What A Foot Race

March 28

Read: John 20:1-11

What A Foot Race

“Then the other disciple, who had reached the tomb first, also went in, and he saw and believed; for as yet they did not understand the Scripture, that he must rise from the dead. Then the disciples went back to their homes. But Mary stood weeping outside the tomb, and as she wept she stooped to look into the tomb.” (v.8-11)

I wonder what was going through the minds of Jesus’s disciples, family, and friends those three days following his crucifixion? What were they expecting to happen? We know they were afraid of the Jews coming for them; it says so in John 20:19 - “On the evening of that day, the first day of the week, the doors being locked where the disciples were for fear of the Jews…” But besides fear, what were they hoping for? What were they expecting? In so many ways we wrestle with these same questions… right? What are WE hoping for today as the people of God? What are WE expecting to happen? Are we hunkered down in fear? Have we simply gone back to “everyday life” after having experienced / met Jesus at some point in the past? There are so many amazing characters in this final section of John which teach us a little bit about what the journey of faith looks like… even today. Let’s take a look:

“Early Risers; Filled with Emotion”

Mary is the first person to come to the tomb of Jesus. She is there before anyone else - “while it was still dark”… she is “up early” and getting at it; she is our “early riser”. She seems filled with emotion. The fact that she weeps in verse 11 tells me that she was probably coming to mourn the loss of her Rabbi, her teacher, her friend. She is the first to discover the tomb is open and runs to tell Peter and John. She doesn’t spend too much time investigating… looking in the tomb… trying to find someone there in the garden… stuff like that. She simply bolts off to tell the others. I am sure she was perplexed and a wondering what exactly all this meant. She doesn’t think that Jesus has risen though, she simply thinks they have “moved his body”. (v.2)

“The Leaders”

Mary runs to get Peter and John. Why did she choose them? They were leaders and played a unique role within the followers of Jesus. I don’t know what she expected them to do, but she seemed to know they were the guys to go and get. (v.2)

“The Fast One”

Both Peter and John run back to the tomb with Mary… but John is faster. It says, “So Peter went out with the other disciple, and they were going toward the tomb. Both of them were running together, but the other disciple outran Peter and reached the tomb first.” (v.3) They thing is that John gets there first, but he doesn’t go into the tomb: “And stooping to look in, he saw the linen cloths lying there, but he did not go in.” (v.5)

“The Brave One, The Investigator”

It is Peter who goes into the grave to take the closest look. He may not have been the first one there, but he was the first one to go all the way into the depths of the tomb… into the darkness… into the mystery. There he sees a neatly and intentionally folded face cloth… and an EMPTY TOMB. His courage and example makes the way for John to enter as well. It is only after entering in that the scriptures say: “he saw and believed; for as yet they did not understand the Scripture, that he must rise from the dead.” (v.11) None of them was fully ready for the greatest truth - the fact that Jesus had RISEN from the grave.

Then what happens next is … well… a little crazy. It says that “the disciples went back to their homes” and Mary “stood weeping outside the tomb”. How can Peter and John just go back home? How come they don’t get the others? Once again, Mary is the one filled with emotion and she weeps. She is also the one that sees the risen Lord FIRST… again she is our “early bird” … our “emotional one who experiences first”.

I think for us today we can all find our place in the narrative. As the people of God, we have “met Christ” and spent time with him in the past. As believers, we have all heard of and accepted his “death on the cross”. The question is, where are we regarding his resurrection ? Some of us are the emotional ones… we lead the way and call others in. We weep. We run. We invite others to come and see. Thank God for the emotional early risers. Some of us are the fast ones… we win the foot race to the tomb, but we may not go in! We may get there fast, but end up on the outside with only the information that is easily visible. Some of us arrive behind the fast ones… but bravely enter into the tomb to “dig deep” and investigate. The bravely of the “investigators” causes others to dig deeper as well… to “enter the tomb” in ways they have not before. Thank God for the sprinters and the investigators! It takes all of these people on the team to cultivate healthy “belief” in Christ. Without this process… we do not believe or understand the scriptures! (cf. v.11) But do we REALLY get that Jesus is ALIVE? Have we truly processed it for ourselves? Or do we live TODAY as if Jesus is still “dead”? What will we do after we see the empty tomb so to speak? Will we simply go back home? Will we run and tell others? As we approach Easter - may we live lives that declare JESUS IS ALIVE. May we interact with him TODAY… the LIVING GOD. It is not enough just to come to the tomb and see it empty… the empty tombs must impact the way that we live! Love you guys! - JDP