas, Peter, Mary, Zaccheus, Timothy, Mark and some whose names we don’t know, to see the power of the resurrection that is just waiting to be put to work on the landscape of our hearts. All we need to do is say YES, and the Heavenly Excavator will begin His work. And remember, no stone is too big for our God, not even yours!
Denis Whittet
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