The greatest event in history results in a massive range in emotional responses. How does it make you feel?
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Previous DIG DEEPER posts on John
John 20 Summary
As he tells of the most amazing event in history, John twice mentions the day of the week: it was the first day (v1, 19). Ever since the Church was formed in the book of Acts, God's people have continued meeting together on what we now refer to as the Lord's Day, on which we celebrate the resurrection each week.
Imagine the emotional whiplash that Mary, Peter and John experienced that morning: grief and sorrow turned to confusion, probably mixed with frustration and even a bit of anger for Mary who thought Jesus' body was stolen. Peter & John were likely upset that Mary woke them up so early as they were physically, emotionally and spiritually exhausted from their experience during Jesus' trial & crucifixion. Yet they sprung up and ran into the same state of angst Mary had been feeling upon discovering Jesus' empty tomb.
But then the lights came on.
That happened first for John in v8, where he writes of his experience in the second person, he saw and believed, for as yet they did not understand the Scripture that he [Jesus] must rise from the dead (v9).
Mary's state of shock takes longer to overcome. The appearance of the two angels don't even phase her (compare her reaction with the Roman soldiers who are recorded in the other gospels as feinting in fear at the sight of these angels). Then she doesn't even recognize Jesus standing before her; she assumes He just works there.
It's not till Jesus calls her by name that she recognizes He's alive, and after hugging Jesus in joy, she immediately announces the good news.
Dig Deeper
Often times people think that they must abandon reason and logic and replace it with faith. These people need to be introduced to Doubting Thomas. He hears the reports of the fantastic experience the other disciples told him about, but refuses to believe until he sees physical proof.
The amazing thing is that Jesus doesn't scold Thomas for doubting. Jesus shows Thomas the proof. Granted, the hands and feet that Thomas found his proof in have ascended into heaven, but in their place we've been given the entire New Testament and 2,000 years of scholarship providing mountains of evidence that Jesus is who He said He is.
God does not ask you to believe based only on warm, fuzzy feelings, but rather He expects you to believe because this belief is rational and true.
AAA Prayer :
ACKNOWLEDGE WHO GOD IS: God is our Father because we have been adopted in Christ (v17)
ALIGN YOUR LIFE WITH GOD'S WILL: Ask God to continually erase the doubt in your life (v27)
ASK GOD FOR WHAT YOU NEED:
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