Readings for today: Mark 15-16, Psalms 102
There’s a part of me that loves the original ending of Mark’s Gospel in verse eight. Probably because I’ve gotten a taste of the emotions the women must have felt when they saw the tomb was empty and heard the good news from the young man about Jesus rising from the dead. I will never forget my first trip to the Church of the Holy Sepulcher and getting a chance to enter the empty tomb for myself. Trembling and astonishment are just two of the many emotions I felt in that moment. Tears came to my eyes as I touched the slab where my Lord lay. As my wife and I knelt and prayed together, a deep sense of awe and wonder came over us and we couldn’t speak for a while afterwards. We were at a complete loss for words.
The last thing the women expected to find that morning was an empty tomb. In fact, that was their chief worry as they headed out early that morning to finish preparing Jesus’ body for burial. “Who will roll away the stone for us?” Who will let us in to see His body? Who will help us finish the final burial rights for our dearly beloved rabbi, teacher, mentor, and friend? When they arrived and saw the stone had been moved, fear must have set in as they contemplated all the options of what this could mean. Did someone steal His body? Are the Roman soldiers desecrating His final resting place? Have the religious authorities done something with Him? Instead, they see a young man dressed in a white robe sitting where Jesus once lay. The other Gospel writers tell us he was an angel and His message was startling and unprecedented. Jesus is alive! Jesus will meet you in Galilee! Go and tell the rest of the disciples! I can only imagine their immediate response. Tell them what? Tell them Jesus - who we all saw tortured, crucified, and killed - has been raised from the dead? They had no categories for such a thing. Resurrection was the furthest thing from their thoughts. So they ran from the tomb, overwhelmed by fear and astonishment, completely unable to grasp what had taken place and certainly not able to articulate it to anyone.
Honestly, it’s always overwhelming when God shows up. It’s never easy or comfortable. It always engenders some measure of fear and trembling when we come face to face with the Holy One of Israel. I’ve been blessed with several such encounters over the course of my life. Times when the Holy Spirit makes Himself known in a powerful way that absolutely overwhelms all my senses. I am struck blind and deaf and dumb and mute by the experience. It has happened to me overseas and at home. It has happened when I feel like I’m on top of the world and when I’ve felt like I’ve been stripped to studs and have nowhere else to turn. Most of the time, it catches me completely by surprise and I almost always walk away trembling from the experience. It’s a fearful thing to fall into the hands of Almighty God but it’s also good for He is ever faithful and true.
Readings for tomorrow: John 1-2, Psalms 103