Friday, February 6
Rise Up!
"Early on the first day of the week, while it was still dark, Mary Magdalene went to the tomb and saw that the stone had been removed from the entrance. So she came running to Simon Peter and the other disciple, the one Jesus loved, and said, 'They have taken the Lord out of the tomb, and we don't know where they have put him!'
So Peter and the other disciple started for the tomb. Both were running, but the other disciple outran Peter and reached the tomb first. He bent over and looked in at the strips of linen lying there but did not go in. Then Simon Peter, who was behind him, arrived and went into the tomb. He saw the strips of linen lying there, as well as the burial cloth that had been around Jesus' head. the cloth was folded up by itself, separate from the linen. Finally the other disciple, who had reached to tomb first, also went inside. He saw and believed...........On the evening of the first day of the week, when the disciples were together, with the doors locked for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood among them and said, 'Peace be with you!'. After he said this, he showed them his hand and his side. The disciples were overjoyed when they saw the Lord."
John 20:1-8, 19-20
"You, being dead in your trespasses,.....He has made alive together with Him."
Colossians 2:13
On February 6, 1958, a chartered plane carrying most of the members of the English soccer team Manchester United crashed on takeoff from Munich, Germany. With so many of their star players lost, some despaired over the prospects for the team's survival. Yet today it is one of the best-known teams in the world. Fittingly, the man who rebuilt the team, Matt Busby, survived the crash himself.
Nearly 2000 years ago, Jesus' arrest and subsequent crucifixion caused many of His followers to despair. The disciples themselves had lost hope. But their despondency evaporated on that first Easter morning when they found that the stone sealing the tomb had been moved aside (John 20:1). Jesus had risen!
Jesus soon appeared to Mary Magdalene (v.11-16) and then to his disciples (v.19). His visit brought a remarkable change in them. As one version renders it, they were 'overjoyed' (v.20).
Perhaps your world has crashed around you. It may be a deep personal loss, a tragedy in your family, or some other great trial. Jesus' resurrection proved that He is greater than the greatest obstacles. He can rebuild your life - as He did with His disciples - starting today.
God can turn any difficulty into an opportunity.
[adapted from Our Daily Bread]
k@ly$hA @ 9:58 PM