2024 Passion Week Devotional, Day 8: Christ's Resurrection

Sunday

The Resurrection and Appearances to Female and Male Disciples

With the Sabbath, the day of rest, now past, several female followers of Jesus set out for the tomb to complete attending to Jesus’ body (Matt. 28:1–7; Mark 16:1–7; Luke 24:1–7; John 20:1). When Jesus died on Friday mid-afternoon, precious little time remained to bury him before sundown. Now, amid an earthquake, an angel appears to the women, declares that Jesus is not here but has risen, and instructs them to tell the (male) disciples. One of the women, however, Mary Magdalene, lingers on and is greatly perturbed that apparently someone moved, or even stole, Jesus’ body (John 20:2). The other women are initially afraid and likely go and tell Peter and John what the angel said, though suddenly their fear turns into joy when they encounter the risen Jesus (Matt. 28:8–10; Mark 16:8).

Peter and John, for their part, run to the tomb and confirm that it is empty (John 20:3–10). Curiously, however, they see “the linen cloths lying there, and the face cloth, which had been on Jesus’ head, not lying with the linen cloths but folded up in a place by itself” (John 20:6–7). On this evidence alone, John believes, though he didn’t yet understand, that Jesus’ resurrection fulfilled scriptural prediction and expectation (John 20:8–9).

Meanwhile, Mary Magdalene has returned to the tomb. She sees two angels who ask her why she is crying. Mary persists in her theory that someone must have stolen Jesus’ body. Even when she sees the risen Jesus himself, she thinks he is the gardener and asks him where he put the body! Even at this point, Mary wastes no thought on the possibility that Jesus may, in fact, have risen from the dead, a detail that powerfully attests to the historicity of the resurrection. The disciples didn’t invent the resurrection; resurrection was the last thing they had on their minds. Instead, they met the risen Jesus! At this, Jesus drops his incognito and calls Mary by name. There must have been something in his tone of voice that triggered Mary’s recognition because she exclaimed, “Rabboni!” (Aramaic for “Teacher!”). When Jesus gently tells her not to embrace him because he has yet to ascend to the Father, she excitedly reports what happened to her to the disciples.

Later, Jesus appears to ten disciples (the twelve minus Judas and Thomas, John 20:19–23) and a week later to eleven disciples (this time with Thomas, John 20:24–29). Still later, this time in Galilee, he appears to seven disciples who had gone fishing (John 21:1–14). Jesus commissions the apostles as his authorized representatives and sends them as the Father sent him, in the power of the Spirit (John 20:21–23). Later, Jesus restores Peter to ministry and instructs Peter and John about the respective nature of their missions (21:15–23). Peter will die as a Christian martyr, while John will witness to Jesus by writing the fourth New Testament Gospel.

Pastoral Implications

The resurrection of Jesus is an essential part of the gospel. As Paul wrote, “If Christ has not been raised, your faith is futile and you are still in your sins. Then those also who have fallen asleep in Christ have perished. If in Christ we have hope in this life only, we are of all people most to be pitied” (1 Cor. 15:17–19). Yet as the apostle goes on to say, “But in fact Christ has been raised from the dead, the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep” (1 Cor. 15:20). The book of Acts attests to the fact that the apostles excitedly proclaimed far and wide that Jesus had risen from the dead, and thus it is the Christian hope that all believers will one day follow Jesus in resurrection, since he is “the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep.”

In another place, Paul prayed for believers that the eyes of their hearts might be enlightened, “that you may know what is the hope to which he has called you, what are the riches of his glorious inheritance in the saints, and what is the immeasurable greatness of his power toward us who believe, according to the working of his great might that he worked in Christ when he raised him from the dead and seated him at his right hand in the heavenly places” (Eph. 1:18–20). The same power that raised Jesus from the dead is now at work in those of us who believe! It is hard to think of a more encouraging verse in the Bible. Let’s encourage our people with these words and urge them to put all their hope in the resurrected Christ.

©2024 Andreas Köstenberger. Used with permission.

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Passion Week Devo, Day 2: The Cursing of the Fig Tree and the Cleansing of the Temple

Passion Week Devo, Day 3: All You Can Do is Share the Gospel

Passion Week Devo, Day 4: Open People’s Eyes to Spiritual Warfare

Passion Week Devo, Day 5: Remembering the Lord’s Supper

Passion Week Devo, Day 6: What Jesus Accomplished on the Cross

Passion Week Devo, Day 7: Reflect on the Crucifixion