Easter Sunday: Resurrection

Power for Today (John 20:1-9)

Our scripture text is taken from John 20:1-9, a beautiful expression of the power of the Holy Spirit at work. The physical Resurrection is a once in a lifetime event, but the resurrection power of the Holy Spirit is always at work in us, around us, for us, and through us. With so much suffering around us, I want to pivot your focus on a section of the Scripture to revitalize hope. Imagine this: You hear bad news about a car accident involving a friend. You dash to the scene and see the car parts busted up, dented, some crushed, yet all packed neatly in a pile next to the tree the car hit after it flipped over. Pedestrians are on the scene, and you acknowledge it's your friend's car. You approach an onlooker and ask about the driver, who responds, "he's not here, he left." "Left! To where, what hospital he was transferred to?" you ask surprised and anxious. "He looked okay, he hailed a cab and left," the man replies. And instantly your mind gets bombarded with a train load of thoughts. Now this scenario does not explain the resurrection. Yet what I am attempting here, is to give you a holistic way to view resurrection power at work. And this cannot be done without considering the Agent that performed the resurrection--the Holy Spirit. The Scripture said when Peter entered the tomb, he saw the napkin and Jesus' grave clothes folded neatly. Keep in mind the authorities had placed guards at the tomb to ensure the disciples did not steal Jesus' body. Theologians suggests that the folding of the grave clothes was to silence the falsehood that Jesus' disciples stole his body. But is there more to it, in a sense of spiritual and real-life applications that are relevant to us today? So let's go back to the tomb for a moment. Inside this dark place had lain Jesus, who was beaten, crushed, and died. He was wrapped in linen and a napkin around his head, and was there for three days in order to fulfill the Scriptures. Today we undergo sufferings from circumstances that beat us down, crush us, and seemingly entomb us in ways that it feels like we cannot get out. However, when we look at the resurrection story, we see evidence of the Holy Spirit putting things neatly in order. The Holy Spirit's power left His mark in the tomb, although Jesus was no longer there when Peter arrived. Whatever you are going through at this moment, it may feel like the Lord is not there, you don't see any changes, and it may feel like time is running out. But visualize what Peter saw. Everything associated with the death of Jesus' body was arranged neatly and in order. Our LORD is at work, and we must become keenly aware of the Holy Spirit's presence and resurrection power that raised Christ from the dead. If your life feels like it is in a tomb, He's there with you. Remember these words of our LORD: I will never leave you nor forsake you. Therefore, we can rejoice that the Holy Spirit's resurrection power is with us today, and He desires to put our lives and all that's associated with it in order. Knowing this, we can rejoice and glorify God even in our troubled circumstances. R.G. 19/04/25 Image: pixabay.com An archive of these Scripture reflections is available here: https://rgscripturereflections.blogspot.com/